The Segway ZT3 Pro is here! We’ve tested a lot of Segway products here at Freshly Charged, but none of them have been off-road worthy… until now.
This is a special version of the ZT3 being released specifically to the US market with an increased top speed of 25 mph. The international version of the Segway ZT3 (link here) continues to be limited to a maximum speed of 15.5 mph to comply with regulations. The Segway ZT3 Pro is the first in an eventual line of off-road scooters made by Segway and Ninebot in tandem. Keep reading for our full review of the Segway ZT3 Pro, a full list of features, specs, and pros & cons.
Pre-order the Segway ZT3 Pro now!
Limited-time pre-sale price: $949 (regular price $1,299).
Ends October 21st! 👉 https://bit.ly/3ZDPp3p
Segway ZT3 Pro – Specs
- Motor: 650W, 1600W peak (rear motor)
- Top Speed: 25 mph
- Tires: 11-inch (off-road, tubeless)
- Max Climbing Slope: 25%
- Range at 9.3 mph: 43 miles
- Range at 25 mph: 18.6 miles
- Charge Time: 4 hours
- Water Rating: IPX5
- Dimensions: 49″ x 25.1″ x 52.8″
- Dimension (folded): 49″ x 25.1″ x 25.4″
- Battery: 46.8V, 12.75Ah (597 Wh)
- Weight: 65.5 lbs
- Max Payload: 265 lbs
- Ground Clearance: 6 inches
Dimensions
- Handlebar Width: 25.5″
- Handlebar Height (from deck): 42″
- Deck Size: 18″ x 7.5″
- Ground Clearance: 7″
- Kickplate Length: 8″
Segway ZT3 Pro – Features
Suspension: The Segway ZT3 Pro features suspension on both the front and rear. The front is a dual telescopic suspension, and the rear is a spring suspension.
Thumb Throttle: The throttle on the ZT3 Pro also works as a twist throttle, which is a pretty unique design trick. The turning signals are mounted towards the end of the handlebar, but not on the very end, which means that if you tip this scooter over, the first thing to hit the ground will be the protective rubber, not the turning signal itself.
Stability Enhancement System: According to the official website, “The Segride Stability Enhancement System, working together with the Traction Control System (TCS), offers better control and grip, reduces handlebar shake and ensures a secure ride even on slippery surfaces or while accelerating.” Our review of the “Segride” system is mixed – it’s great for jumping, but a little unwieldy for low speed turning.
The only other scooter we’ve reviewed with an actual traction control system was the Wolf King GTR, which is also a scooter designed for effective off-road riding. The Wolf King GTR is pretty effective at sensing slippage, and adjusting torque accordingly when riding through slippery terrain.
Apple Find My: You can connect to Apple Find my by opening your iPhone or device, activating Apple Find My through the Segway-Ninebot App and pairing it with the scooter. Then, easily track down the scooter using the app whenever needed.
Headlight: The Segway ZT3 Pro features a 4W headlight with 128ft of nighttime visibility. This is the first scooter we’ve seen that in addition to advertising the watt output of the headlight itself, also advertises the specific illuminated distance. Pretty cool. There is also a cool X-shaped light further down along the stem, which reminds us of the Segway Xyber E-bike showcased earlier this year (review here).
Display: The ZT3 Pro has a 3-inch hexagonal LCD display that looks pretty good, but doesn’t have a much more information than the usual speed, gear and battery indicators. Luckily the app has a plethora of additional settings and info and is easy to connect and use. The display is also easy to read in direct sunlight.
Automatic Proximity Locking: If you connect your scooter to the Segway app, you can set it to automatically lock itself when you leave, and unlock itself when you come back to the scooter. You can also customize locking distance within the app, which will adjust how far you have to be away from the scooter for it to lock / unlock.
Battery Management System: Segway has upgraded its BMS system for the Segway ZT3 Pro. The BMS 2.0 has the following features:
- Short Circuit Protection
- Battery Heath Monitoring
- Scheduled Charging
- Overcurrent Protection
- Temperature Protection
- Double Protection from Overcharging
- Under Voltage Auto-sleep Protection
- Double Protection from Over-discharging
- Customizable Charging Limit
- IPX7 Water Resistant Battery Pack
Flash Charge Technology: On the Segway website, they advertise “flash charge technology”, which allows you to charge for 30 minutes and gain up to 6.2 miles of range (at 9.3mph). To be honest – we’re not that impressed. Using a fast charger on my Rovoron Kullter, for example, with 30 minutes of charging I can add 20-25 miles of range, assuming the same extremely slow riding speed of 9.3mph. Segway’s flash charge technology doesn’t seem to perform better or even as well as the standard fast chargers on most scooters.
