Weped FS Review

Weped SST Summary

The Weped SST is a hyper scooter that is extremely fast – when we say fast we mean skin peeling fast.

To put it into perspective, standard GPS speedo’s jump double digits (most GPS speedos) as the SST accelerates. Expect to hit 60mph in 6-8 seconds and 80mph in less than 12 seconds.

The SST will absolutely demolish battery charge at full throttle, expect ranges to drop below 20 miles when holding the throttle wide open for any long period of time.

The SST is a 72v scooter with a 3240wh battery which is just a monstrous amount of stored energy.

It accelerates quickly and it can stop quickly – on the SS / SST we see WEPED have their own branded brakes instead of the usual NUTT breaks found on the Weped FF.

We found brake performance on the SST to be VERY good, again, no regenerative braking on the SST – and probably a good thing, imagine the amount of regen energy that would go back through the SST controllers when slowing from 80mph.

Performance Overview

How many times can we say it?

The Weped SST is beyond a monster when it comes to acceleration and top speed.

The Weped SST relies on active motor control to help make acceleration from a standing start more manageable.

Like the FF, the SST will manage power distribution between the wheels so that torque is delivered with a smooth and then aggressive upward curve. With the AMC (active motor control) riders can move off very quickly but not in such a way that the motors spin the wheels breaking traction too early.

With the SST putting out over 33kw (16kw) per wheel – maintaining traction (even with wider shrinko tyres) is almost impossible without active motor control.

Weped SST riders will experience a strong take off followed by a sudden burst of power. Moving at speed, breaking traction is a lot harder (although make no mistake, the SST will break traction regardless). However, it’s far more manageable to control aggressive acceleration when moving than from a standing start.

The SST absolutely needs the wider tyre profile – earlier SS / GT / FF models struggled with the tyres they had (shipped).

Performance wise, expect to:

Obliterate other electric scooters on the track/road

Smoke other scooters on acceleration

Obliterate tyres (common with most high powered wepeds)

Reach top speeds that only highly modified scooters would otherwise reach

Go through controllers if you don’t respect it

Top Speed & Acceleration

The top speed of the Weped SST is 130kmh / 80mph, so far the maximum we’ve managed to achieve on STRAVA (GPS) was 77.9mph with a rider weighing 70kg.

BUT, that’s before the scooter had done any number of battery cycles, meaning with a slightly trained battery we should in theory be able to hit the 80mph mark.

This was achieved on flat ground, so there is no reason that the WEPED couldn’t achieve MORE going down hill (85mph + possible in theory).

Let’s face it, who want’s to do 80+mph on a scooter with small wheels? Especially a scooter that doesn’t ship with a damper out of the box (no we’re not joking) if you do 80mph on the SST, one wobble from uneven ground and it could be your last.

We weren’t joking when we said the SST is quick. Whilst it might not look like it has much acceleration advantage over the FF, these numbers show a big gap, it;s just getting into this territory means acceleration gains are extremely difficult. If you look at the SST, it’s 60+ KGS of scooter with wider wheels, so it has to counter this (this gives the FF the advantage in respect of power to weight ratio).

On paper the SST sports enormous power gains over the scooters above, but, wider wheels and active motor control will impede acceleration.

On the SST it just tried to spin tyres continuously, making it hard to make acceleration gains.

The SST would benefit from being used on a track surface with warm tarmac (allowing for maximum grip and minimum spin).

We tested the SST acceleration on standard road surfaces which aren’t overly smooth.

Battery Life & Range

The Weped SST has a huge battery, 72v 45a Samsung SDI 21700 50E Cells. The total battery capacity is 3240wh, which is in the same territory as the Dualtron X2. A battery of this size allows the SST to go on, and on and on. If you drive the SST carefully, you’ll coax up to 60miles of range, which is VERY good going.

However, for most riders, expect a range of around 40 miles on average.

Driving sensibly vs. driving aggressively will make a massive difference on the SST – primarily because the controllers + motors are HIGH DRAIN, so even light increases in throttle will shorten range.

The Weped SST is using higher capacity / higher discharge cells from Samsung SDI 21700 over 18650 cells.

Like most scooters running a 72v system, the full 100% charge is achieved at 84v and the cut off is at 60v.

