The PW 50 is dead. Long live the SX E2

Big Peewee fan and it's longevity is hugely impressive and respectable. You said it all really, you and your son learnt on one and the same is true for many other people. Legendary little bikes with a massive fan base including loads of us old nostalgic folks who love them whether they're yellow or white/pink or blue, PW or YZinger 😂

That said, from someone who is not a fan of this electric stuff besides the noise/sound benefit for riding area reasons, I agree electric is probably a better entry into the sport for kids and these things look cool. Also happy someone is putting effort into giving these youngsters an updated tool for the job.

And the bike already has a great ambassador 

https://www.facebook.com/Mx2kcom/videos/655240793417790

PW50 class to AHRMA now.. 😆🏁

Husky version: 

https://www.vitalmx.com/forums/moto-related/husky-ee-2

I’m 37 and I learned to ride on a pw50. I had a few year old 1985 one. I think my dad paid $300 for it. I would assume a new one was $500-700 back then. Fast forward to 2023 and I was going to buy one for my 3 year old $1900 for the identical bike I rode on. Nothing has changed on them. (I get inflation but $1200 seems about right not $1900) It’s probably the longest running production bike ever. No one until now has even developed anything to compete. There was Jr50 from Suzuki and the crf 50 but all using very old outdated tech. This thing is $2199 has actual forks and a shock on it. Has hydraulic brakes. I mean for a couple hundred more it’s a no brainer. Hate to say it but the OP is right. This thing is a PW50 killer. They had a good run though and me and my sisters all learned on them and many friends did as well. Hope this thing is out by spring for my little one. 

I plan on buying another PW50 for my kid (lots of parts available, easy to work on, kid loves me lifting the back up on the start and him revving it to the moon). E bike will be good option for some, but don't think the PW will be dead. 

My son is 1 but I was already thinking about when I will buy his PW. But when I saw this come out, I am now leaning towards it. Just the lack of noise and maintenance is nice. Seems like a perfect entry level machine. I still have a little bit to decide but hopefully I can hear some reviews on the new electric bike before it's time for me to buy.

I don't think it's going to kill the PW they mentioned an easy battery swap but they didn't mention how much the batteries cost that could drive the cost way up to get the same ride time. I know when my kid was 4 I could not get my kid off the motorcycle would have to pull him off just to put fuel in it Lol

They’ll find a way, but this will make it a lot harder for mini-dads to cheat. 

After a little Goggle searching  and reading some of the press info provided by KTM I found this battery. I'm not 100% sure it is the battery. But I'm pretty sure iti s the one they use. It has the same voltage, they say it is a Bli300 powertool type battery.  And that is what this is. 

Retail of $319. Charges to 80% in 35 minutes , 100% in 60. And they say it can run up to 100 minutes on a charge. Perhaps 3 batteries and You could keep riding all day. charging one while riding, letting one cool before charging.   https://www.husqvarna.com/us/battery-series-accessories/battery-bli300/  

Yup, cost of spare battery is going to be the key factor.  Kids aren't going to tolerate waiting for a charge.

To me, this is not more "maintenance free" than a PW.   Hydro disc brakes will need to be flushed and bled and most pee wee dads are going to get frustrated doing this.    True, there is potential for engine/carb hassles on the PW, but my experience is that it is bulletproof.  Good 2-stroke oil, clean filter, and drain the bowl after each ride.  I have a 1998 that has never had the motor opened and runs like new.

The zero-noise is a nice benefit, both from a standpoint of not pissing off the neighbors and also less intimidating to little beginner kids.

The racer-X  link changed the wording from the version of the press release I saw. I pasted the lines in from the release along with a link to it. 

Providing the forward drive for the KTM SX-E 2 is a lightweight, maintenance-free 1.8 kW HUB Motor powered by a water-resistant BLi300 Lithium-ion power-tool-type battery, delivering a maximum of 50 Nm. Being devoid of any additional parts like chains or sprockets, this “HUB-Motor-Concept” keeps weight low and provides added safety in the event of a crash.

https://press.ktm.com/news-ktm-bridges-the-circuit-gap-with-the-all-ele…;

Not necessarily

I want a Husky version just because it's so cool looking lol.

