Schwinn Coston CE E-Bike Review: A Double-Edged Sword

Overall, given the fundamental shift I have seen in my personal bike riding habits this past summer, I very much enjoy having an e-bike. The Coston e-bike is a good example of that in a much more approachable price range than some others. The LED controls are nice, but also missing some functionality. This bike comes equipped with front, rear, and bottom lights. The front and rear lights are attached to the fenders while the bottom lights are part of the battery itself. If it’s a bright night and you just want some visibility, the bottom lights work well.

The front suspension fork pairs nicely with the seat post shock and the ergonomic grips, swept back handlebars and adjustable stem keep your hands and arms comfortable. Even though this bike uses a relatively weak motor, it rides well and keeps the overall weight down. It’s also very balanced because the battery pack (while high up) is in the back and the motor is in the front. Visit friends or explore downtown with the Schwinn Marshall E-Bike. The 250-watt electric motor offers 7 different levels of powered drive or pedal assist, selected using the LCD screen and achieving speeds up to 20 miles per hour.

It’s a planetary geared design by Protanium and it offers good torque while keeping weight down. The motor is quiet during operation and blends in with the rest of the bike. I did notice some speed wobbles at higher speeds when riding with no-hands (be careful not to let this get out of control or you may crash). One upside to a front hub motor is that it reduces the complexity of the rear wheel which usually has cogs and a derailleur already crowding the space. One thing I would have liked to see on the front wheel with this ebike is a quick release as this is offered at the back and also on the seat tube and it just makes servicing easier.

Sure, I’ve seen plenty of e-bikes with 288 Wh batteries before. It’s just that they’re usually on smaller, lightweight e-bikes that push the needle considerably less on the scale. With 2.6″ tires, you’ve got a lot of air and rubber under you to tackle more than just well-manicured bicycle lanes. Hitting curbs or potholes will be smoother than most pure commuter bikes, especially considering the inclusion of the front suspension fork and suspension seat post. Headlights, taillights, and integrated frame lights help you see and be seen in low-light conditions. For comparison, my main bike — the REI Co-op Cycles CTY 2.1 — is bigger and weighs just over 30 pounds.

schwinn electric bike

That way, when you unlock the battery it doesn’t just fall out. Some thought was put into the idea there and I appreciated it. Before we get into the e-bike itself, I want to take a moment to talk about e-bike ownership and what it has meant for me. I mongoose excursion mentioned the shunning of my trusty Trek bike in lieu of my e-bikes this summer, but the reason for that has been life-changing for me. I’ve been using an electric bike and a shoulder bag for most of my shopping “can you grab me XYZ from Target” runs.

In the event a replacement is needed, the motor is easy to replace as part of the wheel. Go up to 45 miles on a single charge, depending on conditions with the 313-watt hour rack mounted battery. Recharge in 4 hours with a standard household outlet and included charging cable. Ride up to 20 MPH with the 250-watt brushless geared hub drive pedal assist motor that gives you a boost while you pedal. Choose from several levels of assistance or use the throttle instead. Take your adventure further than ever before with an electric mountain bike.

At the same time, you may not see any sales taxes applied to your purchase. As Upway is a brand new business in the US, we are only required to charge sales taxes as from a determined level of revenue collected per state. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to  or via our chat. I’m sure that keeping it in low schwinn mountain bicycles pedal assist will still net riders the claimed maximum of 35 miles that Schwinn promises. I’m not about to pedal around in the lightest pedal assist setting all day, especially since this isn’t a high power e-bike to begin with. So if you’re using liberal throttle, keep in mind that you’re going to wind up with limited range.

As mentioned above, you do have to start pedaling to engage the electric assistance though you don’t have to pedal much to approach max speeds. Nonetheless, I wish there was a way to zip around town without having to pedal at all. Despite my desire to only mongoose bmx bike for exercise, I do admit I get lazy sometimes. When I finally started riding, I discovered that I couldn’t be completely lazy. You can’t just sit on the bike and have it zoom you around town — you actually have to pedal to engage the electric motor.