I’ve always loved riding bikes, ever since I had my first one with a front flower basket and banana seat. I purchased a Specialized Allez Comp, my first true road bike, after I earned my undergraduate degree. I joined a neighborhood cycling club, rode the bike on multiple MS 150 rides, and made some friends for life.Â
I currently own a Norco Carbon Search dirt bike since I can no longer take some of the harsh postures of the ultralight race bicycles. I’ve stopped biking on the road because of the increased traffic and careless drivers. I’ve been wondering if electric bikes are actually that much fun after seeing more and more of them on the route.Â
I’ve also wanted to encourage my husband to ride again, so I thought if an electric bike would be beneficial. So when the opportunity to evaluate the Heybike Mars folding electric bicycle presented itself, I inquired for it and was fortunate enough to receive it. Let’s examine whether we actually require an electric bicycle.
| Battery | 48V 12.5Ah lithium battery |
| Hub Motor | 500W brushless gear motor |
| Tires | 20″ x 4″ Fat Tire, 20 PSI |
| Rear Derailleur | Shimano 7-speed |
| Max Speed | 20 mph (32km/h) |
| Fork | Front suspension fork with lockout |
| Accessories | electric horn, front & rear LED lights, fenders |
| Water Resistance | IPX4 |
| Range | 48 miles (pedal assist) |
| Weight | 66 lbs (30kg) |
| Battery weight | 9.35 lbs (4.24kg) |
| Folded Dimensions | 37 x 15 x 11 inches (94 x 38 x 29 cm) |
| Product Dimensions | 69 x 24 x 52 inches (176 x 61 x 133 cm) |
Video Review of Heybike Mars
Heybike Mars: Design and Build Quality
A very sizable and weighty box containing the Heybike Mars folding electric bicycle was delivered. Thank god my husband was at home because he directed the delivery driver to place the package in the garage.
Although it’s not visible in the image above, the box has a sizable hole on the back side. Fortunately, the e-bike was well-sealed and shielded. The entire frame was covered in foam wrapping.
The following items were included in the box along with the main portion of the Heybike Mars folding electric bicycle, which included the frame, front forks, handlebars, and rear tire installed.
The Heybike Mars is advertised as a folding electric bicycle, as I have mentioned. The folding portion, in my opinion, should have two purposes. One benefit of riding your bike to work is that it will be simple to keep at your home, garage, or office because it doesn’t take up as much room. Two, because it folds, it ought to be simple to accommodate inside a car. The bicycle is shown in the first photo below, fully unfolded and prepared for use. The bike is folded up in the second image.
The Heybike Mars needs to have a few levers unlocked in order to be folded. The first is on the bottom right corner of the frame (as you sit on the bike). The top of the lever has a tab that must be pushed in before the lever can be drawn out. This useful feature will stop you from unintentionally attempting to fold the bike. The entire front half of the frame may be swung to the left by pulling out that lever, putting the front tire directly next to the back tire.
Where the handlebar mounting tube meets the top front of the frame is where the next lever is located. Additionally, this lever contains a safety feature. To flip the lever down and fold the handlebars to the right side of the front wheel, you must first press the red button.
Additionally, the seat post and handlebar tube also had quick-release levers that made it simple to change the seat height and handlebar height. When fitting the bike into a small car space, this is helpful.
You can see the rear seven-speed Shimano cassette in the image below. The rear derailleur guard was added when it arrived. It should be mentioned that the back wheel’s quick-release skewer was absent. For the front wheel, there was one. Since the rear tire carries the most of the weight on a bicycle and is where I have had 90% of my flats, I want to buy one for that wheel. To replace a flat, I don’t want to have to carry a wrench and socket to remove the rear tire. Additionally, I want to point out that the chain was unlubricated and unoiled when it arrived. Before I boarded the first ride, I had to add that myself.
This image of the front of the Heybike Mars ebike reveals the front light, fender, and forks, all of which are included as standard equipment. As you sit on the bike, turn the lock nut at the top of the fork on the right side of the forks to lock out the shocks if you like. They have no control over how much compression they apply.
The fast release on the handlebars is visible in the next image. You can lift them fairly high thanks to that. Personally, I left them in the lowest position because I found it to be the most cozy. I also shot this picture to demonstrate how the bike’s cables are organized. The bottom black sleeve is secured by a zipper. I absolutely appreciate how the bike’s cables are set up.
To reach the port where you would plug in the rear light that is included on the optional rear rack accessory, you might remove the cover from this box region on the bottom bracket.
The Shimano seven-speed shifter and the accompanying bell are located on the right side of the handlebar. The throttle is located on the grip to the right of the shifter. The motorbike throttle, on the other hand, consists of the complete grip. Only that little area on the left side of the grip serves as the bike’s throttle.
On the left side of the handlebar is the computer that controls the motor. You can see that it has three buttons in the image below. The power button is located in the centre. To turn on the computer, you push and hold it for a brief period of time. The plus and light buttons are located on the top button. The light will turn on if you push and hold the plus button for two seconds. It can be turned off by pressing and holding it once more for two seconds. The pedal assistance you have can be changed using the plus and minus buttons. The default setting on my Heybike Mars ebike is 1, although it has a range of 0 to 5 levels of pedal assistance.