That's a great entry bike. So is the PW50, at $500 cheaper MSRP. Hopefully Yamaha responds to the competition by lowering the dealer cost a little - that way dealers don't have to charge $300 freight & setup just to break even on the blue ones. 

So this online today speaking of PWs...so sick 

Looks awesome. I definitely would’ve gotten this for my boys if it were out a few years ago. Electric bikes for little kids are so much more convenient. 

The youngest needs to smell the premix and hear the engine to get the respect , otherwise is a just other electric toy . 

The battery for the KTM/Husky is $320. I don't think that is too bad. If I go that route, it would be no big deal to buy a 2nd one and have 2 to rotate.

Still plenty of room for PW’s, first thing that needs to happen is used PW’s need to be $400 again. 
 

I think the E2 looks incredible. Understated is the ability for mom to turn it on and let the kid ride around at a low power mode all day around the house in the inner city. Even after putting my kid through a pw era, I have a hell of a time starting other PW’s at the track when kids crash. Every pw has its own starting procedure 

For very little kids just starting out I would think it would be hard to beat the light weight and simplicity of a Stacyc.

Get your boy a 12" electric balance bike before a pw, they are lighter and shorter until the kid get tall and strong enough for a pw. Either the Stacyc or any other one, there's alot of Chinese hub motor bikes you can buy cheap. The hubmotor is almost completely silent and theres no chain sound so it doesn't draw attention if you take it to a park or anywhere. The lack of chain is safer for when kids tip over (like the shaft drive on pw) and theres no chain grease so you can throw it in the back of an suv no problem, thats an advantage of these ktm bikes. 

Go electric balance bike at 2-3 then pw or e2 at 3-4.

They can still hop on a 50sx (if they want to move in a different direction than moving onto an E-5) or Blue, Green or Orange when 65 time comes around 👍

This just gets them interested and having fun without undue hassle or fear when they're super young.

My one concern is that now the first three steps in the established route of progression (Stacyc/Revvi, Peewee then 50sx/Cobra size) have electric options, the 65 size will be next in line. That's fine if people want it, but I just hope it isn't mandatory / regulations and race classes force people to go that way.

For sure! Going to get a Stacyc first, for him. Those things seem like they are the perfect next step from a Strider (which he has but not quite ready for.) But I had that plan/timeline that you said, in my head lol. I appreciate the input, thank you.

No it won’t. Electric is easy to upgrade if your know what to look for. Just check out the Stacyc’s that are being hacked. 

My kid would literally ride his PW50 for 5 hours on the kids track everytime we went. This isn't a replacement but definitely another option. And anyone looking to get their kid going, I highly recommend looking at the Osets. My sons, that he got before he was even 2, taught him to ride on that and I have passed it on and it is now with the 4th kid teaching them to ride.

Only one I could find a price on is $2399 British pounds that’s $4600 and a PW is and $2090….

Why the phuque are these Ee huskies so expensive the ee3 and 5 are so over priced it’s not funny. @ $6500 and $9300. These prices will kill the sport no grow it and with batteries being so expensive who will replace it every 3 years or so when they die…..

love to so in 30 years how many of these are still around like the PW that just goes and goes and goes…..

They both look very cool and a most likely seriously fun to ride. Just way to many down sides 

All good, I just went thru this sequence and it's great, you get to have 3 little moments when it clicks how to ride each one; balance, electric, gas. Some guys can get over zealous and go straight to the pw which would be a mistake imo with all the options there are now. By the time my boy got on the pw throttle and brakes were second nature and I wasn't at all worried about him target fixating straight into a tree or fence. 

Anyway I picked up a barely used pw for $900 a year and a half ago but if I was buying new today I might have gotten this bike so my wife could throw it in the van and take it to the grandparents house easier.