London’s ULEZ (Ultra Low Emission Zone) has this week grown to become the world’s biggest anti-pollution charging zone and several other UK cities have introduced similar measures, so is it time that more of us started to think about using cargo bikes? There are plenty out there these days, including this excellent Rad Power Bikes Radwagon 4.
If you’re interested in trying out cargo biking, the Rad Power Bikes Radwagon 4 is a superb first choice. It is easy to ride, offers a user-friendly riding experience, and gives you the option to attach accessories for shifting all kinds of stuff. Okay, the motor might struggle with heavy loads on big hills and a few components might not stand up to constant heavy-duty use, but it’s still a bargain that’s capable of doing many jobs you might otherwise do in a car.
So what do you get here? At the heart of things, there’s a 6061 aluminium alloy frame with an integrated rear rack, a steel fork and full-coverage mudguards – all highly practical. That integrated rear rack can take two child seats, or seat pads for two bigger kids, and you can fit a retaining bar to stop them falling off.
Rad Power Bikes makes large-capacity Ballard cargo bags that can hold up to 70 litres of shopping – or whatever else you want to cart around, You can also fit a front basket to hold more and a kickstand holds the bike upright while you load it. The Radwagon 4 has a payload capacity of 158kg.
Even though the frame is a single size, it’ll fit almost everyone, a double-telescopic seatpost and a no-tools-adjustable stem making it quick and simple to alter the setup to suit riders of different heights.
The RadWagon 4 uses a surprisingly large 672Wh (watt-hour) frame-mounted battery with a rear hub motor. You get an LCD display and a remote on the handlebar.
Rad Power Bikes claims the motor kicks out 80Nm although this is a heavy bike and you’ll begin to notice the effect when the gradient starts to ramp up. This means moving more slowly rather than having to work harder on lesser gradients, but you’ll be doing a good amount of the work yourself when the slope approaches 10%. This is the case even when the bike is unloaded; add extra weight into the mix and you’ll be doing a fair amount of work yourself.
If the heaviest thing you’re likely to carry is the weekly shopping and the biggest hill you’ll encounter is over the local railway line, this probably won’t be an issue for you. On the other hand, if you’re hoping to take a child up a long, steep climb on a regular basis, you’d better be ready to put some effort in – or buy a more powerful cargo bike instead.
Range is very good, helped by the generous battery capacity. Our reviewer got around 35-40km (22-25 miles) of hilly riding out of a single charge. Rad Power Bikes reckons you could get over 88km (55 miles) on flat terrain.
The cable-controlled disc brakes aren’t as powerful as the hydraulic options you’ll typically find on more expensive bikes but we didn’t find that to be an issue, even when carrying loads downhill. The ride position is suited to urban riding and the overall experience is good, large tyres and a big saddle providing plenty of comfort.
> Best e-cargo bikes under £3,000 – affordable electric bikes to do the job of a car
As e-cargo bikes go, the Rad Power Bikes Radwagon 4 is very cheap and we reckon you’re getting a lot for your money here. The original price is £1,999 although it’s currently reduced to £1,649 on Rad Power Bikes’ website.
If you want a more powerful e-cargo bike, check out our sister site ebiketips where you’ll find loads of reviews covering a huge range of prices.
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6 thoughts on “Check out the Rad Power Bikes Radwagon 4 e-cargo bike”
I’ve seen a couple of
I’ve seen a couple of versions of these in the metal and they certainly look the part as beasts of burden. You wouldn’t want to be lifting them anytime though. Shame then that RadPower have already said they’re pulling out of Europe and the UK by the end of the year. https://www.theverge.com/2023/7/10/23785871/rad-power-bikes-uk-europe-shut-down-ebike#:~:text=In%20addition%20to%20layoffs%2C%20the,cargo%20bikes%20for%20misaligned%20tires.
Rad Bikes are pulling out of
Rad Bikes are pulling out of Europe by the end of the year. I think this should be stated prominently in the article as support and spares will probably become a problem. The customer support line will cease from tomorrow 31st August. Email support only.
Thank you. Rad Power was
Thank you. Rad Power was never top of my cargo bike list, but I think that means I can now take them off completely.
This weighs 35kg, so it’s
This weighs 35kg, so it’s going to be borderline useless when restricted to 250w. The back looks particularly over engineered for the amount of weight it’s rated to carry, so surely they could have shaved off a few kilos.
I agree it’s about twice the
I agree it’s about twice the weight it should be. 17 or 18 kg would be OK, but even so, all up weight probably only ends up about 16% unnecessarily heavy, or even less if loaded up and on a flattish road it’s bearable. Just make sure you keep an eye on the battery charge especially if there are hills. Or you’re in deep trouble.
Hmm… it does sound
Hmm… it does sound extremely heavy, but… e-cargo bike.
Hills on routes + distance on charge + expected carrying capacity compared to motor torque would be the key thing? (Like Geoff says).
“Empty” weights of cargo bikes are even more variable than normal bikes, depending on (chunky) accessories etc. but:
A comparable design with hub motor: Mycle Cargo Bike 36.5kg
Tern GSD (a much more expensive, more compact design) claimed weight (obvs. varies depending on accessories) around 33kg
A “lightweight” long-tail e-Cargo bike (Yuba Spicy Curry, much more pricy): 27 kg
FWIW a “plain” e-bike – different design admittedly but it’s a Dutch one so actually very robust and capable of hauling quite a lot – Gazelle Grenoble C8 HMB 24.4 kgs