We found on the first few charge cycles the battery performance improved noticeably.

Overall the WH capacity of the battery for this model of scooter is a perfect match – we doubt Weped could have crammed much more into the deck.

Motor Configuration

The Weped SST motors are just incredible, but, like most of the performance line up from Weped Korea, we do not see any option to switch between single / dual motor modes.

There is a good reason for this – primarily the controllers on the Weped use active motor control (to distribute power to each motor independently to help control pull off and acceleration).

Whilst the SST is MORE than capable of running on 1 motor, Weped have kept the SST simple by removing nearly all buttons – again, this is a racing scooter, designed for high performance racing, therefore a single motor mode just wouldn’t make sense.

Both motors are always active with power distribution switching from +100% to -0% between motors.

Construction & Build Quality

The Weped SST sports a solid look and feel – and, well, that’s critical when you’ve got something capable of 80mph under your feet. The SST uses a single solid set of front forks with a stylish 3 bracket mounting on each side.  The front brake caliper sits slung down from the front of the fork.

The SST has a rigid fork structure, meaning there is no suspension between the fork and handlebars. Weped have engineered the SST to stay planted to the ground. Suspension isn’t something you want as it will allow traction to be broken. However, there IS suspension but, it’s a pivot style adjustable spring suspension between the deck and the main stem joint on the scooter.

This allows for some marginal travel without impeding handling. Because the wheel and handlebars/stem are not directly impacted by the suspension it allows maximum control. The deck and neck will counter one another if the front wheel hits a hole / pot hole / bump in the road thanks to the current suspension setup.

Weped have an active patent on their “4 LINK DAMPING” system which is interesting to see. Whilst the set up isn’t exclusive, the way they have integrated it is.

The rear suspension is also different on the SST – here we see a single small shock absorber between the rear footrest and the main deck.

When riding the SST it’s very hard, whilst there is suspension it doesn’t provide a great deal of comfort – any bumpy terrain and you’ll feel it moreso than on something with more forgiving suspension i.e. the Dualtron X or Bronco 11 Xtreme.

The front of the deck sports a large, single suspension column that is a spring load with adjustable shock absorption. To the left of the front suspension mount are the 3 power cables that run from the deck to the front motors / handlebars. On the right is the charging port – again, this uses the same, enlarged 3 pin charging port with a GX16 adapter.

The SST deck looks similar to the FF deck (plain grey grip tape). The deck however is much wider with a span of over 20cm, so there is more room to stand on the SST over the GT / FF etc.

On the SST at the back of the deck there is a rear foot rest detached from the deck (separated by a single spring). There is definitely more foot room / stance room on the SST which is good, it means the rider can find a lower position to stand at when travelling at high speed.

At 70-80 mph there is likely to be a lot of wind resistance which could lead to speed wobble, with a bigger deck riders can position themselves lower with a foot on the back footrest and one foot forward, allowing the user to feel better connected with the scooter.

On the SST there are a larger number of stainless steel bolts on show, particularly at the back of the deck.

On the sides of the SST you have the same multi colour RGB WEPED logo behind a Perspex screen, but, on the SST you also have a line of LED’s that run around the base of the deck for a nice visual effect. It would have been nice to have more control over colours but, like other Weped models, the lights are designed to cycle through colours.

The rear brake lights are built into the mudguard and like the FF, they are narrow and pulsate during general use with extended brightening once the brakes are applied.

On the SST, the front handlebars come slightly further back, they have a long curve that brings the front of the bars inline with the suspension mount. This means the rider doesn’t have to lean too far forward to find a comfy stance on the deck.

The handlebars are reassuringly firm with no stem wobble, everything feels very tight and machined to tight tolerances. There wasn’t anything on the SST that felt sloppy or where the manufacturer had paid less attention.

With the Weped SST – you can tell Weped really wanted to make a racing machine that combines power with quality – which is why this model of electric scooter is hard to find / buy, primarily because they are made in smaller batch quantities.

 On the handlebars, you get the standard volt meter and key and on the right you now have the option of ECO / TURBO mode via buttons on the handlebar.

 Unlike the FF / Fold, the Weped SST does not fold at the rear, instead you have the standard handlebar folding configuration with the single retractable pin. The SST isn’t overly portable anyway so whilst it folding is a benefit, it’s not going to make it any easier to carry around.

