Tenways CGO600 Pro Hands-On Review: Stop Wasting Cars On Commuting

If I had a normal commute, an e-bike like this Tenways CGO600 Pro would already have a permanent place in my garage. I work from home, so I consider myself fortunate that I get to test e-bikes. And yes, as evidenced by a 20-year career in automotive writing, I am in fact, a car enthusiast. If you want to read about how I mix a love of cars with a love of bicycles, I went pretty deep into it in my last e-bike review. I appreciate the fact that a huge number of people buying e-bikes can not afford a car, and the costs of ownership. So I am not looking at this as an expensive toy or lifestyle accessory. The Garage focuses on the love of all things mechanical. So I will review this as I would any other machine.

The Tenways e-bike you see here is pretty much as “normal-commute-bike” as you will get in terms of both looks and performance. The average person won’t give it a second look. That is perfect for someone like myself who’s buying an e-bike for the utility. That utility not only involves saving money directly on gas, but more indirectly on car maintenance. I also save parking headaches and gain the mental health benefits of being in the open air and sunshine. It also feels pretty good sometimes to roll past cars stuck in traffic.

The Bottom Line

It’s been a long time since I’ve experienced range anxiety in an electric car. I wish I could say the same for when I’m under my own power on a bicycle. Even though the Tenways doesn’t have a throttle and only provides assistive power, it still gives me a sense of security that if I’m not feeling well, the wind picks up, or I need to make a substantial detour, I can still make it home.

The bike cuts out power at 20 mph. That’s still quite a bit faster than most people can maintain on flat ground on a commuter bike. Tenways claims a 53-mile range. However, even when I feel like I’m doing most of the work, I’m lucky if I can get 45 miles from the 10 Ah battery. I’m 215 pounds and over six feet tall, so I’m not exactly optimized for either mass or aero.

For e-bikers looking to make a statement, this isn’t the bike for you. It’s a good-looking, albeit conservative bike that requires some inspection to even notice the battery in the downtube or the 350-watt motor in the rear hub. It rides like a normal pedal bike. The single-speed gearing is pretty high if you’re trying to get going with no or minimal assist. But the lack of a derailleur, along with the use of a Gates Carbon belt drive, means the drivetrain is essentially maintenance free.

The bike is just over 42 pounds complete. It feels that heavy when you’re moving it around your garage or trying to lift it into a maintenance stand. On the road, it handles like most commuter bikes. It’s more responsive than a modern mountain bike, but certainly doesn’t dive into corners like an actual road bike. If this were my bike, the first thing I’d change is the puncture-proof tires which ride like wood. I’d also opt for new pedals with more grip and risk the shin-raking. For non-cyclists who haven’t ridden since grade school, this will be the nicest bike they’ve ever owned. For cycling enthusiasts, it’ll feel like a decent urban commuter bike. At $1,699.00, it’s a relatively good value for an aluminum e-bike with hydraulic disk brakes and a real gates drivetrain.

Why Do I, A Car Enthusiast, Like E-Bikes Like This Tenways

An e-bike isn’t for everyone, but they are ideal for a huge number of people who’ve never even considered them. Many car enthusiasts have an irrational fear that e-bikes will somehow lead to the extinction of automobiles. Serious cyclists are also convinced they’ll replace all pedal bikes. If a Triumph Daytona, which does 0-60 in 3.5 seconds, revs to 12,000 RPM, and costs less than 10 grand hasn’t put cars in their grave, e-bikes never will.

Roadies: first, as long as you’re willing to spend 15 grand on a pedal bike with no expensive motor or battery, the industry will keep building them. And second, getting more people on bikes is never a bad thing. When I’m climbing a hill on my pedal bike and get passed by the Sun City Senior Cycling And Canasta Club, I’m happy knowing that when I’m an octagenarian I can still be out riding too. 

I make a lot of short trips by car that don’t even get the drivetrain up to temperature. These are the worst miles you can put on a car. Many of those trips are also to places with horrible parking for cars but offer mostly unused bike racks. Convenience is priceless but the last time I filled up my car, I paid over $4 per gallon. I charge the e-bikes I test with solar, so it costs me nothing. If the Tenways 36v 10Ah battery was completely dead, at $0.17 per kWh, it would cost approximately $0.06 to charge it.

