How to Unlock E-Bike Speed Limit: Settings and U.S. Laws

If your e-bike stops assisting at 20 mph, you may be able to raise its assist-speed setting through a manufacturer-supported menu. Start by matching the instructions to your bike and display. Mokwheel’s newer-display setup guide, for example, shows an adjustment to one pedal-assist level.

Before changing a setting, it helps to understand what that speed limit means. We’ll explain the common e-bike classes, walk through the supported adjustment, and cover the checks and U.S. rules that matter afterward.

Why E-Bikes Have Speed Limits

The speed at which an e-bike’s motor stops assisting is one factor used to determine its legal class. That class can affect who may ride it and where it is allowed.

A common U.S. framework divides e-bikes into three classes. The National Park Service uses these basic definitions:

• Class 1: The motor helps only while you pedal, and assistance ends at 20 mph.

• Class 2: The motor can power the bike without pedaling, with assistance ending at 20 mph.

• Class 3: The motor helps only while you pedal, and assistance ends at 28 mph.

These numbers describe where motor assistance ends. A 20 mph cutoff alone does not identify a bike’s class: Class 1 and Class 2 share that limit but differ in how the motor can be used. Check your route’s rules separately before deciding how fast to ride.

Class 3 can also bring additional rider requirements. In California, you must be at least 16 to operate one. On streets, bikeways, and other public bicycle paths or trails, operators and passengers must wear an ASTM- or CPSC-compliant bicycle helmet, properly fitted and fastened.

 Image source: PeopleForBikes

State definitions and exceptions vary. Start with PeopleForBikes’ state-law directory to find your state’s overview, then confirm current requirements with your state’s official guidance and the authority responsible for your route. Once you understand those limits, check which adjustments your bike manufacturer supports.

How to Unlock the Speed Limit on a Mokwheel Ebike

Unlocking Speed on the Older Mokwheel Display

For the older display shown in the video, follow these steps:

1. Turn on the display, then hold the up, down, and light buttons together to open Technical Settings.
2. Highlight Speed Limit and press the power button once to open it.
3. Press the up button to increase the speed-limit setting to 28 mph, as shown in the video.
4. Press the power button once to confirm, then press the light button to exit. Reopen Speed Limit to check that the setting still reads 28 mph.

Watch the Mokwheel video below to follow the button sequence on the older display.

Which Mokwheel E-Bikes Support Speed-Limit Adjustment?

The following Mokwheel series support speed-limit adjustment.

Why Your E-Bike Still Stops at 20 mph

If motor assistance still cuts out at 20 mph, start by checking the function, the assist level, and whether the setting was saved. The Mokwheel walkthrough changes PAS 5, so your check needs to match that specific adjustment.

If the value stays saved but assistance still cuts out earlier than expected, contact Mokwheel support. Include your model, display/software version, saved value, selected PAS level, and whether you used the throttle or pedal assist, plus a photo of the setting.

Is Unlocking E-Bike Speed Legal in the U.S.?

The legal answer depends on your bike’s configuration after the change and the rules where you ride. Start with the vehicle definition, then check local speed limits and route access.

Does Your Bike Still Qualify as an E-Bike?

Under federal bicycle product rules, the electric-bicycle definition requires two or three wheels, fully working pedals, and a motor below 750 W. Its motor-only maximum speed must be below 20 mph on a paved, level surface with a 170 lb rider. These are product-definition conditions, not a nationwide riding-speed limit.

In California, an e-bike must have working pedals and a motor no greater than 750 W. Class 3 also requires a speedometer and assistance only while pedaling, ending at 28 mph. Class 1 and Class 3 have a limited exception: a start-assist or walk mode may move the bike on motor power alone up to 3.7 mph.

California excludes vehicles modified to exceed 20 mph on motor power alone, have motor power above 750 W, or have their working pedals removed. It also excludes vehicles the manufacturer intends to be modifiable beyond those speed or power thresholds. Selecting a lower menu setting therefore cannot, on its own, establish compliance.

If you change speed capability in California, the bike must continue to meet the state’s e-bike definition, and you must appropriately replace its classification label. A replacement label cannot make a vehicle that falls outside the definition compliant.

Where Can You Ride, and How Fast?

In New York City, e-bike riding is generally limited to 15 mph, except where official signs set a different limit specifically for e-bikes. The rule concerns actual riding speed in New York City. It is not a statewide New York limit or a motor-assist cutoff. A higher assist setting does not change that limit.

In National Park Service areas, e-bikes may be permitted only where regular bicycles are allowed. Park superintendents can restrict access by class, so a bicycle route is not automatically open to every e-bike. Both bicycles and e-bikes are prohibited in wilderness areas. Check the park’s current route rules before riding; calling a modification “off-road” does not override those access rules.

Before you ride, check in this order: your state’s vehicle definition, your city’s riding-speed rules, and the permitted classes on your specific route.

Does Unlocking Speed Convert a Class 1 E-Bike to Class 2?

No. Raising the pedal-assist speed limit alone does not convert a Class 1 e-bike into Class 2. Under the three-class framework used by the National Park Service, both classes stop providing motor assistance at 20 mph. Class 2 differs because its motor can propel the bike without pedaling.

Compare the bike’s actual assistance capabilities after a change:

Should You Unlock Your E-Bike?

Consider a higher assist-speed setting if it would help on your regular rides, your bike and display support it, and local laws and route rules allow it. If your current setting does what you need, keep it.

Several Mokwheel models have UL-certified electrical systems. UL 2849 addresses electrical and fire safety.

Enjoy the freedom to explore at a pace that suits you. Wear a helmet and stay within local speed limits, adjusting your speed to suit the road, traffic and your riding ability.