There is a “foot” indicator on the minus button as well. The walk assist button is activated by pressing and holding the down button for two seconds while maintaining pressure. With the motor now running at 6 km/h, you may walk more conveniently without having to drag a 66 lb bike behind you. The walk help is turned off by letting go of the minus button.
Once it is turned on, pressing the power button will show the following information: ODO, trip, trip time, motor power (W), maximum speed, and average speed. If you keep pressing the power button, it will cycle through again. You may access general settings by simultaneously pressing and holding the up and down keys. The travel distance, brightness settings, and unit of measurement can all be changed from there.
You can enter the general parameters by pressing the down button while also holding down the power button for two seconds. Wheel diameter and speed limit are two generic factors that you can modify. The bike’s default setting restricts the top speed to roughly 22 mph. I increased that restriction to a maximum of 40 kilometers, reaching 28 mph on a flat road. Then, by pressing and holding the up and down buttons at the same time for two seconds, you can access the Personalized Parameter settings. You can change the number of power aid levels you desire, the wattage at each level, the information about the speed sensor, the throttle function, the over/under cut information, and the password settings in that section.
I discovered that removing the battery from the Heybike Mars to recharge it caused a reset of the maximum speed settings. I am unsure if personalized settings also reset because I did not try changing anything there.
Heybike Mars: Motor and Driving
The Heybike Mars ebike’s smooth ride and ample power caught me off guard. I rapidly discovered that trying to peddle a fat tire, 66 weight bicycle was not fun, even on a flat area. I initially used level one pedal assistance but soon moved up to higher levels. I could reach 14 mph with pedal assistance at level three. I gained 17–18 mph when I jumped to level four, and level five was almost 20 mph. Everything happened on a flat surface. In our area, there are a lot of incredibly steep hills. When I say steep, I mean that those hills were too steep for you to physically ride this hefty bike up. I could start out in seventh gear at around 18 mph and descend to easy pedaling at 15 mph up the steepest one we had with pedal assist three. I never experienced any resistance from the bike.
I am 175 pounds. and five feet seven inches tall. My hubby is five feet eleven inches tall and carries an extra 100 pounds. The Heybike Mars ebike is a great fit for the two of us. The distance between the seat and handlebars is the only thing I have to complain about. I stepped off the seat after stopping the bike and it seemed like I was right on top of the handlebars. It was simpler for me to jump off the side of the bike.
I did ride the bike on an off-road trail in our community. You can see what that trail looked like in the image below. We’ve been in a rocky, extremely arid location. You can see the toughest section I rode the bike over in the second photo. Even though I had the tires inflated to their maximum of 30 psi, the vehicle handled the trail fairly well. Naturally, when I crossed that place in the second image, I ended myself standing on the pedals.
I then intended to ride the Heybike Mars electric bike to one of San Antonio’s trail networks. That meant I had to put it in my Chevy Bolt’s trunk. I took the bike’s seat, front wheel, and battery off. Two factors made it necessary to do this. For first, it was a big workout and nearly hard to hoist up 66 lbs into the back end of that car without scratching it in some way. Additionally, the bike’s front wheel was too large to go inside the automobile. It fits, but it takes up the entire back space of the car, as you can see below.
That day, I rode for a total of 40 miles. One bar remained on the battery for me. I rode using pedal assist 3 for at least 75% of the journey because it was completely paved. The rest of the ride was completed with pedal assist 4, which means I completely throttled the bike without peddling. The computer had reset my settings, which I was unaware of until halfway through the trip, so the fastest speed I could get with the throttle was 22 mph. I did long for the pedal clips I had on my road bike. I couldn’t use my hamstrings and could just press down on the pedals without those attachments. The seat was quite cozy, though. In one of the most picturesque parts of the ride, I quickly snapped this shot. The Quadlock attachment for my phone is the tall bar extending from the handlebar with the blue top, as you can see. It did not come with the bike, but I used it on both my motorcycle and my bicycles.
The Heybike Mars electric bike features a cruise control feature, I just want to point that out. Only while using the throttle and not the pedal assist does this apply. The cruise control will activate if you keep the throttle depressed for eight seconds at the same pace. The cruise control can be turned off by simply applying the brake or adjusting the throttle.
Furthermore, the bike has hydraulic brakes. That implies that it will end abruptly. This is fantastic news because you need brakes that can stop you swiftly if necessary when traveling at 28 mph.
Heybike Mars: Conclusions
I was very surprised by the Heybike Mars electric bike. I was unsure if this folding bike could tackle the challenging inclines in our area. It performed an excellent job. It offers a lot of torque and range. The presence of front shocks and hydraulic brakes are both greatly advantageous. The Shimano gear set worked without a hitch. The bike’s weight is the only significant issue I have with it. I understand that it is a fantastic bike for the price.
This is a fantastic bike to buy if you want a folding bike with excellent range and torque and don’t have to bother about raising it up all the time to put it in a car. Because riding is so much fun, I appreciate that it encourages my spouse to go riding and exercise more frequently.