I drive a 2019 VW Tiguan. In urban driving, I’m lucky to get 20mpg. It takes me 2 gallons of gas to equal (I’m rounding down the range for simplicity) the CGO600’s 40-mile range. So 6 cents of electrons versus a little over 8 dollars of gas for the same trips. I won’t add in the extra car maintenance. Anyway, e-bikes are huge money savers and I need to get back on topic.

What Are The Specs Of The Tenways CGO600 Pro E-Bike

The CGO600 Pro is a Class 1 e-bike, which is governed by The Consumer Product Safety Commission. That means it’s pedal assist only, it doesn’t have a throttle. Also, that assist is governed to 20 mph. I can easily do over 20 mph. Even maintaining 20+ with a slight downhill, but the motor isn’t doing any of the work. Anything classified as an electric bicycle in the United States is limited to 750 Watts. That’s roughly 1hp(SAE). This bike uses a Mivice M080 350 Watt, 45 Nm, 33 found-feet of torque, rear hub motor. The battery is UL 2849 certified 36 volt 10 Ah and uses LG Lithium-ion cells. I never drained the battery completely. But with only a couple of miles left showing on the range display, it took almost 4 hours to recharge the pack with the included charger.

The CGO600 Pro uses 6061 aluminum for both the frame and fork. Tenways sent me a size Large since I’m 6 foot 3 inches tall. The standover height of the top tube is 32.4-inches. For comparison, my Large BMC URS gravel bike is almost an inch shorter. The Tenways’ wheelbase is also an inch longer. If I were doing this again, I’d likely ask for a Medium, so keep that in mind when ordering. The stem is adjustable and pivots where it attaches to the steer tube.

As you shorten the effective length, you’re also raising the bars, which is probably what most people will want. The seat post has a quick release for height adjustment. Everything else will require tools that come with the bike. Lastly, I will point out again, this uses a Gates drivetrain, which is THE name in belt drives for everything from bicycles, UTVs, machine tools, computer printers, and even blower belts. A belt replacement will eventually cost about $100.00, but they will normally last nearly 20,000 miles. 

The Verdict

I did everything from riding the bike just for fun, to making food runs and even dropping off my early voting ballot at my local library. The quality of the Tenways CGO600 Pro isn’t equal to my gravel bike, but it’s also less than half the price. It is comparable to my mountain bike, which is slightly less expensive, but non-motorized. The ride quality of the Tenways is compromised by the puncture-proof tires. It bangs over bumps and transmits most of the road NVH directly to the handlebars and saddle.

The saddle is another sore spot, ahem. The ideal bike saddle choice is unique to every person. There’s an almost endless variety of sizes and shapes out there, so it’s rare that you will find a stock saddle is your ideal choice. The pedals on the other hand could be improved for everyone. They offer very little grip, even on soft-sole sneakers. I have size 13 feet, so I like a bigger pedal, so besides the grip, I would like something with a larger platform.

Even with those minor gripes, I find the Tenways CGO600 Pro a great bike to help me cover miles with a little less effort. Even after an actual workout, I was able to get on the bike to run errands. Although I would probably go with a smaller size, the Large is still comfortable and I was able to find a position pretty similar to my mountain bike. The motor function is subtle, it’s nearly silent and the power engagement feels much more natural than other comparably priced e-bikes I’ve ridden. Again, it feels more like an e-bike for people who want an assisted pedal bike and not an e-bike for people looking for an electric scooter that they can call a bicycle. 

In the bike world, $1699.00 is considered an entry-level bike. Something like a Trek Verve+ or Dual-Sport+ e-bike starts above $2,000.00 and you’ll be closer to $3,000.00 for comparable specs. You have to do about an hour of assembly when you get the Tenways bike and make sure everything is torqued, plus you have to fit yourself. If you aren’t comfortable with that, you may want to have it shipped to a local shop and pay them to do it for you. I think even with that factored in, you’re still saving a few hundred bucks over other brands.

I like being able to jump on a bike and go grab lunch or run to the post office without starting my car. When I think back to when all I had were “project cars” in my garage(read not always totally reliable) an e-bike would’ve been a lifesaver. Even as a cyclist, I love the utility and convenience I get from e-bikes. As a car enthusiast, I like not wasting my car on short trips. At $1,699.00 or $1,399.00 for a chain drive 8-speed model, this is a great addition to a multiple-vehicle solution, but it’s an even better option for anyone who can’t swing all the expenses of owning a car, but isn’t confident they can get everywhere on a pedal bike.