A truss-frame Italian moped built at the legendary Minarelli works in Bologna. Lovely to look at, honest about being a 45 km/h city tool. The range claim decoded with real physics, the batteries you can carry upstairs, and exactly who it is for. Sources on everything.
A genuinely charming, properly built city moped that does not pretend to be a motorcycle. Plan for the 72 km (about 45 mi) single-pack number, a 28 mph (45 km/h) top speed that puts it firmly in the L1 moped class, about $4,300 to buy, and removable batteries you can carry indoors. Buy it for what it is.
Assumptions: ~1,500 mi/yr of short city hops, $0.17/kWh, light moped servicing. A full five-year cost-to-own table for the City L1 is still being itemized, and we never guess; the buy-in and the charging math below are solid. See §9.
Which Issimo this is, the range claim decoded, the removable-battery trick, true cost, and the standard scorecard. All sourced.
A proper electric moped: a 3 kW Dell'Orto drivetrain, a 2.2 kWh removable battery (expandable to 4.4 kWh), and a 45 km/h (about 28 mph) top speed that puts it squarely in the L1 moped class. Built at the historic Minarelli works in Bologna. Plan for the 72 km single-pack range, about $4,300 to buy, and a bike that is honest about being a city tool. Buy it for what it is, not what it is not.
Start here, and start by knowing which Issimo you are actually looking at.
A 28 mph moped is a precise tool. It is wonderful in the right place and miserable in the wrong one, so we lead with that.
The sweet spot. Short urban hops, 16-inch wheels that shrug off cobbles and tram rails, and removable batteries you charge indoors. For a small, walkable-adjacent world, the Issimo City earns its keep.
Where removable packs shine. You carry the battery upstairs to a normal wall plug instead of hunting for an outdoor outlet. That single feature solves the biggest practical problem of city EV ownership.
Here the class works against you. 28 mph is fine on dense city streets and miserable anywhere a car can legally do 45. If your route includes any open road, look at a faster class.
This is a moped, full stop. There is no hidden performance mode. If you want to keep up with traffic or cover distance, the L1 class is simply the wrong category.
The Issimo name covers two different animals, and it pays to know which one you are looking at before anything else.
What is genuinely clever here, and what is solid, conventional Italian moped hardware. The part the listing glosses over.
The standout is the battery architecture; the rest is honest, well-sourced hardware. Each badge tells you whether it is a real edge or simply good, normal kit.
The 2.2 kWh pack is removable, and the architecture expands to a total of 4.4 kWh with a second battery. Trade range against carry weight on the day, and charge indoors at a normal socket. The single most practical feature on the bike.
✓ SolidA 3 kW Dell'Orto motor, built at the historic Motori Minarelli works in Bologna. Solid, conventional Italian moped hardware from suppliers who know the job, rather than anything exotic. That is a compliment.
≈ Now standardThe inboard motor with an aluminium swingarm keeps unsprung weight off the rear wheel, and 16-inch wheels do real work on cobbles, tram rails, and potholes. Sensible engineering for a city that is not smooth.
✓ SolidThe bridge-truss frame is the bike's signature look and the whole point of its styling. Genuinely distinctive in a segment of lookalikes, even if it is form as much as function.
★ Genuine edgeMarketing specs vs. the physics. The battery is small and the speed is capped, so the math is refreshingly simple.
3 kW sounds modest because it is, and that is honest for an L1 moped. Convert it to the unit everyone feels.
Fantic does not headline a separate continuous-versus-peak figure for the City L1, and at this power level the distinction matters little: the law caps the bike at 28 mph regardless. The job of a moped motor is brisk acceleration to that ceiling, which a 3 kW unit handles comfortably.
Fantic quotes 72 km (about 45 mi) on the WMTC cycle from the single 2.2 kWh pack, rising to over 140 km if you fit the optional second battery. Both numbers are real; they just describe different bikes.
Step 1, real energy in the pack. Fantic publishes the pack in kWh, not as a voltage and amp-hour split, so we use the kWh directly rather than inventing a V and Ah breakdown.
Step 2, consumption. At 28 mph on flat city streets, a light moped is gentle on energy. Working backward from the 72 km (45 mi) WMTC claim gives a plausible city consumption figure.
Charge time is just battery size ÷ charger power. Fantic does not headline the charger wattage for the City L1, so we work from the reported 4 to 6 hour window and our standard formula.
The sticker is most of the story on a moped this cheap to run. Here is the rest.
Pricing has hovered around the 4,000 to 4,300 dollar mark depending on configuration and market (EUR 3,990 in Europe for the L1). The running costs are pennies; the open questions are the optional second pack and Europe-centric support.
| Line item | Typical | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Bike (single pack, L1) | ~$4,300 | EUR 3,990 in Europe; varies by configuration and market |
| Optional second battery | extra | Needed for the ~140 km headline; price varies by market |
| Charging (per full charge) | ~$0.41 | 2.2 kWh at $0.17/kWh, math below |
| Service, tyres, brakes | low | No gears, clutch, oil or valves; light moped upkeep |
| Sales tax / registration | verify locally | Moped rules differ by country and US state |
What it is like to own, and whether you can get parts.
We summarize the recurring themes around the Issimo line, framed as themes rather than invented quotes. Verified long-term owner data is still building for the City L1, so we are conservative.
One scorecard, identical axes on every bike.
Every machine on the site is scored on these same eight axes, by the same rules, so a 7 here means the same thing as a 7 anywhere.
Our standing methodology, run identically on every e-moto, including bikes we would otherwise have reason to flatter.
The only honest way to compare two batteries. Fantic publishes the City L1 pack as 2.2 kWh; the V and Ah split is not stated, so we use the kWh directly.
You never use 0 to 100%. The BMS holds a reserve and voltage tapers at the bottom. We assume ~88%.
Consumption is the lever. At a capped 28 mph it stays low, ~49 Wh/mi implied by the WMTC claim, rising with hills and two-up loads.
3 kW is ~4 hp. The law caps the bike at 45 km/h, so the peak-versus-continuous distinction barely matters here.
"Fast charging" is meaningless without the charger's wattage. Fantic does not headline it; ~500 W matches the reported 4 to 6 hour window.
| Cost assumption | We used | Change it if… |
|---|---|---|
| Annual mileage | 1,500 mi/yr (7,500 / 5 yr) | You ride more → tyres and service rise slightly |
| Electricity rate | $0.17 / kWh (US avg) | Your utility differs; European rates often higher |
| Sales tax | ~8% | Moped rules differ by country and US state |
| Battery life | No replacement in 5 yr (assumed) | Small pack, frequent deep cycles → sooner |
| Resale | ~50% of price at yr 5 | Condition and the moped market vary |
We cite everything and date it, because specs and prices change. Manufacturer figures are labeled as claims; real-world numbers are our estimates from the methodology above. Spot an error? Our corrections policy means we fix it in public.
Sources retrieved May 2026. Manufacturer pages state claimed specs; treat them as marketing figures, not independent tests. We re-check prices periodically because they move with configuration and market.