We speak with our customer Maciej who’s travelled 2500 km on a E-TWOW GT SE purchased from us last October.
PET: Maciej, we’re thrilled to learn that you have ridden 2500 km on your e-scooter in 10 months!
Many congratulations on being an e-scooter champion. It’s super satisfying to know that we have
served you well and that your GT SE continue serving you well under the warranty. Are you
satisfied with the experience you have had?
MP: It was empowering, liberating and quite literally life-changing for the better.
Buying E-TWOW GT SE from PET was one of my best choices and one of the best spent money.
I did it right only only on a third attempt. My first e-scooter was a cheap import from unknown brand ordered on ebay.
The motor broke down after a month and I had to walk it to the bin.
Never make that mistake! Always buy from a reputable seller with a warranty and a UK-based repairs.
My second e-scooter was Ninebot Air T15E. They won me over with a striking design and ultraportability.
However, they’d traded in too much speed and range and which didn’t fit my needs. The top speed of 20 km/ph felt frustratingly slow and underpowered and, almost as a self-fulfilling prophecy, it is too dangerous on a road because everything passes you by, even cyclists. Eventually I soldit second-hand and ordered the E-TWOW GT SE from PET.
Suddenly it was like hitting a jackpot. It really fulfills the promise of micromobility as much as possible –
- It’s fast
- Powerful enough
- Light & Ultraportable,
- I can take it upstairs and downstairs with ease,
- Has optimum range
- Good suspension
- It’s never let me down!
I didn’t even need to call or visit PET, but it’s great to know that you’re always there.
PET: Well that sounds like quite the journey, but you’ve found yourself with the right ride for you.
Who would you say the E-TWOW GT SE is for?
MP: It’s so close to perfection it can serve a vast majority of riders.
Except two extremities: people who only wish to ride slowly and people who want car-like top speed. For the first niche I suggest Ninebot Air
T15E, for the second Dualtron.
PET: So it’s been quite some time, what did you need in terms of maintenance?
MP: That’s part of the benefits. It’s essentially maintenance-free. I did buy 10 Dusters cleaning cloths and a
cleaning spray for £4 in total.
I clean my e-scooter once a month or when I see it’s needed. If not for a few scratches it would look like a new after cleaning.
I did, however, invest in a protection gear.
PET: What sort of a protection gear do you use?
MP: The faster you ride the more robust protection you need. As the GT SE has a top speed of 34 kph and 38
downhill I rather be safe than seriously injured.
Therefore I use Alpinestars Bionic Plus Knee Protectors
which are easy to fasten and remove, Fox Dirtpaw CE gloves, Bern Hudson helmet which has the „e-
bike” NTA8776 certification, glasses with the EN166 certification and Proviz REFLECT360 CRS jacket.
In addition to that I have installed an additional 300 lumen front lights which show me the road ahead in
the dark. It’s hard to be safer on e-scooter than that.
PET: Do you use any security?
MP: Yes, 4-digits lock on elastic cable. It’s very small, inexpensive, expands to around 1 meter when needed and does the job when you need to leave e-scooter for some time, eg. to do shopping.
PET: Let’s talk about your experience gained from these 2500 km. Was that all across London?
MP: Yes, I’m a Londoner and my GT SE proved to be the missing link between the public transport and car
ownership. After the first 100 km you feel safe and comfortable on the street. I would say: start off
training on an empty local road, reach top speed, test emergency braking and only then join the traffic.
I used it, or should I say: my GT SE was taking me almost everywhere. My travel costs drop down to
almost zero. I am confident that it already paid for itself in the form of savings on travel costs.
However, it is still only part of the benefits. What actually happened is that I was able to visit a lot more places and
a lot faster and easier than before.
I was travelling to three jobs, offices, shops, cafes, supermarkets, local restaurants, friends, post offices, cinemas, pubs, pharmacy.
Most of that would be prohibitively complex and time-consuming by a public transport, prohibitively inconvenient and expensive by a car and way too far for walking.
For example, before owning the GT SE my weekly shopping was a burdensome duty. I had a choice between coming back on foot with a heavy bag from one shop or by bus from the other. This required a decision.
Now I can visit both in one voyage, buy only what I need from either of them and there’s even a peg for the shopping bag!
Within the range of 5-10 km the e-scooter just beats other modes of transport hands down.
PET: Have you had any incidents or near-misses?
MP: One painful fall on a carpet of leaves in November after losing traction.
Don’t repeat my mistake – avoid fallen leaves at all cost.
Apart from that – two emergency brakings on the street, which I think is a really good result for 2500 km.
PET: What was your experience when you needed to “park” your e-scooter? Were owners or managers
receptive to that?
MP: I really think it’s mostly down to being kind, polite and unobtrusive. If you are, what’s actually the
problem? If you’re not, it’s the attitude, not the e-scooter.
I just store it by the entrance door where it doesn’t obstruct entry and exit. I even developed an understanding with my favourite cinema in central London. It’s too far away to return without re-charging so I take the charger with me and recharge during
the movie with their permission.
All it took was asking nicely and being a member. It saves me around £10 on the underground.
PET: Have you been stopped or reprimanded by the Police officer?
MP: No, I haven’t, despite being passed by them on numerous occasions. I believe that the Metropolitan
Police officers are better than the law they were told to uphold.
The sad clampdown was not on reckless riders but on any riders at all. This meant that safe and responsible riders were punished just like those endangering themselves and others, thereby discouraging safe riding and using the protective gear.
This was counterproductive to the stated goal and I am glad to see that the government intends to resolve this
and let constables focus on dangerous riding, which has never been problematic. I actually can’t wait to
purchase an insurance, which is not presently available.
PET: What advice would you give to beginner e-scooter riders?
MP: Glad that you asked. I have a 10 commandments for e-scooter riders with 11th as a perk.
- If you ride above 15.5 mph, always use NTA8776 certified helmet.
- The faster you travel the more robust protection you need. At 20 mph use motorcycle-grade
gloves and knee protectors. Jacket with a reflective stripes also helps. - Never ride in tandem.
- Never ride under the influence of alcohol.
- Never use headphones when riding.
- Be kind to cars around you. Stay near left edge of the road as much as reasonably possible.
- Don’t do things that would be illegal on a bicycle.
- Don’t use pavement unless as a last resort (ie. you’re on a very narrow road with a line of
cars behind you) and then don’t exceed “walking” 6 km/h. - Clean your e-scooter with a wet cloth every month or after 100 km.
- Top speed is not always safe speed. Reduce speed to what you feel is safe to ride.
Especially in dense traffic and during and after the rain. - From time to time ride for pure pleasure eg. to the park! You almost certainly can’t have it in
a car.
PET: Brilliant! And finally I can’t not ask why you choose Personal Electric Transport?
MP: I can assure you it wasn’t random. I called to ask questions about E-TWOW GT SE and I was blown
away by the amount of details and advice I’d been given.
I visited the store in Leyton and I still gave it only 50% to make the purchase, but after the test ride I scooted off on my shiny new e-scooter with the invoice in my pocket. I have no problems, it’s repairable under the warranty but I was still in touch asking for
advice and to test ride new product.
You just can’t have this level of customer service and knowledgeable advice elsewhere. I will definitely order my next vehicle from PET.
