Himiway Zebra E Bike: Review + Why to Buy

I recently got a Himiway Zebra e bike, and have ridden it all around my home county as well as at Burning Man. And I’m here to let you know how awesome it is, and why.

This e-bike is truly large and in charge. It really has everything you could possibly want out of a powerful and strong e bike. It’s fast, good-looking, well-balanced, and adaptable to different situations and terrains… and it absolutely powers up hills. It is also on the more affordable end of big fat-tire e-bikes with great value for money and free shipping.

I am a frequent traveler, but I love to have a bike for moving around when I am at home in California. I found this bike perfect for the many hills of my hometown, and great for getting around even longer distances when you don’t want to drive or want a more fun mode of transportation. It is also perfect to get around large events and festivals, which I also frequent.

Himiway Zebra E Bike: The Basics + First Things to Know Before You Buy

The Himiway Zebra is an upgrade from their Cruiser bike in many different ways, and an outstanding e bike to purchase. The Zebra has:

• A thick frame enabling it to handle 400lbs
• Can go 80 miles on a charge (wow)
• Fat tires to help traction in different terrains
• Maximum of 25 mph
• Very powerful with a 750W motor – if you don’t want to pedal, you can just use the throttle!
• Fantastic value for money – less than $2k (and use my code KIMMIE for a further $50 discount)
• Adjustable settings and power levels
• Tons of different accessories to soup it up!
• Perfect for many different kinds of riding, from commuting, to assisted pedal exercise, to cruising along the beach, to doing deliveries, to riding through more aggressive terrains with ease.
• Lots of range even for its larger size
• Strong, hydraulic brakes

But what you must know before you buy one is:

• This is a large e bike! It’s almost like a small motorcycle. If space is a factor, make sure to check the size and compare it to how much space you have.
• It weighs 80lbs, so you must make sure to have a bike rack or vehicle that can support it if you want to move it around.
• The pedal assist is quite powerful on all levels

I was gifted the Himiway Zebra in exchange for a review and some content – I hope you like my photos! This is the bike I have. The bike comes priced amazingly at $1799 right now, and you can use my code KIMMIE for an extra $50 off (excluding accessories). For this bike, that’s a steal!

My Himiway Zebra Step-Over Limited California Edition Bike (and Other Options)

I got the EPIC California limited edition (affiliate link) of the Zebra, which comes only in the step-over version (more on that below). This bike comes in a gorgeous sparkly purple with fenders, a standard rear rack, and a headlight. The bike comes designed with the Golden Gate Bridge on one side, Hollywood Blvd Stars around the whole thing, and a California sunset on the other side.

There’s also a Florida Limited Edition at the moment, as well as a few different fun colors and patterns available in step-over and step-thru designs. Check back to see what fun location designs they come up with next.

The difference between the Zebra Step-Thru and Step-Over is that the Step-Over has a top bar between the seat base and handlebars, and the step-thru does not (and does not require you to step up very far from the ground).

Putting Together the Himiway Zebra

The bike comes packed neatly in a massive, heavy rectangular box. When it arrives, the handlebars/screen, pedals, and front wheel are detached from the frame, and a few other parts need to be secured, such as the rear rack, headlight, and brake disc cover.

To assemble the e bike, you must:

• attach the front wheel
• secure the rear rack
• attach the front handlebar
• attach the screen to the front handlebar
• attach front and back fenders
• attach headlight
• secure rear rack
• install the pedals
• Attach brake disc guard
• Assemble the charger

Putting the bike together is honestly a bit of a mission, so prepare at least an hour to do so, or more if you haven’t done this before (and have at least two people)! I hadn’t, and it took two of us at least two hours if not more.

To make things easier, the kit comes with a helpful multi-tool you can do most of the assembly with. Assembly mostly involves placing bars/boltholes in the correct places and tightening screws and bolts.

The instruction booklet is only reasonably easy to follow – we referenced the instruction booklet from the box as well as the Youtube video on assembly and still got confused a couple of times. However, the California limited edition bike that I got has a few small structural differences from the standard Zebra bikes, which made it a bit tougher, but we figured it all out in the end.

Charging the Himiway Zebra

Assembling the charger is part of the process of assembling the Himiway Zebra e bike, and it’s quite simple! All you need to do is:

• Remove the battery from the bike (insert and turn the key, and then release the battery with the small lever above the battery)
• Plug the power cable into the wall and into the transformer
• Plug the transformer into the battery
• Give it a good 6-7 hours to finish charging (when the light turns green).

