Review: Tern GSD S00 LX

As much as I would prefer it not to be, toting your kids to and fro on a cargo bike is a niche activity. Peek into any bike forum on the web and you’ll see plenty of puzzled parents seeking solutions.

The helpful folks on the other end ask for a lot of information: How many kids do you have? How old are they, and how big are they? How big are you? Have you considered a bike trailer? A bakfiets, a mamachari, or a utility bike? Do you want to put both on the back, or one in the front and one behind? What are your feelings on tagalongs?

The best answer for pretty much everyone, regardless of how they answer those questions, is still the Tern GSD. I first hopped aboard a Tern GSD with my daughter when she was 3 years old. She’s now 6, and she rides on the latest model with my son, who is 3. If I’d bought one of these versatile family-friendly ebikes when I first tested it, I would still be using it today. Tern has updated its winning formula to make the bike even better, and the newest GSD now comes with new accessories to make it easier and safer to ride.

Every time I get on a cargo bike, I make sure to practice on it for a few miles before loading up my children. The shifting, gearing, and motor-driven pedal-assist features are all different on every bike, and the appropriate time to learn how the throttle works is not when you’re sitting at a stoplight with 80 pounds of kids perched on your longtail, pulling on your backpack, and scream-fighting with each other.

However, the learning curve with the Tern GSD is by far the easiest of any cargo ebike. I can hop aboard a GSD and be comfortable instantly. Tern currently has four models of the GSD, all of which have short, fat 20-inch wheels; a weight capacity of about 440 pounds; and an ingenious design that lets you fold down the handlebars so the bike can be securely stored vertically by standing it up on its rear end

The GSD line starts at $5,099 for the most affordable GSD S10 model, which has a Shimano 10-speed gearing system, and goes up to $9,000 for a GSD R14 with a 14-speed electric-shifting Rohloff Speedhub and range-expanding dual-battery system. The new S00 LX sits right in the middle at $6,499. It comes with an Enviolo continuously variable gearhub that's controlled by a twist shifter on the handlebar. This lets you tweak the shifting to sit at any position in the gearing range and also change that gearing while you're stopped at a red light or a crosswalk.

I tested the S00 LX with the single, 500 watt-hour battery, which has a range of up to about 60 miles. In the three years since I last rode the GSD, Tern has swapped out the metal bike chain for a low-maintenance Gates Carbon Drive. It has also included the Atlas kickstand, which locks into place when engaged, and that you manually unlock before riding away. After using a locking kickstand, any other kickstand seems a little dangerous.

But the most important upgrade—and the thing that makes the GSD so expensive—is that every model now uses the Bosch Cargo Line motor, a step up from the Bosch Performance motor found in Tern's cheaper ebikes. The Cargo Line is Bosch’s most powerful system, designed specifically for electric bicycles that carry lots of extra weight. The S00 LX comes with either a 500-Wh or a 1,000-Wh system on a motor that provides up to 400 percent pedal assist at its highest setting.

It’s tempting to compare numbers like torque or watt-hours when shopping for ebikes. But while higher torque and more watt-hours generally indicate a more powerful bike, the numbers don’t always tell the whole story. A cheaper drive system can list the same specs as this Bosch Cargo Line, but the difference between riding a bike with a cheap motor and riding one with a fancy Bosch is night and day.

Unlike many other ebike powertrains, Bosch's feels as reliable and powerful as what you'd find in a car. It would be completely unacceptable for your minivan to sputter or jerk when going up a hill while carrying your family, so why would you tolerate that on an ebike? Bosch’s new system just doesn’t sputter. I feel safer riding with my kids on a Bosch Cargo Line system than any on other system.

My husband sometimes accompanies me on our excursions in case I accidentally pitch all his loved ones into the river. He’s familiar with my least favorite hill in our neighborhood, which we've named Battery Killer. On a test ride one day, he suggested we take an alternate route. But I knew I was on a Bosch Cargo Line system. “We’re doing it!” I shouted, and charged straight up the incline with my children clinging for dear life. Everyone was fine.

As is the case with everything involving children, you need accessories to maximize the bike’s utility. Last time, I attached a Thule seat on a rear rack that worked with a set of Thule’s proprietary panniers. This time, Tern tricked out the test bike with a Hauler front rack and its Clubhouse Fort system on the back.

The Fort is a two-passenger shelter system that transforms the GSD into an all-weather kid-hauling vehicle. It consists of four parts: The Clubhouse+ passenger rack system with padded seats, protective bars, a backrest (which I ended up taking out to fit in my son’s Thule seat), and decks for the kids' feet. Tern also threw in the Storm Box and Storm Shield, a canopy system that fits over the Clubhouse+ to protect my passengers from the rain.

I'm not exaggerating when I say that the Clubhouse+ Storm Shield is the best accessory I’ve used. It’s attractive and sturdy, and I like that its poles cross at the top, like a tent, to keep it stable in high winds. A cargo ebike is just a $5,000 driveway sculpture if you can’t persuade your kids to get on it because the rain prickles them in the eyes. And spending an additional $500 in accessories to make the bike as useful as possible might not be a super-big deal for someone already considering buying a $6,500 bike.

But here’s one more point: Cargo ebikes have recently attracted a lot of new buyers who weren’t dedicated cyclists before. Upgrades like the Gates belt drive and weatherproof internal hubs are mostly impervious to the type of wear and tear that sidelines regular city bikes. These extras are designed to keep bikes as low-maintenance as possible.

However, even the best cargo bikes are still a long way from being as low-maintenance as a car. Even the best, most powerful, and most well-cared-for bikes require maintenance if they're exposed to the elements. After riding Tern’s demo bike for a few weeks, a pulley started squeaking, and I was only able to silence it by splashing water on it. I’ve also had to tighten the kickstand and reboot the bike's computer after it froze.

In sum, the Tern GSD costs as much as it does partly because it's a reliable ride from a brand known for high-quality bikes. But also, the price is high because of supply and demand, logistical shipping problems caused by the pandemic, and an increase in ebike tariffs. As wonderful as it is, it's still a bike and has many of the same drawbacks of any other bicycle, like mechanical worries and the constant honking of angry motorists on crowded roadways.

If you have your heart set on making your family bike-first, this is a model you'll use for years to come. My suggestion is to check Tern's website for local shops and preorder yours now. But not even I will try to convince you that spending nearly $7,000 for an electric bike is reasonable. If you need to carry slightly smaller loads, Tern also has a midsize HSD. Or you could return to the online forums and start pondering your cheaper alternatives, like the rest of us.