The Tenways AGO T has proven one of the harder e-bikes to score. It’s a high quality, beautifully built, mid-motor step-through, but at the same time it has a couple of qualities that might make it a bit of a non-starter for some people.
Let’s start with a quick bit of history for those who aren’t familiar with Tenways. The brand was born in the Netherlands in 2021 off the back of some successful crowdfunding and has swiftly established a name for itself producing low maintenance single-speed urban e-bikes.
The CG0600, CGO800S and CGO009 all fit this description. All have hub motors, all have belt drives and all impressed us when we tested them.
More recently, however, Tenways has sought to branch out. Geared versions of the CGO600 and CGO800 are on the way, and they’ve also launched a couple of mid-motor options: the SUV-style AGO X (which I’ll also be reviewing) and the rather more stately AGO T tested here.
The bike
Once you’ve hoisted the Tenways AGO T out of the box, your first job will be attaching the handlebars, pedals, front wheel and mudguard.
None of this is too demanding, although you’ll need to refer to the instructions quite a bit to ensure you’re clear on exactly where the various bits of componentry go, which makes the process a little more time consuming. Tenways bikes are however available in plenty of bricks and mortar retailers these days, which would allow you to sidestep this.
During this setup process, I got my first sense of one the bike’s less desirable qualities. Some e-bikes are bigger than others, as The Smiths song doesn’t quite go – and the AGO T is bigger than most.
My normal approach to putting a front wheel on involves having the bike in one hand and the wheel in the other, but the AGO T isn’t something easily controlled one-handed. Once built, I found it weighed a hefty 31kg. To put that in context, the only heavier bike I’ve tested has been an e-cargo bike.
Mid-motor bikes are heavier and so too, for the most part, are step-throughs, as they rely on a single, unbraced frame element for all their strength which therefore needs to be pretty thick. Throw in a suspension fork and you’re unavoidably going to end up with a heavy bike.
Looking back at similar bikes we’ve tested, the Moustache Lundi 27.5 weighs 28kg, the Modeco URB 3.0 weighs 29kg and the Mako Shark 29.7kg – so 31kg isn’t perhaps as outlandish as it sounds. At the same time, I can’t help but feel that some of the people in the market for a leisurely step-through e-bike might struggle to manhandle one of this size in certain situations.
Other than that, the quality of the build impresses. The Bafang M420 motor is teamed with a Gates carbon belt drive and Enviolo’s stepless hub gears and everything’s beautifully finished, including the frame with its integrated rear rack.
The only false note comes in the form of a couple of additional struts to said rack that aren’t seen in promotional photography and therefore carry an air of being late additions.
The motor
Appearances can be deceptive – but not in this case. The Tenways AGO T looks like a sedate city bike and that is exactly how it rides.
With its low step-through frame and curved handlebars, it doesn’t look built for speed and while there are certainly no issues getting up to the 15.5mph (25km/h) motor assistance cut-off limit on the flat, you won’t be doing much riding above that speed because the additional effort necessary to do so is so significant.
The bike’s unhurried air is further accentuated by its performance uphill. While the Bafang M420 motor didn’t set any records on Richard’s various hill climb tests when he tested it on the Mako Shark, it wasn’t slow either. In contrast, I found that the AGO T was mixing with the slowest bikes I’ve tested on my own local test slopes.
Whether the hub gearing contributes to this or imposes some peak power ceiling because of what can be put through it, I don’t know. Enviolo states that the City hub can handle maximum torque of 75Nm. While this sounds decent on paper, it seems significant that it’s pitched at “the urban rider” and intended for “light vehicles which help you navigate through busy city roads, bike lanes and crossings.” I couldn’t help but note that the next version up – the Trekking variant – is billed as being for, “countryside roads or other versatile environments.”
Despite this, I will say that hills didn’t especially pose a problem. As it’s a mid-motor, you still get decent assistance at slow speeds. Hub motors can fade on you precisely when you need them most, but there’s none of that here. You won’t struggle to get up hills and nor will it require significant physical exertion – it just takes a while. Whether or not this is a deal-breaker for you will largely be a matter of what you expect to get out of your e-bike.
The ride
A torque sensor nicely smooths the delivery of that measured power. Experiencing this in an upright riding position, cushioned by a suspension seat post, the AGO T feels comfortable and serene. You turn the pedals and glide around and the hills take as long as they take.
Whether or not the hub gear system really is responsible for blunting peak power, it functions very nicely for its main purpose. If you’ve not come across Enviolo’s ‘stepless’ gearing before, you don’t get distinct gears, as you would with a derailleur system. Instead, you twist the handlebar shifter and pedalling becomes gradually easier or harder, depending which way you move it.
It’s an easy system to get used to, it feels nice, and you can change gear when you’re stationary as well, such as when you’ve pulled up at a junction. I also didn’t have any issues shifting under load.
In terms of range, Tenways suggest “up to 100km” from the 504Wh battery, for which you’d probably require Dutch topography. Riding mostly at levels two and three of the five available and whacking it up to full for climbs (I challenge anyone to do otherwise on this bike) I managed about 75km (45 miles) taking in around 300m of climbing before needing to recharge.
Significantly, I felt this was necessary before the battery was fully flat. Motor assistance tends to peter out alongside battery charge on most e-bikes, but you notice it quite early with the AGO T. At one point I was down to 15% and riding with the assistance set to maximum and yet I still felt moved to stop and check for a puncture after setting off from a junction.
The battery itself is easy to remove and charge, although it’s worth mentioning that the charger itself came with a European plug.
It’s good to have a percentage reading though, rather than just a basic bar read-out. You get plenty of other stuff on the big, clear display as well, including how many trees you’ve supposedly saved by not driving.
Value
I’m about to highlight a few other mid-motor step-through options. While those are obvious comparisons, I’m inclined to say the Tenways AGO T is a better fit for flatter terrain – in which case you could also consider lighter hub motor bikes.
At £2,600, the Mako Shark is near enough £100 cheaper than the AGO T (£2,699). While it also boasts a belt drive and the same Bafang motor, it features 8-speed Shimano Alfine hub gears instead of the Enviolo system. That may sound less appealing, but doesn’t seem to compromise peak power in quite the same way.
The world has moved on a fair bit since we tested the hub gear version of the Gazelle Grenoble C7+ in 2019 – but to be fair, the bike itself has moved on too. (The latest version has lost the old-fashioned rear rack battery.) It comes with Bosch’s lower torque Active Line Plus motor and costs £2,799.
A little more expensive is the Romet E-Modeco URB 3.0 (£2,999). This one’s built around a powerful Shimano EP8 mid-drive which is teamed with a sizeable 830Wh battery. The derailleur gearing is the 10-speed Shimano Cues system.
With various models available, the Moustache Lundi 27 spans this price bracket. We’d probably skip over the Active Line Plus of the 27.1 in favour of one of the Bosch Performance Line options. The 27.2 offers Shimano Deore 10-speed derailleur gearing for £2,799, for example. Although if you’re dead set on having a belt drive and Enviolo stepless hub gears, you’re looking at £3,999.
The main selling points of the Tenways AGO T are its stylish step-through frame and that no-fuss combo of stepless gearing with a low maintenance belt drive instead of a conventional chain. On those elements, it’s hard to fault.
The downside is that peak power seems to be sufficiently hampered that you end up with quite a hefty bike where one of the main benefits of a mid-motor – uphill power – is compromised to the extent it becomes hard to recommend to anyone living in a hilly area.
It’s a beautiful, unhurried e-bike with a lovely air about it, but the niche it’s targeting is not a large one.
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