Folding bikes review

03.Our findings

Folding and unfolding

Those models that mention folding time in their literature make claims ranging from five to 20 seconds — though it might take some practice to get up to speed.

• The Strida was the outright winner for ease of folding and unfolding, with the Dahon and Yeah also rating well.
• The Birdy was considered the most complex and difficult.

Weight and portability

• The lightest and most portable bike is the Strida, which can be either wheeled along or carried when folded.
• The Giatex is the bulkiest and heaviest, though you could also wheel that one along.
• The more conventional folding bikes are mostly 11 to 12kg, except the Dahon, which weighs in at around 13kg (though it has both a luggage rack and mudguards). This is much the same as a regular bike.
• Weight aside, they can be pretty bulky and awkward to carry.

Folded size

• The most compact bike when folded is the Brompton, and it’s the only bike in our test that would meet the Queensland Citytrain size guidelines (see What to look for).
• At the other end of the scale, the telescopic folding of the Giatex results in a package only a little smaller than a regular mountain bike. See the table for full details.

Ride

• Our trialists rated the Dahon, Birdy and Yeah equal-top for ride performance, though the Birdy didn’t score as well as the others for comfort.
• The Brompton wasn’t far behind, let down by its only having only three gears.
• The unusual Strida was a distant last. The profiles have a lot more details on each bike.

Fixing punctures

• The Birdy is the only bike with quick-release front and rear wheels.
• The Giatex has a quick-release front wheel only.
• For the rest you need a spanner to remove the wheels.