"A16 All Terrain Version"
I have a lot to say…. I ordered three of the A16's and at the time, there were very few reviews and almost no feedback. There is also almost zero reviews online as well. For those looking for a quick summary, I am happy I purchased, would likely purchase again, for no other reason but price.
I will go over the bad, simply because it is the most important and what everyone wants to know. In the end, these are an overseas ripoff of a major domestic design. Everything you would expect out of this priced scooter you are going to get. From the second I opened the first box, I could tell this is an "overseas" product. It just isn't exact. It feels thrown together, with all the little things that matter being sub par or under average. I was truly "underwhelmed" The brakes squeak because they are mechanical and not hydraulic. They work, and will stop the scooter effectively, but the grinding and squeaking is awful, and cleaning them does nothing. They are difficult to adjust and difficult to maintain. Not terrible, but again, not what you would get in a much more expensive domestic version. Think "I" and "Scooter".
They fold, not easily, but they do fold. If you have weak fingers or hands, this could be an issue. The overall fit and finish is below average as well and the most annoying thing is the handle bars. The compression fitting isn't great and they tend to twist, no matter how tight you get it. The indicators are completely useless, nobody is going to see a flashing light on the base and they aren't very bright. The headlights work but are impossible to adjust because they are fixed and not designed to be moved around. But… to be fair, they are bright. The major issues are just poor construction and fit and finish. These are things you are going to have to live with for the price. When I purchased, I was comparing these to the iX8. Of course these aren't even close! Not even on the same planet! But the iX8 is also double the price and sits right under a grand on sale. So in that regard I am not that disappointed.
One insane issue, and one that is not yet resolved, is the settings. The instructions tell you how to get into the settings feature (assist start and a few other things) but once there, the instructions seemed to be written by a 2 year old. I have no idea what they are saying, nobody would. Not sure what their arbitrary language and settings mean. I left it alone because it is impossible to understand what you are changing.
Now for the good. The truth is, I ordered these for my kids. My kids are honestly a bit too small for these, but I didn't want to order child scooters just to have them outgrow them and need to buy more in a year or two. So I took a chance with these. That chance paid off.
The main reason I really care for these for my kids is they have 4 speed settings. The agreement for buying them was they would follow directions when using them and so far they have done great. I force them to keep them on speed setting "1". This maxes out at about 10-11 miles per hour. Just fast enough for them without being crazy. The 1st setting is considered "walking mode", then its 1, 2, & 3. The walking mode is super slow, less than 3 mph and requires a lot of skill to keep the scooter upright (good balance required), kid's hated that, but a useful setting if you are riding along with someone who is walking. The other settings start to get a bit crazy for kids. 2 = about 20 MPH and 3 = 28 – 30 MPH depending on who is riding. I am 180, and I will get it to 29 MPH if I am on flat ground or slightly downhill. If the kids hit that setting, it would easily get there and on a scooter of this size… is not for the faint of hart! They are faster than our e-bikes for sure. Lots of torque as well and I have played around with them off road. They will break the tires loose in gravel if your weight is off the back wheel. Additionally, I was goofing around with wheelies and… yes, a little tug on the handles while accelerating will get you in a very substantial wheelie. Be careful! I am a seasoned rider and that caught me by surprise.
With the kids, the battery life is substantial. On that setting "1" the kids can literally ride all day around the neighborhood without it dying. They were on them today for nearly 6 1/2 hours and there is still a 1/4 battery life left when I plugged them in. I am very pleased with that. Charging them does take a solid 5-6 hours if they are completely dead. One thing I don't like is the water cap on the charge port, that is PITA. If you buy one, you will get it. It is just insane to pull it off and you need fingernails.
I also like how the handlebars can be adjusted, per my previous complaint, that fitting is a pain, but the variability in handlebar length is great. I have a 9, 10, & 11 year old and all of them can easily ride and control these. In fact, they are big enough yet balanced that 2 kids can ride at the same time. I even stood my 9 year old in front of me and we rode together and got it up to 22-23 MPH. He didn't care for that too much, but it was perfectly safe and fun. My 11 year old would be screaming "faster!", but she is a speed demon.
All the suspension is kind of for show. I really played around with them and only got them to compress a little bit. When taking it off a curb it is still a fairly violent experience as the shocks don't really do a lot. But don't mistake that with not having any, they are effective, just could be better.
In summary, as a serious adult version of an all terrain powerful scooter, no. Not even close. Will it work getting you back and forth to work/school, and is it effective? Heck yes. Once you master folding it, this is a great option for even adults. Just don't t think this is anywhere near close to the iX8. But it is also less than half the price of the former. I bought 3 of these for less than half of what the iX8's would have cost. And at the same time, running a 10 year old on a dual motor 2400W all terrain scooter would be irresponsible at best. These rear wheel motor 1200 watt'ers are just fine for my kids and even me.
The only other issue to address is longevity. We have been riding the snot out of them for 2 weeks, and we haven't had major breakdowns, but are finding things coming loose, mainly the headlights. The brakes are awful at making noise, but they still function fine. I will update if reliability goes completely off the rails.
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