2022 Vanpowers Manidae Review

Video Review

Written Review

The Vanpowers’ Manidae is an unusually powerful fat tire electric bike with a component layout that’s just begging for off-road use. This e-bike has frame bosses all over the place, making this an ideal ride for anyone wanting to upgrade with a rear rack, trailer, and other accessories. If you’re seeking an adventure off the beaten path, this might be the ride for you.

The Manidae has a starting price of $1,999 USD, and includes free shipping, a 30-day return policy, and limited 2-year warranty. Not bad. 

So, let’s take a look under the hood, so to speak.

The Vanpowers Manidae is outfitted with a Bafang 750 watt rear hub motor that churns out a healthy 85 Newton meters of torque. The peak wattage on Bafang motors is just nutty, and whenever you hit the gas on the Manidae the bike lurches forward. The rated peak wattage is around 1250 for these motors, but the wattage meter on the display just jumps to 999, which is as high as it goes apparently. 

So, Vanpowers’ official specs for the Manidae show it has a top speed of 28 mph, but the bike we received for review was electronically capped at 24.5 mph. That’s as high as it would go in the settings, but it definitely felt like the motor had more oomph left in it when it suddenly cut out at that 24.5 mph mark.  

Either way, the top speed can be reached using the cadence sensing pedal assist, or maybe the throttle? Again, the unit we received for review didn’t come with a throttle, but some of the images on the Vanpowers’ website show it with a throttle, so it’s possible we’re working with a demo Manidae here. 

I hope the Manidae’s do ship with a throttle, because that does help to precisely control what speed you want to go. 

When using the cadence sensing pedal assist, each of the 5 different levels basically carries you along at their corresponding top speed. 

So, when you’re in pedal assist level 1, the Manidae clips along at a leisurely 10 mph.

In level 2 its’ 14 mph.

Level 3 is 19 mph.

Level 4 is 22.5

And level 5 unlocks that big ol’ 750 watt motor to zip up to 24.5 mph. Or maybe 28 mph. Who knows?

Alright, let’s take a look at the battery. 

The Manidae’s locking and removable 48 volt, 14 amp hour battery is nicely nestled into a recess in the downtube. It’s such a smooth fit that if it wasn’t for the contrasting colors, you’d hardly be able to see it. Vanpowers did a great job here.

This battery uses LG cells and offers a max estimated range of 70 miles in ideal conditions. This estimate feels a bit high, even in pedal assist level 1, and I think real world range is going to be around half of this, which is still a whole lotta miles.

Vanpowers did a great job with the Manidae’s frame. This electric bike weighs in at around 77 pounds, and has a max payload capacity of nearly 265 pounds. But what I love here is that Vanpowers thought ahead with the frame bosses. There’s 4 bosses on the top of seatstays for the optional rear rack, and then there’s a total of 4 more bosses on the sides of the seatstays and 1 one last one on the seatstay bridge. This means if you want to tow a trailer for hauling gear, you absolutely can. 

I like that the swooping top tube lowers the standover hight by a few inches. This makes straddling the frame when at a stop much easier. I also appreciate that the saddle drops all the way to the seatpost binder. This may seam like a small feature, but when you want to drop the saddle for some more aggressive riding, every inch makes a difference. 

At the front of the frame we’ve got unbranded spring suspension forks with approximately 80 mm of travel, and between these shocks and the monstrous Kenda Juggernaut 26 inch by 4 inch fat tires, the Manidae is ready for some moderate trail riding.

I really dig that Vanpowers opted for mechanical disc brakes with oversized 203 mm rotors in both the front and rear wheels, but if I’m being picky, which is kind of my job, I’d say it would be awesome if the Manidae had hydraulic brakes. The extra stopping power combined with the oversized rotors would be fantastic, and would really come in handy when dealing with muddy trails. 

To switch gears we’ve an 8-speed Shimano Acera derailleur paired with trigger shifters. Wonderful! This is another one of the components on the Manidae that makes it feel like it’s a machine purpose built for going off the beaten path. When you’re tackling technical terrain, it’s hard to beat the ease of trigger shifters.

The single-sided aluminum bash guard will help prevent damage to the front chainring should you come crashing down onto a log or rock, and it’ll also help prevent chain derailments towards the outside of the chainring. Nice.

The Manidae has an integrated headlight that’s bright enough increase visibility, but not bright enough to illuminate a dark trail on a moonless night. Oohph. Sounds spooky.

The Manidae we received for review also had an integrated tail light at the back of the rear rack, which was actually brighter than expected.

The flat handlebars with flat locking grips also speak to the Manidae’s off-road vibe. This setup offers a great deal of control.

On the left side of the handlebars we’ve got the independent button pad, and the throttle maybe, and on the right side we’ve got the trigger shifters.

In the middle of the handlebars rests the greyscale LCD display that is perfectly visible even in the most glinting of sunlight. 

Overall, the Vanpowers Manidae is well suited for those looking for some adventure. The powerful 750 Bafang hub motor, monster tires, suspension, oversized brakes and myriad mounting points means this e-bike is just waiting to have some fun. And at $1,999, it’s a pretty good deal too.