Swifty Liberte Folding Electric Bike

I was pleasantly surprised how well these bikes performed, plenty of power and the battery so far is excellent.Now firstly I bought two of these while the price was low, one of them arrived with a dent in the front mudguard, this is caused by the way they are shipped as the pedal was in contact with the mudguard. I contacted Amazon customer services and they compensated me for this as I didn’t want to return it. See Photo.Once unboxed I suggest putting the battery on charge while you check all the fasteners are secure and make any adjustments that are required. I also advise taking the battery off the bike while you do this as it will reduce the weight so you can invert the bike to adjust the gears. These bikes weight in at approx 21kg and the battery can be charged off the bike.If you find the handle bars slightly off centre there is an Allen bolt under the hinge where they fold and a 6mm key is required, just slacken and straighten the bars and retighten. See Photo.You will also need to move the position on the break levers as they are far too low to be able to reach easily unless you have large hands. See photo.Check the tightness off the seat clamp and handle bar latch as they needed tightening slightly on both our bikes.The tyres will also need inflating to correct pressure, I think it said in the owner’s manual to inflate to 25 - 35psi but I did ours to 40psi.The chain will need oiling as ours were dry but I ended up changing both our chains to KMC Z6 as the ones supplied on the bikes are absolutely terrible quality. They made an awful grating sound as they don’t have proper rollers on the links, once I fitted the new chains and adjusted the gears the bikes were transformed and quiet. See Photo.I recommend taking some tools out with you on the first ride as you will more than likely need to make some slight adjustments to the gear’s, the procedure is documented in the owner’s manual.The first ride for us was just under 12 miles from Rhyl to Pensarn and back along the coastal path route 5. I used the lowest setting (1) and found the top speed for that setting to be 10mph approx. This was plenty as the path was busy and narrow in places and to go any faster would have been dangerous to myself and others.On setting 2 I found the top speed to be 12mph approx and setting 3 around 16mph, motor cuts out when it reaches the max speed for each setting and when you pull the brakes.When we arrived home I checked the battery level and both bikes still showed a full battery which I was quite surprised at, although every time we stop pedalling or exceed the speed for the power level selected the motor cuts out so saves on battery power.One thing we will be doing is changing the seats as they are not the most comfortable and did have some aches in the bottom, will give them another try though because we hadn’t been on a bike for 20 odd years and I’m almost 60 years old.So to sum up these are brilliant little bikes once you sort out the few problems, mainly the chain as it really is very poor quality and I strongly recommend changing it as it improves the whole experience.There is plenty of power and I also like the disc brakes that so many other bikes in this class didn’t have and it was important to us as my wife has poor grip due to Arthritis so the extra power helps.One more thing to consider is putting some sort of protection on the forks where they come into contact with the frame when folded to protect the paint.I give a rating of 5 stars based on the performance and price point, the price fluctuates and we were lucky to get them when they were at the lower end.OK, so I’ve spent money on chains and no doubt will replace the seats but they are still an absolute bargain at the price we paid and can’t recommend them enough.If you can get them at £350 to £400 price point then go for it but £699 or above then I’m not sure I’d be too happy about the chain situation as this is the only thing I can see about them that lets them down.

Update: May 11th 2022I contacted Amazon's support via chat and the agent was very helpful, processing the refund on the spot. Now we just have to wait for it to show on the credit card.In the meantime, we purchased another model from the same manufacturer. A cheaper one. Not as nice and has a 24v battery instead of 36v, which would be ideal. However, it turns out my wife is quite happy wih it.So, to sum it up, the bike is good but make sure you inspect it when it arrives since the transportation company doesn't seem to be the most careful.May 2nd 2022The bike is a reasonable price, however they should put more effort into making sure their product got to the customer intact.We got it with the bell smashed, the paint had damage and the battery wasn't behaving as the manual says it should.While recharging the battery, no lights showed anything nor that it was charging or that it was full.So we decided to return it, the pick up was fine but, a week later , it still doesn't even show in Amazon's system that the seller has gotten ahold of the bike. Therefore, the refund remains as pending.