The SST also sports a detachable wheel system making it easier to remove the hubs on the scooter.

The frame construction around the wheels is absolutely solid which is reassuring. On some scooters the areas where the wheel connects can look fragile (more prone to failure) but on the SST, it’s reassuringly stocky.

The wide wheels are impressive – the 11″ kart racing tyres offer much better traction for this kind of power output.

The tyres are tubeless tyres made from natural rubber and are capable of sustained speed runs of 80,ph+.

The style of the tyre profile is far more flat with less rounding on the tyre edges, this means the SST feels more planted at speed, however, fast cornering isn’t something you’ll be able to do at speed. A flat tyre profile makes leaning far more difficult and less agile.

Suspension

The SST uses a patented DamPing 4 link system that was put together by Weped themselves.

There is front and rear suspension, neither offer a great deal of damping over rough surfaces. As the tyres are large, wide profile it helps to smooth out the ride on some imperfect tarmac surfaces, but, the overall ride quality is still sporty and hard – which is fine for the track but not so much for long endurance runs out on the road.

The way the front suspension is set up – it’s designed to transfer the shock without allowing too much wheel travel. The suspension pivots above the deck using a coil spring with adjustable dampening – this allows for some customisation but in reality, we didn’t feel a great deal of difference when riding.

As a racing scooter, the goal is to keep the wheels planted to the ground for maximum traction. Traditional suspension would allow the wheels to “skip” transferring broken traction up through the suspension points, on the SST they’ve counteracted this. 

Weped FF on the grass – not a good idea.

Ride Quality

The ride quality on the SST is good on smooth tarmac but less so on standard UK roads.

Broken tarmac or uneven road surfaces can offer a harsh ride, but, thanks to the tyre profile, there is a wider distribution of scooter on the road, meaning less absorption from smaller road imperfections (as the tyres glide over smaller holes).

The suspension at the front and back doesn’t offer a great deal of travel and remains quite firm.

Riding on normal roads the ride quality was good, the scooter felt planted and safe. Off road we do not recommend – again, like other high power scooters, off road riding is more likely to result in an injury and/or damage to the scooter.

Braking

Braking on this scooter is absolutely amazing – we found the brakes to be ultra sharp – but, not so much so that anything was jerky or too abrupt. The brakes work very well, which, again is incredibly important when doing over 80mph!

The braking is complemented by the larger tyres. Larger tyres + uprated braking mean the Weped SST can slow down from speed exceptionally quickly without encountering stem wobble or harsh uneven / jerky feedback.

From 70mph we were able to stop in less than 120m – which might sound like a lot, but bear in mind 60kgs + 70mph + rider weight is a lot to slow down with 2 hydraulic brakes alone.

Stopping distances will ultimately come down to the rider weight, road surface conditions, brake pad condition and more.

This scooter does NOT feature regenerative braking.

Portability

This scooter isn’t portable. It’s big, it’s heavy, it’s designed to go in a van or large family carrier to be moved around (or ridden, which is far more fun). You’ll get this up some stairs if you are strong, but for most, 60kg is just too much too lift (especially with the scooters size) making it unwieldy to move around.

The SST isn’t for portability, so don’t buy it thinking you’ll be able to chuck it about – you won’t.

The handlebars fold down to be more compact as does the steering column which folds down and allows a locking pin to prevent the column unfolding.

Lights

The SST does not sport any lighting (for riding) but it does feature the usual RGB lights on the side. On the deck pan you’ll also have cycling led strips which look very nice. On some models you won’t receive the column lighting and will need to add this yourself (optional extra). The RGB lighting really stands out, especially when added to the main steering column.

Although for most, travelling at 80mph, the only thing visible will be a blur.

We’d have liked to have seen some front projecting lights on the weped, but, given that it’s a race scooter the intention is always to use it in light conditions and not in the dark.

Of course, it is easy to add your own lighting.

Tyres

The SST ships with ultra wide 11″ Shrinko tubeless tyres. These tyres are similar to go kart style tyres with a wider base and larger surface area coverage. The sheer amount of power that can be delivered by the SST means the scooter needs tyres like this to offer any reasonable chance of catching grip.

Make no mistake, these tyres will still spin (even under the Wepeds active motor control).

