Radio Flyer M880 Review 2021 | Electric Bike Report

We put all our review bikes through a gauntlet of testing on a roughly one mile circuit, a test meant to demonstrate the difference in power between each of the bike’s pedal assists settings. We did a total of six laps on the M880 around Electric Bike Report’s test loop, starting with a lap with no motor assistance and increasing the power setting by one for each lap after.

The Radio Flyer performed nicely among its Class 2 competitors, yielding a power profile that really shines on the upper three to four PAS settings. Like many bikes we test, PAS 1 didn’t offer much help aside from massive battery conservation. Where the bike really started to liven up was at PAS 3, which saw a 1.8 mph jump in average speed over PAS 2. There was another large jump between PAS 3 and PAS 4 before the bike got near its 20 mph motor-assisted ceiling.

These circuit test results are pretty typical of a solidly-tuned e-bike. There’s no enormous jumps in power and the steps between each level felt measured and appropriate. This bike’s PAS settings appear differentiated by speed versus available wattage, a feature I appreciated when climbing the small hill on our test circuit. Even in low PAS settings, the bike laid down a solid amount of torque on the hill; giving aid on the part of the loop that required it most.

Each e-bike we review at Electric Bike Report is put through our relatively rigorous hill test, where we do two laps on a local steep lovingly dubbed “Hell Hole.” That hill is about a third of a mile long with a grade that varies between 12 percent and 15 percent. The first lap of the hill is done under throttle power only, and the second is on maximum pedal assistance.

On maximum pedal assistance, the Radio Flyer crested the hill in 1:31.00 seconds with an average speed of 11.9 mph. And unfortunately in the throttle-only test Hell Hole got the best of the M880, and the bike was unable to get up the climb under motor power alone.

But before you go bashing the M880’s hill climbing performance there are some things I’d like to point out, including some bright spots. As I mentioned before, the M880’s 500W motor isn’t the torquiest we’ve reviewed — a fact that raised some questions on how it’d perform on the hill even before we conducted the test. But what it lacked in torque it made up for in incredible smoothness. Never once did the motor whine, vibrate or otherwise seem to struggle in either test. We’ve tested several e-bikes recently that vibrated uncomfortably up our test hill, and the Radio Flyer did none of that.

Also, though the hill got the best of the bike’s throttle, it really was impressive how little effort on my part it took to get the bike over the hill in the PAS 5 test. I was able to talk through the whole climb and felt like my heart rate only lightly lifted. It’s like the bike needed just a few extra Newton meters of force to make the difference.

The Radio Flyer M880 handles very nicely; the steering is very predictable and the bike feels incredibly planted and stable.

Weight is something people always want to talk about when it comes to affordable e-bikes, and while the Radio Flyer is no featherweight, I never felt like its weight was unwieldy. Its center of gravity is very low so that weight never wants to pull you side to side.

On a smooth paved surface, the Radio Flyer rides and handles exactly as I hoped it would. It’s snappy, despite its weight, and tracks very smooth in corners. Those big moped-style tires are also very confidence inspiring without sacrificing too much rolling speed.

I do have a gripe, though: On anything but smooth paved surfaces, the frame’s rigidity can catch up with you. There’s no suspension on this bike, a feature I usually like on commuter-specific e-bikes, but in the Radio Flyer’s case its unique frame trusses and rigid fork stiffen the ride enough that bumps get translated right to your bum. It doesn’t try to buck you off and it’s not overly uncomfortable for an average ride, but it certainly was something I was noticing by the end of my 36.65 mile range test.

The Radio Flyer M880’s 500W rear motor has a really solid amount of power for this type of bike. It’s certainly not designed to be a speed racer, but for the commuter looking for a quick but predictable power profile the M880’s motor is a good match.

On throttle it works great, and when pedaling from a dead stop the motor engages quickly and gets you up to the max motor-assisted speed of 20 mph without much trouble. Even on hills the bike performs nicely, clearing even some of the tougher climbs in our area. Where the issue is, is in the motor’s power delivery at the top end of its power band.

If you stop pedaling and coast at speed, think in the ballpark of 17 mph to 20 mph, the motor engagement is gentle and subdued when you start pedaling again and it becomes fairly difficult to maintain your speed. The motor does engage quickly when you restart pedaling, so it doesn’t seem to be a cadence sensor issue, but rather the bike just accelerates slowly. It feels like a safety feature or a bit of controller programming designed to keep the bike’s acceleration safe and mellow, but instead is making it just a little tough to maintain speed.

I solved this problem by tapping the throttle for a few seconds when I wanted to accelerate quickly, which gave a little more punch to the motor, but I’d really like to see Radio Flyer give this bike a little more PAS gusto near the top of its speed range.

The Radio Flyer’s 720WH battery is impressively large for its 500W motor, giving the bike a really solid range. It’s also nicely integrated into the downtube and you can remove it to charge off the bike or store it inside.

We were really surprised by how far this bike went on a single charge — unless your commute is way above average, you’d be hard pressed to run this thing low on charge.

The Radio Flyer M880 has a pretty standard five levels of pedal assistance plus a half-twist throttle on the handlebar.

