Final up to date:March 25, 2024

Two weeks in the past, I obtained the new-for-this-year Himiway C5 to evaluate. The C5 is a full-suspension motorcycle-inspired ebike with motorcycle-style dual-crown suspension forks, a 750-watt hub motor, a banana seat, and 20”x4” extensive fats tires. Himiway says that the C5 is a part of its new “household” collection of ebikes, alongside the children’ C1 and the cargo bike C3.

For those who’re quick on consideration span, right here’s my five-bullet-point evaluate of the 2024 Himiway C5:

1. It appears fairly costly at $2,300 USD (about $3,000 CAD), contemplating that it’s utilizing an entry-level Shimano 7-speed groupset and a typical 750-watt hub motor, however that’s not the purpose of this bike. Its large 20 Ah battery ensures that you may throttle round for a claimed 80 miles (although it’s in all probability nearer to 50-60 in the actual world), and for the reason that C5 makes use of a torque sensor, motor enter is easy and responsive (virtually “pure” feeling) if you do pedal. It’s an odd however efficient mixture for riders who need one thing to joyride round whereas being heavy on the throttle.
2. The using place is just not excellent for aggressive pedaling, so that you’ll be counting on the 750-watt motor to do loads of the lifting. It makes 86 Nm of torque, which is fairly potent and, on flat floor, will get the C5 transferring to its high velocity of 28 mph / 45 kph comparatively shortly. Nonetheless, it’s nonetheless a hub motor, so it struggles on hills and has common acceleration total except you’re pedaling together with it. Talking of which…
3. I’m 6’2” and discover the C5 awkward to pedal, however tremendous after I’m largely utilizing the throttle. Its journey peak is good for anybody within the 5’ – 5’8” vary. Teenagers might journey this bike in the event that they’re skilled/assured, however at 88 lbs, it shouldn’t be handled like a toy. It will possibly go quick (as much as 28 mph / 45 kph).
4. The mixture of full suspension and 4” fats tires leads to a snug journey. The 4” tires are good for this use case, affording good traction in most circumstances. I had tons of enjoyable using the C5 within the snow and sand.
5. The C5 ought to have include fenders. The rear fender is insufficient to stop you from getting soaked, and there’s no entrance fender (nor anyplace to simply mount one). Except the place you’re using is bone dry, you’re going to get moist and soiled each time you journey the C5. Additionally, this bike has the worst kickstand out of all of the bikes I’ve had in my storage so far; I swear, the C5 falls over if you happen to have a look at it flawed.

As a Canadian, early March is an attention-grabbing time to evaluate an ebike, and as a result of dwelling west of the Rockies, the C5 and I’ve gotten to expertise three seasons up to now two weeks. I’ve ridden on and off-road, via sand and snow, and have put the C5 via its paces.

Total, the C5 is an efficient however imperfect e-bike, and it might enhance in a number of areas. However maybe an important level to make is that, whereas the C5 seems like an electrical bike, it’s, on the finish of the day, a reasonably normal moped-style ebike with a torque-sensing PAS system and a elaborate physique package. Set your expectations accordingly.

This evaluate covers three areas: aesthetics and design, construct high quality and parts, and the way it’s to journey. I rode the snot out of this bike, abused the motor, and rode it on pavement, within the filth, via the snow, and up and down each hill I might discover.

wBW readers know that our opinions go deeper than floor degree, so if you happen to’d wish to know what it’s wish to journey and reside with the C5, this evaluate is for you.

Phrases & Pictures: Cameron Martel

Himiway despatched us the C5 at no-charge. We shouldn’t have a monetary relationship with Himiway. All opinions are topic to our evaluate insurance policies. Merchandise are scored primarily based on our hands-on experiences with it. Thus far, I’ve hands-on reviewed greater than 30 ebikes and have 5 in my storage at any given time.

2024 Himiway C5 Specs

• MSRP: $2,299 USD
• The place to Purchase: Himiway web site
• Guarantee: 15-day money-back assure, 2-year guarantee on the bike and battery
• High Pace: 28 mph / 45 kph 
• eBike Class: Class 2 out of the field, class 3 unlockable
• Vary: Claimed 80 miles / 125 km (wBW estimated 50 miles / 80 km)
• Bike Weight: 88 lbs / 39 kg (together with battery)
• Weight capability: 330 lbs (150 kg)
• Motor: 750-watt rear hub
• Torque: Estimated 86 nm
• PAS: Torque, 5 -levels
• Brakes: Tektro hydraulic brakes with 180 mm rotors
• Gearing: Shimano 7-speed
• Battery: 48V 20 Ah (960 Wh)
• Wheels & Tires: 20” x 4” wheels and tires (no-name tires)
• Different: Headlight, powered taillight, insulated mug

Himiway C5 Unboxing & Meeting

The C5 comes largely assembled. It took Melissa and me about 20 minutes to unbox it, end assembling it, clear up the storage, and set the tire strain to twenty psi. 