The tyres are relatively inexpensive to replace (£40-£60 per tyre depending on where you buy them).

They are tubeless so less susceptible to puncture with thicker walls, however, they are also a nightmare to change if you get a puncture.

Deck

The deck on the SST is nothing short of plain with the monotone style black / grey appearance.

The deck is peppered with stainless bolts which contrast nicely. The deck on the SST is longer and wider than other models offering a wider area for footing. The rear footplate is separate from the deck and offers an extended area to put your rear foot.

On the front of the deck is the 3 pin charging port on one side (high charge/discharge capability) and on the other side are 3 cables that run to the front of the scooter (motor power / controls).

The sides of the deck are garnished with RGB lighting.

The bottom of the deck features a hard metal plate with fins for controller heat dissipation.

Unlike the FF, there is no side mounted fans – which is surprising.

Controls & Display

The SST, like other weped models is devoid of an integrated LCD panel. There is the standard key / voltmeter combination. On the left hand side is the button for lighting. On the SST there is additional buttons for motor settings (ECO/TURBO modes) also.

The handlebars sport comfy grips and the usual hydraulic brake configuration.

The cockpit on the SST has been kept minimal – again, this is a racing pedigree scooter, therefore there is little point adding any unnecessary weight – although we feel WEPED should have added some form of an LCD panel.

Water Resistance

The SST is another model with no water resistance, so do not expect IP 65 or IP 54 – there is no water resistance and that’s probably for the better. If there was any form of damp / wet road conditions, using the SST would be very dangerous. The SST is a racing scooter and therefore is subject to typical racing conditions (during the day – during dry weather).

The SST doesn’t use side mounted fans which means there is a better resistance to water ingress over other WEPED scooters but we do not recommend allowing the SST to get wet.

Whilst damp conditions probably won’t do any damage, any reasonable flurry of water could get into the controllers / deck – which would lead to expensive repairs or potentially irreversible damage.

Given the SST is a hard to get scooter – you won’t want to have to worry about the issue of sourcing parts.

Reliability, Warranty & Customer Support

Weped as a company is growing, and judging by the videos, social engagement and talks they do – you can see they really care about the customer and the quality of their product. Like the Weped FF, we haven’t had the SST long enough to comment on reliability.

Judging by other WEPED models that we’ve owned, tested and rode over time, we’ve never really come across any issues.

The quality and build of Weped scooters in general is very high, so we would expect with proper usage for them to last a substantial amount of time.

Because they are aimed at track users, they aren’t as likely to accumulate the miles as quickly.

Like any electric scooter, things like battery cycling and general maintenance & how the scooter is used will ultimately dictate reliability.

Customer support is available through the website or over social media.

Weped’s originate from Korea, although they now have distributors in multiple countries across the globe.

Controllers

So there isn’t much information on the Weped SST’s controllers. The specifications on Weped scooters are vague when it comes to controllers. Some forum posts seem to point to Kelly controllers (which appear in the Weped FF also).

Some Weped owners have been able to hack / change their controllers to get more speed from their Wepeds, although we’re not sure if this is possible with the SST / SSR / SS.

We do know that on the SST the controllers are cooled using passive cooling (transferring heat out to the deck). The FF was special with an intake / exhaust fans, this has been left off the SST.

Maintenance

The Weped SST is a low maintenance scooter that will require basic maintenance over time including the changing of tyres, brake pads and the regular checking of bolts/nuts on the scooter to ensure nothing comes loose.

The other, more intensive maintenance can involve re-bonding controllers to the deck if they come loose over time (creating thermal issues), as well as battery replacement for scooters where the battery has gone through extended charge cycling and no longer holds a sufficient charge.

Known Issues

 There are no known issues with the Weped SST in the wild.

Is this E-Scooter value for money and is it worth buying?

So the SST overall is a scooter of sheer brilliance – and we really mean it.

It’s fast, fun, well built and a pleasure to ride.

The 72v system and 45a battery really make a difference to performance and range. The SS is an expensive scooter – so it should be noted that it’s probably a scooter for hard core racers or serious scooter fanatics.

There are much cheaper scooters out there that offer a bucket load of power with more comfort – but, if you want something that will leave almost every other scooter behind, the SST is for you.