Two-minute review
The Super83-R Brooklyn isn’t your typical experience. This e-bike is extra electrical moped, or motorbike even, than it’s bicycle. It falls within the higher finish of the worth spectrum for e-bikes at $3,495 (about £2,800 / AU$5,000) earlier than you begin moving into really premium bikes, but it surely comes totally loaded for driving pleasure.
Key specs
Weight: 80lb
Motor: 2,000W
Battery: 1,000Wh
Range: 40 miles at 20mph below throttle, 75 miles utilizing eco pedal help mode
This cafe-racer model e-bike rides quick on a rear hub motor that may output a peak 2,000W, and it runs on a virtually 1,000Wh battery. The mixture lets it go over 30mph and obtain over 20 miles of vary on throttle alone.
E-bike aficionados will acknowledge that the velocity is at odds with some e-bike class laws. The Super83-R Brooklyn is able to going past Class 3 capabilities, so riders should dial within the velocity and management mode that matches the legal guidelines of their area – one thing that might scale back the worth of the bike for these in Class 1 or Class 2 areas.
With full suspension on the entrance and rear of the bike, in addition to an opulent seat, the Super83-R Brooklyn is a superb experience on streets even with the occasional bump – although not so nice on gravel and free terrain.
Of course, it’s meant for the road. It picks up casually with out the form of acceleration that may throw a novice experience, and it cruises up to the mark with out fuss even for heavier riders. The speeds make it straightforward to maintain up with the move of site visitors on metropolis streets. The included motorcycle-style headlight and brake gentle helps with visibility and security, as does the splendidly loud horn — no bell on this child.
The complete package deal comes collectively splendidly. It’s principally a moped with a modest prime velocity and sufficient vary to pop round city with a battery you may recharge in a single day for a couple of cents.
It’s absurdly heavy for a motorbike, so not best for those who don’t have a ground-floor area to park, however the battery can come off to cost. That mentioned, it’s a lot lighter than a typical moped.
It’s additionally dear for an e-bike, although there are Class 3 e-bikes that value extra with out including vary, just like the Bluejay Sport. It’s actual competitors could also be scooters and bikes, which it usually proves cheaper, lighter, and extra accessible than (given it doesn’t require a license, insurance coverage, or registration to experience), making it a wonderful choice for the city commuter on the lookout for electrical mobility that’s equal components snug, trendy, and enjoyable.
Price and availability
The Super83-R Brooklyn is offered now for $3,495 (about £2,800 / AU$5,000) within the continental United States and Hawaii, with restricted availability elsewhere by means of regional sellers.
That’s in the direction of the upper finish for an e-bike, although not as expensive as our present top-rated mannequin, the Specialized Turbo Vado 4.0 (2022).
Design
The Super83-R Brooklyn isn’t what you would possibly consider first whenever you consider an electrical bicycle. It’s styled extra after a restaurant racer motorbike. While the Super83-R Brooklyn has pedals, they’re straightforward to miss. The bike has a sturdy aluminum alloy body with mirrored tubes, not the one prime, backside, and seat tubes we’re used to. The seating extends immediately from the highest tube, making for a low driving place that’s additionally extra like a motorbike than a motorbike. Even that battery pack is located proper in entrance of the seat, the place you’d count on a gasoline tank on a motorbike.
The Super83-R Brooklyn options entrance and adjustable rear suspension that dampens vibration whereas driving. It rolls alongside easily on Super73’s thick customized LZRD road tires, that are far nearer to motorbike tires than they’re bicycle tires.
Adding to the consolation is a well-cushioned seat. The thickest a part of the seat is curiously on the again, the place it’d assist stop the rider from sliding backwards, but it surely’s too far again for sitting comfortably and Super73 doesn’t advocate having passengers. We discovered it principally satisfying, however bought a bit saddle sore on the finish of longer rides and wouldn’t be upset with some additional cushion. Lighter riders below 200 kilos will most likely be higher off.
Neatly hidden away within the again wheel is a hub motor that may output 2,000 watts of peak energy. It has a single-speed cassette for pedalling, however it may get powered by a responsive cadence sensor or a thumb throttle, letting it ship the bike’s prime speeds with out person effort. That’s nice information, as a result of the driving place is just terrible for pedaling. It’s exhausting to place a lot power into the pedal whereas seated, and extremely awkward to attempt pedaling standing up due to the low handlebars which can be solely a bit in entrance of the pedals.
The gearing makes pedalling solely actually viable at low speeds anyway, as as soon as the bike’s cruising at over 20mph, solely a really quick cadence will truly get the gears engaged. Slowing down is a unique matter, as braking is managed with dual-piston, Tektro hydraulic disc brakes which can be as much as the duty and minimize off the motor when the levers are pulled.
Super73 rounds out the package deal with an enormous, 1,100-lumen headlight and a strong tail gentle that responds to the brakes being pulled. There’s additionally a loud horn constructed into the middle of the body and activated with a thumb button. Given how a lot this bike could also be in site visitors, it’s good to see these concerns. The firm is planning to introduce non-obligatory flip alerts within the close to future. The bike helps some app management for altering working modes, viewing battery cost, and establishing flip by flip navigation. Meanwhile a management pad on the left handlebar can deal with most issues, displaying velocity, vary, odometer information, and instructions. It additionally offers a continuing battery studying with a hoop round its circumference, and affords controls for pedal help ranges and lights.
