5 Of the Best Electric Recumbent Trikes. Tadpole electric trike

of the Best Electric Recumbent Trikes

Looking for a recumbent trike that’s electrically powered? In this article, I’ll be sharing 5 of the best electric recumbent trikes currently available. Whether you’re looking for something to help you tackle hilly terrain or just want a little boost while riding, having a recumbent trike with e-assist is a game-changer!

Recumbent Trike with Electric Assist

One of the great things about recumbent trikes is that it’s easy for manufacturers to spec an electric version. Unlike regular bicycles that often require a specific frame (for mid-drive motors), the only thing you need to change on a recumbent is the boom.

This opens up a whole world of possibilities for the manufacturer and owner alike. Some owners prefer to build their own electric recumbent trike and others prefer to buy one ready-built from the factory.

Benefits of Riding an Electric Recumbent Trike

There are many benefits to riding an electric recumbent trike. Some of the top benefits include:

Increased fitness – Riding an electric recumbent trike is a great way to increase your fitness level. The pedalling motion is a great workout for your cardiovascular health, leg strength, core strength and mental well-being. Plus, the added electric assist makes it easy to cover more ground and enables you to get a longer workout.

Increased independence – Riding an electric recumbent trike can help increase your independence. The low-impact motion is easy on your joints, and the e-assist makes it easier to explore new areas further from home.

fun – Riding an electric recumbent trike is a lot of fun. You no longer have to worry about getting exhausted, out of breath or dealing with muscle aches. Electric assist brings a whole new dimension of enjoyment to recumbent cycling!

Why Riding a Recumbent Trike Feels Different

I consider myself to be reasonably fit and ride between 100-150 miles a week on a road bike. The first thing I noticed when riding a recumbent trike is feeling that familiar lactic burn but in an unfamiliar way.

When riding a recumbent trike, you’re targeting the same muscles as you would on a regular bike, but due to the physical positioning on a recumbent, they’re being worked in a slightly different way.

Best Electric Motor for a Recumbent Trike

I’ve had the benefit of riding both a rear hub motor and crank drive-powered e-recumbent. Both types of motor work very well, but for me personally, I prefer the crank motor.

Crank-drive electric motor: Also known as a mid-drive, as on a regular bicycle it’s mounted where the bottom bracket would be, hence ‘mid-mounted’. On a recumbent, these motors are located at the end of the boom, where the crankset would usually be. Typically, Bosch or Shimano Steps electric motors are used.

These motors transfer power to the rear wheel through the drivetrain and are exceptionally good for climbing steep hills. Torque output on these motors is usually in the 60Nm – 85Nm range. Assistance is provided by measuring pedalling force from the rider (via a torque sensor).

Rear hub motor: These motors are much simpler and cheaper than crank motors. Although they’re not as refined and don’t produce the same amount of torque, they are, nonetheless a very effective form of electric assist. A hub motor won’t be quite as adept at hill climbing and won’t be as efficient, but they are generally very reliable and easy to fix if they go wrong.

Here are 5 of the Best Electric Recumbent Trikes

I’ve based the selection below on specification, brand and positive customer reviews. Recumbent trikes are generally quite expensive and adding e-assist increases this price substantially. My personal favourite would be the Ice Trike as they’re a company local to me, but all the other e-trikes are excellent.

Catrike Expedition / Trail eCat

The Catrike eCat is the perfect choice for those looking for a high-quality, efficient electric recumbent trike. With its reliable Bosch Active Line Plus drive unit powered by a 400Wh battery, and SRAM NX 1 x 11 drivetrain, the eCat provides a dynamic riding experience with minimal pedalling resistance.

Ice Trike

Ice Trikes are fully customizable and the option to add electric assist is a great bonus. Ice Trikes now offer the latest Shimano EP8 motor along with the excellent E6100 motor as e-assist options. The former is the more expensive of the two, but if you plan on riding steep hills or off-road, then the EP8 would be the one to go for. Batteries are available in 504Wh or 630Wh sizes.

TerraTrike E.V.O.

If you’re looking for a recumbent trike that’s electric, check out TerraTrike’s E.V.O. This recumbent trike is powered by the excellent Bosch Performance Line Cruise motor and the PowerPack 400Wh battery, so it’s great fun to ride. With a whisper-quiet motor capable of 65Nm of torque, this system will really help to make things easier on the climbs.

HP Velotechnik Scorpion Plus

If you are looking for a new riding experience, the HP Velotechnik Scorpion Plus electric recumbent trike might be just what you are looking for. This trike allows you to pedal and exercise, while a powerful motor gives you support up to three times your output, depending on the system. You can conquer the local climb with a smile on your face or ride to work fast and yet completely relaxed. Particularly convincing is the cycling feeling with your recumbent bike maintained – giving you an enjoyable experience each time you take it out for a spin.

