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Today we’re going to be talking about an interesting electric bike that’s fairly new to the market: the Himiway Escape. This bike may look like yet another standard ebike but it’s been making some waves in the ebike community for some time now. With all the hype it’s been building up, is it worth your time and money?
Let’s find out with today’s Himiway Escape review:
The new Himiway Escape is a moped-style electric bike. This means it is a seated electric bike modeled after low-power motorcycles, typically designed for leisurely rides.
Like many moped-style bikes, it comes included with a front carrying basket, a rear storage rack, and a headlight. It may look a bit on the small side, but it is by no means a lightweight vehicle, coming in at 92 pounds. It also has a weight load capacity of 330 pounds.
The Himiway Escape can go up to 28 mph with pedal assist, and it can go up to 23 mph without any footwork.
The motor is 750w with 80nm torque which makes it a little more powerful than what one comes to expect from moped-style bikes. It also features head and taillights and is activated via a throttle twist grip.
The rear storage rack can hold up to 66 pounds. There is also an included LCD display to show stats such as the speedometer and remaining battery life.
Speaking of which, the Himiway Escape can last up to 40 miles on a single charge, depending on how much you take advantage of the pedal assist function.
The first thing anyone tests out with a moped bike is the seat, and let me tell you – the Himiway Escape seems very comfortable.
While the padded seat is neither very long nor wide, it seems to handle weight distribution very well. It holds you in place firmly without making you get the sense that you are sliding off of it in any direction.
The visual design of the Himiway Escape itself is pretty basic. We’ve all seen ebikes that are similar to this one. Nothing about it stands out, but nothing about it is offensive to the eye either.
Something that did catch my eye though was the wideness of the tires. They seem to be thicker than your standard moped wheels, which really made my imagination run wild. I couldn’t help but wonder just how well the Himiway Escape would function on off-road trails or beaches.
The handlebars, while they aren’t made of the softest materials, are perfectly ergonomic. All of the buttons are easily accessible with the left hand, and it feels natural to grip as hard or as soft as you prefer.
When putting the Himiway Escape into action, the first thing that really screamed out at me was the fast acceleration. The Himiway Escape was able to go past 20 mph very quickly, which is something I was not expecting from a moped bike.
As advertised, the Himiway Escape bike can reach around 28 mph with pedal assist. I had to exert very little of my own energy to get those last five miles of the top speed locked in, making this a good choice for people who want a combination of speed and relaxation.
More impressive is how the Himiway Escape feels, no matter how fast you’re going. Testing out the Himiway bike at 10 mph, 15 mph, 20 mph, and 28 mph, the comfort levels were more or less the same. Even toying with the Himiway Escape’s top speed didn’t ruin the comfort levels at all.
The bike itself is clearly made out of high-quality materials, but it’s the seat that truly impressed me. It’s a good combination of softness and firmness. Turning and zig-zagging around did nothing to make me feel off balance while sitting.
The only gripe I have with the comfort levels of the Himiway Escape is that the seat cannot be adjusted for height. This makes things a little uncomfortable during longer sessions due to the lack of any leg extension. After a couple of hours, I started to feel some soreness in my knees. It was nothing major, but it was also by no means ideal either.
Not only is the Himiway Escape a moped, but it is also classed as a fat tire ebike. This means that the wheels are 4 inches wide, and it really shows when riding them.
I’m personally used to mopeds being used for urban leisure rides or commutes to work or the grocery store. While you absolutely can use the Himiway Escape for this, it can also be a pretty solid off-road bike as well, which genuinely surprised me.
Don’t get me wrong, this is by no means the best off-road electric bike out there. It wasn’t designed primarily for this purpose, and I do not recommend taking it to the thickest forests. But considering everything else, the Himiway Escape handles some mild off-road terrain really well.
It can climb many bike trails without losing its sense of torque or balance, plus the fat tires offer really good handling on flat or uneven surfaces.
So while you could and probably should use the Himiway Escape as your urban commuting bike or tourer, you can totally use it as a semi-off-road vehicle as well.
This is supported by the fact that it also has some pretty good front suspensions to handle big shocks and bumps. I tested the Himiway Escape on sand, dirt, and mud, and it worked like a charm. The speed I was going stayed stable, and I myself stayed firmly planted on the seat the whole time.
One of the confusing things about the specs for the Himiway Escape is that it says the range is anywhere from 20 miles to 40 miles. This is odd considering how big of a gap that leaves.
Of course, pedal assist can make up for a few extra miles or range, but 20 miles? Something seemed off, so I decided to get to the bottom of it.
It turns out that the gap can be explained by weight. I myself only weigh about 150 pounds, so I was able to get more than 30 miles on a single battery charge.
Other users who weigh more than 200 pounds reported getting less than that, which adds up.
Considering that the max load capacity of the Himiway Escape is 330 pounds, I think it’s safe to say that someone of that size would only be able to get 20 miles on a single charge, whereas someone who weighs closer to 100 pounds would be able to get the full 40-mile max range.
It is definitely a wild fluctuation, even by electric bike standards, so keep that in mind if you decide to purchase this Himiway Escape bike.
The braking system of the Himiway Escape is good but not great. They don’t snap in quite as fast as I like, which is odd considering the Himiway Escape’s top speed.
I think the best way to put it is that the braking of the Himiway Escape feels like the brakes of a standard on-road-only moped. The problem is that this is a more versatile electric bike capable of off-road riding as well. It’s like Himiway forgot about the Escape’s all-terrain capabilities when installing the brakes.
The brakes work perfectly fine, but you do have to be a little cautious when activating them as you’re going full speed on a bumpy trail. I always had to consciously be mindful of the exact time it takes for the brakes to truly snap in when going fast.
The Himiway moped doesn’t offer too many special features or functions.
It pretty much just comes with the typical carrying basket and an LCD display. They are certainly helpful and appreciated, but Himiway definitely wasn’t thinking outside the box for this category.
A nice little feature is the USB charging port that can be found on the side of the LCD screen. This definitely can come in handy once in a while if you find that your cell phone or MP3 player is running out of battery.
The carrying case is a nice little touch as well, although it can’t hold too much weight. It also feels a bit more useful for on-road riding. For off-road rides, the contents aren’t going to be stable on rougher trails or patches.
The pedal assist function does work as advertised, however.
The kickstand of the Himiway Escape works like a charm despite the bike weighing over 90 pounds. Very handy.
There are Himiway Escape accessories like an optional “Delivery Bag,” but they are sold separately.
Pros:
Cons:
Himiway is a company located in Shanghai, China. This is where all of their products are manufactured, including the Himiway Escape.
Some of Himiway’s bikes and products ship from China. They do, however, have a couple of locations in the United States. This makes shipping to American buyers a little easier.
Overall, my final impressions of the Himiway Escape are positive. While it does nothing to reinvent the wheel or blow me away, it is a really great bike when it comes to comfort, versatility, and speed.
I really liked the idea of a moped-style bike that is well suited to urban and off-road environments, and I think that fills a hole in the ebike community that very few other products do.
It is, unfortunately, a bit lacking in some other departments like the brakes, weight, and lack of unique features.
Still, the Himiway Escape is a simple, solid effort that can be enjoyed by pros and beginners alike. It is undoubtedly very fun to use and is a worthy ebike.