Mid-Drive or Hub Motor – Which Should I Choose?

Electric bikes – or e-bikes – are one of the fastest-growing categories in the cycling industry. They help riders go faster, further, and longer without tiring, and more and more buyers are turning to eBikes. If you want to upgrade your bike or trike to the electric version, it is important to know the differences between the two main types: hub-drive and mid-drive.

Hub motor is positioned on the front or rear wheel. The hub motor is simple, relatively lightweight, and quite inexpensive to manufacture. The Motrike M-009E and M-F010E use a rear hub motor since simplicity and weight were important considerations for a steel frame.

Many Trikexplor models are equipped with a mid-drive motor. Mid-drive motors are known for higher performance and torque. One key reason why is that the mid-drive motor drives the crank, instead of the wheel itself, multiplying its power and allowing it to better take advantage of the trike’s existing gears.

The mid-drive motor is designed to make maintenance extremely easy. You can remove and replace the entire motor assembly by simply taking out two special bolts. If you had a hub motor in the rear wheel, even basic maintenance tasks such as taking off the wheel to change a flat tire become more complicated endeavors. But it is not a problem if you have the ability to repair or maintenance.

250watt or 500watt motor or 1000watt motor?

A 250W motor is a good option if you live in a flat to moderately hilly area. You can use the motor to complement your own power when you need a boost or feel tired but still plan to pedal the bulk of the time.

The 500W mid-drive motor is available on our fat tire recumbent trike and quad, and is a good choice if you live in a hilly area and want to have a lot of torque and power to go uphill, while still maintaining higher cruising speed.

The 1000W motor, our most powerful motor yet. This motor configuration can take you up virtually any hill and over any terrain, regardless of the amount of pedaling you want to do. Normally 500watt is enough for a trike, it is safer and stable.