Meeting could be very simple:

• Placed on the handlebar
• Connect the entrance wheel
• Screw on the pedals
• Inflate tires to your required PSI (20 – 30 psi is ok for many settings)
• Verify all of the nuts and bolts to make sure they’re tight

The field contains alternate darkish fender graphics, the charger, a Himi-hat, and an insulated mug. 

Why the mug, you ask?

To place in your frame-integrated fake carbon fiber cup holder, in fact!

Unboxing Meeting Video

YouTube channel MILTONATOR has a superb unboxing and meeting video.

Himiway C5 Aesthetics & Design

The C5 is a beautiful ebike within the model of a small filth bike, and it’s in all probability one of many best-looking ones available on the market proper now. 

Good job, Himiway: The C5 is being added to our listing of the finest ebikes that appear to be bikes.

Considerably distinctive to the bike is the usage of motorcycle-esque inverted dual-crown forks (the HeyBike Brawn I reviewed final 12 months additionally had forks like these). Paired with aggressive plastic bodywork, a banana seat, and a fake carbon fiber “tank”, and the C5 allllmost seems like a small electrical bike…

… a lot so, in truth, that many useful individuals have stopped what they had been doing to let me know that what I’m using seems like one (and “hey, can that even be on the trail?”). 

Children and youths particularly love this factor, and may you blame them? I’d have liked using round on it after I was 14. The C5 can also be sized proper for that age group…

… you’re welcome, children”
– Himiway 😉

The bodywork largely hides the rear air shock, and regardless of being patently ineffective for its supposed use case, the rear fender does spherical off the look in an aesthetically pleasing manner.

Sadly, the rear bodywork plastic can get scratched, and for the reason that C5’s kickstand has a shallow lean angle, the bike will fall over rather a lot, testing that concept. It is a very fixable downside if you wish to substitute the kickstand it ships with for one thing that provides an even bigger lean angle.

I like that Himiway included a metallic seize bar on the rear above the powered tail mild, which is useful and pragmatic. The seize bar is a lifesaver for the reason that dual-crown forks limit maneuverability, particularly in garages and tight areas.

A gripe I’ve is how the headlight is hooked up and stabilized to the body by way of a single hex bolt. Irrespective of how tight I tighten the bolt, I need to readjust the headlight place and angle after each few rides.

2024 Himiway C5 Construct High quality & Elements

Himiway hit the market in 2021 (we reviewed the Himiway Cruiser and Cruiser Step-Through that 12 months), and since its preliminary launch, it has repeatedly iterated and improved its bikes. It presents a variety of bikes, from entry-level cruisers to hardcore mountain bikes… just like the Himiway Cobra Professional I reviewed final 12 months.

Yearly, they enhance the parts used on their bikes, and because of this, the brand-new C5 ships with Tektro hydraulic brakes, Kenda tires, and an enormous 20 Ah battery. Regardless of the entry-level 7-speed groupset, the standard of parts is far improved over earlier Himiway fashions (and most ODM bike-in-a-box manufacturers, together with the beforehand talked about HeyBikes).

Suspension, Forks, & Tires

The coil-suspension inverted dual-crown forks are preload and compression adjustable, with 140 mm of journey. I discovered it simple to dial in my most popular consolation degree, and the compression dial is simple to succeed in and alter on the fly. 

The forks are heavy in comparison with “regular” forks and have a bump-stop to stop you from hitting the body whereas turning. Talking of which, the lowered turning radius typically isn’t an issue, however I did discover it after I was winding my manner via some tight trails close to the river financial institution… and by no means thoughts maneuvering the bike within the storage.

The rear suspension is an air shock, which is adjustable in case you have a suspension pump. I adjusted the on mine and finally settled at 60 psi as a superb mixture of bounce and firmness.

The suspension setup isn’t as comfy as you may be anticipating a full suspension bike to be. Nonetheless, it’s leagues higher than a hardtail – particularly for this utility and elegance of ebike.