A feature that I love is that you can also charge the battery while it is still inside the bike. There’s a small hole over the charging port when the battery is in the bike, with a plastic cover. Simply remove this cover to plug the bike in. This is extra convenient for those who need a charge on-the-go or are riding in adverse conditions where you may not want to remove the battery.

Changing Settings of the Himiway E Bike

With the LCD display, you can key in different settings with a few simple buttons. You can change the max speed, measure different trip distances, calculate average/max speeds, and see how much power you are using.

You can also change from 5 to 9 power levels if you would like to simply increase speed gradually and without a more punchy/sudden kick into gear.

The display has a backlight, which is convenient for riding at night, and even has a USB port to charge your phone! I loved that feature.

Storing and Transporting the Himiway Zebra

This bike is, of course, on the larger and heavier side of fat tire e bikes, so you will have to ensure you can transport it effectively. You will also want to consider its size/weight when storing it – it won’t be easy to get up any stairs!

I had a bike rack already, but as it was set to hold two, max 35lb bikes (and this bike is 80lbs), we decided we would have to opt for something different if we wanted to transport the Zebra. Luckily Himiway produces a bike rack compatible with all of its e-bikes as long as you have the correct trailer hitch on your car.

After removing the front wheel, we were actually able to fit it inside my tiny hatchback car, which we were very impressed with. But I would recommend putting it in a pickup or another larger vehicle to save the difficulty of removing and reinstalling the front tire.

Accessories for Himiway Zebra E Bike

The Zebra comes with front and rear fenders, a rear rack, a headlight, and multi-tool, but there are tons of ways to customize your Himiway bike for your specific needs. See all the accessories here, but here are some of my favorites that I am hoping to collect soon:

• Front-Mounted Basket (there’s always room for more storage)!
• Rear View mirrors (as this bike does feel like a motorcycle at times, so this capability would be easier on my neck)!
• Bike Rack Pannier Bags to carry things around on the e-bike, from supplies to camping gear to groceries
• Water Bottle Holder, which is always convenient!
• Phone Holder for ease/safety of seeing directions and other phone notifications while riding
• and potentially one of the larger rear racks for transporting a second person!

We did want to use this bike to transport two people right away, so we actually purchased pegs and a rear rack pillow from Amazon to receive them right away. We purchased this package of a seat cushion and pegs. While the product is from the Himiway Amazon store, we were only able to figure out how to attach one of the pegs, so it would be better if they had some available on the website for ease of transporting two people.

Riding the Himiway Zebra – Roads, Bike Paths, and Festivals

This bike is truly made for all-terrain use, so would be a great option for anyone in the snow, mountains, or country to ride on dirt and gravel trails and any roads. The bike is very balanced on all terrain, with thick treads on the fat tires to enable this.

Riding this bike on the road was smooth and, honestly, lots of fun. The acceleration can keep up with any car, while the top speed of around 25 mph keeps you cruising quickly next to traffic on both hills and flat ground.

The speed may even be a bit fast for some bike paths, so it’s important to remain vigilant if cruising at top speeds. But if you just want to cruise along with a pedal assist, the 1st level has more than enough power to get you where you need to go. Level 5 would be better for roads and commuting.

I rode my Zebra further than I have ever ridden another bike before, taking it to the beach, to a market, and to lunch before heading back home. I got so many compliments on this bike and its sleek, beautiful design. I used multiple locks to secure it when I went anywhere, as a bike this beautiful would surely be a quick target for any wannabe thieves! It would also be best to invest in a good and powerful lock for this bike.

Riding my Himiway Zebra at Burning Man

We are regular attendees of Burning Man, which requires wheels to get around its massive, 5-square-mile event area. In each of our previous burns, we have had normal push bikes to get around, which gets tiring very quickly.

This year, our experience getting around the event with the Himiway Zebra could not have been more of a game-changer. Before, getting out to the deep playa was always an energy-sucking slug that worsened in the heat and often discouraged us from going too far away.

But this year, we could zoom out to the deepest parts of the playa while chatting and laughing, got to see all the art without spending all of our energy, and could cross to events on different sides of the desert multiple times a day with ease and without a second thought. This was AWESOME. We will absolutely be bringing this bike with us every year from now on (while taping up all the important connections with electrical tape to preserve its integrity from the dust)!

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I am not an e-bike expert, but I can say with certainty that I am ecstatic with the performance of my Himiway Zebra. It meets all my transportation needs and more, and I can’t wait to keep riding it for years to come.

Check out some more of my favorite travel products here!