While we did choose to conduct one of our range tests in PAS 2 because of how light the assistance is in PAS 1, it’s tough to knock the bike for this. Quite frankly, most of the affordable e-bikes we test have a PAS 1 that gives such little assistance it’s hardly usable. On Class 2 e-bikes in particular it’s difficult to break apart the power profile into five distinct settings.

The throttle, however, worked really well and was arguably the snappiest way to engage the Radio Flyers’ power.

The M880’s display is a pretty standard unit for a sub-$2,000 e-bike that gives you metrics such as speed, trip time, distance traveled and a few more things. It’s also got buttons to toggle through the various PAS settings and to turn the bike on and off.

Despite the M880’s weight and mechanical disc brakes, which typically are slightly less powerful than their hydraulic counterparts, the Radio Flyer had an impressive showing during our braking test.

We run each bike we review through a series of brake tests from 20 mph to get an idea of how quickly the bike stops from speed. The test is run five times and we take the average to get our results.

The Radio Flyer M880 came to a stop with an average braking distance of 12-feet-2-inches, an above average result we were really pleased with. I think this result is owed, at least in part, to those semi-slick CST tires. Not only do they grip well, they’re slightly wider giving the bike a larger contact patch. That, plus the M880’s balanced weight distribution, slowed things down quick.

The 6061 aluminum frame uses a cool truss-like design that incorporates the rear rack into the structure of the frame, making the rack stronger and giving the frame a very cool look.

Radio Flyer calls the M880 a “midtail” electric cargo bike, meaning it’s got much of the carrying capacity of a full-size cargo bike with the wheelbase and maneuverability of a traditional e-bike. I personally think they nailed it with this frame. Not only is it functional but it looks really nice.

We did notice that the frame felt pretty rigid on rougher roads, but those larger tires helped smooth things out.

Connecting that 500W rear hub motor to the cranks is a Shimano Tourney 7-speed drivetrain.

This is a pretty typical groupset we find on a sub-$2,000 e-bike that works well and helps keep costs down. I found the Radio Flyer M880 to be an e-bike that really favors frequent shifting, so I’m glad they opted for a name brand component manufacturer.

The gearing additionally felt appropriate for the bike’s Class 2 speeds — the smallest cog is enough that I’m not spinning out at the bike’s top speed and the easiest gear was plenty for steeper hills.

All the points where your body touched the bike — the seat, grips, handlebars and pedals — all meshed together well and made for a comfortable ride.

Radio Flyer Spec’d the M880 with a set of ergonomic rubber grips, which I personally prefer over the more aesthetically-pleasing faux rubber grips that are very popular right now, and the bike is equipped with a Selle Royale Freeway comfort saddle.

I’m not a huge fan of this saddle, but take that with a grain of salt since no two butts are alike. It’s an extremely popular comfort saddle we see spec’d on e-bikes, but it just doesn’t mesh great with my bum — especially during long stints on the bike. But for those looking for a very broad and supportive saddle, you may find it fits well.

The CST Big Boat tires are new to Electric Bike Report’s team of e-bike reviewers, but they’ve quickly become one of our favorite pavement-oriented e-bike tires.

The Big Boats are 3 inches wide and fitted to a set of 26-inch rims. In addition to the stopping power I mentioned above, I was really impressed with how nicely these tires rolled and stuck to the ground in corners. Despite its weight, the M880 was easy to pedal.

I love the Radio Flyer’s front and rear storage baskets. These are optional accessories that will cost you a bit more, but I’d argue that they’re well worth it. The baskets themselves are your standard-issue metal baskets that mount to the Flyer’s integrated rear rack and a four-bolt mounting system on the front, but where they really got me was with their canvas liners.

These liners appear to be water repellant, have some nifty elastic loops to hold water bottles or travel coffee mugs and — this is the best part — each liner sports a zippered pocket that perfectly fits a large cell phone, wallet and keys. As someone who hates pedaling with the weight of keys or a phone in my pockets, I can’t tell you how much I liked the pockets. They’re located in an area that’s accessible while riding (if you’re comfortable doing that).

If you like your e-bikes with a dose of nostalgia, the Radio Flyer M880 may be a bike to look up.

But Radio Flyer’s first batch of e-bikes have much more going for them than just name recognition. The Radio Flyer M880 we reviewed is just a holistically good e-bike; it strikes a nice balance between utilitarianism and fun that makes you want to spend more time in the saddle.

I was thoroughly impressed by the bikes design, it’s 300 lb payload capacity, and frankly its price — Radio Flyer did a great job of piecing together a quality e-bike at a price that’s inviting to first-time e-bike buyers. Radio Flyer clearly paid a lot of attention to accessories, too. The racks we tested were functional, had a higher weight capacity than many other racks we see on affordable e-bikes and had cool features like zippered pockets and cup holders.

It’s range is bar none in the affordable category, and while we had a few notes on the motor, I was overall pleased with the bike’s exceptionally smooth power delivery that felt measured and safe. Not all e-bikes have to be speed demons, and this one did a good job on capitalizing on all other elements of e-biking — ranging from user friendliness to overall comfort.

The Radio Flyer M880 is available for purchase through Radio Flyer’s website and will be shipped directly to your door.

‘Happy Riding, make sure to let us know if you have any questions down in our comments section or if you think we left anything out in this review of the Radio Flyer M880