AT(EUR)
US(USD)
GB(GBP)
AU(AUD)
Butterfly Ultra · Tires explained
Solid Front, Pneumatic Rear: Why the Butterfly Ultra Uses Two Different Tires
Wondered why the Butterfly Ultra’s two wheels don’t use the same tire? Here’s the plain-English answer, with the comfort and durability testing behind it. Scope: this explains our own Butterfly Ultra and its specific frame, suspension and wheel layout. It is not a universal rule for other scooters.
The short version: on the Butterfly Ultra, the front wheel has the motor built into it and the rear doesn’t. That decides the tires. A solid front tire can’t go flat next to the motor, where a puncture is the most awkward repair on the scooter, and thanks to the front suspension it barely changes ride comfort. An air rear tire rides softer — the same one passed more than 1,000 km of testing without a leak. Each wheel gets the tire that suits the job it does on this particular frame.
What each wheel is built for
Solid (airless) tire
The hard-to-service wheel gets the tire that needs no servicing.
- Can’t go flat — no punctures, no pumping
- Nothing to repair around the hub motor
- Barely changes how this scooter rides
Pneumatic (air) tire
The wheel that sets your comfort gets the tire that cushions.
- Softer, smoother ride over bumps
- Tested 1,000+ km — never replaced, no leak
- Easy and cheap to fix if it ever needs it
First, the two tire types in plain English
If “solid” and “pneumatic” sound like jargon, this is all you need:
Solid / airless
Solid rubber with no air inside — there’s nothing to inflate.
- Never punctures and never loses pressure
- Rides a little firmer; under an unusually heavy, constant load it can eventually deform
Pneumatic / air
An air-filled tube, much like a bicycle tire.
- Softer and smoother, because the air absorbs impacts
- Can puncture or lose pressure; keep it around 3.5 bar
So why not put the same tire on both wheels?
On paper it would look simpler, but on this frame it forces a compromise on one of the wheels.
If both wheels used air tires…
Normal riding was genuinely fine — 600+ km on real roads with air tires on both wheels and no problems. The issue only appeared when we pushed the scooter on a fatigue machine at a heavier 100 kg load: the small 8.5-inch air tire wrapped around the motor slowly lost air every time, just past 100 km. Never a blowout — a pinhole-sized leak. A taller 10-inch air tire didn’t leak, which points to a small tire squeezed tightly around the motor rather than air tires in general. The Butterfly Ultra keeps compact 8.5-inch wheels for its 13.5 kg folded weight, so we made the front tire solid instead.
If both wheels used solid tires…
The ride gets harsher — and it’s the rear that gives it away. In our dedicated comfort test, a solid front felt almost identical to an air one, while a solid rear was noticeably worse. The next section explains why the front hides the difference and the rear can’t.
Why a solid front barely changes the ride — but a solid rear does
Comfort is the first thing buyers worry about, so we built a dedicated test scooter and rode the same 8.5-inch front wheel with a solid tire and with an air tire, one after the other, keeping everything else identical.
Barely any difference
There is a difference, but you have to concentrate to notice it — in ordinary riding the two felt essentially the same at the handlebar and deck. Two things on the Butterfly Ultra explain that:
- The front has suspension. The wheel and hub motor sit behind the scooter’s front suspension, which absorbs a first layer of impact before it even reaches the tire.
- The deck sits far from the front motor. By the time any remaining vibration travels back to where your feet stand, it has already weakened.
Noticeably harsher
Swapping the same test scooter to a solid rear tire was obvious the moment we rode it:
- The rear wheel sits directly beneath the standing deck and carries the rider’s weight, so without the air cushion, road impacts come through much more plainly underfoot.
- The rear enjoys neither the front suspension stage nor the distance that softens the front, so a firmer tire is felt immediately.
That’s the comfort logic in one line: at the front, suspension and distance hide the solid tire’s firmness; at the rear, nothing hides it — so the rear stays pneumatic.
Why this only applies to the Butterfly Ultra. This result depends on this scooter’s front suspension and the spacing between its deck and front motor. On a model without front suspension, or with a different wheel or deck layout, a solid front tire could feel markedly firmer. Please don’t treat these findings as advice for other scooters.
What the durability testing showed
Separately from the comfort rides, we ran the same scooter through two durability stages — ordinary riding first, then a fatigue machine deliberately harsher than normal use.