All of this {hardware} comes at the price of weight. The bike suggestions the scales at 82.4lb – a uncommon event the place a motorbike is lighter than a producer claims. The weight and bulk make it a real ache to hold up and down any stairs, particularly winding stairways.
Thankfully the battery is detachable, so it’s potential to retailer the bike at floor degree and haul the battery to wherever it’s good to cost. It slots into place with a key lock for safety, although anybody who comes throughout the bike would be capable to energy it up if the battery is in place. The 960Wh battery is hefty, and takes a very long time to fill on the 163.8W charger, simply upwards of six hours. A 5A charger to hurry up charging is offered as an non-obligatory additional.
s it’s a severe battery holding lots of potential power and fireplace danger is at all times a risk, we checked with Super73 about Underwriter Labs certification. While the battery isn’t presently UL licensed, we’re advised the corporate is within the means of searching for certification and hopes to have it in a pair months.
Super73 has made this bike water-proof so it may maintain up within the rain, although this mannequin doesn’t embrace the identical fenders among the different fashions do.
Performance
The Super83-R Brooklyn is constructed for efficiency. It’s made for a quick and easy experience that may have you ever overlook you’re technically driving a bicycle. The peak 2000W output of the motor is effectively managed. It doesn’t jolt off the beginning line, however accelerates comfortably as much as the highest velocity. It’s fast sufficient to not annoy drivers who is perhaps ready behind us, although for a faster begin we regularly push off to get a bit enhance.
The motor is actually mighty. We’re driving the Super83-R Brooklyn with a mixed payload of us and the bike that’s simply over 300 kilos, but the bike remains to be capable of edge over 30mph in its offroad, derestricted mode. So it’s no shock that the Super83-R Brooklyn doesn’t wrestle to maintain cruising alongside at as much as 28mph in its road-legal mode.
The velocity is that a lot simpler to get pleasure from due to the development of the bike. Speedbumps, small divots, and little lumps within the highway all get smoothed out by the suspension and the padded seat. Since the driving place doesn’t put any weight into our palms, they continue to be snug all through the experience.
Thanks to its velocity, we regularly felt snug after we needed to merge with vehicles, for the reason that metropolis streets usually had us going the identical velocity, however we had the liberty to pop over into bike lanes, making our commute as straightforward as ever. In a pinch, the Super83-R Brooklyn may brake like champ, readily going from 20mph to a cease in a single automotive size with little to no skidding (once more with a 300lb payload).
Super73’s water protections proved worthy in our testing, as we bought caught in the midst of a substantial rainstorm on one experience, and made the eight-mile journey again soaked to the bone whereas the bike didn’t a lot as sputter. The lack of fenders and the velocity of the wheels does have the unlucky impact of launching a ton of water up from the road immediately in entrance of our face, so if avoiding rain isn’t an choice, goggles or a entrance fender are nearly a necessity.
All this efficiency stems from the motor doing its factor. We can recover from 24 miles of the motor working like a beast, largely simply the throttle with a bit pedal help at decrease speeds, and lighter riders can see much more vary, however the second the battery begins getting low, the tune modifications. Once the battery will get under 25% cost, it’s time to consider a refill.
Even with the meter exhibiting 4 miles of vary left, the efficiency dropped off a cliff. We almost bought caught up in an intersection as we tried to throttle by means of it and all of the sudden had nearly no energy. At that time, the throttle can barely maintain 10mph and accelerates like a snail. Pedalling appears like a continuing hill climb and probably the most the motor might do was assist us maintain about 12-13mph. Super73 has an non-obligatory 10-speed setup, however pedalling appears like a final resort on this bike.
Given that efficiency cliff, it’s principally important to be sure you’ve bought a buffer of vary for the experience. While it’s potential to deliver a charger alongside on a visit and add some additional juice throughout a cease, the sluggish charging velocity might depart you stopped longer than you’d like. That mentioned, there’s loads of room on the body to put in a bracket to carry a backup battery pack for additional vary.
The efficiency of the Super83-R Brooklyn places it in a singular spot. Typical e-bikes are a lot simpler to maintain pedalling on as soon as the battery is drained, although nonetheless an added problem subsequent to analog bikes, to allow them to nonetheless be a wise choice for riders who may not at all times keep in mind to recharge.
The positioning has the Super83-R Brooklyn compete extra with mopeds and even bikes as a reasonably reasonably priced electrical various. In that matchup, it does have the benefit of legally being an electrical bicycle and never requiring costly insurance coverage, registration, or a license, additional serving to riders get monetary savings. But, for people with severe commuting wants who can’t be caught off after they overlook to cost, precise small-engine mopeds just like the Yamaha S-Max or bikes just like the V Star 250 are solely about $1,000 extra.
The greater menace Super73 faces is one thing just like the equally priced Juiced HyperScrambler 2, which will not be as trendy, however is iconic in its personal manner, guarantees comparable efficiency and luxury, boosts security options, has a multi-speed transmission by default, and comes with twin battery packs for almost 2,000Wh of energy.
First reviewed April 2022