A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity of testing the Audi Electric Kick Scooter for about 1,5 days (mostly due to the bad Belgian weather), thanks to HLN Drive. Since I had prior experiences using sharing platforms like Dott and sincerely liked using their kick scooters, I was very curious about Audi’s take on an electric kick scooter…
Hardware
First, let’s look at some of the specifications:
Maximum speed: max. 20 km/h
Range: around 65 km
Weight: 19,1 kg
Max Load Weight: max. 100 kg
Size: 116,7 × 47,2 × 120,3 cm
Size (folded): 116,7 × 47,2 × 53,4 cm
Battery: 551Wh Lithium Battery
The Kick Scooter
Honesty requires me to indicate that this kick scooter isn’t fully built by Audi, but it’s a cooperation between Audi and Ninebot by Segway. The Audi Electric Kick Scooter is actually a rebranded/redesigned version of the Ninebot Kickscooter G30. They’re also totally not hiding this, as can be seen on the information plaque of the scooter I tested:
Now this begs the questions: is this a bad thing or not? And in my humble opinion, it’s the best choice Audi could have made. Ninebot by Segway can tap into years of experience in making electric personal mobility devices, while for Audi, this would be like exploring a whole new product niche. As Audi is known for a certain level of quality and a satisfying experience (the fun/thrill driving their cars), you immediately understand that anyone buying this kick scooter from Audi will have those same expectations. I assume the average customer looking at this kick scooter will do so, or at least I did.
When looking at the materials used, the Audi Electric Kick Scooter absolutely delivers. It feels solid but isn’t lightweight because of it, coming in at just over 19 kilograms. You’ll definitely feel it when having to carry this for longer periods. Then again, due to the weight, it feels like driving a small tank. At no point was I scared to scratch/damage/break the kick scooter. It feels really well built. And I’ve really put the Electric Kick Scooter through its paces, driving on asfalt, gravel/grid, dirt roads and through a forest with no hardened roads.
It’s also undeniably an Audi. Sleek lines and a great color scheme give it the “Audi look and feel”, complimented by the 4 white rings on the (bottom) front of the steering column:
Another very nice advantage of the Audi Electric Kick Scooter being based on the Ninebot G30 is the fact that, opposed to most electric kick scooters, you do not have to be dragging along a charging brick. It is completely built into the kick scooter itself.
This built-in charger will completely charge the battery in about 6 hours. That 551 Watt hour battery is claimed to be good for about 65 kilometers in range. In my personal experience, this is fairly accurate, but will vary depending of the chosen driving mode of the kick scooter.
In this case, there are 3 different driving modes:
Eco
Standard
Sport
Eco will limit your speed to about 15 kilometers per hour, but it will also give you the longest range.
Both Standard and Sport will give you a speed of 20 kilometers an hour, while the Sport mode gives you faster acceleration as opposed to the Standard driving mode.
And this also gives us a major difference with the kick scooter it is based upon: the maximum speed is limited to 20 kilometers per hour, where the Ninebot G30 is able to achieve a higher maximum speed. The advantage is of this lower limit is that, at least here in Belgium, this makes the Audi Electric Kick Scooter “street legal”. Being limited to 20 kilometers per hour, the Electric Kick Scooter is considered as a bike (source: https://www.politie.be/5415/vragen/verkeer/welke-regels-gelden-voor-de-e-step).
The steering column
As your main interface with the kick scooter, the steering column also has that “Audi-touch” with the logo at the top. Using the scooter is really easy. There’s only one button on the steering column (when you leave the brake-levers out of consideration). This button is used to power on or off the kick scooter, but also to select the driving mode.
Bluetooth
There’s also the option to connect your Audi Electric Kick Scooter to an app via a Bluetooth connection. As the kick scooter I got to test was already registered to someone’s account, I wasn’t able to test these abilities and extra functionalities. That is why I can’t provide you with an opinion about these options, my apologies.
Pro’s
Looooooooooong range at around 65 kilometers on a single charge
Built in charging brick, only need to take along a charging cord
The Audi look and feel
Con’s
Rather weighty at 19.1 kilograms
Large, even when folded (you’ll need quite a wide trunk to transport it/take it along on your holiday)
Conclusion
If you’re in the market for an electric kick scooter that is street-legal, allows for home-work transportation and also looks great, the Audi Electric Kick Scooter is certainly one you’d need to take into consideration. If you only plan on using the kick scooter for short range transportation and carrying the scooter around often, the weight and size of the Audi Electric Kick Scooter might be a disadvantage for you. And of course, if you’re an absolute Audi fanatic, there really isn’t any other choice but to go for the Audi Electric Kick Scooter.
I’d like to express my gratitude to HLN Drive and Audi for allowing me the opportunity to test the Audi Electric Kick Scooter. All opinions here are my own. No-one previewed or redacted this review before I published this on my blog.
Bonus
Here’s my video on the Audi Electric Kick Scooter on Youtube: