Why I Preferred This $10,000 Cargo E-Bike Higher Than Its Huge Brother

Electrical cargo bikes are having a second in America’s cities. The mix of cargo-hauling capability and assisted pedaling affords a compelling various to automobile use and public transit for around-town errands. On prime of all that, most e-bikes are simply plain enjoyable to journey.

I borrowed Riese & Müller’s Load4 75 front-loader cargo e-bike earlier this 12 months. Whereas I cherished using it and filling it to the brim with bulk objects from Costco or the backyard retailer, it was powerful to get out and in of my condominium. Its price ticket—$14,000—additionally left me scratching my head.

Enter the Carrie: the high-end German model’s compact e-cargo bike. With a a lot smaller footprint than the Load and a intelligent folding basket up entrance, the Carrie guarantees on a regular basis utility in a much more handy bundle. It’s additionally 40% cheaper than the Load. May this be the ticket?

Riese & Müller Carrie E-Bike

Picture by: Maddox Kay/InsideEVs

(Full disclosure: The crew at e-bike supplier Propel Bikes lent me the Carrie for a number of days for this assessment.)

The Carrie is a compact, pedal-assist cargo e-bike. Its defining characteristic is an optionally available $509 folding “Flex Field” that measures simply 18 inches (46 cm) large when closed, however snaps open to 29.5 inches (75 cm).

The bike is 82 inches (209 cm) lengthy, that means it nearly matches contained in the Load4’s wheelbase. Regardless of that, it affords a beneficiant 4.7 cubic toes of cargo room with the “Flex Field” open. That’s dwarfed by the Load’s 13.5, but it surely’s nonetheless sufficient to hold a small youngster or a load of groceries comfortably. Whereas it’s rated to haul as much as 176 kilos (80 kg), you’ll be able to neglect about becoming one other grownup in there. Surprisingly, it’s simply 5 kilos lighter than the Load at 78.7 as a substitute of 84.

Picture by: Maddox Kay/InsideEVs

Picture by: Maddox Kay/InsideEVs

The Carrie additionally comes with a smaller price ticket, although I nonetheless wouldn’t name it low-cost: $9,489 with a 545 watt-hour battery, with a 725 Wh improve accessible for $255. These batteries present an estimated vary of 57 and 77 miles in regular using mode, respectively—however your mileage could fluctuate.

All the benefits of R&M’s bigger front-loader e-bikes additionally apply to the Carrie: It has a low heart of gravity and a strong Bosch motor, each of which make it a pleasure to journey. Total, it was snug, maneuverable and fast off the road, although I missed the Load’s full-suspension design over rougher roads. (The Carrie has a suspension fork up entrance and an optionally available suspension seatpost, which was outfitted on my tester.)

As a Class 3 pedal-assist e-bike, the Carrie has no throttle however offers your pedal strokes an electrical increase as much as 28 miles per hour. (There’s a “stroll” mode that offers a small help when rolling the bike, although.) In apply, it desires to cruise round 20-22 mph, which is greater than quick sufficient to maintain tempo with stop-and-go visitors and shoot the gaps round hapless vacationers on New York’s protected bike paths.

Picture by: Maddox Kay/InsideEVs

Picture by: Maddox Kay/InsideEVs

Picture by: Maddox Kay/InsideEVs

The Carrie makes use of an Enviolo steady hub in its rear wheel, so there aren’t distinct gears to select from. Should you’ve ever ridden a CitiBike or different bikeshare bike, you’ve most likely skilled a transmission like this. You merely grip and twist a dial on the handlebars, and quite than feeling the bike change gears, pedaling simply will get tougher or simpler. It takes some getting used to in case you’re coming from a motorbike with conventional gears, but it surely’s most likely extra intuitive for most folk: Simply get on the bike, twist till pedaling is snug, and journey.

The variable ratio, mixed with the Bosch e-motor’s 5 pedal-assist settings, meant the Carrie was a lot able to powering up hills and bridge inclines. Just like the Load, it forgoes chain cleanings with a carbon belt drive.

With the ability to truly get the factor by way of doorways and into my condominium with out fixing a geometrical proof first was a game-changer. I discovered myself taking the Carrie on extra journeys, even using it to the InsideEVs workplace, the place it match simply in our small elevator. So, the Carrie is a way more sensible proposition for apartment-dwellers and people with out garages, who I’d wager make up a large portion of the target market for some of these bikes.

As talked about above, the Carrie’s measurement lent itself to metropolis dwelling. The house and off-bike maneuverability points I had with the Load have been gone, whereas a lot of the day-to-day utility was preserved. The bike’s shorter size and width made it simpler to park curbside and in conventional bike racks. Utilizing the folding cargo field was a cinch—two levers launch the facet panels, and the press firmly right into a deployed or collapsed state.

That cargo field, whereas not big, was capable of match my backpack, three giant baggage of groceries, and a few sodas with out difficulty. It’s not the monster Costco hauler the Load is, however truthfully, how usually do you want 30 rolls of paper towels?

Picture by: Maddox Kay/InsideEVs

Whereas I didn’t go 50 miles in a day, I discovered the Carrie’s vary estimates to be pretty correct. A 16-mile round-trip commute used 20 miles of vary, and I didn’t see big vary drops when carrying cargo with the field open.

Whereas the Carrie’s smaller profile is a boon for metropolis using, it comes with some trade-offs. Riese & Müller’s beneficial child-carrying capability is proscribed to 2 youngsters beneath the age of seven. Meaning households may spend 5 figures on the Carrie, solely to outgrow it after a number of years.

As you’ll be able to see above, with my weekly grocery procuring and backpack, the Carrie’s entrance field was almost full. A child would’ve been critically squished, making it extra of a kids-or-cargo proposition. I might’ve match extra with the kid seats eliminated, but when your routine entails dropping youngsters off at daycare or faculty earlier than persevering with on to work, that’s doubtless not an possibility.

Whereas the Carrie’s cargo field is satisfyingly deep, it lacks the underfloor storage compartment of the Load, which suggests it’s tougher to hide objects or stop youngsters from stepping on them. I needed to get a little bit inventive with my packing, the place the Load supplied really car-like cargo capability.

Picture by: Maddox Kay/InsideEVs

Picture by: Maddox Kay/InsideEVs

Whether or not the Carrie is for you is dependent upon the way you worth compactness and maneuverability vs. all-out functionality. For my childless family of two dwelling in an condominium, the Carrie was a perfect-sized runabout, but when I had youngsters and a storage to park in, I is likely to be swayed by the Load’s versatility.

At roughly $11,500 absolutely outfitted, the Carrie nonetheless represents the high-end, area of interest facet of the e-bike market. It’s a thoughtfully designed, inventive product that performs its supposed features effectively and brings pleasure. Nonetheless, the worth proposition nonetheless could not work out for most folk.

One factor I’ve realized in my e-bike adventures thus far is simply how enjoyable this stuff make on a regular basis errands and commuting. I’m curious to attempt some extra reasonably priced, mass-market e-bikes from Tern, Gazelle and extra. What ought to I assessment subsequent?

Contact the writer: Maddox.Kay@motorsport.com