Ah, another week and another bike to review.
This week I’ve been testing Addmotor’s M-150 folding fat tire bike - and oh boy, is this bike a piece of work.
I’ve never been so disappointed and excited at the same time. I mean, the bike is tons of fun. It comes with a pretty beefy motor, tons of range, and a pretty sweet price tag.
But then there’s the dodgy quality control and a couple of design choices that left me flabbergasted. For starters, the wiring is done outside the frame and in such a way that every time you fold the bike, there’s a chance you’ll strip some of the wires.
On top of that, the entire frame starts wobbling when you reach more serious speeds. The guys and gals tried to mitigate this issue somewhat, but I’m getting ahead of myself.
Let’s go on a deep dive and see what makes this bike such a jumbled mess.
Frame
The first thing I noticed about M-150’s frame is that it’s pretty slim for a folding bike, especially for one that has fat tires.
Unfortunately, that doesn’t mean it’s lightweight. Quite the contrary. This bike weighs a whopping 68 lbs. That’s on par with just about every other folding e-bike in this price range.
To make things even worse, there are no carrying handles integrated into the frame. This means this bike is even more annoying to lug around folded rather than unfolded.
And that’s exactly what I did during my week with it. I would lug the bike unfolded to my car and fold it before I plopped it into the trunk.
Speaking of folding, M 150 measures 42.5 x 21.5 x 29.5 inches when folded. While this isn’t the most compact bike in the world, I’m pretty sure you won’t have much trouble stuffing it in the corner of your room or in your trunk.
Hefty weight aside, this bike’s frame is quite a looker. It’s super slim, and it gives off just a hint of sportiness with that front suspension with 70 millimeters of travel.
One interesting detail about the frame design is the subtle reinforcements around the around the crankset and the seat tube. I think the engineers at Addmotor realized this bike wobbles like all hell at high speeds and decided to slap a bandaid solution, simply welding two handles to the seat tube and the chainstay.
Another somewhat disappointing thing about the M 150 is that it only comes in one size.
Thankfully, you can adjust the handlebars, which makes this bike a perfect fit for anyone that’s between 5’2’’ and 6’4’’.
This covers almost 90% of the world's population, so I’m pretty sure you won’t be uncomfy when riding this bike.
With my rambles about the frame out of the way, let’s see what M150’s motor has in store.
Motor
The motor on M150 is the true star of the show. Even with all the questionable choices Addmotor made with the frame, the motor makes up for it.
So what’s so special about this motor?
Well, for starters, it can churn out a whopping 750 watts of power at a drop of a dime. And if you need an extra boost, the motor can churn out another 250 watts.
On top of all that, it can produce a pretty decent 80 Nm of torque. That’s more than enough for conquering mild hills on throttle alone and more serious inclines with the help of pedal assist.
And not to mention how quickly you’ll be able to reach that 20 MPH top speed mark.
I did notice the motor can get pretty loud, but that’s the case with almost every budget bike. Don’t worry about the noise, the motor is durable as a brick house.
When it comes to controls, they’re you’re standard e-bike fare.
You have your standard control cluster located on the left-hand side of the handlebars with buttons for turning the motor on/off, switching the pedal assist level, as well as turning on the integrated lights.
M150 also comes with a pretty well-lit LCD screen. It’s located in the middle of the handlebars and will feed you all the riding info you need.
Unfortunately, it’s monocolored, but that’s in line with this bike’s price tag.
Battery
M150’s battery is just as impressive as the motor. To be more specific, this bike comes with a 48V 16Ah battery that provides around 65 miles of range.
As is the case with literally all manufacturer specs, the real-world data is a bit different. The most range I could squeeze out of this bike was around 45 miles. Still, that’s pretty impressive for a budget bike.
Of course, if you up the pedal assist level to the max, you can expect anywhere from 25 to 30 miles.
When it comes to accessibility, the battery is mounted right behind the seat. It is secured by a simple lock mechanism, and taking it out is as simple as turning the key and sliding it out.
One thing that kind of annoys me about the battery is that you turn it on using the key. Otherwise, the motor won’t work. This means you’ll have a key hanging behind you that can easily snag on your clothes.
When it comes to recharging time, it takes a reasonable 4 hours for a full recharge. This is almost 2 hours shorter than other bikes in this price range.
Brakes
M150 comes with mechanical disc brakes with 180-millimeter rotors. While I appreciate Addmotor slapping oversized rotors on this bike, I kind of wish they put hydraulic brakes.
Don’t get me wrong, these brakes are more than decent, but I feel like they lack the stopping power and reliability only hydraulic brakes can provide.
If you’re not planning on upgrading this bike with better brakes, I recommend you take this bike to a technician every now and then for a tune-up.
Rims And Tires
As is the case with almost all folding bikes these days, M150 comes with gigantic 20 x 4-inch tires.
These tires are built for offroading. They can find a grip on even the toughest terrains.
Unfortunately, they’re not that good when it comes to pavement.
All that girth creates a lot of drag, which makes this bike pretty hard to pedal without the help of the motor.
On top of that, turning with these tires is a real slog. With that said, you don’t need a snappy bike to get around town.
Pros And Cons After Testing
As I’ve stated in the intro, I’ve never been so excited and disappointed at the same time when it comes to an e-bike.
M150 comes with a pretty beefy motor, tons of range, and is foldable to boot. Although it’s pretty heavy, you can easily plop it into a car and take it for a weekend off-road getaway.
Sure, this bike can only go 20 MPH, but that’s more than enough to have plenty o’ fun. On top of that, the recharge time is so short you almost won’t have any downtime.
But then there’s the dodgy quality control. Multiple people have complained the quick-release latch on the seat broke just days after they received the bike.
Thankfully, they managed to sort everything out with customer service.
Still, I don’t feel like you should spend any time with customer support if you just doled out more than $1500 on a bike.
Then there’s the frame wobbling at high speeds. It can get really scary at times. All the time that’s been happening, I’ve been praying the middle latch doesn’t buckle, and I crash.
Advice To Consumers
Dodgy quality control and design choice aside, Addmotor M 150 is a pretty solid budget e-bike. I recommend you pick it up if you’re looking for an EV you can take for grocery runs and occasionally offroading.
Our Rating 82/100
Giant tires? Check! Beefy motor? Check! Foldable design? Check! Addmotor M-150 is a pretty decent budget fat-tire e-bike, even with its faults.
