Sub-£3000 Zeeho City Sport electric supermoto offers alternative transport to teens as young as 16

KTM owners Pierer Mobility Group may have grabbed headlines for upping their stake in MV Agusta to a majority share of 50.1%, but the Austrian powerhouse have also announced plans to distribute a new urban electric brand, called Zeeho, across Europe in 2024.

Zeeho are part of Chinese firm CFMoto and were established back in 2020. Since then, more than 10,000 electric bikes have been sold in their home market, with three new affordable offerings now coming the UK and Ireland this year.

The smallest of the three new Zeehos will be the £2899 City Sport – a battery powered supermoto offering equivalent performance to a 50cc moped, which can be ridden in the UK from just 16.

Given the rise of popular urban electric off-roaders from the likes of Sur-Ron, the styling is bang on for
a youth audience, with an LCD dash and space to mount your phone, plus powerful LED lighting.

It’s available in either silver or black, with the ability to start the bike from your phone via Bluetooth – appealing to tech savvy teens who don’t want to be seen on a traditionally styled petrol scooter.

A far cry from the smoking two-stroke fifties of yesteryear, it’s designed for new riders silently cutting across city centres, featuring a claimed range of 49.7 miles at 24.8mph from its removable 60V 32Ah lithium battery.

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That might not sound like a lot, but with more low emission zones and 20mph speed limits popping up across the UK, it could make sense for a lot of urban travellers.

Said to be capable of operating between -10 and 55°C, it goes from 0 to 80% charged in under three hours when equipped with a 700W charger. Being an electric machine you also get two power figures: a rated 2.4bhp, plus short bursts of up to 4.7bhp for overtakes.

Wind it on fully and it’ll reach 28mph in a claimed 4.1 seconds, with the mid-mounted electric motor providing noticeable instantaneous shove, despite its small proportions.

You also get single disc brakes at either end with dual-piston calipers, plus an automatic holding system for hills which is activated by holding the brake for three seconds. There’s also customisable battery regeneration settings when off the twist-and-go throttle, with upside-down forks and a preload-adjustable shock at the rear end.

We got the chance to sample the City Sport during a recent press event – taking it for three laps of a technical slalom course on a sandy stretch of parkland.

Hardly ideal conditions for a bike using 17in road-biased tyres, however the Zeeho’s slim aluminium alloy frame, 80kg weight, 810mm seat, and soft suspension made it easy to boss through the cones.

If you’re coming to motorcycles for the first time, it should be an easy transition – feeling more like an e-bike than the petrol powered equivalents many of us cut our teeth on – with the rider hunched over the flat bars in a typically aggressive supermoto stance.

That said, the performance will give the bike limited appeal, and the proportions would likely suit a smaller rider rather than a gangly six-footer.

The standard tech inclusion is also impressive for the money, but the LCD dash is mounted in front of the seat and only visible by taking your eyes off the road – especially when wearing a full-face helmet.

The other two bikes are the £2899 AE6 and £4699 AE8 S+. Visit zeehoeu.com for more info.