this post was submitted on 08 Aug 2026
126 points (99.2% liked)
Electric Vehicles
2937 readers
135 users here now
Overview:
Electric Vehicles are a key part of our tomorrow and how we get there. If we can get all the fossil fuel vehicles off our roads, out of our seas and out of our skies, we'll have a much better environment. This community is where we discuss the various different vehicles and news stories regarding electric transportation.
Related communities:
- !automotive@discuss.tchncs.de
- !avs@futurology.today
- !byd@lemmy.world
- !ebike@lemm.ee
- !energy@slrpnk.net
- !geely@lemmy.world
- !micromobility@lemmy.world
- !polestar@lemmy.ca
- !rivian@lemmy.zip
- !teslamotors@lemmy.zip
- !xiaomi@lemdro.id
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
At what point are they just motorcycles
Time to reclassify the definition of motorcycle. Can't be based on engine size anymore it needs to be based on speed capability. Same with road cars, if it can go 0-60 in 5 seconds its a sports car and should be taxed and insured based on that.
SUV classifications need unfucking too, broken since the start
A lot of states have already done this. In mine it can't be registered as a moped if its motor is capable of above a certain wattage output.
That's not a great way to do it either though. A couple of issues off the top of my head -
The 1st issue is peak vs continuous wattage. A lot of people - ie the ones who will be handing out fines/confiscating the ebike ( or even registering it) won't know the difference and trying to get manufactures to standardize labeling to clearly show continuous vs peak wouldn't solve that even if if they did standardize.
The 2nd is if you need an ebike in an area with steep hills you need more wattage to get up them.
The biggest issue is a lot of ebike speed limiters are easily bypassed right in the settings so any Joe schmoe can go faster than is safe right out the box. that is what really needs to be fixed.
Fair point, but those caveats do run parallel with existing ones for the ICE definition of a moped. There are 50cc sport bikes that will do 70 mph. Ebikes are just less understood by the law because they're new and government is slow.
In the EU: as soon as they have a throttle, or if they provide power at speeds above 25 km/h
In the EU they are also limited to 250W.
So as soon as they are actually useful... I can already cycle at or above 25kmh with a mid range hybrid/trekking bike, or budget by US standards.
The bikes aren't providing the power, you are
Then what is the point of it?
Not with headwind or up a hill you can't.
Its rare to have a significant enough headwind to matter, its as flat as the Netherlands here.
Pretty sure the groups I see on high end road bikes probably could still do that speed up hill too, they are fucking quick.
25,kmh is the minimum speed of an ebike. You won't sustain that on a bicycle. The average speed on the tour de France is 27 kmh.
The Tour de France includes mountain climbs and riding for the whole day, my commute to work is 20 mins along an old railway. Here 25kmh is the maximum speed an ebike can go before the motor becomes dead weight.
At least in my jurisdiction, if it has an external shifter of some kind (manual transmission or manually operated clutch), an engine of over 50ccs displacement, or a top speed over 30mph on level ground is a motorcycle. A one-speed or fully automatic transmission, 49cc or less displacement, and 30mph top speed, it's a moped.
A lot of e-bikes should be regulated as mopeds and driven on the street like any other motor vehicle, not mixed with pedestrian traffic. I'm not even convinced about "pedal assist."
Could be pretty interested in easier access to an electric moped at ebike prices. Used to ride a 50cc.
Equip them with lights and require a driver's license for them and I'm fine with that. Even include pedals.
Yeah that is what a 50cc bike requires. Not sure if lights are strictly required to ride it during the day but not seen one without, obviously required at night.