The Scorpion by Juiced Bikes – Moped Style E-Bike

Do you like e-bikes? Do you Like Mopeds? Why not have both.

If your ideal style of electric bike is something like a small moped crossed with a Honda minibike circa 1970s, Juiced has gotcha covered with the Scorpion X. Full suspension plus low and wide 20″ x 4.25″ tires provide a smooth ride, both on or off the road.

With all of Scorpion’s similarities to a mini-motorcycle, Juiced was smart to add some excellent safety features to go along, including a 100 dB motorcycle horn and 2,000 Lumen large round headlamp. The LED rear brake light alerts when you’re slowing, and Tektro Hydraulic Disc brakes take care of stopping from speed.

The Details

The Scorpion goes for a list price of $1,999 and gives a pretty powerful and versatile little ride for that price. It’s a style that’s not for everyone — some good-sized people, around six feet tall or so, may feel like they’ve stolen their little brother’s minibike as they pedal along on the Scorpion.

With torque as well as cadence pedal sensors, Scorpion gives you the juice smoothly and effectively. The 750W geared hub motor, powered by 52V, 15Ah battery, kicks in with a twist of the throttle, up to 20 mph, and will continue to boost your pedal power as you gear up through the 8-speed Shimano transmission, up to 28 mph.

Don’t forget, though, that after an estimated 55 miles of riding, you’re about six hours from recharge with the standard 2 Amp charger, so you’d better be close to home. The 103-pound Scorpion can make your legs sting if you’ve got to take on too many hills unassisted.

Adding to Scorpion X’s weight issues is the full suspension system that you’ll appreciate after a day in the saddle. The saddle is not lightweight, either; it’s the size of a moped seat, basically, at 40 cm (16 in) long and 12 cm (5 in) high. And those rims on the Scorpion — no thin 13-gauge spokes here, just six “RetroBlades” as Juiced calls their wheel design. Again, heavy. Like a moped, only a couple of hundred pounds lighter.

To keep the ride smooth, there’s dual suspension on the Scorpion, with a triple clamp hydraulic lockout fork. Under the saddle, the steel spring-loaded swingarm rear suspension soaks up the shocks with dual adjustable spring coil-over shocks.

Juiced company designers are well aware of the unclear status of electric-assist bikes (including throttle, a somewhat controversial addition to a bicycle in many people’s minds). They have designed a lockout system that, when activated, gives you more power boost added to your pedal power up to 28 mph. The total of five assist levels gives you plenty of options for the thrust that you want from the motor.

The 7-gear Shimano freewheel transmission gives you a good range of gears to run through as you go from start to top speed. The 750W Bafang geared hub is a solid and reliable power source. The combination of torque and cadence sensor pedal assist built into the drive system delivers the boost to your pedaling smoothly and evenly.

The powerful 52V, 13.0Ah battery is removable and lockable for security and ease of recharging. The standard 2 Amp charger that comes with the Scorpion gets the recharge handled smoothly, if not at lightning-fast speed.

Standard on the Scorpion are some nice details, like a sturdy rear rack rated at 50lbs capacity and full fenders to fend off the moisture on a wet day. The LCD display gives the details you need, from assist level in use and battery charge status to odometer and speedometer.

Pros:

• Price

  The value of a well-built and sturdy moped-style electric bike that’s made to last, at a price point right around two grand, makes the Scorpion worth the investment.

• Classy

  As a Class 2 e-bike with throttle assist up to 20 mph, which also has Class 3 potential of pedal assist up to 28 mph, the Scorpion has the ‘best of all possible worlds’ options available to you: pedal alone (although that’s a lot of weight to be propelling on your own power), throttle, and pedal-assist power.

• Sensors

  Not all e-bikes in this price range include both a torque and a cadence sensor. Cadence sensors alone tend to deliver a bit of a jerk with the power boost. A torque sensor delivers power more smoothly based on how hard you’re pedaling, providing a smoother feel, more like bicycling with a bit of help, rather than just being zipped up to a target speed by a motor.

• Good company

  Juiced Bikes has a solid reputation for making reliable and well-built e-bikes, so even though you can’t go into a local store to check it out before you buy, you can feel comfortable with their reputation in general.

Cons:

• Rear rack

  while it’s a great feature that’s included standard, the rack shares space with the oversized saddle, leaving what seems like a half-rack of usable space. There’s an option to convert the rack to a passenger seat (for small passengers), or you can add cargo hauling equipment like a box or side bags to make full use of the 50-pound payload capacity.

• Heavyweight

  At more than 100 pounds, the Scorpion is one of the heavier e-bikes going. The 750W (1,300W peak) geared hub motor gives a good amount of power boost, but still, that’s a lot of weight to be propelling forward (especially if you run down the battery and are on pedal-only power over a few hills to home!).

• Small

  The 20″ wheels somehow seem extra short, partly because they are so wide at 4.5″, but also because they are low compared to standard bike 26″ (or even larger sizes like the 27.5″ or 29″ that some are riding). For a large rider, especially, the geometry of the Scorpion may feel a bit awkward while pedaling, and the temptation may exist just to throttle up and ride like an actual moped. Juiced offers a tall seat set that boosts the rider about three inches up, which may help some riders feel a bit more at home on the Scorpion.

Summary

Juiced Scorpion X is a sporty blend of moped-style with e-bike functionality. Its legal status as to where you can ride may vary depending on your state and city. As a Class 2 bike, it is generally accepted on most trails and paths. Still, the look and style of a motorized minibike, especially with throttle power, may make some people on some trails nervous compared to an e-bike on a more traditional bike frame which wouldn’t seem as out of place.

For the price, Scorpion X gives good value. Well-built with quality components, you should be able to get a lot of good riding for your money. With cargo payload capacity up to 50 pounds on the rear rack and even a seat that can accommodate a small passenger, you can run many errands and other things that you might have only done in a car previously, with the ease and cost-efficiency of a bicycle.