The initial purchase costs show significant differences. The average price of a standard 50cc gas mini bike is approximately ¥5,200, while electric models with the same performance (4.2kW output) have a premium of 65%, with an average price of ¥8,600. This is because lithium-ion battery packs account for 47% of the total cost of electric vehicles, among which the purchase price of a 60V40Ah lithium iron phosphate battery pack exceeds ¥3,800. According to a sample survey by North American Consumer Reports, the probability of buyers with a budget of less than ¥6,000 choosing fuel products is 78%.
Continuously use economic models to reveal long-term differences. The internal combustion engine consumes 0.45 liters of 95-octane gasoline per hour (currently priced at ¥8.2/L), which translates to an operating cost of ¥3.69 per hour. The energy consumption of the electric version under the same working conditions is 2.1kWh/h (household electricity ¥0.6/kWh), and the energy cost is only ¥1.26/h. However, the fuel version only requires a basic maintenance of ¥150 for every 100 hours of operation, while the battery capacity of the electric version drops to 80% after 500 cycles, and the replacement cost accounts for 41% of the initial vehicle price. A study by Japan’s JAMA confirmed that within a three-year period (averaging 300 hours per year), the total holding cost of the fuel version is 21% lower.
Power performance parameters directly affect the experience. The air-cooled four-stroke engine generates 4.1N·m of torque at 5500rpm and takes 4.8 seconds to accelerate from 0 to 30km/h, which is 20% faster than an electric motor of the same power. Under high-altitude working conditions (at an altitude of 3,000 meters), the power attenuation rate of the fuel version is 18.5%, significantly lower than the 27% torque loss of induction motors caused by the reduction in air density. Technical data from the Dakar Rally shows that modifying the main volume hole of the carburetor can optimize the air-fuel ratio, extending the interval between failures of fuel vehicles in desert environments to three times that of electric vehicles.
Environmental impact factors need to be taken into consideration. The fuel-powered engine emits approximately 1.8 kilograms of CO₂ per hour, while the electric version has an indirect carbon emission of 1.2 kilograms per kilowatt-hour in regions dominated by coal-fired power, such as the North China Power Grid. However, the electric model keeps the noise at 71dB(A), which is 19.3% lower than the 88dB(A) of the fuel model, meeting the EU 2005/88/EC night use standard. The California Air Resources Board (CARB) certification shows that compliant fuel vehicles equipped with catalytic converters have HC emissions of only 0.8g/km, which is better than the indirect pollution of old electric power grids.
Maintenance complexity and availability form key variables. Basic maintenance such as carburetor cleaning takes 25 minutes each time, while the average diagnosis time for faults in the electric controller exceeds 2 hours. In an environment of minus 15 degrees Celsius, the effective capacity of lithium batteries drops sharply by 52%, while fuel vehicles can still maintain a 98% starting success rate when using -30 # diesel. According to the 2023 maintenance data of the China Motorcycle Association, the coverage rate of fuel vehicle maintenance in county-level regions has reached 94%, while the density of professional electric vehicle maintenance points is only 17 per million people.
Regulatory trends change usage scenarios. The EU will implement the Euro V emission standards in 2025. Fuel vehicles with a displacement of 49cc or less must be equipped with OBD systems, which will increase manufacturing costs by 12%. Meanwhile, 31 provincial administrative regions have imposed license plate control on electric motorcycles with a power consumption of over 20 million watts, and fines starting from ¥2,000 will be imposed for violations on the road. German TUV certification shows that the right-to-way coverage rate of gas mini bike that meet the L6e standard is 63% higher than that of electric bikes of the same specification.
The final decision should be based on the analysis of the usage scenario spectrum. The economic advantage of the electric version for urban short-distance commuting (one-way <8km) reaches 31%, while the reliability of the fuel vehicle in extreme working conditions such as mountain off-roading increases to 98%. The full life cycle model shows that for users who ride for more than 400 hours a year, the five-year total cost savings rate of choosing the fuel version can reach 23%, and for low-frequency users (<150 hours), the marginal revenue of electric vehicles increases by 19%.