More Features:
- Mechanical brake levers
- Turning Signals (handlebar-mounted)
- Thumb bell
- Front headlight
- Stem-mounted hook for bag or helmet
- Stem folds and locks in place
Durability
Segway is widely known as one of the most reliable scooter brands, and you can trust the Segway ZT3 Pro’s durability even more when Segway specifically states it is designed for off-road use on rugged terrain. Segway state that the ZT3 Pro has “undergone extensive quality tests, including more than 3,100 miles of human piloted road tests, over 180 quality checks and a 1,540-pound static pressure limitation test, ensuring the integrity of its high-strength, carbon-steel, weather-resistant frame.”
The Segway ZT3 Pro also has an IPX5 waterproof body, and an IPX7 battery. While you shouldn’t ride it through deep water (obviously), riding in the rain shouldn’t be an issue for this scooter.
Off-Roading Capabilities
The Segway ZT3 Pro has numerous features that make it a pretty good candidate for off-road riding, including 11-inch, knobby tires, dual suspension, 6-inch ground clearance, and a traction control system. One thing I would like to see added to make this a true off-road demon would be dual motors – when going up a steep incline on a rough surface like dirt or grass, a single motor, no matter how grippy, typically just won’t quite make it. I’d also like to see adjustable suspension that you can tune for different types of riding, such as street riding vs dirt riding.
Acceleration Test
Andrew (200lb rider) did this acceleration test and tracked the results with a Dragy GPS.
- 0-10mph: 1.57s
- 0-15mph: 2.82s
- 0-20mph: 4.49s
- 0-25mph: 9.79s
Things We Love
The App: The Segway app has HANDS DOWN the most features we’ve ever seen in an electric scooter app, namely:
- Start speed
- Brake priority on/off (motor cutoff when squeezing brake levers)
- Flash when braking on/off
- Turn signal sound on/off
- Sleep mode
- Adjust charging limit
- Imperial vs Metric units
- Locking function (code vs proximity lock)
- Apple Find My integration
- 4 speed modes: “Eco”, “Drive”, “Sport” and “Walk”
- Walk mode
- Remaining battery
- Automatic firmware updates
- Cruise mode
- Scheduled Charging
That’s a VERY long list, especially compared to most other electric scooter companies’ app offerings.
Walk Mode: The Segway ZT3 Pro’s walk mode doesn’t require you to press the throttle in order to activate the motor as you walk alongside it. You simply have to push the scooter, and the motor kicks in with a small bit of assistance to keep the scooter moving slowly alongside you. This is a feature we have never seen in another scooter, and it makes it much easier to move around with the scooter if you are not riding it.
Display: The display looks nice and crisp, and is easy to read in direct sunlight. It is also larger than most scooter displays, and gives the scooter a polished look. The display also is visible through polarized sunglasses.
Scheduled Charging: Among many other things, the app allows you to schedule when you want the scooter to charge. In Denver, electricity costs twice as much during the day, so you can come home from work, plug in the electric scooter, and set it to automatically wait until night time to begin charging.
Folding Tab: The tab that the stem clicks into in order for the scooter to lock in place – is a really unique design that we haven’t seen before. You push the latch in (instead of pulling it out) to reveal the hook.
Fender: We’ve been reviewing a lot of Dualtron scooters lately, and most of them have crappy fenders that rattle. The Segway ZT3 Pro has a much higher quality fender, that is attached with two support arms, which eliminates all rattling.
Aesthetics: This scooter looks awesome, especially for the price point.
Room For Improvement
Hill Climbing: The website advertises a climbing angle of 25°, but Dalton tried to take it up a 19° slope and was unsuccessful, even with a rolling start.
Park Mode: You can adjust so many settings and toggle through various modes on the app, but the one thing we can’t figure out how to turn off is the park mode. It beeps randomly when stopped and was super annoying for filming.
Top Speed: 25mph is a little underwhelming for a high-tech, $1000 scooter like this. There are a lot of scooters in this price range that can easily hit 35mph, so it would have been nice to see Segway try to compete with that.
Range: The battery is pretty small, just slightly over 500Wh, and at full speed Segway states a range of 18.6 miles. Our guess is real-world range will even be a little lower than that, which isn’t great range for a $1000 scooter.
Brake Disc Size: These are the smallest disc brakes (120mm) we’ve ever seen on an electric scooter, which is weird considering the tires are quite large, at 11 inches.
The Freshly Charged Take
Overall, this is exactly the sort of scooter we’d expect from a Segway-Ninebot new release: quality and innovation. Segway genuinely produces some of the highest quality PEVs out there, and they are constantly coming out with new features (like proximity lock) that make owning and commuting on an electric scooter more pleasant and more safe.
If you’re satisfied with a 25mph top speed, you’re not going to find a scooter with this much tech, that looks this good, for under $1000.
Pre-order the Segway ZT3 Pro now!
Limited-time pre-sale price: $949 (regular price $1,299).
Ends October 21st! 👉 https://bit.ly/3ZDPp3p
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