This is our first road test and review of the Super Soco TC 1500 Electric Motorcycle. In this video we check the figures from the battery range and give our final verdict.
They sell the entire bike for 2-3 grand, and the battery goes for $900, that they can make a full bike at all is a miracle. But then you get a good idea how well they can make it.
At present I ride an e bike and have abandoned my motor bike ( shed ) due to the really crap efficiency of ICE's. This bike would make an excellent replacement for both and I would only have to charge it about once every week from a solar array and battery bank ( that works at about 15 ish to 25 % ish efficiency, even in crap UK weather ) only have a portable version of this at present but figs correct). Given that we pay over 85 % tax per ltr for dead dinosaur fuel ( The main reason I gave up 4 wheels ), and it takes between 4 and 7 Kw of elec to refine a gallon of petrol or diesel ( why not just use that to power a veh that is about 75 % efficient or higher ). This bike is a really good idea. Would I buy one to travel across Germany on the autobahns NO, very definitely not. Would it put a smile on my face getting to work in 5 mins, not sitting in a traffic jam for 20 mins at, again, over 85% tax no matter what flavour of idiot runs the country, very much so yes.
A very reasonable range considering this is supposed to be for commuting across town, and not going out for a ride just for the hell of it. You will soon learn where all the forecourts and shops are that have power points outside. (not for our use of course)
I like the super soco it's a nice bike for the price, it is moped pricing yes, it hasn't jumped up in price to something ridiculous right? Well is it is as advertised then it is a good bike for the price, add the fact that you can put in an extra battery and that makes it a useful bike. I think a lot of people will find this a little confusing in the UK because a 40/45 mph moped is illegal, however in countries like the USA it's still considered a moped apparently. But then in the USA it seems your first bike can be a boss hoss if you so desire, odd that considering in the UK we are restricted to 125cc.
Couple of questions. Do the battery chargers plug into a normal mains plug socket? Can you fit two batteries into this bike? What is the maximum weight the bike will take? Thanks
1. Yes it does. 2. Two batteries fit but you can only use one at a time, then you have to swap the cable to the other battery when the first one is empty. 3. 84 kg. Hope this answers your questions.
1/ On board camera is twice as good when we can see the road ahead instead of nothing but the dash! 2/ A battery percentage indicator, as used by Zero and BMW, would be better than an approximate remaining mileage indicator. 3/ How much is an extra battery? 4/ You should check both speed and mileage with a GPS rather than simply relying on the instruments on board....That 45mph indicated might only have been 40mph in the real world...Just sayin'
i've been looking at electric motorbikes and like the look of this one - and the review sounds good - one problem though - i'm only 5'1 - would my feet be able to be comfortably reach the floor?
Styling is on point but range and top speed is sub par. Not many 2 wheel motors in the market here so the niche is there, do you think super soco will eventually make something a bit more suitable? (Higher top speed and range)
You need a calculator for 9 x 4 ?? And, you are not telling us but this bike consumes a lot of breaking pads and disks because the engine will almost not slow you down. You safe on petrol and waist on that. No regenerative breaking, it is not like a Tesla.... In other words: it polutions as much as a normal bike but in a different way and it will cost you what you were saving on fuel. Plus, I doubt it is as reliable as a petrol bike. So, on the long run 3/4/5 years your battery is dead (£1200-1500) and fixing is only at the dealer. It looks very nice though and that could be your main reason bying one.
Well, I want one because petrol is freaking expensive here... about 1,60 euro per liter... Charging up this bike in my shed after driving it is cheaper and it's nice to not have to drive by a petrol station... Next to that, most petrol mofeds are ugly here... (The Netherlands) they all have a model like the pagani zip or a italian model. This one looks more mature and like an actual bike. Although here in the Ntherlands it's sold as mofed.
The range with 2 batteries is fine even with 1 for short city commutes but the top speed limits you only inside the city streets you cant take this to a bigger road so if you compare it to an electric bicycle that is cheaper with similar speeds/range it is not worth the money.
Interesting. I would suggest its not just about the price. Sure you can ride an electric push-bike but for some people riding a push bike isn't what they want to do. If I had a 40 mile journey to do, would I really want to ride that on a push-bike even with assistance or ride it on a electric motorcycle? If price is the only concern then you could buy a 2nd hand petrol motorcycle too for less but again that isn't the reason youre buying into an electric motorcycle.