The tires have a customized Himiway emblem sample and look good. They aren’t particularly knobby, however regardless of that, they’ve loads of traction in most settings. I’ve ridden the C5 on pavement, within the filth, and thru gravel, sand, and snow.

Traction is fairly good on pavement and packed filth, however the lack of a extra aggressive off-road tread sample means the C5 has much less chew in free filth, sand, and snow than off-road particular tires. 

That mentioned, I discovered it simple to dial the tire strain down to higher swimsuit the terrain I used to be using on. 4” fats tires are a little bit of a cheat code in that respect. I run the tires at 24 psi on pavement/packed trails, 18 psi on free gravel/filth, and eight psi in sand and snow.

Show & Handlebars

The C5 has BMX-style bars that aren’t that extensive. The grips are comfy, and the bike is simple to govern. The left handlebars have the throttle and show enter pad, and the appropriate bars have the shifter (and bell, on this case).

Himiway has upgraded the show on its newer fashions. Whereas this show is a black/white LCD, it’s a lot improved over prior generations and really seen in all circumstances (together with direct mild). 

Maintain the + and – buttons for a couple of seconds on the enter pad to entry the settings menu, the place you’ll be able to alter the backlight brightness, show items (mph/kph), clear the journey show, and so on. Hit the “M” (mode) button to vary settings whereas utilizing the + / – buttons to navigate the menu.

To regulate the superior settings, whereas already within the settings menu, hit the – and M buttons concurrently. Then, enter the passcode 0510. As soon as performed, you’ll be able to alter the wheel diameter and velocity restrict (LS). I “unlocked” the restrict from 20 mph / 32 kph (class 2) to twenty-eight mph / 45 kph (class 3).

Groupset & Brakes

The Shimano Tourney 7-speed groupset is used on virtually each entry-level ebike. Usually, I’d lament this had been the C5 a mountain bike (or perhaps a commuter), however provided that the C5 is supposed to be throttled more often than not, the 7-speed groupset is ok.

In spite of everything, the cash they saved on the groupset they put into brand-name hydraulic brakes, an enormous 20 Ah battery, and a torque-sensing pedal help system.

At 88 lbs, you want hydraulic brakes (for my part), and I’d choose to have seen bigger rotors than the 180 mm ones the C5 comes with. The 180 mm rotors aren’t small, however for the reason that bike is so heavy, the additional stopping energy and warmth administration of bigger rotors could be good (and wouldn’t meaningfully improve the value by a lot, both).

Preferences apart, the Tektro hydraulic brakes chew down exhausting and have constant suggestions. I didn’t really feel any brake fade/shaking as I rode, but it surely was additionally 27 F / -3 C for many of my rides.

What’s the 2024 Himiway C5 Prefer to Journey?

Individuals who see this bike assume that it’s quick. As you recognize, seems may be deceiving, as they’re on this case. The C5 isn’t sluggish, however its efficiency does not match its aggressive look. 

The C5 accelerates at a average and really controllable tempo. On flat floor, it’s going to attain its 28 mph / 45 kph high velocity on throttle alone, and it could possibly climb small to moderate-grade hills on throttle solely as effectively. Nonetheless, the rear hub motor doesn’t profit from the bike’s gearing, so it struggles when hills get steep.

From a lifeless cease, throttle enter is sort of instantaneous. Mash the throttle, and the bike begins accelerating instantly. Nonetheless, at velocity, the throttle takes a second or two to reply after engagement. It’s not a buzz kill, but it surely’s noticeable.

If the C5 had a mid-drive motor, it might completely rip. One other motorcycle-inspired ebike I reviewed final 12 months, the Michael Blast Vacay mid-drive, comes with a 500-watt mid-drive, and it simply accelerates twice as quick because the C5 and is rather more able to climbing hills.

Himiway is including mid-drives to a lot of its fashions, so hopefully, the C5 will obtain the identical therapy. It’s good as it’s, but it surely’ll be insanely enjoyable and borderline addictive in the event that they add a potent 250—or 500-watt mid-drive to it.

Grime & Single-Observe Trails

4” fats tires assist the C5 go wherever you level it, and because it’s full suspension, you’ll be fairly comfy when you do it.

I’m impressed with the torque-sensing drivetrain, which could be very delicate and exact in delivering energy. It’s not tuned in addition to the Floor 604 Boar Hunter I reviewed final 12 months, which additionally makes use of a torque-sensing drivetrain with a hub motor, but it surely’s leagues higher than the cadence pedal help techniques you normally see on ebikes like this.