Sunseeker eco-tad

If you are looking for a tadpole trike that is engineered with quality and affordability in mind, the E-Eco Tad Electric Assist Tadpole might be just what you are looking for. This trike offers a 350-watt pedal-assist rear drive motor as well as a 36-volt / 10.4AH LiOn Battery pack to help get you where you need to go quickly and easily. With its fully adjustable mesh-back saddle, this trike is perfect for anyone who wants an enjoyable ride without having to break the bank.

Conclusion

I hope you’ve found this article useful and it’s given you some food for thought when considering buying an electric recumbent trike. Riding a recumbent trike is an experience like no other. If you’ve never tried one, I highly recommend it – especially if you live in a hilly area. The electric assist makes conquering hills a breeze, and the reclined position takes all the pressure off your back and neck. Plus, there are some great health benefits to riding a recumbent trike.

Have you ridden an electric recumbent before? What did you think? Please feel free to leave a comment below.

Meet Tony, a passionate e-bike advocate and enthusiast who discovered the life-changing benefits of electric bikes back in 2016. Tony’s technical experience within the e-bike field was gained while running a successful electric bike conversion business for 5 years in his home county of Cornwall, UK.

Fat Tire Electric Tadpole Trike – SOLD

Just when you thought you’d seen it all; here comes yet another line-blurring genre of e-bikes. As far as we know its currently the only one of its kind available, especially since we just finished building it ourselves!

We’ve taken the brand new Fat Tad trike by Sun Seeker and added a hefty helping of electric oomph to make an incredibly fun-to-ride, go-anywhere rig. This bad boy sports a 500 watt direct drive motor, a 48V 15AH lithium ion battery, 25 amp Infineon controller, manual thumb throttle, and to make sense of it all, a fully programmable Cycle Analyst computer. The powerful drive train is paired with 3×6 speed SRAM X4 deraillers, dual front Promax disc brakes, full suspension, 20″x4″ knobby tires, and a beefy rear utility rack.

If you’ve ever ridden a tadpole trike you know how unforgiving the ride can be. The full front and rear suspension on this version is a complete game changer. Now you can have the sporty performance of a tadpole with the comfort of a suspended bike. The motor is wound for maximum torque. Laced into this small 20″ rim, its a very strong puller with no shuddering and virtually silent operation. The 48 volts delivered at 25 amps assures that you still maintain a healthy 22mph top speed. The 15AH capacity promises the possibility of 50 miles per charge.

This bike is a lot of fun to ride. You can point it just about anywhere and it’ll get you through to the other side. Whether your adventures take you to the beach, the forest, the snow, or simply bombing around town, the Fat Tad Electric Trike could be the bike for you. Priced at 3699, we don’t expect it to be around for very long. Our current plans are to only build two of these limited edition rigs, so don’t wait too long to come check it out!

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My husband has bad knees which prevented him from bike riding with me, so we decided to get him an electric bike. Jerry was very knowledgeable, helping us pick the one that would work best for his needs. Read

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Guide To Electric Recumbent Trikes [UPDATED]

24 Комментарии и мнения владельцев

Electric recumbent trikes are lightweight 3 wheeled pedal/electric vehicles that offer some car like features.

For instance, some of them have weather protection, cargo passenger capacity, full suspension, comfortable seats, lights mirrors, etc.

Some of these e-recumbent trikes are designed for everyday commuting around town and some of them “amplify” your pedal power up to highway speeds!

The following is a guide to complete e-recumbent trikes, ideas on adding electric assist to a recumbent trike, and a look at the future of e-trikes.

If you are looking for upright trikes, here is a guide to those electric trikes and there are some heavy duty cargo trikes in this guide.

Complete Recumbent E-Trikes

Organic Transit ELF: The Organic Transit ELF is a partially enclosed commuter vehicle focused on being an around town car replacement.

Can go 20 mph, range is 20 miles, it can carry 350 lbs, and the base price is 5,000.

It has a solar panel on the roof to aid in recharging the batteries when you are out and about.

Here is a video showing off what the Organic Transit ELF can do:

Hase Klimax: These e-trikes offer partial weather protection with the included fairing (can be removed). Currently Hase offers their Klimax 2K series e-trikes with the Shimano Steps mid drive and their Klimax speed trike (up to 45 km/h or 28 mph) with a front hub motor.

HP Velotechnik Scorpion FS 26 S-Pedelec: This is a full suspension speed pedelec (pedal assist only) that can go up to 45 km/h (28 mph) with a 500 watt rear hub motor.

RunAbout Cycles: They make custom electric recumbents and other types of custom e-bikes in Fort Collins Colorado.

ICE Trikes: is offering some of their recumbent trikes with the SunStar mid drive motor kit. It looks like they are only for sale in the U.K.

Como Trikes: These trikes feature an aluminum frame with suspension and other high quality components. They use the Falco E-Motors system.

High Speed Electric Recumbent Trikes

Outrider USA: These are high performance “adventure vehicles” designed for power and speed!

They offer 4 different models ranging in speed from 20 mph to 40 mph, and ranges from 45 miles to 165 miles. The price range is 5,995 to 11,995.

