ARIEL RIDER

Ariel Rider LLC is a privately-owned company headquartered in Redmond, Washington State. It reportedly sources components from Asia with manufacturing in China.  It uses mostly a direct-to-consumer distribution approach.

It is owned by its co-founder Alda Onal, who serves as CEO and president.  He goes by the name “scruffilicious” on Facebook.

According to LinkedIn, Mr. Onal attended Bilkent University in Turkey and Temasek Polytechnic in Singapore. 

Ariel Rider described its products as “e-bikes:”

“High-performance e-bikes with the torque and speed that riders love.”

“Urban performance e-bikes built for thrill and power.

The founders says they are“[c]ommitted to bringing motorcycle-inspired performance to the e-bike world.”

This chart generated by ChatGPT shows the various models with their advertised motor sizes and top speeds (at which the motor cuts off):

Note that all but the short-lived Rideal model exceed the Class 2 e-bike limits.  

This is a ChatGPT-generated timeline breaking down Ariel Rider’s marketing into annual segments.  Although Ariel Rider started to tone down some of its advertising, whether it slowed down its vehicles is another matter and requires more research.   

📌 2021 — Expansion into High-Power E-Motos

X-Class 52V

  • Motor advertised: 1,000W nominal (52V)

  • Claimed top speed: 30–33 mph (“off-road”)

  • Marketing shift begins: “Powerful moped-style e-bike.”

Grizzly (Dual Motor) — early version

  • Motors advertised: 1,000W + 1,000W

  • Claimed top speed: 35–38 mph

  • Ariel Rider begins leaning into dual-motor power as a differentiator.

D-Class (AWD)

  • Motors advertised: 500–750W ×2

  • Claimed top speed: 28–30 mph

Rideal

  • Motor advertised: 500W

  • Claimed top speed: 20 mph

📌 2022 — Speed Arms Race & High-Output Motors

Kepler Introduced

  • Motor advertised: 1,000W

  • Peak power marketed: 1,800–2,000W

  • Top speed: 32+ mph

  • Advertised as a “commuter,” but clearly positioned as a high-speed e-moto hybrid.

Grizzly Updated Marketing

  • Top speed consistently shown as 38 mph in multiple charts and retailer sites.

  • Off-road mode becomes central in product copy.

X-Class Continuity

  • Maintains 30–33 mph claim.

  • Increased emphasis on “performance” and “powerful acceleration.”

📌 2023 — Peak E-Moto Branding

Grizzly (Gen 2 marketing)

  • Still dual 1,000W motors

  • Marketing emphasis: “Unmatched power,” “Ride everywhere.”

  • Speed: 35–38 mph (unchanged)

X-Class 52V

  • Continues 1,000W / 33 mph positioning.

  • Several archived pages show comparisons with motorcycles/e-mopeds.

Kepler

  • Grows in popularity as reviewers push it to 31–33 mph throttle.

  • Reviewers explicitly call it a “moto-style” or “moped-class” bike.

📌 2024 — Shift Toward Regulatory Scrutiny (but speeds stay high)

X-Class & Grizzly still sold with:

  • >30 mph claims

  • 1,000W–2,000W peak motors

  • Continued references to “off-road mode” but no changes to labeled class compliance.

Ariel Rider website language begins softening

  • Some references to high speeds become less explicit, although unchanged in third-party sites.

📌 2025 — Continued Legacy of High-Power Marketing

Grizzly remains flagship

  • Still appears at 38 mph in third-party listings.

  • Ariel Rider posts even quieter about specific speeds, but the product ecosystem continues reflecting e-moto performance.

Kepler 2025 marketing

  • Still widely advertised as 1,000W motor, 32 mph potential.

Here are a few examples of various models over time, from Ariel Riders’ website (including customer reviews about top speeds over 20 mph, industry press and YouTube videos.)

More recently, Ariel Rider has started advertising some models that it admits are not legal e-bikes, with top motor-assisted speeds of 35+ to 65+ mph. It is also selling models with a “default” of 20 mph with throttle but also pedal-assist to 28 mph. Ariel Rider claims that these models are legal Class 2 e-bikes. Under California law, however, a pedal-assist e-bike cannot have a throttle.