Mango Dee Dee (custom build) review

Northern Ireland-based Mango bikes has built a strong reputation for making bright, bold and affordable urban bikes over the past decade.

Now into its sixth year since relocating to Ballyclare, the brand has recently branched out into electric bikes with the bold-coloured and customisable Dee Dee.

The Dee Dee comes in a range of standard models based around a set of bright neon and primary-colour finishes, and some subtle specification changes, all at £2,499. Alternatively, you can opt for the full-custom option.

The Mango Dee Dee brings a bright splash of colour to the often drab and uninspiring commuter bike space.

Mango Dee Dee personalisation

I chose to approach the Dee Dee from the full-custom route.

I opted for a neon pink frame and fork, with matching saddle. I kept the remaining components all in black.

I also added a rear rack and lights to the package, while full mudguards come as standard across the whole Dee Dee range.

The practical addition of a rack and lights added an extra £28 to the total cost of the build. That’s something of a bargain.

Mango Dee Dee frameset

The frame and fork are built tidily from oversized 6061 aluminium and come well-appointed with mudguard mounts.

There are further mounts for two water bottles and front and rear racks, and the rear non-driveside chainstay has direct mounts for the kickstand.

On the driveside, the seatstay is split, so you could switch to a belt-drive system if you wish.

Internal cable routing keeps the bike clean and tidy, as does the internally housed battery.

Mango is probably best known as a budget brand, but the Dee Dee has plenty of features that elevate it beyond most budget ebikes.

Generally, the ride position is relaxed and upright. It was made all the more so by my choice of the moustache-shaped Cruiser bar over the riser or flat options.

I like that the bar shortens the reach, putting you in a more upright position. This is great for getting a commanding view of the road ahead and the many potential hazards of riding in the city.

The downside is the standard round grips that work so well on a mountain bike riser or flat bar here feel a little hard.

I’d have preferred something more ergonomic, especially because the oversized straight-legged aluminium fork doesn’t absorb much of the vibration from lumps and bumps in the road.

The Mango-branded seat is a very familiar shape – fans of Fabric’s classic Scoop saddle won’t be disappointed. It’s a real highlight as far as contact points go.

Mango Dee Dee geometry

Mango Dee Dee ride impressions

The Dee Dee handles well – it’s both stable at speed and neatly manoeuvrable when going slowly.

I found it easy to navigate through bike-path gates and offset passages at walking speed, even with the bike loaded up with shopping-filled rear panniers.

The wheelset, which combines Italian-made Gipiemme rims with a Mango front hub and a Bafang motor at the rear, is hand-assembled and impresses.

It offers plenty of strength and stiffness to resist the extra weight and forces of an ebike, yet still has a quickness about it that makes the Dee Dee a nippy urban bike.

I haven't had much experience of the Continental AT tyres, and I chose them mainly because of the extra air volume provided by their 42c size.

You can opt for a faster road bike tyre option, such as Continental’s Contact Speed or Ride City (both 32c).

However, with the AT, the tread rolls quickly enough on the road and its urban credentials are heightened by a reflective stripe on the sidewalls.

I appreciated that the tightly packed studded tread has enough grip for the occasional excursion or short cut on woodland trails and towpaths in the depth of sloppy, slick, wet winter rides.

Back when the weather was warmer and drier, the AT showed impressive cornering bite on a couple of gravel-road rides too.

Bafang motor power

Bafang is one of the biggest manufacturers of electric bike motors, but it arguably doesn’t get as much coverage as brands such as Bosch, Mahle and Yamaha. On the evidence of the H600 model fitted here, that’s an almost criminal oversight.

The H600 is a compact, lightweight rear-hub motor that still packs plenty of power, with the 250W motor delivering 30Nm of torque from its sub-2kg package.

The motor is powered by a 360Wh internal battery and controlled by Bafang’s monochrome LCD C11 display. There are five power modes – arguably slightly more than necessary.

I found myself using level 2 pretty much all the time, only occasionally going up the levels on steep hills or to get a bit of a boost in traffic.

On flat and downhill sections of my routes, level 1 (or even switching the assistance off entirely) sufficed because it’s easy to propel and maintain the Dee Dee above the 15.5mph legal limit of the motor’s assistance.

Mango claims up to 60 miles' range from the 360Wh battery. Like most ebike range claims, that should be taken with a pinch of salt: actual range depends on everything from topography and which mode you use to the weight of the rider and even the temperature.

I managed 32.9 miles with an average temperature of 10°C, and with 372m/1,220.47ft of ascent. I weigh 90kg.

I’d argue that nigh-on 33 miles is ample for anyone’s cycle to work, even if you’re a long-distance commuter like myself.

The Dee Dee is all you’d need, especially because the charger is compact at 125x25x55mm and weighs in at shy of 400g (including cables). It’ll charge from empty in just over three hours.

The controller only gives a graphic representation of the battery level, but it’s accurate and you don’t get any battery-level fluctuation, as I’ve found on some budget ebikes. Overall, I came away impressed by the motorised heart of the Dee Dee.

Mango Dee Dee specification

The non-motorised components are a bit of a mixed bag.

The Microshift 9-speed drivetrain performance won’t win any awards for slickness, and can’t compete with the likes of Shimano or SRAM when it comes to mechanical single-chainring shift performance.

However, it’s reliable and easy to use, and has stayed that way throughout testing.

The Clarks cable-actuated brakes aren’t on the same level as the hydraulic Clarks brakes found on other electric bikes I've tested of late.

They miss feel and progression, which contributes to control relative to hydraulic brakes.

The pressure you need to exert on the lever beyond the braking bite point is high, to the point where you end up squeezing the lever all the way to the bar to get the brakes to arrest your movement properly.

Plus, for the most part, you're met with quite vocal screeching from the brakes when you use them.

Mango Dee Dee bottom line

When it all comes together, the Dee Dee is a good commuting ebike package that can match more expensive rivals.

It’s certainly not perfect though – I’d like a more comfortable set of grips and I’d really appreciate an upgrade to hydraulic brakes.

Yet even with those niggles, I’d be more than happy spending the remainder of 2023 using it for my long-distance commuting, errand-running and as my general go-to method of transport.

It’s a fun ride with a great motor system, and provides good range and plenty of personalisation options in the ordering process.