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“Dude. Is this.” E-bike?” The call came from a man on the sidewalk with a pierced fender and a bike chain tattoo. And he wasn’t the only one who asked. The Ride1Up Roadster V3 doesn’t look like an electric bike, which is exactly why it caught the attention of former bike shop repairmen and fitness-obsessed school teachers.
Ride1Up’s city commuter Roadster, which was released last year and is out of stock through most of 2025, is at the forefront of a new generation of cleverly compact e-bikes that look like a bike without the assistance of a motor. like Avinton Solterra 3 We have rated this year as WIRED’s favorite commuter bikeThe Roadster V3 is a lightweight e-bike that’s excellent for around town use, weighing around 40 pounds depending on the exact model. A proportional torque assist can make it feel like a racy classic bike – although its 500-watt motor can move at up to 28 mph when set to operate like a bike. Class 3 e-bike.
This is an e-bike geared toward how I typically want to use an e-bike: as a fast, versatile city bike for getting around my hometown of Portland, Oregon. I’ve spent months, and hundreds of miles, riding the nine-speed Roadster V3 model to grocery stores and friends’ houses—up steep hills and across rivers, or just down the street—and lifting it one-handed up the stairs and into my house. The Roadster rides like a bicycle that’s easy to pedal. This is the way I want to feel.
At $1,395, the Ride1Up is also an affordable option for a high-performance e-bike with premium parts and a throttle to help get up tough hills. The 20- or 40-mile range is restrictive for long trips but more than enough for most day trips. The dearth of affiliate repair shops is a concern for service, a common problem with direct-to-consumer e-bikes, because most regular bike shops refuse to even repair a flat if a particular brand doesn’t sell. But the Ride1Up also outperforms its price category in terms of power, features, and versatility.
Belts and chains
San Diego-based Ride1Up is a newer e-bike company, less than a decade old. The company builds its reputation mostly by offering plenty of specialized and versatile bikes at accessible prices. But as someone who mostly prefers classic road bikes, I’ll admit that some of their other models struck me as a bit chunky or over-engineered, aimed at cyclists and the kind of person who wants to take a surfboard to the beach.
Not so Roadster. The Roadster V3 is fun, lightweight, and easy to mistake for a classic even when riding. The cables pass through the frame cavity. Although the battery is removable, it is imperceptibly integrated into the chassis.
For its price, it offers a surprising amount of customization. Three frame sizes make the bike accessible to riders from 5’2″ to 6’4″. At over 6 feet tall and 200 pounds, I chose the larger frame that still only weighs 40 pounds.
