The Inokim Quick 4 electric scooter is a masterclass in high-quality scooter design that focuses on safety and performance over flash and glitz. I was super excited when Miami-based FluidFreeRide announced they were bringing Inokim scooters to the US market last year, and getting to test out the Quick 4 confirmed everything I’ve heard about the quality of these scooters (and that I saw on my own test of the Inokim Light 2 last year).
First things first: The Quick 4 is not an entry-level scooter like the many we’ve seen before.
Instead of small wheels and 15 mph (25 km/h) speeds, it’s a more capable high-speed scooter reaching 25 mph (40 km/h) and offering full suspension combined with larger wheels to better combat the real roads we have in our cities – not the pristine roads we see in all of the scooter advertisements.
The scooter’s $1,499 price tag puts it well above the entry-level scooter field as well, making this a solidly mid-performance and mid-priced scooter.
From my testing, I’ve found that the added security and build quality is evident all over the scooter. Check out my video review below to see what I mean when I put the scooter through its paces, then keep reading to get all the dirt on this fun commuter scooter.
Inokim Quick 4 video review
Inokim Quick 4 tech specs
- Motor: 600W continuous-rated rear hub motor
- Battery: 52V 16Ah (832 Wh) Samsung cells
- Top speed: 25 mph (40 km/h)
- Range: Real-world range of 25 miles (40 km), more if riding slower
- Suspension: Front and rear swingwarm spring damper suspension
- Weight: 47 lb (23 kg)
- Load capacity: 220 lb (100 kg)
- Brakes: Maintenance-free front and rear drum brakes
- Tires: 10″ x 2.5″ pneumatic tires
- Extras: Front and rear lights, LED display with “park” function, thumb throttle, tripmeter, odometer, bell, USB charger, safety lock on folding mechanism
More than just performance
So here’s the thing: The Inokim Quick 4 offers great performance. But that’s not really the point.
Lots of scooters offer great performance. You can find long range and fast scooters anywhere.
And the Inokim Quick 4 gives you good performance, if that’s what you’re looking for. The 25 mph (40 km/h) speed means you’ll leave Bird scooters eating dust. The 832 Wh Samsung battery gives long-range riding by packing in even more battery capacity than a typical electric bicycle. FluidFreeRide is even admirably up-front about listing the real-world range at 25 miles (40 km), even though most companies would rate such a large battery at much higher range by using the low-speed setting for range tests.
And at just 47 lb (23 kg), the Quick 4 is “light,” relatively speaking. It won’t beat a carbon fiber scooter, but it’s sure a lot easier to lug around than a 65 lb (30 kg) scooter.
But while the performance is admirable, the real take home for this scooter is the design.
Quality over flash
I’ve visited the Inokim team at their Tel Aviv headquarters and heard straight from the horse’s mouth about the emphasis they place on safety.
All of the typically weak points on an electric scooter are addressed here.
Stem wobble is a common affliction that plagues almost all electric scooters. The long stem on scooters means that pushing on the handlebars often creates a wobble as the stem flexes. To counteract that, the Inokim Quick 4 has a non-tubular stem. Instead, its elongated oval shape better resists flexing.
Below the stem, the folding mechanism is both reinforced and redundant with a safety lock. Until you slide the safety out of the way, the scooter is physically prevented from folding. The last thing you want a scooter to do while riding at 25 mph is to fold up on you.
Further down brings you to the deck. Inokim avoids welding wherever possible. They CNC as much of the scooter instead. Think about how a Macbook is machined out of a single solid block of aluminum and you start to get the picture.
That makes for a stronger scooter. And a stronger scooter is a safer scooter.
For brakes, Inokim opted for entirely enclosed drum brakes. The uninformed among us often claim drum brakes are a downgrade from disk brakes since drums are older tech. But when used in the right application, modern drum brakes have huge advantages. They are enclosed so they never get wet (and thus never fade in power from damp brake pads), they don’t get banged up from curbs like exposed disc brakes, they don’t pulse from bent discs, and they don’t require any fiddling to keep them lined up or in tune. They just always work.
And when it comes to the most important part of a scooter – the area that connects you to the ground – the Inokim Quick 4 opts for larger 10″ wheels with air-filled tires. Between the dual swingarm suspension and pneumatic tires, the ride is so much nicer than most scooters in this class.
Even the smaller details, like the waterproof cover over the on switch, or the fact that the scooter boots up in “park” mode so someone doesn’t accidentally hit the throttle before they are ready and take off, help add to the safety considerations built into the scooter.
Comfort and convenience – for a price
Of course, all of those features mean that Inokim can’t compete on price against the budget scooters.
At $1,499 (which includes a $300 discount from the $1,799 sale price), the scooter is solidly middle-of-the-pack when it comes to pricing. It can’t compete with the budget scooters, but it also costs a lot less than the insane scooters.
But in my opinion, the scooter is worth it. The comfort alone is an incredibly nice upgrade. To be fair, when I ride on smooth streets, the type of tires and the type of suspension don’t much matter to me. But as soon as I roll onto anything other than perfectly manicured asphalt, the differences in scooters like these are immediately apparent.
The suspension in the Quick 4 isn’t some gimmicky little spring, it actually absorbs those bumps and cracks so your ankles and wrists don’t have to.
The scooter actually folds well and feels secure when I carry it – not like it’s going to open and take a finger with it one day. There’s also a grab handle on back to make it easy to lift two handed, or you can lift with one hand from the stem.
In general, the higher quality means I spend more time riding and less time maintaining the scooter, plus I know it will last me for years – likely making the scooter cheaper over time than one I’d have to replace every year.
The whole package just makes me feel like I’m on a real commuter vehicle – not a fast toy for screwing around for fun. Don’t get me wrong, I love screwing around for fun on an electric scooter as much as the next guy. But when I’m commuting to work with cars around me, I want to know that my scooter is built with this level of quality and safety in mind.
So to me, that makes all the difference. And I wish the scooter was more affordable, I do. That’s the one area I’d ding it on. You can get this performance for much less with other scooters. You can go fast and far while saving hundreds of bucks. But what you don’t get is the build quality to match. Nor the kind of awesome service that a local supplier like FluidFreeRide can offer.
And to me, those advantages make all the difference.
Subscribe to Electrek on YouTube for exclusive videos and subscribe to the podcast.
Author: Micah Toll
Source: Electrek