Enjoy this video of the guys from Outrider USA riding near Vail Colorado:

Raht Racer: The Raht Racer is an enclosed electric trike that “amplifies” your pedal power to assist you up to highway speeds!

It is still in the prototype stages but they are working on making a production vehicle. Here is a video from their Kickstarter campaign.

Planet Rider: This e-trike is not available for sale right now because it is still in the prototype/development stage.

It will also offer highway speeds with the intent of replacing a car.

In this video, inventor David Calley, talks about his vision for the Planet Rider and shows off the prototype:

Add an Electric Bike Kit to a Trike

Adding an electric bike kit to a recumbent trike is also an option.

Add an Electric Trailer to a Trike

RideKick: This is a trailer that literally pushes your bike or trike! It can also carry some cargo.

RoadRACE Power Pod: This is not exactly an electric trailer but it functions in a similar way by pushing the bike.

A Look at the Future

The following are a few designs to give you a look at what the future may hold for e-trikes.

ECO FUV: From the designer “A bicycle as we know it needs to offer other benefits to becoming a complete and ideal urban vehicle. In the FUV project was intended to complete this idea, functional and technological additions to the bicycle a more viable alternatives to travel the city looking after the environment.”

E-Trike: Concept e-trike from industrial designer, George Cooper. “My initial research showed that a new form of human powered vehicle could be designed to encourage more people to cycle. This would benefit the rider’s health and financial situation while at the same time improving the environment by reducing pollution and the consumption of finite resources.”

Toyota i-ROAD: Okay, there is no pedaling option for this electric trike but it is an interesting look at the future of e-mobility that is happening now.

That’s it for now. I will add more e-recumbent trikes as I come across them.

If you are looking for upright trikes, here is a guide to those electric trikes and there are some heavy duty cargo trikes in this guide.

If you know of a company that makes electric recumbent trikes, please leave info about them in the Комментарии и мнения владельцев section below.

P.S. Don’t forget to join the Electric Bike Report community for updates from the electric bike world, plus ebike riding and maintenance tips!

Reader Interactions

Комментарии и мнения владельцев

There is an active EV community in Minnesota. Here is a guy building something like the planet rider in drive concept. http://www.startribune.com/business/211508221.html Fella’s name is Rich Kronfield: [email protected]. 612-819-5606 I don’t think he has a website up yet, but he could probably get you some great photos of his RAHTmobile.

we have an electric bike here in our place Philippines this is a commercially available model base on our area and is viable once we are selling in the market. single wheel motor 3 wheeled 3 sitter 20 Km for the 20 ampere deep cycle lead acid battery utilizing fast charging all metal and a baroque design

Hi Pete, Don’t forget about us – Como Trikes. We’re based in the UK and our new e-drive trike was launched in May. Please check it out…. hope you like it. Best regards, Rob

Lightfoot Cycles can add electric assist to their trikes. They put it all on the same drive train and it can be quite efficient.

I plan on taking a trike tadpole recumbent with e-assist across country (northern tier) staying at campgrounds with electric hookups or hotel/motel. I would like a review of specs between Falco e motors and bionix e assist and any other systems that will provide some assistance at the number 1 level for around 80 miles.

Check out my new 5.5.9 Catrike with Bafang 48v 750w motor, throttle and pedal assist, NuVinci 380 planetary drive infinite gear ratio rear hub. My plan is Maine to Dallas with stop in Nashville. https://www.utahtrikes.com/RECENTTRIKE-4799925_Catrike559FoldingRecumbentTrike.html

I have 1 electric catrike (hub motor) and building a second. My build is very similar to yours except I’m not sure if I’ll use a Nuvinci 360 ( which already have) or go to a lighter internal geared hub. I live in Memphis and have ridden numerous places in Tennesse and Arkansas. so if you need any opinions/advice for your epic trip let me know. [email protected]

Just before Christmas 2015 I bought a Trident Model Titan E-Trike from Crazy Lenny’s in Madison, WI. I haven’t ridden it a lot yet because of the cold weather. I’ve been out with it 12-30 times and it is a “blast” to ride. Check out Trident bikes ! 77 yo Biker from NW Illinois

In June of 2011, I bought a Catrike Expedition that had a Bionx rear hub motor installed by Bent Up Cycles of Los Angeles. The battery sits on a rack above the real wheel. The trike is great. Unfortunately Bent Up no longer makes these conversions.

Yes, I have an I.C.E. Adventure trike which I bought from Bent Up cycles in L.A. in 2010. in 2016 I had them add a Ecospeed mid-drive, with a Dolphin battery on a side mount. I’ve got 3 of these batteries and had begun a Southern Tier ride last year, which I ended in eastern Arizona. I intend to continue and finish this year.

Hi: I have a ICE Adventure as well with a bionx set up, not familiar with your set up the eco speed mid-drive with dolphin battery, could you tell me more about your trike? With 3 batteries what kid of range do you get? thanks, Dave King

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