Lectric XPress

The XPress 750 is an e-bike that Lectric says “… brings unparalleled performance to a classic look.” We think the bike looks good, but will our tests show it has the performance to back up Lectric’s claim?

This review will provide an overview of Lectric and the XPress 750, followed by pros and cons, a deep dive into the bike’s spec, and the data from our standardized testing. We will also discuss the ride experience and finish with an overall assessment of the bike’s value.

About Lectric

Lectric is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. Since the founders designed their first e-bike in 2019, the company has gone on to sell an impressive number of e-bikes. Lectric currently offers seven models, including folders, full-size bikes for the road and off-road, cargo bikes, and a trike.

Its flagship bike, the XP, is a budget-friendly folding e-bike. This model is now in its fourth generation, the XP4, and we tested the previous version, the XP 3.0. In total, we’ve reviewed or tested 15 Lectric e-bikes over the years.

What Is the XPress 750?

The Lectric XPress is a hybrid commuter e-bike with an 80mm suspension fork and 27.5” x 2.1” tires. It’s available as a step-through or step-over, both of which come with a choice of 500W motor and 10.4Ah battery or 750W motor and 14Ah battery. We’re testing the 750W step-over.

The XPress 750 has a torque sensor for managing pedal assist. The bike ships as Class 2 with a 20mph top speed and a thumb-style throttle. The PAS speed limit can be unlocked to 28mph, or users can remove it for full compliance with Class 1 and Class 3 e-bike rules. The bike doesn’t come with accessories like fenders or racks, but model-specific versions are available from Lectric’s webstore.

Has Lectric produced another popular and affordable e-bike? Or will it falter in our performance tests? Let’s explore the pros and cons to find out more.

Pros

Riding Experience

The XPress 750 step-over is an enjoyable ride. The slightly forward-leaning, athletic riding position is ideal for pedaling and makes it easy to maneuver the bike in turns. The 27.5″ x 2.1” tires fit the bike’s intended use as a commuter. They cover ground faster than 20” wheels, with just the right mix of stability and maneuverability for urban riding.

The torque sensor is responsive and tuned nicely for this motor. It never felt like the bike lacked power, even when climbing hills. Some bikes with torque sensors require huge pedal effort to get the most out of the motor, but not the XPress 750. There is plenty of power on tap, and the torque sensor responds quickly to pedal input. This bike quickly reaches 20mph using the throttle or PAS, and the 28mph pedal assist top speed is easy to unlock.

Overall, the XPress 750 proved a fun and capable ride. The bike’s power and agile handling turned simple commutes into exciting rides.

Appearance

The simple frame lines, clean welds, and attractive black color give the bike a tidy appearance. The battery is subtly integrated into the down tube, and the XPress lacks the bulk seen with so many e-bikes at this price point. The result is a trim-looking bike, which received compliments during testing and enhances the overall feeling of quality.

Functionality

The XPress is easy to set up and configured for Classes 1, 2, or 3, and it functioned well during testing. The geometry, powerful motor, and well-tuned torque sensor make it an enjoyable and responsive ride.

The bike has eight settings for tuning the pedal assistance and speed. Overall, the tuning options are slightly limited, but they’re simple to use, and Lectric’s user manual is much better than what you get with most e-bikes at this price point.

The display is big and bright and has simple controls, but the battery meter is inaccurate, which we will discuss further in the cons.

The quick-release pedals and front axle make storage and transport much easier. The bike’s 62.8lb weight is relatively easy to lift, and with 2.1” tires, the XPress will fit a wider range of vehicle-mounted bike racks.

Cons

Loud Motor

Lectric makes a big deal about its Stealth M24 motor being quiet, and while it’s fairly quiet at low power output, it’s very noisy when accelerating quickly, riding at 20mph, or climbing hills. It’s louder than most hub motors we’ve tested. The motor also made crackling or stuttering noises, which became louder throughout the test rides. This noise is very distracting.

Poor Lights

In addition to this bike’s standard front light, Lectric included its Elite headlight for testing. This light has a stated output of 850 lux, four times that of the standard light, but it costs extra.

In testing, both the standard light and the Elite were dim and inadequate. While the Elite illuminates a traffic cone at 100 feet, it doesn’t provide sufficient peripheral lighting.

Neither of these lights is adequate for standalone use at night. In addition, the rear light has no flashing modes or brake activation. Overall, the included lighting is disappointing.