For single-track trails, which means you should use extra exact inputs whereas feeling in command of the motor. That is particularly useful in tight settings the place precision is extra essential than energy. Satirically, it’s in these similar settings the place the lowered turning radius can also be most blatant.

Sand & Snow

Every time I’ve taken the C5 out within the snow, it has carried out reliably. It’s additionally within the snow that I rethink my need for a mid-drive motor that makes extra energy; the M620 Himiway used on the Cobra Professional, for instance, virtually makes an excessive amount of energy for snow using.

However within the snow, the C5 makes the good quantity of energy.

The motor is predictable, controllable, and enjoyable to play with. With tender suspension and eight psi within the tires, the C5 has a lot of grip in mild/average snow. I wouldn’t go plowing via 8” of it, however a couple of inches of contemporary powder is a enjoyable playground for the C5.

4” fats tires are an enormous assist right here. Drop the strain down to eight psi and let ‘er rip.

Rocks & Gravel

Between fats tires, tender suspension, and a torque-sensing powertrain, the Himiway C5 begs you to journey it on filth and gravel paths. It proved to be a succesful rock crawler as I trawled alongside the riverbank to discover a appropriate photograph shoot spot.

Holding the tires at 8 psi, I used to be all the time in command of the bike and felt assured using it alongside the river (which is a superb factor, as a result of that river is actual chilly this time of 12 months).

Pavement & Groomed Trails

The C5’s bought large, fats tires, a potent motor, and an enormous battery; it has no points on paved pathways and groomed trails. Certain, fats tires aren’t excellent for pedaling on these surfaces (since they amplify rolling resistance), however that’s what the motor is for.

In Conclusion, the C5 is a Enjoyable Moped-Fashion eBike That’s Higher Throttle-On Than it’s With Pedal Energy

I had a blended response to the C5 after I first obtained it. Pretty much as good because it seems, it’s additionally fairly heavy (I don’t care that 88 lbs is “mild” for an e-moped ebike, it’s heavy for an ebike). It additionally isn’t arrange effectively as a day by day rider: pedaling is awkward as a result of its fastened proper peak and using place, it might use a correct set of fenders, and there’s no method to connect a rack or any storage.

However the extra I rode it, the longer the listing of issues I favored about it turned:

1. The snow and sand enjoyable issue is excessive… actually excessive
2. It’s one of many best-looking motorcycle-styled ebikes available on the market
3. At $2,300, it’s priced on the excessive finish of competitively with different moped-style ebikes, however comes with a greater PAS system and an even bigger battery
4. The powered rear taillight is a pleasant visibility contact
5. The rear seize deal with is nice for maneuvering the bike in your storage
6. The built-in cupholder is, truthfully, superior (and the included mug is respectable sufficient as effectively)
7. Journey high quality is nice throughout, because of its fats tires and full suspension
8. The torque-sensing drivetrain is a lot better than its cadence-powered friends
9. The brakes have a lot of chew and cease the C5 shortly
10. The large battery provides you 50 – 60 real-world miles (80 – 95 km) of vary with heavy use of the throttle

However it’s not good.

I’ve learn another opinions of the C5 and watched a couple of evaluate movies, and I’m stunned that others aren’t as crucial of it as I’m.

Perhaps I’m out to lunch and out of contact as a result of I believe that there are areas the C5 can enhance:

1. Repair the lean angle on the kickstand so the bike doesn’t fall over so simply
2. Wrap the rear bodywork in a transparent plastic movie, which ought to scale back what number of scratches the bike will get from falling over a lot
3. Embrace correct entrance and rear fenders (or not less than the mounts for them), as you’re going to get soiled and/or moist everytime you journey the C5
4. Enhance throttle response for if you’re already transferring (throttle response is sort of prompt from a stand-still, however takes a few seconds to reply when you’re in movement)
5. Enhance the turning radius so the C5 handles tight trails, twists, and turns higher

Would I purchase the C5 as my solely ebike, or for a day by day rider? No. Its using ergonomics aren’t conducive to that use case.

However for a second ebike? A “enjoyable” ebike? A “let’s mash the throttle and scoot round” ebike? Oh hell sure, and in the event that they ever strap a mid-drive to it, I’d in all probability purchase two.

Have enjoyable, and preserve it rubber aspect down 😉