Heybike Explore Review
Active Gear Review is supported by its audience. If you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
With eBike demand exploding, there are more companies jumping into the market every year. One of those companies is Heybike, established in 2021 with the goal of creating a cleaner, more efficient way to commute. Since their initial start they have had tremendous growth as a company and in popularity, enabling them to offer many different styles of eBikes, covering everything from daily commuting to off road riding. With so much talk about the Heybike brand, we wanted to see what all the fanfare was about. So we got a hold of the Heybike Explore to test to see if all the hype around Heybike is warranted.
Unboxing and Assembly of the Heybike Explore
They Heybike Explore comes well packaged with everything securely zip tied together onto the frame of the bike.
Once the zip ties are cut, we were left with basically five pieces to install; the front tire, front fender, pedals, seat and handlebars. Assembly is quick and easy thanks to the detailed user manual and included tools.
Once completely assembled, all that was left was to air up the tires, charge the battery and the Heybike Explore was ride ready.
Heybike Explore Components and Build
Heybike Explore Frame
The Heybike Explore frame is an aluminum build with a step-thru design that can accommodate riders that are 5’5″ to 6’6″. Weighing in at 77 lbs. the Explorer is a sizable machine that can support riders and cargo up to 330 lbs. The first thing that jumped out at me was the length of this eBike coming in at 80″. While there are not really any downsides to this other than taking up more space in the garage. Below are some comparison photos to other eBikes to help show the size.

Left to Right: Heybike Explore – Rad Rover Step-Thru – Ride1Up Core 5 – ET. Cycle F720 – Juiced Bike Scorpion
The Explore is most comparable to the Rad Rover Step-Thru and the picture below will give you a better idea on the length that I mentioned. I lined up the seat posts on both bikes to help gauge the difference. Check out the length of the chain – Wow!
HeyBike Explore Motor
The motor on the Heybike Explore is a brushless 750 watt motor that has a massive amount of torque and power. Out of the box settings on the pedal assist were actually far to aggressive for this large of a motor, which almost caused the bike to do a wheelie. But once the settings get dialed in the motor delivers reliable, strong and fast power, both on and off road.
Heybike Explore Battery
The Heybike Explore comes with a 48V 20AH removable battery that offers riders the ability to tackle a range of up to 55 miles using only the throttle and up to 70 miles when using pedal assist. While these numbers are estimates, they proved to be close in testing. Range of course depends on many factors; rider and cargo weight, tire pressure, terrain, wind, temperature, etc. With Heybike choosing to add a larger than standard battery, it gives the bike more power and the chance to out distance many other eBikes on the market.
A battery indicator gauge is built right on the battery for pre-ride checking.
The battery can be charged on or off the bike and is easy to remove by accessing the seat lever that flips up the seat. Charge time on the battery from empty lands just shy of six hours.
Heybike Explore Throttle and Controls
The Heybike Explore is equipped with a twist grip throttle on the right side handle bar that allows riders to power the bike without pedaling. This is extremely useful for quick takeoffs, steep hills and rapidly changing terrain. The left side handle bar has controls for the LCD Display, power button, lights on/off button and an electronic horn button.
Heybike Explore Display
Front and center on the handlebars is the Explore’s backlit multifunction display which shows: battery level, speed, pedal assist level, odometer, wattmeter and an on/off light indicator. This is also where you can go in and tweak a number off settings to accommodate your ride style. As you can see on the display above, I have it set for 9 different pedal assist levels which really offers a nice riding experience. If you want to take a deep dive on all of the available settings you can check out the manual here. Going with a black background and white numbers really improves the readability of the display even in direct sunlight. Out of all of the eBikes that I have tested this display is the best one to date.
Heybike Explore Brakes
Heybike went with a Tektro brake setup which is the general go to for most eBikes on the market. But for whatever reason they opted for the smaller 160 mm disc and in my opinion really should have gone with the 180 mm disc at the very least, especially for the size and weight of this eBike.
The Tektro brakes work decently enough and do stop the bike, but they do not offer the confident stopping power that you would get from a 180 mm disc brake set. While this isn’t a deal breaker, it is something to keep in mind especially if you are a hard charging rider.
Heybike Explore Suspension
The front fork on the Explore has built-in suspension that improves shock absorption and delivers smooth riding. The suspension fork has 80mm of travel that helps cushion bumps along the ride and depending on your preference, the suspension fork can be locked out as a rigid fork, which yields higher efficiency while pedaling. The lockout lever located on top of the right side of the suspension fork, can be turned counterclockwise until it stops to completely lock out the suspension fork’s travel. To unlock the lockout lever, turn the knob clockwise until it stops.