Erratic Battery Indicator

This bike’s ability to estimate remaining battery is abysmal. The battery has 10 bars: seven green, two yellow, and one red. This is double the typical five-bar indicator, but it manages to be less accurate, and the bike causes severe range anxiety.

After 12 miles into the PAS 5 range test, the meter was still full. Just one mile later, after climbing a large hill, the bars started falling like dominoes. After another five miles, the battery meter showed just five bars, but once back on level ground, the gauge rose again to six bars.

At this point, I stopped to swap camera batteries, and after a few minutes idle, the bike automatically powered off. When I restarted the bike a few moments later, the battery level was back at full bars. Of course, the bars soon began dropping again. In the end, I used the voltage display to monitor the battery charge.

Eventually, the battery meter falls to the last bar, and then this red bar starts flashing to say the voltage is very low. If the voltage falls below 40.8V, the screen starts flashing the E-006 error code. However, true to this bike’s nature, even this error code is erratic. By reducing pedal pressure for a few seconds, the error code disappears, leaving just the flashing red bar on the battery meter.

While the bike displays the flashing red bar and the error code, the motor provides minimal power from the throttle. However, there’s still plenty of pep from the pedal assist, with up to 500W output showing on the display and the bike reaching up to 16mph.

In the second range test, using PAS 3, even with a better understanding of how the battery meter behaves, the bike still surprised me and left me stranded. While climbing a hill, the meter fell to four bars. It rose again to nine bars after five minutes on level ground and then fell back to four bars on the next hill. Because of the fluctuations and uncertainty, I was two miles from home when the battery died.

The Lectric XPress 750 in Detail

Frame and Fit

The Lectric XPress is a hybrid commuter bike with an aluminum frame and 80mm TC Eighty coil suspension fork with lockout and preload adjustment. The bike is available as a black step-over or a white step-through. The frame can accommodate riders up to 330lb.

Each frame style comes in only one size, with a stated fit range of 5’2” to 6’3” for the step-through and 5’4” to 6’4” for the step-over. The riding position on the step-over is slightly aggressive. The step-through appears to have a more relaxed, upright position.

E-Bike System, Controls, and Classification

The XPress also comes with the choice of motor and battery (both 48V): a 500W, 55Nm motor and 10.4Ah battery or the 750W, 85Nm motor and 14Ah battery we tested.

The battery on both frames mounts in the underside of the down tube and is secured with a keyed lock. The battery can be charged on or off the bike, and the charge port is protected by a rubber cover. The included 2A charger takes around seven hours to charge the battery fully.

The XPress has a torque sensor and thumb-style throttle. A three-button control pad sits next to the left grip, and a 4” color LCD screen is mounted in portrait format in the middle of the bars. The display’s angle can be adjusted by loosening the two screws that secure it to its mount.

The XPress arrives set up for Class 2, with both throttle and PAS limited to 20mph. The PAS speed limit can be unlocked to 28mph, but the throttle stays at 20mph. The throttle can also be removed to meet Class 1 or Class 3 regulations.

Safety Certifications and Weatherproofing

The bike’s electrical system is certified for compliance with UL 2849, and the battery is UL 2271-compliant. The IP65 dust and water resistance means this bike can be ridden in wet weather.

Suspension and Wheelset

The XPress rolls on 27.5” spoked aluminum wheels and 2.1” wide Chaoyang Arisun tires with smooth, city-style tread and puncture protection. Lectric includes Slime sealant for extra protection against flats, which is a nice touch. The bike has a quick-release front axle and nutted rear axle.

Drivetrain and Brakes

Pedal power goes through a 46t chainring with a double-sided aluminum guard to a 7-speed, 11-28t freewheel at the back. The derailleur is Shimano Tourney, and the TX-50 shifter next to the right grip has an indicator that shows what gear you’re in.

The brakes comprise unbranded dual-piston hydraulic pistons with 180mm rotors and aluminum levers with reach adjustment.

Cockpit and Touchpoints

The 700mm-wide handlebar has a 40mm rise and is bolted to a 40mm stem. In addition to the aforementioned brake levers, control pad, and center-mounted display, there’s a bell, and a pair of rubber lock-on grips with ergonomic wings designed to reduce hand pressure.

The other touchpoints are a ShoWell vXv padded saddle and aluminum quick-release pedals that can be removed and re-fitted without tools for easier transport and storage.

