There's no real beating around the bush here; Rattan Pinus is one borrowed vowel away from the king of all middle school jokes. But trying to put that aside for a few seconds, the bike itself is actually a fun and pretty decent ride, too. It's certainly far from a premium e-level bike, but it's interesting as a decent budget option!
Sure, funny name aside, there's actually a lot to like here.
Check out my video review to see it in action. Or if you're more of a reader, keep scrolling for my written review!
Rattan Pinus video review
Rattan Pinus Tech Specs
- Car: 750W continuous (1,200W peak) rear mounted hub motor
- Top speed: 45 km/h (28 mph), although slightly higher
- Distance: Claimed up to 160 km (100 mi) on a second battery
- Battery: 48V with 20Ah (960 Wh) or 40Ah (1,920 Wh) options (single vs dual battery)
- Maximum load: 181 kg (400 lb)
- Brakes: FastAce hydraulic two-piston disc brakes on 180 mm rotors
- Additional: Torque sensors, LCD display, LED head and tail lights with turn signals, left thumb throttle, kickstand, suspension fork, 4″ fat tires, two color options (red and blue), and included fenders & rear rack
What do you get here?
First of all, the bike is quite powerful and fast.
They claim a top speed of 28 mph (45 km/h), but I've blown past that in the 30s many times on flat ground, so there's something short here. Maybe they just look down for legal reasons like the 60's GTO, I'm not sure. But any way you cut it, you have a lot of power and speed at your fingertips.
That's also 28+ mph on throttle-only, which is either “unquestionably legal” or outright prohibited in most states, as it no longer qualifies as a Class 3.
Of course, you can always limit the speed in the display settings, if that's an issue for you. But for most people, knowing you have a little room to push is a good thing.
Next, the range is very good. The basic bike comes with a 48V 20Ah battery that provides a capacity of 960 Wh. They also say it's a UL compliant battery.
The claimed range is 50 miles (80 km), although you will get less if you fly fast on the throttle. But the 960Wh battery is definitely bigger than you'll find on most e-bikes, so you'll go further than the average competitor.
For those who want more width, you can get a second battery and double the width. The secondary battery mounts to the top of the down tube, and isn't as well hidden as the internal battery, but if you really want 100 miles of theoretical range, getting a Pinus extension is your only option.
Buying that second battery lowers the price a bit. The base model's $1,699 price tag jumps to US $2,178 with the dual battery option, which is almost a $500 premium. Wow.
The rest of the parts around the bike are a mix of decent and good. An 8-speed SunRace derailleur? Honorable.
Hydraulic disc brakes? Good.
Plastic instruments? Honorable.
LED lighting with turn signals? Good.
Suspension fork? Honorable.
A folding system? Good.
It's a grab bag of various parts, though the premium part that brings it all home is the torque sensor, which provides far better pedal assist than you'd expect from a fat-wheel e-bike like this.
To be fair, most people will use the throttle on this e-bike most of the time anyway, but it's still nice to know you have a good pedal assist if you decide to pedal.
Another nitpicky thing I found was that the cranks felt a little long on the bike, and I sometimes had pedal strike when pedaling through corners that I used to drive on other bikes. I also catch my cranks in the obstacles when pushing the bike more times than I usually do with most of my other rides.
Bikes with 20″ wheels sometimes have low bottom brackets to begin with, due to the low frame height. However, cranks are usually sized appropriately to prevent this from being a problem. I think the Pinus could have benefited from the cranks being a few millimeters shorter, but it doesn't really affect the bike's usability, and longer cranks are great for real pedaling.
Some e-bikes, like SUPER73s for example, can have ridiculously short cranks that lead to a funny feeling when pedaling, so a smaller crank is usually better, as long as you remember to play your pedals forward and backward in the turns. , as is good practice on any bike.
In the end, the Rattan Pinus is not that different from other 20″ wheel folding electric bikes out there. Sure, it has a funny name, but at the end of the day, it's still your basic run of high power, high speed, and average quality.
There are plenty of options in that crowded market, but Pinus makes a compelling case. I would have liked to see this come in for less than $1,699, and be too gung-ho to recommend it. As it stands now, I really enjoy the bike, and I can let my friends ride my Pinus whenever they want. It's a solid road, but not that different from other bikes out there.
Maybe those few hundred extra bucks are worth all the jokes to some people, though.
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