When the lockout lever is unlocked, resistance can be adjusted by turning the preload adjustment knob, located on the top of the left side of the suspension fork. To soften the ride, subtract resistance by turning the preload adjustment knob counterclockwise, in the direction of the small “-” on the knob. To make the suspension softer when going over bumps, add resistance by turning the preload adjustment knob clockwise, in the direction of the small “+” on the knob. Both of these add nice personalized suspension to improve the ride experience on the Heybike Explore.
Heybike Explore Gears
Propelling the Explore is a 7-speed Shimano gear system that provides smooth shifting and just the right amount of gears to deliver the flexibly to tackle almost any terrain.
Heybike Explore Tires
The Heybike Explore is equipped with Chao Yang 26″ x 4″ fat tires. While these are not necessarily considered a top of the line brand, they have been more than adequate, delivering plenty of grip on trails and offering a smooth and stable ride on the road. After putting a 100 plus miles of trails and roadways, they have shown very little wear.
Heybike Explore Seat
The Heybike Explore comes with a wide seat that provides a comfortable ride. Attached to the seat is a small shock absorber that smooths out and dampens any bumps in the road and takes the comfort level up a notch. This combination allows you to take long rides with plush, smooth riding enjoyment.
Heybike Explore Rack, Lights and Mounting
Rounding out the components on Heybike Explore is the rear rack, front and rear lights, bottle holder and integrated front mount. The rear rack has a load capacity up to 120 lbs., which would be great for saddlebags and/or a trunk or basket and could easily be stacked with groceries, camping equipment or even hunting gear.
Front and rear lights deliver visibility as well as viewability for low light and dark riding. And best of all they have their own switch that allows you to turn them on and off with ease, as well as a light indicator on the the LCD display to let you know that they are on. The Explore comes with a water bottle cage installed that fits standard bike water bottles. And lastly, the integrated front mount allows you to install an optional front rack or basket.
Heybike Explore Riding Experience
As I mentioned above, right out of the box the Heybike Explore was a bit on the aggressive side and with all the power that a 750 watt motor can provide it needed to be dialed in. After jumping into the settings and bringing down the percentage of power being delivered for each pedal assist level, the Explore was ready to ride.
Heading out into the trails was an absolute joy. Between the front suspension and the shock absorber in the seat, tree roots and bumps in the trails were easily smoothed out, providing a nice rolling ride that didn’t jar my hands or rattle my body. On steep inclines the throttle came in handy to climb hills with no effort on my part. And thanks to the knobby tread on the tires, soft sand and mud didn’t slow the Explore down one bit.
Cruising on the roads delivered a smooth, stable and fast ride. With the throttle alone, I was able to hit speeds of 26 mph on flat straightaways, adding in some pedal power and it could take me to around 28 mph, but it was a lot of work to keep it at that speed for any length of time. One of the best things about the Heybike Explore is the large capacity battery, it easily tackled a 45 mile trip with plenty of battery to spare. This eBike is wonderful to cruise around on and impressive for not having to worry about whether or not you will have enough battery to make it to your destination and back home again.
Specifications of the Heybike Explore
- Battery: 48V 20Ah Lithium battery
- Range: 70 Miles (Pedal assist)
- Hub Motor: 750W Brushless gear motor
- Max Load: 330 lbs. (150kg)
- Display: LCD display
- Bell/Horn: Electric Horn
- Charging Port: Output 54.6V 2.8A
- Charging Time: 5-6 hours
- Rear Rack Dimensions: 50×19.5 (cm)
- Pedal-Assist Range 50-70 miles (80-113 km)
- Pure Electric Range 40-55 miles (64-89 km)
- Package Dimensions :165×30×87 (cm)
- Product Dimensions: 203×64×125 (cm)
- Recommended Rider Height: 5’9″-6’6″
- E-Bike Weight: 77 lbs (35 kg)
- Package Weight: 102.5 lbs (46.5 kg)
- Pedal Assist: Intelligent 5-level PAS
- E-bike Class: Class 3
Final Thoughts on the Heybike Explore
I do think Heybike slightly missed the mark on the brakes, but not enough for me to not recommend the Explore. With the powerful motor, fast speeds, big capacity battery and comfortable ride, the Heybike Explore is an absolute blast to ride and would make a great everyday ride, a fantastic commuter and even a worthy bike packing eBike.
For more info on the Explore or other Heybike models visit www.heybike.com or www.amazon.com/heybike. Canadian readers can visit www.heybike.ca.
Does the Haybike Explore have hydraulic or mechanical brakes?
Thanks for the question. The Heybike Explore has mechanical brakes.