As per the title, worth it, at least at the introductory price. £700 sounds about right and is probably the best bang for your buck currently.ALTERNATIVE 20" E-BIKESIt's better than the Halfords £800 Apollo.The D4S and Himo Z20 are well regarded in China and probably of similar value to this. Price and customer service are the main differentiators. The heavier Z20 is considered safer because of its weight. The Liberte's USP is Amazon sells it, like it does several other brands. The D4S is considered fast, light, and cheap. £700 is a lot for an illegal bike. The Liberte is UK legal (walking mode being absent from mine).That leaves the Ancheer which I know nothing about.NEGATIVESLet me begin with you why you might not want to buy it.The bike required some set up. Finding tools might delay your enjoyment. A full set of allen keys is useful for adjusting the brakes through the spokes as the ones supplied are stubby.A 6mm spanner was needed to adjust the rod behind the central latch. This needed to be set to the correct length to allow it to latch and open. A 10mm socket was needed to adjust the handlebar folding latch as it is spring loaded to resist (accidental) adjustment and the default setting results in excessive wobble in the handlebars. I also found the bolt on the gear cable was 9mm when the nearest supplied spanners were 8 and 10mm.An H2 allen key was needed for a grub screw in the seat post latch but also fits those in the central latch.4 separate tools, from 3 other kits.The handlebars are about a degree out of true with perpendicular to the wheel. Not worth rebuilding the headset for. Not sure if it is the vertical distance from headset to handlebars but there is a bit of wobble in the handlebars that might be alarming if the latch wasn't made (by me) extra tight.The bike weighs 21kg. Of that, 1.8kg is the battery.Like all gear cables this one required adjustment. I wish the misaligned gears could be replicated while I'm doing this; finding reluctant gears while I'm out is no fun at all, but sadly too frequent an occurrence. When I pedal in anything but first I'm feeling irregular resistance through the pedals, along with an accompanying grinding sound.After 45km, research, and reading other reviews here, I'm still convinced the noise is from the derailleur. At 35km the grip shift wouldn't allow first, and nearly all gears had noise. I was getting ready to blame the bottom bracket. The H and L screws wouldn't even allow me into sixth, I was stuck in fifth. Somehow the cable had become more taut?! I slackened it off a few mm. Now I have perfect first and sixth, for now. The chain is brand TAYA, but this is very hard to read.The wheel base is 104cm. The rear wheel feels like it is sliding out around corners; certainly something I've never experienced with other bikes. UPDATE: I invested in a good bicycle pump and after another 10km (albeit off-road) I've not felt the back sliding.POSITIVES:The motor is XF07 250W. The controller functions a bit like a gearbox in that as long as you move the pedals, it will power your bike! The assist levels control the speed it will spin up to, anything faster you have to pedal for! I can get quite lazy knowing this. The speeds were 16km/h, 19km/h and 25.5km/h (seen on the GPS). I was smashing the buttons as I approached lights, because why waste battery on braking?The bike folds to 70 x 86 x 49cm but this involves balancing on the folded handlebars. There is a plastic foot that clips to a bar under the bottom bracket that helps but is easy to lose/detach. Folded, it's 70cm tall excluding the seat post. It's much easier to carry and lift when folded, the central fold being most useful. Leaving the handlebars and seat up give you control of both halves and you can roll it forward, not back.I tend to stay in maximum gear as it is quiet. In this gear I am able to positively contribute to the electric assistance in a sustainable way.Battery appears fine, so far.My battery pack was branded "CopperCell" and not Panasonic. I (5'9", 60kg) have ridden 25km using all levels of assistance (40% @0, 30% @1, 15% @2, 15% @3). The battery only just lost one bar, so represents a 20% depletion.Overall a lot of bike for the money. A bit worried how knackered I felt after all my cycling, it's easy to get lost in the thrill of the first ride. I still feel the motor assisting me like an invisible hand walking around for an hour afterwards.I needed time tweaking it, but buying a conversion kit would have cost more and taken an absolute age to research and assemble. I bought this for fun and exercise, as 20" wheels are far more robust than those on the B75 Brompton I was looking at. For train commutes the Brompton still looks the stronger.