Accessories

As mentioned, the XPress comes with integrated front and rear lights, which are disappointing. The XPress has a bottle cage mount under the top tube and a triple mount on the down tube. It also has mounts for fenders and a rear rack. Both fenders and the rack are sold separately, but Lectric often runs promotions that include fenders and a rack. Hopefully, those promotions will continue because, without fenders and a cargo rack, the bike’s value as a commuter is significantly reduced.

Testing the XPress 750

Hill Climb Tests

The XPress 750 climbed our small hill in 3:04 seconds at 19.1mph, putting it among the best performers in this test, ahead of the Radster Trail and Velotric Discover 2 and just one second behind the Velotric Summit 1. The Blix Ultra dominated this group with a time of 2:56.

The bike produced similar results in the medium elevation hill climb test. At 2:22 and 16.5mph, the XPress was one of the top performers. The Summit 1 was one second faster up this hill, and the Blix Ultra was six seconds faster. The Discover 2 was well behind at 2:43, and the Radster Trail was left in the dust, a full minute slower than the XPress.

Acceleration Tests

The XPress 750’s motor continued to shine in our acceleration tests, where it hung with the best in the group. The only bike to beat the XPress 750 was the Summit 1, and even that was only in the PAS test, where it beat the Lectric by one second. Both bikes took eight seconds under throttle power. Using PAS, the Discover 2 set the same time as the XPress.

Range Tests

The range test proved disappointing for a couple of reasons. The first was the inaccurate battery meter. The second disappointment is this bike’s range. In the PAS 5 test, the Lectric 750 was at the back of the pack, managing just 28.36 miles. Only the Vtuvia SN100, with 22 miles, fared worse. All the other bikes with 750W motors and 14Ah batteries traveled farther, beating the Lectric by 1-6 miles.

The second range test was even more disappointing as the XPress 750 traveled just 350 yards more than in the PAS 5 test. This result puts the XPress 750 way behind in the PAS 3 test.

In general, bikes last 5 to 15 miles longer in the PAS 3 test than in the PAS 5 test. Diving into the settings, we can see that PAS 1 is limited to 9mph and PAS 2 is limited to 15mph, but PAS levels 3, 4, and 5 all have the same 20mph speed limit.

Even though there’s some scope to tweak the PAS settings, none of them lowers the speed limit, so to extend this bike’s range by a useful margin, users must drop down to PAS 2.

Braking Tests

In the braking test, the XPress 750 needed 20 feet to stop from 20mph, which is between 1 and 6.5 feet more than the other bikes we’ve included in this review. Overall, however, the Lectric’s braking performance was roughly on par with most bikes we’ve tested.

The biggest limiting factor for the XPress 750’s braking was the lack of grip from the tires’ smooth tread, which resulted in the brakes easily locking up on any surface. This tire has probably been designed with efficiency and durability in mind, and the brakes do have plenty of power, so tires with more grip in the center of the tread would probably shorten the braking distances.

Riding the Lectric XPress 750

The XPress was a refreshing change from heavy, fat-tire e-bikes. Between the relatively relaxed geometry, easy handling, and natural pedal assist, it rides very much like a regular bicycle.

The XPress’s responsive torque sensor and 27.5″ x 2.1” wheelset make it a pleasure to ride and maneuver. The application of power is a huge improvement over bikes with cadence sensors. Whether rolling along on flats or climbing hills, the motor responds swiftly with strong acceleration. Climbing hills also doesn’t feel like hard work, even on our test climb with a 12% incline.

The gearing is sufficient for pedaling at speeds up to 20mph but is too low when the top speed is unlocked to 28mph, with ghost pedaling from around 25mph. It’s not impossible to pedal at 28mph; it just isn’t practical.

The bike’s wheelset and athletic riding position work well on pavement, where it’s maneuverable and fun in corners. It also performed fairly well on light trails. The greatest impediment on anything except clean, smooth tarmac is the slick city-style tire tread, which easily loses traction on gravel and dirt. Swapping the tires to something with a more aggressive tread would address this. With my 175lb aboard, the suspension fork worked fine for a coil fork in this price range, absorbing bumps well.

The XPress step-over fits me well at 6′, with plenty of room left to raise the saddle further. The saddle should suit riders up to 6’4”, but as there’s no way to raise the handlebar or tilt the stem up, these riders would need to accept a more forward-leaning position or change the stem.

