Heavier rider - will I break it?

[nole61]

Hi, newbie here. I plan to eventually get two e-bikes, one like the Radster Trail, which I won't be able to take with me, and one which I could pack easily to fit in a small SUV (Honda CRV, no tow package).

The Rad Expand 5 Plus ticks all my "want" boxes for a portable bike except for size and weight of the rider. I'm 5'11" and my weight is ~255 lbs. That's quite a bit more than the rating. Does this mean I'll break it soon if I tried it?

Because of this, I may go with the bigger bike first (to ride from home) and see how much weight I can sustainably lose to get down near the weight limit for this one.

Thanks in advance for your answers.

[John Rose]

The Rad Expand 5 Plus ticks all my "want" boxes for a portable bike except for size and weight of the rider. I'm 5'11" and my weight is ~255 lbs. That's quite a bit more than the rating. Does this mean I'll break it soon if I tried it?

In the "Geometry" specs it says "Payload - 315 lb (143 kg), 225 lb max rider (102 kg)"
Hmmm, good question.
The 315 pound limit must be assuming that the extra weight (in addition to the rider) is going on a front rack, and that the suspension fork will absorb most of the bumps.

I'm not sure what tire pressure strategy would be best. Keeping it to the recommended 30 psi would help prevent "pinch flats" where the rim bottoms out, but then a lower pressure (I keep mine at 20 psi) would give a smoother ride with less stress on the frame.

Another thing might be that being 30 pounds over the stated capacity will void the warranty, but would they even ask when you're making a claim?

As far as folded bike size goes, I have an RadExpand 5 and my wife has a similarly-sized RadMini ST2, and we can get both into the back of our CRV, with the seat backs down. I bought a pair of folding pedals for mine, since the stock pedals were non-folding.