The Price of the Soco TC in China "Taobao" is 1143 pounds or 1402 euro i do not know why it is sold at double the price in Europe considering it is just an electric bike, it is not considered a normal motorcycle to get heavily taxed maybe we can get an answer by the people that import it.
So you need to remember the following. Its got nothing to do with what it is. When you import from outside the EU in to the UK, there is the following to add to the price you see. 1. Import Duty. 2. Customs. 3. Arrival Charges. 4 VAT. 5. Clearance Charges. This adds between 70 and 90% on top of the price
£700 less than it should be my arse!!!! This bike costs less than £1000 in china and asia and yet here its almost £3k and apparently that includes the electric vehicle grant. Bullshit.
I'm also waiting to hear about long-term durability, because I've seen some videos reporting broken pieces with very little use.
They sell the entire bike for 2-3 grand, and the battery goes for $900, that they can make a full bike at all is a miracle.
But then you get a good idea how well they can make it.
In ev battery is around 68 percentage of total cost ev
At present I ride an e bike and have abandoned my motor bike ( shed ) due to the really crap efficiency of ICE's. This bike would make an excellent replacement for both and I would only have to charge it about once every week from a solar array and battery bank ( that works at about 15 ish to 25 % ish efficiency, even in crap UK weather ) only have a portable version of this at present but figs correct). Given that we pay over 85 % tax per ltr for dead dinosaur fuel ( The main reason I gave up 4 wheels ), and it takes between 4 and 7 Kw of elec to refine a gallon of petrol or diesel ( why not just use that to power a veh that is about 75 % efficient or higher ). This bike is a really good idea.
Would I buy one to travel across Germany on the autobahns NO, very definitely not. Would it put a smile on my face getting to work in 5 mins, not sitting in a traffic jam for 20 mins at, again, over 85% tax no matter what flavour of idiot runs the country, very much so yes.
Amazing video!
thanks for the review
A very reasonable range considering this is supposed to be for commuting across town, and not going out for a ride just for the hell of it. You will soon learn where all the forecourts and shops are that have power points outside. (not for our use of course)
Very nice electric bike
I like the super soco it's a nice bike for the price, it is moped pricing yes, it hasn't jumped up in price to something ridiculous right?
Well is it is as advertised then it is a good bike for the price, add the fact that you can put in an extra battery and that makes it a useful bike.
I think a lot of people will find this a little confusing in the UK because a 40/45 mph moped is illegal, however in countries like the USA it's still considered a moped apparently.
But then in the USA it seems your first bike can be a boss hoss if you so desire, odd that considering in the UK we are restricted to 125cc.
I wish these were available in the states.
Thanks for the review. How does servicing work for the Super Soco. Do you do it or can it be done at any garage, does it need it at all? Thanks
I'm looking to buy the TC in Beijing, where I am currently living and working. Interestingly the bike is not speed restricted in China.
Couple of questions.
Do the battery chargers plug into a normal mains plug socket?
Can you fit two batteries into this bike?
What is the maximum weight the bike will take?
Thanks
1. Yes it does.
2. Two batteries fit but you can only use one at a time, then you have to swap the cable to the other battery when the first one is empty.
3. 84 kg.
Hope this answers your questions.
1/ On board camera is twice as good when we can see the road ahead instead of nothing but the dash! 2/ A battery percentage indicator, as used by Zero and BMW, would be better than an approximate remaining mileage indicator. 3/ How much is an extra battery? 4/ You should check both speed and mileage with a GPS rather than simply relying on the instruments on board....That 45mph indicated might only have been 40mph in the real world...Just sayin'
Of course. Every vehicle on the road could have GPS speed calcuation. The extra battery is about £800
The numbers sound good but how much to insure? Also too quiet! ... I like to think my bikes exhaust helps towards my visibility / road presence.
Needs more speed and range.. I guess the Evoke Urban series are currently the most affordable bikes given the need for a bit more speed and range.