Hi Mark, thank you for this review. I just purchased this model E-bike today through amazon. I am 68 years old with severe rheumatoid arthritis in my knees, I can hardly walk short distances. I am around 270 lbs. and tried to ride my street bike with no success more than a half mile. I really miss riding and thought this bike would put me back on the road. With the assisted pedaling I believe I can get some exercise which is what the doctors want me to do. The bike is to arrive no later than next Friday 8/21. I read some bad reviews about problems customers had with this model, but also read many more good reviews. After reading your review, its giving me confidence that I made the right decision to purchase this bike. Take care and thank you again for your review. PS, I live in the Cadillac West area.
Hi Mike!
Thanks for being a reader! I believe the Heybike Explore will be a Great ebike for you. After this review my then nine year old son commandeered this bike because it was easy for him to ride even given it’s large size and of course it was fast – which he loved. He put well over a 100 miles on it zipping around the neighborhood with his friends and eventually upgraded to a motorcycle style ebike, because it was cooler. After my son was done with the Heybike Explore, my 73 year old father took possession of it, because it was easy to get on and fun to ride. He still uses it to this day and absolutely loves it. The only thing that I would recommend for you, is to go in and personalize the pedal assist settings, because right out of the box this thing is a rocket ship on take off, almost to the point of being dangerous. I changed the PAS from the standard 0-5 to a much better 0-9, this helps spread out all that power over nine levels and offers a much smoother riding experience. The manual can be found here –> https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0516/9804/1009/files/Explore_User_Manual-2022.3.22.pdf?v=1647929496 and page 18 explains how to get into the settings.
All the Best!
Mark
Mark,
I am 81 years old and plan to ride primarily on roads. I am looking to get exercise and be able to easily negotiate the hills in our area. Would you consider the Heybike Explorer to be an appropriate choice? I am a little concerned about the weight. The fact that your 9 year old son didn’t seem to have a problem is encouraging. And are the fat tires a good choice for me versus looking at urban commuter bikes? I will appreciate your thoughts.
Hi John,
Thanks for the question! If you are planning on riding primary on roads, a fat tire bike is not really necessary and you may want to consider a e-bike with smaller tires which will help reduce the overall weight. One such bike would be the Aventon Level.2 Commuter eBike, that review can be found here –> https://www.activegearreview.com/cycling-gear/ebike-reviews/aventon-level-2-commuter-ebike-review/ or depending on your height, I just finished reviewing the Velotric Go 1 E-Bike which is a very COMPACT and lightweight e-bike, that review can be found here –> https://www.activegearreview.com/cycling-gear/ebike-reviews/velotric-go-1-e-bike-review-a-versatile-and-efficient-companion-for-everyday-errands/ . If you do plan to venture out onto the trails every once in a while, then Heybike Explore is a solid choice and does also work great for road riding. One thing that I would definitely recommend is choosing an e-bike with a step-thru frame, which all three of these e-bikes have. The step-thru frame makes it easy to get on and off when stopping and starting. Happy to answer any other questions you might have.
Thanks!
Mark,
Many thanks for the thoughtful and valuable reply. A further question is about the different wheel sizes – do the larger diameter wheels make for greater stability versus the smaller? Is one ride more comfortable than the other? And, any other thoughts you may have on stability with fat versus regular tires.
Thanks,
John
The fat tires being both wider and larger in diameter do offer a bit more stability and shock absorbing comfort to the ride. That is not to say that either of the other two e-bikes have an uncomfortable ride by any means. But if you are looking to maximize comfort and stability, then a fat tire bike is the way to go. On the plus side for smaller tires, they do offer more agility and maneuverability. From a replacement cost perspective, the fat tires are almost 3x the cost of a more standard size bike tire – I had to replace two of the fat tires on my ebikes from being worn out from mileage and they certainly don’t give those away. Hope that helps. Let me know if any other questions come up, happy to answer them.
Mark,
Thanks for the thoughtful and valuable reply. Another question. Is there a difference in stability between the small (Velotric) and the regular size wheels (Aventon)? And is there a difference in stability or smoothness of ride between the fat and regular tires?
I look forward to your thoughts.
John Lincoln
I would give the stability edge to the Aventon because the Velotric has a more compact frame, but it is not by much as they both offer a pretty similar ride. With fat tires bikes there will be slightly more stability and a bit more road noise from the knobby tires versus a standard bike tire, but the fat tires by no means take away from the smoothness of the ride, if anything they add to it because they are able to absorb more of the bumps and imperfections in the road. Let me know if you have any other questions.
Anyone know where I can find a top cover assembly for the 48v battery case?
Hey Andy,
Thanks for the question. Your best bet is going to be emailing Heybike directly and see what they suggest. support@heybike.com