| # | Test | Wheel & tire | Condition | Distance | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Real-road riding | Both wheels · 8.5" air | 80 kg · mixed speeds | 600+ km | All functions normal; both tires good |
| 2 | Bench run 1 | Front motor wheel · 8.5" air | 100 kg · 25 km/h | 67 km | Tiny-hole slow leak; tire replaced |
| 3 | Bench run 2 | Front motor wheel · 8.5" air | 100 kg · 25 km/h | 76 km | Tiny-hole slow leak; replaced |
| 4 | Bench run 3 | Front motor wheel · 8.5" air | 100 kg · 25 km/h | 84 km | Tiny-hole slow leak; replaced |
| 5 | Bench run 4 | Front motor wheel · 8.5" air | 100 kg · 25 km/h | 100 km | Tiny-hole slow leak; replaced |
| 6 | Bench run 5 | Front motor wheel · 8.5" air | 100 kg · 25 km/h | 120 km | Tiny-hole slow leak; replaced |
| 7 | Bench · solid front | Front motor wheel · 8.5" solid | 100 kg · 25 km/h | 100 km | No leak — but the solid tire deformed |
| 8 | Bench · 10" comparison | Front motor wheel · 10" air (taller profile) | 100 kg · 25 km/h | 150 km | No leak |
| 9 | Whole programme | Rear wheel (no motor) · 8.5" air | Real roads + full bench | 1,000+ km | Never replaced; no leak |
- Air tires aren’t unreliable. In ordinary riding they covered 600+ km on both wheels with nothing wrong.
- Only the harsher machine test exposed the small front tire — a slow pinhole leak every time, just past 100 km, and never a blowout.
- The rear tire and the taller 10-inch tire didn’t leak. So the weak spot is the specific combination of a small 8.5-inch tire wrapped tightly around the motor on this platform. A solid front tire removes exactly that.
The 67–120 km spread came from using different tire brands and inflation pressures. The motor’s outer surface peaked above 85 °C (a surface reading only); heat may contribute, but it remains a hypothesis we have not isolated from pressure, assembly or contact patch. Bench mileage is an accelerated, higher-load observation on the Butterfly Ultra, not a predicted road lifespan, and real-world results vary with surface, climate, riding style and maintenance.
What this means for you, day to day
Looking after the rear air tire
- Check the pressure every few weeks and keep it around 3.5 bar
- A small portable pump fits easily in a bag — see our accessories
- If it ever goes soft, it’s the wheel without the motor: the quick, low-cost fix. Our repair center lists the options
What to know about the solid front
- Nothing to pump and no punctures — it is essentially maintenance-free
- If you ever see a visible change in its shape, stop riding and contact support
- Tires are wear parts: normal wear and road punctures aren’t covered, defects are — see the warranty guide
Which setup will I actually receive?
It depends on the Butterfly Ultra version and SKU, so it’s worth a quick check before ordering:
| Version / SKU | Front tire | Rear tire |
|---|---|---|
| Standard Butterfly Ultra (five colours) | Solid / airless | Pneumatic |
| Red & Black — “Airless Motor Tire / Pneumatic Rear” | Solid / airless | Pneumatic |
| Red & Black — pneumatic / pneumatic | Pneumatic | Pneumatic |
The hybrid setup on this page comes with the standard five-colour Butterfly Ultra and the Red & Black “Airless Motor Tire / Pneumatic Rear” SKU. If you’re looking at a Red & Black version, confirm the exact SKU — one configuration ships with air tires on both wheels.
What buyers ask us
Will the solid front tire make my ride bumpy?
Very little on the Butterfly Ultra. In our dedicated swap test, the solid and air front tires felt almost the same unless you deliberately looked for a difference: the front suspension absorbs the first impacts, and the deck sits far enough from the front motor that little vibration reaches your feet. A solid rear, by contrast, was noticeably harsher — which is why only the front is solid.
What if the rear air tire gets a puncture?
No air tire is fully puncture-proof, but the rear is the easy wheel to fix because there’s no motor in the way, and ours ran 1,000+ km without a leak. Keep it around 3.5 bar and carry a small pump; parts are on the accessories page.
Did a tire actually blow out in your tests?
No. Every failure was a tiny hole that leaked air slowly, and it only happened on the harsher test machine at 100 kg — never across 600+ km of ordinary riding.
You mentioned the solid tire “deformed.” Should I worry?
Only under the machine’s constant 100 kg load did the solid front tire show some deformation after 100 km — it never lost air or needed a repair, and that’s tougher than normal riding. If you ever spot a visible change in shape, stop riding and contact our team.
The 10-inch air tire didn’t leak — why not just use that?
Its taller tire profile has more room around the motor, which is why it held air. But a 10-inch arrangement is a larger, heavier platform; the Butterfly Ultra keeps 8.5-inch wheels for its 13.5 kg, compact folded package and solves the motor-wheel leak with a solid front tire instead.
Does this mean every scooter should use a solid front tire?
No. These findings are specific to the Butterfly Ultra’s front suspension and its deck-to-motor spacing. Scooters without front suspension, or with a different layout, can feel very different on a solid front tire — judge each model on its own design.
Are the tires covered by the warranty?
Tires and inner tubes are wear parts, so normal wear and road punctures aren’t covered while manufacturing defects are assessed under the warranty terms. The warranty guide sets out what’s covered for each version.
Still unsure which to choose?
Check the tire setup and full specs on the Butterfly Ultra product page, or ask our team to confirm which configuration a specific SKU ships with. For service, see the repair center; for tested range in each mode, see the range calculator.
All comfort and durability findings here relate to the Butterfly Ultra’s own 8.5-inch platform, suspension and frame geometry, and are not general claims for other scooters. Bench figures come from an accelerated, higher-load test and are not a predicted road lifespan. Your statutory consumer rights are not affected.