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IMG_6472.jpgE-bikes that look like road bikes - from Bianchi, De Rosa, Wilier and more
Arguably the newest bike genre, 'e-road' is certainly becoming a thing - with most of the big brands getting in on the act over the past couple of years thanks to stealthy and light motor systems from the likes of Fazua and eBikeMotion. Here are some of our favourites on show at Eurobike 2019...
Stealthy assisted speed: e-bikes that look like road bikes
Lombardo Mugello
The Mugello features Fazua's removable Evation system and an FSA/Shimano Ultegra component mix, with a full carbon monocoque frame.
Wilier Cento10 Hybrid
The updated e-road machine from Wilier now weighs in at just 10.2kg, and has the latest version of the eBikeMotion motor system; this has seen the assist control button move from the top tube to a slightly more ergonomic position to the side of the stem.
De Rosa E-Bike
This showstopper from the Italians features a Bafang motor and battery, with a total system weight of just 2.3kg and the full bike weighing 12kg. It gives you 80km of assisted range, and all the cables are internal.
Kraftstoff E-Rox 10 Eagle
This young Austrian brand make some intriguing bikes, none more so than this e-road machine with their own unique three-spoke wheels. If you want to find out more and can speak German, their website is as quirky as their bikes, arranged in storybook form... check it out here.
Bianchi Aria E-Road
While not so powerful as some chunkier e-road bikes, the Inner Power Drive Systme on Bianchi's Aria E-Road weighs just 3.5kg and you'd barely know it was there. There are three levels of assistance working at 30%, 60% or 100% of the total power.
FSA e-road display bike
As far as we know this bike isn't for sale, but appeared at Eurobike to show off their new e-bike motor system. The build also features an FSA groupset, wheels and cockpit.
Arriving at road.cc in 2017 via 220 Triathlon Magazine, Jack dipped his toe in most jobs on the site and over at eBikeTips before being named the new editor of road.cc in 2020, much to his surprise. His cycling life began during his students days, when he cobbled together a few hundred quid off the back of a hard winter selling hats (long story) and bought his first road bike - a Trek 1.1 that was quickly relegated to winter steed, before it was sadly pinched a few years later. Creatively replacing it with a Trek 1.2, Jack mostly rides this bike around local cycle paths nowadays, but when he wants to get the racer out and be competitive his preferred events are time trials, sportives, triathlons and pogo sticking - the latter being another long story.
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"The introduction of the new speed limit has sparked a fierce backlash among some members of the public in Wales....
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Perhaps I was wise or perahps I was just tight and stayed with 105....
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You are incentivised to the extent that the quicker you can complete a delivery the more deliveries you can do, and the more you can earn....
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This is very much standard behaviour from some motorists, which is why I like to ride in the middle of the lane on sections of roads with...
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It's a reprint, the chance to get it done came through crowd funding. We wanted this to compliment the amazing book by Max Leonard on Jobst Brandt....
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Barriers look very hard to see in the dark....
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What the wife and I get up to on a Sunday afternoon is our business thank you!
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Guildford was an occasional Saturday shopping visit for me in the 1990s (going shopping was actually a thing back then, kids) and I remember a...
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Balrogs being an ancient evil, presumably they'll be competing in the senior category? Maybe they'd want an eBalrog bike?
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7 comments
I have no problem at all with e-bikes if not used to falsify competition. Yelling at people on an e-bike that they're cheating while riding up a mountain is churlish. I do have a problem with people who barely have any cycling experience, get a speed pedelec because the employer pays, then endanger themselves (never mind that) and others by trying to show off and buzzing by at speeds they have no experience with and can't handle. Don't even get me started on those who ride an e-bike that's supposed to do 25 kmph max with support, then re-chip it so it rides 45 with next to no rider input.
I'm 76 yrs old and live in mountainous Colorado. A couple year ago I bought a Giant Road-E. By its appearance, it is obviously an e-bike. I've been called cheater countless times. Maybe I should trade in my obvious e-bike for a model that hides that it is an e-bike. Aside from being called a cheater, the e-bike allows me to enjoy riding scenic mountains as never before. I ride more and further with the e-bike. Being called a cheater is a bummer, so fine with me to hide the motor and battery.
I have no problem at all with eBikes but I would raise a questioning eyebrow about why anyone feels the need to disguise one as a regular road bike. As much as anything you would risk an accusation of underhandedness even when there is no competition.
Go E and be proud!
If you like the aesthetic of a road bike, and you want an e-bike, why should you not have one that looks like that? It mystifies me that it's an issue, unless you genuinely believe that riding one in a non-competitive environment is cheating, in which case you definitely do have a problem with them.
Because it plays on a notion that riding an e-bike for a little assistance is somehow something to be a little bit embarrased about, which it absolutely should not be.
Personally I consider e-bikes to be an absolute win for getting more people out cycling at every level.
I was offered a Wilier e-bike to ride for a day in the Alps this summer and it was an absolute hoot.
I can climb 3,500m in a day, so fairly fit, but the pleasure of hooning up hills at improbable speeds had me laughing.
It's not bad descending either. Bit too high for my taste at the front, and not quite as wieldy as a normal bike, but quite acceptable. Nice brakes.
I'm looking forward to when e-bikes are closer to quality road bikes (lower front, more agile, bit quieter, range is fine for me) and will get one ...
<edit> oh and can we please have regenerative braking on hub motored e-bikes ? I'd suggest it e-brakes if you freewheel, and the more you pedal downhill (with no force on the crank), the less it e-brakes. Plus a defeat switch if you want no e-brakes. That could make a useful difference to range in hilly terrain.
That Kraftstoff is an interesting looking bike, but put me down on the waiting list for the Bianchi (mmm, Celeste)... By the time I have reached the point where I need the assistance, I may have saved up enough for it.