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Portability and stability are two of the most sought-after features of electric bikes these days. That’s why folding bikes and fat tire bikes are becoming popular. In this case, the Heybike Mars is both.
Fat tire bikes offer unparalleled performance on rough terrain and folding bikes can be tucked away nearly anywhere. It’s hard to find an affordable option that offers both of those things. But the Heybike Mars does just that.
The Heybike Mars is a quality bike that offers the best of both worlds for a fair price. Heybike has been making waves in the electric bike world for a couple of years now, so I was very curious to see if the Mars Heybike can live up to its rep.
So, let’s dive into this in-depth review of the Heybike Mars.
The Heybike Mars uses a 500w motor and is designated Class 2 for its speed. It has a max range of 48 miles per battery charge, allowing it to cover a lot of ground in just a couple of hours.
The bike itself weighs about 66 pounds but that doesn’t stop it from having an impressive max load capacity of 330 pounds. This is standard for fat tire bikes making them more accessible for heavier users.
The Heybike Mars accessories include an electric horn, genders, and LED lights that are installed in the front and in the rear.
There is also an included LCD display that depicts the Mars’ current speed, remaining battery life, and other gear and speed-shifting settings.
Thanks to the 500w motor, the Heybike Mars electric bike can attain a max speed of 20 mph. While this isn’t super fast, it is a perfectly suitable speed for both urban and off-road terrains.
Speed is activated via the thumb throttle when using the electric riding mode settings. You can also use the included pedal-assist feature if you want some light exercise or are concerned about running low on battery life.
This is heavier than a standard non-electric bike so keep that in mind. Manually pedaling a bike that weighs over 60 pounds is not as fun as it sounds.
The battery used in the Heybike Mars is a 48v 12.5Ah lithium-ion. It’s the reason why the Mars has an impressive max potential range of 48 miles with the pedal assist mode.
It’s a removable battery which really comes in handy if you want to charge it in a small space like your bedroom. This gives you the freedom to store the Heybike electric bike in another location like a garage or a storage closet.
The charging time is about 6 hours which is a little longer than I’d prefer, but who doesn’t say that about battery charging times these days? As long as you charge it overnight, you’ll always have this bike ready to go.
Carrying this bike is not necessarily an easy feat. It does weigh 66 pounds so some people might find that a little too heavy. Luckily, I’ve experienced no major issues with carrying the Heybike Mars in its folded state. When storing in a car trunk or in a closet, it only ever needed to be held for a few seconds at most.
As for the folding capability itself, it works like a charm. Some might find it to be a bit slow as there are some chunky components with this bike, but the final transformation is undeniably compact. The seat cushion sticks out a little but it otherwise folds up neatly and squarely.
At first, I had some minor concerns that the fat tires would stick out too much but I was happy to be proven wrong. Most fat tire bikes are not foldable, sometimes for good reason, but Heybike really managed to squeeze in as much as possible with this bike.
My favorite part of the Heybike Mars is its fat tires. To me, they are what truly define this bike and make it so fun to ride on a variety of terrains.
Most bike tires are only about 1.25 inches thick, but in classic fat tire fashion, the Heybike Mars folding fat tire bike uses 4 inches instead. The wheels are also 20 inches tall, making it a little bigger than your average electric bicycle.
As expected, the Heybike Mars performed exceptionally well on a variety of surfaces. That’s the magic of fat tire bikes, they are able to offer the kind of reliable stability you can’t get with normal e-bikes.
I tested this thing on asphalt, grass, dirt, sand, and bumpy trails and I could barely tell a difference between them all. I can’t imagine this bike riding well on ice, but it otherwise works like a charm on basically anything else.
Perhaps the most notable extra feature of the Heybike Mars is its rear carrying rack. Impressively, it can hold up to 100 pounds which I was not expecting, even for a fat tire bike. Loading this thing up will barely make a dent in its acceleration or stability.
The kickstand is also very sturdy and thick.
The Heybike Mars also comes with a horn and LED lights. They both get the job done but I personally didn’t get much use out of them as they’re neither very loud nor very bright.
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Cons:
I think this is a great option for someone looking to get their first-ever fat tire bike for an affordable price. The folding portability feature is the icing on the cake.
While there are many other fat tire bikes that are bigger and faster, they are invariably much more expensive. The Heybike Mars is an affordable option that grants the world of thick wheels access to a much larger audience.
I may have positive things to say about the Heybike Mars, but I’m not the only one! Check out some positive reviews from actual buyers and owners of the Heybike Mars:
“I am glad I bought this electric bike! I gave it 4 stars only because it is a little more difficult to do on my own than I expected. Maybe with practice it will get easier and I won’t be so clumsy anymore.” – Anil Fuun
“Very easy to assemble. Comes almost complete in the box. Complete with tires and tools. Very fun to ride!” – Jorge Turner
“Wow, the bike is perfect. Just what I was expecting. Built solid and of excellent quality.” – Daron Fox
“The package arrived in perfect condition and we checked the outer package carefully to see if there were any problems and then started to open it. We were pleasantly surprised to find that the packaging inside was also very well done. The foam had filled the inside of the box and had protected the bike very well from bumps in transit. It took us a little while to unpack and install. It proved to be worth all the time and waiting.” – Carol Walsh
Another common folding fat tire electric bike on the market these days is the Lectric XP. While it is a tempting and affordable option, we recommend the Heybike Mars instead because it’s not as portable and it’s not as fat.
At first glance, the Lectric XP seems more appealing as it has a faster max speed, and this may be suitable for you depending on how fast you like it. But the primary category here is “folding fat tire electric bikes”, which is something the Heybike Mars is better at.
When it comes to folding, the Mars is more squared and has fewer components sticking out, despite a weight of about 2 pounds more.
More importantly, the tires of the Heybike Mars are 4 inches thick, but the Lectric XP’s are only 2.6 inches thick. This means they cannot provide the stability and security that fat tire bikes are known for. If you want to ride on truly rough terrain or a wider variety of surfaces, the Heybike Mars is the better option.