Touroll S2 review: Best e-fat bike under $800 impresses with power and range

The Touroll B2 is an affordable e-bike, which is reflected in its equipment: instead of hydraulic brakes, it comes with mechanical no-name disc brakes. However, thanks to the large 180 mm rotor and optimal initial setup, the braking performance is surprisingly good. The handlebar grips are not ergonomic and tend to slip under pressure, so we quickly secured them with glue. On the positive side, the color options are very appealing, and combined with the white reflectors, they give the bike a cool, “icy” look. Both the handlebars and the saddle are height-adjustable for a comfortable fit.

The Touroll is powered by a 250 W rear hub motor with 55 Nm torque and a 720 Wh battery. There is no torque sensor, but instead a 12-magnet cadence sensor. The battery is easy to remove, but can also be recharged while installed.

A 6 km/h starting or pushing aid can be activated by holding down the minus button on the display. The 4-inch wide Cheng-Sing tires offer good grip on all surfaces and enormous stability when riding. However, there is only suspension at the front (80 mm), which is not ideal for real and long off-road riding - but is absolutely understandable in this price range. A disadvantage of the large footprint of the tires is the very high rolling resistance, which clearly sucks on the battery, as we will see later in this review, especially since you tend to put little pressure into the tires of a fat bike.

For tight corners, the handling takes some getting used to, but it is certainly manageable and better than many, even more expensive, competitors. The built-in Shimano 7-speed derailleur “SIS Tourney” is basic but solid and perfectly adjusted ex works. The remaining equipment includes extensive plastic mudguards, a height-adjustable kickstand, a rear rack with 15 kg capacity and lashing strap eyelets, a lighting system and a mechanical bell. There is also a device for a water bottle holder and one for a bicycle basket, at the front above the fork.

A special feature of the Touroll S2 e-fat bike is its folding function. Once in the middle and once at the handlebars - unlike the previous model, the pedals can no longer be folded, but the front wheel can be removed quickly and easily using the aforementioned quick release. The saddle can also be quickly retracted completely.

This results in quite compact dimensions, but due to the high weight of over 30 kg, this function is still of limited use for mobile use, for example on the train, and not every trunk can fully accommodate the folded bike - with our Hyundai i10, for example, this only works after folding down the rear seats. The individual steps for folding also need to be practiced a few times if you find yourself in situations where it needs to be done quickly. The good thing is that the folding mechanism is really robust, leaves no play whatsoever and is secured twice by a pin - absolutely solid.

The front and rear lights are sensibly positioned, integrated into the circuit and shine brightly enough - they can be activated on the display by pressing and holding the plus button. There is no high beam or brake light.

The generic 250 W motor offers a torque of 55 Nm (60 Nm on the predecessor model), but no peak power is specified - however, we estimate that the Touroll S2 delivers a whopping 650 W when starting off uphill.

The range is questionable, as it is said to have increased from 100 to 150 km compared to its predecessor, although the bike design has been retained in the relevant points, including the battery capacity. The manufacturer provides the following information to determine the range: Flat roads, no strong headwinds, 26 °C (79 °F), constant 12 km/h (level 1) and 75 kg load. Since the author of the test report weighs 105 kg, it is difficult to achieve optimum conditions, especially as we naturally also want to test unpaved roads including climbs.

The battery is fully charged after 6 to 8 hours - in our case, 7 hours was the golden mean, with a charging power of 105 to 110 W. The power supply hardly heats up at all. It's a shame that we can't use the 80 watt power supply unit from the Touroll B2 sister model. The off button on the battery is a practical feature to prevent further discharge.

The off-road folding bike has a simple but clear color display with many functions. There are five speed modes (12, 15, 18, 21, 25 km/h or ≈ 7.5 / 9.3 / 11.2 / 13.0 / 15.5 mph), which can be changed using the plus and minus buttons, plus a simple 5-stage battery indicator, a speed indicator and a display for the total kilometers of the tour. The average speed and maximum speed can also be displayed. However, there is no app.

A long, simultaneous press of the plus and minus buttons opens an advanced menu that offers many settings, such as how strongly or with what delay the bike accelerates but also a speed of 32 km/h (20 mph) can be unlocked there - a big plus point for fine-tuning.

The Touroll S2 e-fat bike is suitable for both the city and the countryside, including less paved paths. However, it was designed for forest, trail and beach use. For the latter category, you should use a little less air, 14.5 to 22 PSI. The front suspension does a pretty good job in combination with low tire pressure, but you should still be careful at all times, so you can't really “let off steam”, but at least such trails are very good and relatively comfortable to ride. However, you should not submerge the e-bike in deep puddles, as there is only protection against splashing water and there is a risk that battery and motor will be submerged.

Subjectively speaking, the general riding comfort is not as high as on a larger bike. The tester prefers a city or trekking bike for asphalt and a mountain bike for real off-road riding, but the Touroll off-road bike shines particularly well on muddy and very uneven paths and at the beach. The tester liked the feeling of sitting on a small moped and that the overall riding experience felt more “minimalist” than on a large, bulky bike. But in terms of pure comfort, other bike classes score better, depending on individual requirements.
What is comfortable, however, is the restrained motor noise and the very comfortable saddle, even on really long tours. Switching the support via the plus and minus buttons is also pleasant and easy.

If you're used to city bikes, trekking bikes and mountain bikes, the first time you sit on it feels a little strange - on such a small, compact e-bike with straight but quite long handlebars. Control is not necessarily optimal, but at least the wide tires provide enormous stability, even if the turning circle is not so optimal and easy - you can practice a bit for more “elegant” turning maneuvers. Shifting gears runs smoothly, but is only possible while riding.

The low “step through” entry is useful, but with a tare weight of over 31 kg and extra-wide tires, riding without assistance is not very fun, but definitely feasible for short distances in an emergency. The motor is quite responsive, as it only takes half a second for the assistance to kick in, which makes for a very good riding experience. With a height of 1.83 m (6 foot), the tester found enough space, but the pedals could be a little larger, especially if you wear size 48 shoes (US-Men’s: 13.5, UK-Men’s: 12.5) like the tester. However, the pedals can easily be replaced with larger ones. In any case, a lot of things on the Touroll S2 can be replaced and customized - a plus point.

Suboptimal is the non-continuous support of the electric motor, i.e. it switches off abruptly as soon as you ride faster than the set level “allows” and then helps again as soon as you fall below the speed of the set level again. A more dynamic system would be better, depending on how hard you are pedaling, or at least a smoother switch-off of the motor - both options would of course be reflected in the price of the e-bike. What has proven to be effective is particularly light pedaling (Ghost Pedaling) in 7th gear, so as not to exceed 25 km/h, because when the assistance is completely switched off, it becomes quite difficult to make progress on gravel paths with a heavy fat bike. However, the gear ratio is generally good - we usually ride in top gear and sometimes wish we had an 8th, 9th and 10th, especially when we're riding faster than 25 km/h (15.5 mph).