Electric scooters are becoming more and more common all around the world. This is mainly due to the fact that they are becoming an alternative means of transport for more and more people. If you need an electric scooter to be used every day for commuting or for your errands, you may want to consider the purchase of the Turbowheel Dart 9. It’s one of the best around for this specific purpose. It’s aimed at the city roads: the speed it features respect the laws and regulations, it’s sturdy and safe, it has lights on front and rear to signal your presence on the road and enhance your safety It a has anything you need to replace your traditional and polluting means of transport with a fun and eco-friendly electric scooter. Let’s find out together anything you need to know before purchasing the Turbowheel Dart 9 in this review.
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Quality and Design of Turbowheel Dart T9 Electric Scooter :
The Turbowheel Dart 9 features quite a classic design even though you can notice with a glance that this is a sturdy and strongly built electric scooter. While the stem and handlebar are slim and the deck is just slightly wider than the ones mounted on most common electric scooters, the design has that strong look that makes you think of a stable and durable electric scooter. This is not just the electric scooter’s appearance: the Dart 9 actually is a sturdy electric scooter, built from strong and durable material.
With a strong frame, you will be able to carry heavy loads on this electric scooter: bags or other types of loads won’t risk damaging it since its weight limit is 210 lbs.
The frame is foldable so that the Dart can pass from a dimension of 40.8’’ x 21.2 x 47.2 inches when unfolded, to 38.8 x 7.2 x 13.2 when folded. Folding design is ideal for commuting and enhances the scooter’s portability, however – in terms of portability, this electric scooter has a little drawback: it’s a bit too heavy (39.5 lbs) to be easily lifted and carried up the stairs or inside the train or bus when it can’t be ridden. The Dart 9’s weight doesn’t make it ideal for commuting if you need to take public transport or there are stairs on your path. If this is not your case, however, this electric scooter is ideal for the city as an alternative to traditional means of transport.
Handlebars
The Turbowheel Dart 9 electric scooter features large handlebars. The handgrips can be folded down when needed so that the electric scooter can occupy less space for storage purposes. Handgrips are also rubberized for a firmer and more comfortable grip.
Despite being cheaper than some pro model, this electric scooter features the same handlebar configuration as some more expensive devices. It has two brake levers (see brake system description below) and the accelerator and LED display on the right side.
Lights
The Dart 9 features quite a good light compartment:
● blue lights under the deck, which are quite cool but – above all – they are extremely effective in signaling your presence on the road.
● Blue lights on the vertical stem: with these on you are highly visible on the road for enhanced safety.
● White headlights are mounted very low, just above the front wheel. They can enlighten a small portion of the road ahead so, if you want to ride at night, you may want to mount an additional headlight on the handlebar
● Red rear lights for signaling your presence to the road users behind you.
Brakes
This electric scooter doesn’t feature the top-grade brakes on the market, but it doesn’t need to. Being aimed at commuting and city riding, it allows a moderate top speed so that even the rear drum and front disc brakes that it mounts are more than enough to guarantee the safety and braking power. The brakes are also regenerative, which is highly appreciated especially in electric scooters that come at such an affordable price. It means that you can recharge the battery while braking to extend your electric scooter’s mileage.
Tires
The Dart 9 features 8.5’’ x 2’’ pneumatic tires. This is probably the feature that we liked the least of this electric scooter: the tires are a little small. Larger tires would have provided better comfort and stability during the ride. However, they are pneumatic which is definitely a “pro”. They can’t carry you on rough mountain terrains, but they can provide enough comfort when riding on common roads. After all, this is exactly what this electric scooter has been designed and built for.
Kickstand
For an electric scooter that is so heavy a retractable kickstand is a must. The Dart 9 features a small but strong retractable kickstand that you are going to use to leave your electric scooter standing. This is not only useful when you park it outside some building, but also when you need to charge it.
Deck
The deck is long and wide: there’s room to rest both your feet comfortably. It also features an anti-slip surface that feels very durable and is extremely effective.