Unfortunately, the bike is far from quiet. The motor produces a very loud whine, and when pushed, made some crackling sounds. Additionally, the drivetrain suffers from noisy chain slap over bumps, so it’s not a bike designed for rocky, rooty trails.

Out of the box, there is little apparent difference across the top three PAS levels, with the bike reaching 20mph in PAS levels 3 to 5. PAS 1 and 2 are noticeably slower and provide less assistance. The instructions are a bit confusing, and there is the option to tune what Lectric calls a “multiplier,” but there’s no option to adjust the speed limit within each PAS level. Riders can either have the PAS limited to 20mph or 28mph. This is disappointing, as it limits the usefulness of these three PAS levels, in terms of how it feels to ride the bike and the battery range.

While riding, I especially missed the fenders. Despite the light tread pattern on the tires, the bike can throw up a lot of water and debris at 20mph. We recommend adding these if they’re not included at the time of purchase.

Conclusion

The Lectric XPress 750 is a great-looking bike with a lot going for it, such as the solid build and easy setup. The natural and intuitive ride style, the tuning of the torque sensor, and the powerful motor impressed throughout testing. However, the unreliable battery meter causes range anxiety and left me stranded and walking home. Also, the bike offers very little extra range in PAS 3 compared to PAS 5.

At the moment, the Xpress 750 seems fairly priced, but the value proposition here really depends on whether Lectric includes accessories like fenders and a rack for free. With those included, this bike is good value. If they’re not included, then there are better alternatives out there.

Riders who can learn to live with the erratic battery meter and disappointing lighting should find the XPress 750, with its power, natural pedal assist, and easy handling, a joy to ride.

Score Breakdown

• Build quality: 85
• Performance / Innovation: 85
• Design: 80
• Ride quality: 90
• Price / Value: 80

Overall: 84

Detailed Specifications

Electric Bike Class: 1, 2, 3
Warranty: One-year warranty
UL Certification: UL2849, UL2271
IP Rating: IP65
Battery Weight: 8lb
Total Weight: Claimed: 58lb – Actual: 62.8lb
Motor Brand: Lectric M24
Motor Type: Rear hub
Motor Nominal Output: 750W
Max Torque: 85Nm
Battery: 48V – 14Ah (672Wh)
Range Claimed: 60 Miles
Range Tested (PAS 3): 28.56 mi – 1,130 ft. – 14.28mph avg.
Range Tested (PAS 5): 28.36 mi – 1,135 ft. – 16.05mph avg.
Speed: Adjustable 20-28mph
Throttle: Thumb-style
Pedal Assist: 5 levels
Charger: 54.6V 2A output
Charge Time: 7 hours
Display: 4” Color LCD
Frame: Aluminum
Fork: 80mm TC Eighty coil suspension fork
Brake Levers: Hydraulic lever
Brake Calipers: 2-piston hydraulic, unbranded
Brake Rotors: 180mm
Chain: KMC Z7
Crankset: Aluminum 46t 170mm
Derailleur: Shimano Tourney 7-speed
Shifter: Shimano TX-50
Freewheel: 11-28T 7-speed
Rims: 27.5”, spoked
Tires: 27.5” x 2.1” Chaoyang Arisun K-Rubber
Fenders: Not included
Lights: Headlight, taillight + braking indicator
Grips: Rubber lock-on
Saddle: Showell vXv
Pedals: Aluminum platforms, quick-release
Handlebar: 700mm wide, 40mm riser
Kickstand: Single-sided
Payload Capacity: 330lb
Rack Capacity: 30lb

Geometry Details

Seat Tube: 17.75“ (451mm)
Reach: 14.5” (368mm)
Stack: 25.25” (641mm)
Stand Over Height: 30” (762mm)
Virtual Top Tube Length: 25” (635mm)
Min Saddle Height: 32.5” (825.5mm)
Max Saddle Height: 44” (1118mm)
Wheelbase: 44.5” (1130mm)

It’s not going to feel as premium as more expensive stuff out there; you might get something with fancier shifters, a bigger range back here, and a different derailleur…

Pros of the XPress include its affordability, complete package accessories, and US-based customer service, while cons include the front light’s performance and coil suspension’s limitations for heavier riders.

The hybrid blend of the Lectric PWR technology, as well as this new torque sensor coming together, really offers a very good, fun blend specifically for the riders that… really don’t want to put out a lot of work…