Lectric XP Lite 2.0 Review

Building high-value, direct-to-consumer bikes since 2018, Lectric e-bikes have become ubiquitous. The XP Lite is their most basic offering, but it doesn't feel cheap or lacking. In fact, we love this bike's simplicity and find its compact, lightweight approach to e-mobility refreshing.

Ride

The Lectric XP Lite is a single-speed folding bike, but neither of those attributes defines its ride. As with other single-speed ebikes we've tested, the powered drivetrain compensates for the lack of gears. Since the bike doesn't have a derailleur, shifter, or cassette, it's also lighter weight and simpler to ride. You're never in the wrong gear; if the resistance feels too much, the throttle is there to help you along. A key feature of this bike is its ability to fold in half; however, nothing about the ride quality suggests that this is the case. As a Class 2 e-bike, it's equipped with a throttle that drives the 300W motor.

The bike features 20-inch wheels and a rigid steel fork, making it less forgiving on rough roads. 2.5" tires and a comfortable saddle provide a small amount of isolation from the road, but comfort for long rides wasn't a priority. Sometimes, when we look at budget-priced bikes, it's apparent that the only priority was keeping the cost down; however, that doesn't seem to be the case with this bike. Depending on how high you place the handlebars and saddle, you can choose to be upright or have a bit more weight on your hands. The geometry sits on the sportier side of neutral with quick steering that makes the bike feel nimble and a fairly long reach that helps users up to 6'2" and 275 pounds enjoy the ride. The stem has 65mm of adjustability, while the suspension seatpost that came on our bike has 280mm of adjustability.

The bike is compact but surprisingly long across the cockpit. The 20" wheels aren't the smoothest ride, but if you're on established roadways or paths, the 2.5" tires and steel fork do an adequate job of providing comfort. The turning radius is tight, and the XP feels more agile than most bikes at slow speeds. The tradeoff is that the bike feels less stable at higher speeds; my maximum speed while testing was 32 mph, and I wouldn't recommend riding the XP that fast.

The XP Lite only comes in one frame style and size, which isn't really a step-over ot step-through. Your foot needs to clear the bike's frame handle at 22" to mount or dismount. A relatively slack 73-degree effective seat tube angle allowed us to comfortably rest our feet on the ground with the saddle at proper height. The grips don't lock in place, so the grip on the right side would occasionally twist with the throttle, which was noticeable because of the oval shape of the grips. While the ride is simple and basic, but never felt lacking.

Done riding and want to store the XP Lite? You're in luck because this bike can easily be stashed in a closet or the back of a car. This would be a great bike for small plane pilots, RV travellers, or commuters who wanted to stash the bike away in their office. The XP Lite folds down to 36L x 16W x 27H" in less than a minute.

Range

The XP Lite utilizes a smaller 300-watt motor that sips power from the battery, providing the bike with a respectable range but diminished power. I was impressed with how slowly the battery seemed to be draining during the range test. This is partially due to the low draw of the motor, but also the battery management system (BMS) that isn't super accurate. I noticed at the 10-mile mark that the display still showed a full charge, then within 1/2 mile, the display went from 90% to 40%. We tested this bike on the same course we use for testing all of the electric bikes we review, but the 300-watt motor provided some complications. Unable to handle the hills in our test course, the motor overheated.

Since we don't pedal at all and instead rely on the throttle during range tests, the overheating wasn't a huge surprise. Pushing a 180-pound rider up a steep grade with a 300-watt motor isn't simple. Once the motor cooled, we resumed our test and eked out 13.9 miles of range with the 375Wh battery. We also had a 672Wh battery, so we tested the bike a second time and were able to travel 25.08 miles with over 1000 feet of elevation gain. This is more mileage than we got out of the XP 3.0 using its 500Wh battery and 500-watt motor. Our test bike weighed just over 52 pounds with standard battery and 55 lbs 2 oz with the long-range battery.

Power

When you twist the throttle on the XP Lite, you're not met with instant torque and acceleration. Instead, you experience a split-second delay, followed by a gentle pull toward your destination. The motor's power ramps up as the speed does, but it's a mild and gentle assist that never catches you off guard. The 300W (834W peak) appreciates the help of your pedaling input and likely doesn't accelerate as fast as you could with some sporty feeling legs. I felt perfectly comfortable putting my 9-year-old kid on the bike, knowing the assist was subtle enough that the bike wouldn't be problematic while she cruised the neighborhood.