Assembly
The Turbowheel Dart 9 comes in a big and heavy box that includes a manual guide (which is extremely short, only a couple of pages), the charger, a multi-tool to tighten all the screws and components (and disassemble the electric scooter if needed) and the electric scooter itself.
The scooter is pretty much assembled with tires already mounted and stem already in its place. When pulling your new electric scooter out of the box you first need to unfold it and then place the handgrip in their place (as we’ve mentioned they can be folded down which how you find as you open the box).
Once your electric scooter is all unfolded, you also want to check the tire pressure. This is a small con that pneumatic tires have: you need to check their pressure every once in a while (and certainly before your first ride) and inflate them when needed. Once you’ve done that and charged your new Dart 9, you are ready to go!
Performance for Turbowheel Dart T9 Electric Scooter:
The Turbowheel Dart 9 features a 600-watt motor capable of a 1200 W peak power. This motor is able to provide power for a top speed of 25 mph which is the maximum speed allowed on the roads of most cities all around the world (somewhere it’s even slower). The manufacturer seemed to have built this electric scooter with this in mind. They have optimized every feature to create an electric scooter with the ideal top speed for city commuting and an affordable price. This is also why it doesn’t have hydraulic brakes: it doesn’t need them! So, in order to keep the price low, the manufacturer opted for the drum and disc brakes. They are super effective and safe on an electric scooter that can’t go faster than 25 mph.
Riding on smooth terrains (such as asphalt roads) is very comfortable and enjoyable. The pneumatic tires do an amazing job proving stability and absorbing the road’s irregularities. When you go on rough terrains, on the other hand, the electric scooter struggles a little – but, again, this is not what the Dart 9 is aimed at.
Battery life and charging time
The Turbowheel Dart comes with a 614 Wh battery capacity that allows you to ride about 25 miles with a single charge. If we take into consideration the electric scooter’s price, this is quite a good mileage. Of course, there are electric scooters with longer mile ranges, but they all cost more than $1000, while the Dart 9 comes at less than $800.
Speaking of charging time, this electric scooter is one of the best out there. Not only it can be charged in only 4-5 hours with a standard charger, which is the one that comes in the box (this might seem a long charging time, but some models from other brands can take 10-12 hours to be fully charged), but if you use a quick charger – that must be purchased separately – you can also charge your Dart 9 in only 2 hours!
Such a quick charge has several advantages: you are more likely to avoid living the electric scooter plugged in after it’s fully charged; the battery is more unlikely to overheat (your battery will last a lot longer this way).
Why we like about Turbowheel Dart T9 Electric Scooter:
- Perfect for commuting
Since you can’t go and breakneck speed on the roads, Turbowheel wanted to provide an electric scooter with a top speed of 25 mph and optimize it for this average seed. So it’s brakes and overall features are ideal for this purpose. This way, they also managed to provide a top-grade electric scooter at a reasonable price.
- Strongly built
If it’s true that this electric scooter is a bit heavy, on the other side such an additional weight provides enhanced stability both when riding slow or fast.
- Pro acceleration/brakes controls
This electric scooter features the same display and accelerator unity as some expensive electric scooters. It’s ideal for both comfort and safety: it allows you to have both hands firm on the handgrips while also reaching both the brake levers and the small accelerator one.
What we didn't like about Turbowheel Dart T9 Electric Scooter:
- It’s heavy
Since it’s an electric scooter aimed at commuting we would have appreciated a more lightweight frame, It would have enhanced the device’s portability and made it ideal for any commuter.
- Small tires
This is not an expensive price – it’s actually a great value for money – but it’s not even among the cheapest. For an electric scooter of this level, we would have liked larger tires that would provide enhanced stability and better performance on the road.
Conclusion
This electric scooter has anything you need to replace your traditional means of transport for going and coming back home from work or school every day. Especially if you can avoid taking buses or trains, the Turbowheel is ideal for commuting. Another advantage is its price: this is not a cheap electric scooter, but when compared to other brands it comes at a lower price for what it has to offer. If you don’t need extreme top speed and performances, this Turbowheel Dart 9 can make you save some money without renouncing to stability, comfort, and safety.