It's restricted to 50cc I'm pretty sure but can be derestricted to 125cc if that helps
DIT YOU PUT IT ON range / radius test with dual battery setup
How would you activate the wireless connectivity of the Super SOCO TC 1500?
i've been looking at electric motorbikes and like the look of this one - and the review sounds good - one problem though - i'm only 5'1 - would my feet be able to be comfortably reach the floor?
Paxalion I think the seat high from the road is 77cm if that helps
Guys do you have these in stock now? Also the listed price on your website is £2844. Is the government grant a saving on top of that? Making it £2144?
The grant is deducted at source, so all the dealers prices you see including ours is after the grant has been deducted
Green-Mopeds thanks for the answer 👍🏻
Hi SuperFuzzMonkey, we're about to get our next batch of TC's in from early July. If you're interested then get in touch.
what kind of gloves are you riding in? Very nice one.
Thanks Heinz, They are Furygan James Gloves. i love them!
Styling is on point but range and top speed is sub par. Not many 2 wheel motors in the market here so the niche is there, do you think super soco will eventually make something a bit more suitable? (Higher top speed and range)
they recently announced super soco tc max which I believe has 100km/hr max speed and 125km range
That's correct but it isn't available in the UK yet
i thought it could go faster than 45kmh if you activate the l3e mode
M G So they come out the factory as an L1e 50cc equivalent bike and then you unlock them and they become the L3e 125cc bike
thought all were the same power version but with the limiter activated i assumed this
You need a calculator for 9 x 4 ??
And, you are not telling us but this bike consumes a lot of breaking pads and disks because the engine will almost not slow you down. You safe on petrol and waist on that. No regenerative breaking, it is not like a Tesla.... In other words: it polutions as much as a normal bike but in a different way and it will cost you what you were saving on fuel.
Plus, I doubt it is as reliable as a petrol bike. So, on the long run 3/4/5 years your battery is dead (£1200-1500) and fixing is only at the dealer.
It looks very nice though and that could be your main reason bying one.
Well, I want one because petrol is freaking expensive here... about 1,60 euro per liter... Charging up this bike in my shed after driving it is cheaper and it's nice to not have to drive by a petrol station...
Next to that, most petrol mofeds are ugly here... (The Netherlands) they all have a model like the pagani zip or a italian model. This one looks more mature and like an actual bike. Although here in the Ntherlands it's sold as mofed.
How quick is it from 0 to 30mph?
What licence would you require to drive one of these bikes in the UK? Also what is the average insurance cost for one of these?
de-restricted you'll need at least a CBT, and insurance depends on the individual.
Does the bike come restricted to 28 mph
The range with 2 batteries is fine even with 1 for short city commutes but the top speed limits you only inside the city streets you cant take this to a bigger road so if you compare it to an electric bicycle that is cheaper with similar speeds/range it is not worth the money.
Interesting. I would suggest its not just about the price. Sure you can ride an electric push-bike but for some people riding a push bike isn't what they want to do. If I had a 40 mile journey to do, would I really want to ride that on a push-bike even with assistance or ride it on a electric motorcycle? If price is the only concern then you could buy a 2nd hand petrol motorcycle too for less but again that isn't the reason youre buying into an electric motorcycle.
The Price of the Soco TC in China "Taobao" is 1143 pounds or 1402 euro i do not know why it is sold at double the price in Europe considering it is just an electric bike, it is not considered a normal motorcycle to get heavily taxed maybe we can get an answer by the people that import it.
So you need to remember the following. Its got nothing to do with what it is. When you import from outside the EU in to the UK, there is the following to add to the price you see. 1. Import Duty. 2. Customs. 3. Arrival Charges. 4 VAT. 5. Clearance Charges. This adds between 70 and 90% on top of the price
I want to buy one
Where to Buy Country
ruclips.net/user/add_contact?c=C_4HR3yV1xiOoyEmLOTRJ9U9iYrh2Q
You say 45mph yet their website says 45kmp (limited). Can you confirm?
There is a 15 second delimiting procedure shown on other videos.
Could do a bit faster....around 60mph would be great.
£700 less than it should be my arse!!!! This bike costs less than £1000 in china and asia and yet here its almost £3k and apparently that includes the electric vehicle grant. Bullshit.
Shame Avon gone bankrupt
What type of motorcycle licence can you ride with it?
de-restricted you'll need at least a CBT