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WowGo just released two brand new electric skateboards, the WowGo Pioneer 4 and the WowGo Pioneer X4.
In this review we’ll be taking a look at the Pioneer X4, which is the belt-drive motor version.
I have another separate article for the WowGo Pioneer 4 Review, which is the hub motor version, so after you’ve read through this review, make sure you go check that one out as well so you can decide which of these two awesome electric skateboards is best for you.
The WowGo Pioneer X4 is specced to reach a top speed of 28mph / 45kmh and a range of 22 miles / 35km, which are all great numbers for an electric skateboard that comes in at just under US$800.
But of course, we’ll put it to the test to see what the eboard is actually capable of.
Before we get started, I have to send a huge thank you out to JackHasWifi for his help on this review.
He did all of the testing and filming for me and I really appreciate it.
Who Is It For?
The WowGo Pioneer X4 is a fast and powerful electric skateboard that still offers exceptional comfort.
It is ideal for riders who want an eboard to commute to work on, or want to go out on a long, cruising ride on the weekend.
The Pioneer X4 has belt-drive motors, so it will be a little louder than it’s hub motored sibling, but you do get an extra bit of power and acceleration.
As for the top speed and range, it will be very much the same between the 4 and X4.
WowGo Pioneer X4 Review
Deck
The WowGo Pioneer X4 has a 38.5” Canadian maple, bamboo and fibreglass deck with a concave shape and it feels absolutely amazing.
It’s very flexy, so much so that the battery enclosure will hit the ground if you jump on it.
In the real world, this will rarely happen when riding, but it does provide a lot of shock absorption.
The great thing about this deck material composition is that the flexiness doesn’t feel bouncy. The added maple helps to keep some rigidity in the deck meaning you’ll feel a lot more stable at high speeds preventing any speed wobbles.
And the fibreglass makes the deck a lot more durable so you don’t run the risk of snapping it.
There’s a nice layer of shock-absorbing griptape that adds even more vibration absorption and overall comfort.
You’ll notice on each end of the board is a bashguard. This is built into the riser pads of the trucks and they are great because they protect the deck if for some reason it ends up shooting into a gutter or wall.
Or even when you stand the deck up to lean against a wall, it saves the tail from getting any dents or splintering.
Trucks
The 45° skate trucks on the WowGo Pioneer X4 are really quite good.
They do a great job of maintaining stability at high speeds so that you don’t get any speed wobbles.
Yet, they’re so responsive, all you’ll want to do is carve on them.
How WowGo manages to achieve this, I don’t know, but it feels like an electric skateboard at speed, but more like a traditional longboard when you’re cruising and carving.
Wheels
The Pioneer X4 comes with orange 90mm 78A polyurethane street wheels or you can upgrade them to 105mm Cloudwheels for an extra $80.
These street wheels are some of the softest street wheels you’ll find on an eboard these days.
They are super grippy around corners and help with even more shock absorption.
I’m starting to see why Jack loved the Pioneer X4 so much.
He did say that even though these street wheels are great, the streets he rides around on are horrible, so he quickly put the Cloudwheels on.
And from then on, he said it was pure bliss to ride.
Motors, Top Speed and Hill Climbing
The WowGo Pioneer X4 has dual 700W Hobbywing belt-drive motors and is expected to get a top speed of 28mph / 46kmh and be able to climb hills with a grade of 30%.
Jack was able to hit a top speed of 30.7mph / 49.4kmh which is actually faster than what the eboard is marketed to be able to do.
Maybe he had the wind behind him, but regardless, I’m really impressed with the top speed capabilities.
It’s fairly flat out where Jack lives so he wasn’t able to find many steep hills. He was able to test on a hill with a grade of 8% and he said the Pioneer X4 obliterated them in all riding modes.
I’m not surprised, WowGo always use top quality components in their products, and it really shows in their performance.
Battery and Range
The Pioneer X4 has a 12S2P 345Wh battery with Samsung 40T cells.
Which is another prime example of WowGo choosing the premium components.
The marketed range is 22 miles / 35km and Jack almost managed to hit it. Well he actually might have.
For starters, he did some laps around the block to test out the Cloudwheels and Trucks situation before he started tracking his ride.
Then, at the end of his ride, he forgot to turn the tracker off and drove home.
The last known screenshot of the range test shows 16.5 miles, but that was taken when the board started to slow down a bit. He headed back to the car after that.
Jack estimates that he probably ended up with around 17-18 miles (27-28km) of range.
And he probably could have ridden further, but the board was moving pretty slowly by this stage, so he called it quits.
All of this was done in Turbo mode and riding pretty hard, so I’m fairly confident the marketed range is accurate.
ESC, Acceleration and Braking
WowGo have again gone with a Hobbywing ESC paired with a Hobbywing remote, and it’s just great.
There’s no other way to say it.
The combo has always been reliable and it’s no different on the Pioneer X4.
The acceleration is nice and smooth while simultaneously being punchy. It’s very manageable when you’re ready for it, but if you’re not properly prepared, it is hard enough to throw you off.
The same goes for the braking.
They will throw you forward if you haven’t braced yourself, so you can be sure they’ll bring you a stop within a safe distance.
The brakes actually feel very smooth and manageable when you’re well aware they’re coming on.
Remote
WowGo haven’t changed anything on the new remote for the Pioneer 4, and why would you, it’s a great remote.
It has the typical thumbwheel for acceleration and braking, and a single button that controls all of the features on the remote.
It has 4 speed modes, 1, 2, 3 and Turbo, reverse and cruise control.
The LED screen displays current speed, trip distance, total distance, direction, speed mode, remote battery and board battery.
It’s a lot of data to show on a small screen, but the layout works well and you can easily check your data at a glance without taking your eyes off the road for too long.
Final Thoughts
Overall, the WowGo Pioneer X4 is an amazing electric skateboard.
For the daily commuter and the weekend cruiser, you really would not be upset if you decided to go with this eboard.
It has plenty of range to get you to where you need to go, and a lot of speed to get you there fast.
It’s super comfortable so you can ride all day without getting tired.
And it’s built with quality components so you can be confident this electric skateboard will last you a very long time.
The Pioneer X4 starts at US$800, and I think it’s well worth the price.
That’s it, that’s my WowGo Pioneer X4 review.
I hope I’ve helped you on your journey to finding the best electric skateboard that’s right for you.
If I have, please share this with a friend and use the links below to buy. That’ll help us out a lot and you get yourself a little discount.
Ride safe out the eskaters.
See you soon.
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On WowGo’s Website
