The Fiido L3 Electric Bike — CleanTechnica Review
Fiido has a line of innovative folding electric bikes and we were fortunate enough to get our hands on the brand new Fiido L3 to see what it’s capable of in some real world testing. On the surface, the L3 is a compact folding electric bike capped out with a beautifully comfortable cruiser saddle and a massive battery.
As a folding bike, the L3 arrives almost completely assembled. We spent a few minutes to get it unpacked and out of the box and we were up and running in no time. Folding and unfolding the bike is a simple matter of lowering the seat post, folding the handlebar stem down vertically, and finally, folding the entire frame in half. It’s a quick process though it does result in a bit of a floppy package. The more compact size makes it easy to put the L3 in a trunk or store it on a shelf in the garage compared to traditional bikes.
Riding the Fiido L3 turned out to be quite a bit more fun than we expected. Because of its flexible folding bike design, it’s easy to adjust the handlebars and seat heights up and down to suit the needs of a wide range of riders. At 6’2″, I’m clearly at the upper edge of compatibility with the bike and I was impressed when both my young sons were able to comfortably ride it after a few quick adjustments.
The bike is heavier than it looks like it should be on account of its massive 23.3 Ah battery. Most full-sized e-bikes come stocked with 14 Ah batteries, with folding e-bikes this size coming with batteries in the 7-9 Ah range.
The battery itself defines the L3, with the entire bike designed to be a long range cruiser bike. By long range, Fiido estimates the L3 will be able to achieve a staggering 155 miles (249.4 kilometers) of range per charge. Achieving that range requires the rider to contribute a reasonable amount of work, but let’s be honest here: it’s not likely anyone is going to ride the L3 (or any bike) that far in a single day.
More realistically, the massive battery will be put to use on this single-speed bike to provide higher levels of assistance for shorter distances. We ran the L3 around our test routes, around town on errands, up and down the steep hills in the neighborhood, and still hardly put a dent in the capacity of this massive battery. The battery is further magnified by the fact that the power is only powering a 350 watt motor. It’s more than sufficient for the task, and hardly sips the electrons compared to the massive power draw of the US maximum 750 watt motors.
The L3’s status as a cruiser bike is further cemented by its luxurious seat. It’s more of a rectangle shape than a traditional seat and it is packed with comfort. A blend of foam up top and springs down below make for a very comfortable ride for such a compact seat. It’s not going to win any awards for making pedaling easier, but it does allow for a reasonable amount of leg movement.
Up top, a left-mounted controller features an easy to read LCD screen with the speed prominently featured. It’s easy and intuitive to turn the bike on and off as well as to adjust the pedal assist mode from any of three different assist levels. A pair of external buttons were added to control the front light and to add a front horn that’s rather loud. I appreciate the addition of these safety features as they make riding a bike in all conditions safer.
Speaking of safety, the L3 comes with a pair of mechanical disc brakes that do a fair job of slowing the bike down. A set of front and rear headlights on the bike are wired directly into the battery, so there’s no need to charge them and they are rather bright. The bike also comes with a set of fenders to make commuting even more of a carefree affair.
Overall, the Fiido L3 is an impressive entrant into the folding electric bike segment with an unparalleled amount of range per charge. It would be right at home in any RV, all but eliminating the need to worry about how charged up the battery is. The comfortable seat and small rack out back make it a suitable option for commuting to and from work, running errands around town, or to the gym.
The L3 is on the heavier side of the range of compact folding electric bikes, but that’s just the tradeoff that comes with such a massive battery. It is impressive Fiido is able to sell this bike for the current price of $999 given just how many features they’ve packed into it.
Head over to Fiido’s website for more information about the L3 or to order one.
Disclaimer: This review was sponsored by Fiido.
Fiido L3 Folding Electric Bike Specs
- Motor: 350 watt rear hub motor
- Battery: 48V, 23.2Ah
- Range: Up to 155 mile range (250 km) per charge
- Weight: 53 lb (24 kg)
- Weight Capacity: 165 lb (75 kg)
- Top Speed: 15.5 mph (25 kph)
- Price: currently on sale for $999, regular price $1,099
All images credit: Kyle Field, CleanTechnica
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