The XP Lite has five levels of pedal assist to customize the feel of the bike. A cadence sensor detects how fast you're pedaling and sends power to the hub motor. The pedal assist mode changes how much assist is provided and also changes the amount of throttle power the bike gives. In PAS1, the throttle power tops out around 10 mph, while the PAS5 allows you to accelerate to 20mph in 10 seconds. In our hill test, the bike accelerated to 13.9 mph and slowed to 9 mph on the steepest section of the grade. While not designed for hill climbing, this respectable power output from the bike's motor showcases how weight savings contribute to its success.

Interface

As you might expect, the interface on the Lectric XP Lite is relatively basic but more full-featured than most of the bikes in our budget bike review. Using a color display centered on the handlebars and a three-button remote next to the left grip, the cockpit is simple and easy to understand, even if you're one of those people who don't read the manual. The three buttons on the remote are power, plus, and minus. Powering the bike on requires a long push of the power button. Once the bike is on, a short push of the power button will change the variable display from the odometer to the trip meter, to voltage, to current, to the elapsed time. The plus button increases your pedal assist level, and a long push of the button will turn on the bike's lights. The headlight and tail light are both adequately bright for night riding, and the tail light does not have a brake light function. The minus button decreases the pedal assist, and a long push engages walk mode, allowing the bike to power itself at a walking pace. This can be a handy feature for times when you might want to push the bike up a steep ramp or through a crowded area without having to push the weight of the bike.

The display on the Lectric XP Lite is the same as those used on most of the current Lectric bikes, and it's well laid out and easy to read. A colored bar chart at the top of the display shows your battery's current state of charge and current wattage of the motor. In the center of the screen, in large font, is your current speed represented in km/h or mp/h to the tenth of a unit. A smaller concentric circle sits below and shows your current PAS mode. At the bottom of the display in the variable display, that view can be changed using the power button. The display does not indicate a remaining range, unlike some Lectric models; however, this bike does feature cruise control. Wait, what? Not a joke: if you're operating under throttle power, you can hold the throttle and minus buttons simultaneously, and the “cruise” pop-up will appear on the screen. Cruise control holds your speed at whatever level you were riding (under 20 mph) and will maintain that speed until you touch the throttle or either brake lever. I was incredulous when I first spotted the feature, but I have come to love it for long stints on the bike path.

At the bottom of the 3x2" display, there is a USB-A charging port that will allow you to charge a phone or run a string of LED lights around the bike. The battery on the XP Lite is inside the frame and can be accessed by opening the frame at its folding hinge. There is a hole in the side of the frame that allows you to access the battery's charge port, enabling you to recharge the battery whether it is in or out of the frame. The battery locks into the frame with a key that is inserted on the underside of the main tube. To operate the bike, the key must be inserted, and to put it mildly, the location of the locking mechanism is terrible. I tested this bike in my bucolic llittle mountain town where bikes are rarely stolen or messed with so I left the key in the lock for the entirety of testing but if you're locking this bike up in an urban environment, you'll need to reach under the tube, push the wiring out of the way and unlock the bike each time you use it.

Assembly

What assembly? The Lectric XP Lite took just 11 minutes to unpack and assemble. Most of that time was spent removing packaging and reading warning labels; even the pedals were already installed. We adjusted the seat and handlebar height, inflated the tires, and charged the battery. By the time I had taken the cardboard to the recycling, the battery was charged, and the bike was ready to go. I found the chain to be a bit tight, so that was loosened after the first ride, but otherwise the bike was tuned and ready to go.

While the Lectric XP Lite arrives fully assembled, the box can be a little unruly to move around. There are no handles like you'd find on a standard bike box so I just pushed it across the floor to the assembly location. When I pressed the power button, the bike didn't power up. I had forgotten that Lectric bikes need to have the key in the key slot to power on. It feels strange to ride around with the keys hanging down, but the on position doesn't allow the key to fall from the tumbler.

Value

The Lectric XP Lite is an outstanding value! I don't use exclamation marks often, but this bike warrants one when discussing value. It's not even a bare-bones offering and still smokes the competition in the value department. A rack, fenders, hydraulic disc brakes, and built-in lights with free shipping; I'm not sure how Lectric pulls it off, but the price tag makes this little foldable bike even more impressive. Lectric has done an outstanding job of keeping prices low; if you're on a tight budget, this is the best value ebike we've come across.

Conclusion

The Lectric XP Lite isn't just an outstanding value; it employs a strategy to create a good user experience and give you the essentials without making you feel like you're buying a car with no stereo. Undoubtedly, the folding design keeps their shipping cost low, but there isn't a downside ot the folding aspect of the bike. The frame doesn't feel compromised or flex, and there are some real upsides to its folding nature. Considering the smaller storage size, this bike can absolutely be stored in an apartment closet or the trunk of a car. Additionally, there's no real need for a bike rack; you can transport the bike in the back seat or storage hold underneath an RV.