So I think the biggest question about a Stacyc bike is "how long does the battery last?" I can spoil this video and say confidently "not long!", BUT, your results may vary and I explain this as well as the factors that contribute to battery life in this video.
My 6-year old Rennen is exceptionally hard on his equipment, so he's the kid to test stuff like this and figure out all the weaknesses! Being a PW50 rider first, he's used a heavier gas powered bike that can be refilled when it stops. On the Stacyc, he doesn't understand batteries and why it takes so long for them to recharge, so this is a frustration point for me as a dad that wants to provide my kid with entertainment that lasts more than 20-minutes.
Along with the poor battery life, the plastic window that covers the status lights also fell off during a fall. This might have been the fault of the crash and a fluke, but when you spend $800, this is a little disheartening. A little super glue solved the issue though. The other issue is the red flashing error code (overheating) that will consistently happen before the battery shows signs of weakening. I think Stacyc isn't telling us that this error is more of less shutting the bike down before running the battery too low, as if there's a "low limit shutoff" when the battery gets to a certain point. This is why I focused on the Razor 4-wheeler for a minute, as that will run the battery down until the wheels won't turn anymore. This is surely due to the higher-tech lithium-ion battery in the Stacyc and a lower tech battery in the Razor that can be run to dead over and over without compromising the integrity of the battery itself.
Overall the Stacyc is an awesome toy (some might frown on that terminology) that is brilliant by concept, but leaves a little lacking in terms of battery management, both in terms of run time and cost. For a parent that has his kid on a multitude of wheeled "toys", the Stacyc is by far the most fun for my kid, but also the most frustrating due to low battery run-times and mysterious issues.
