Just in at ebiketips is this Upstart from London-based Momentum Electric. It’s a stripped down urban machine with a front hub motor and 374Wh battery that retails for £1,350.
Electric bikes are heavy; well, heavier than normal bikes. Whatever you do you’re still adding a motor and a fairly hefty battery. That can add anything up to 8kg to a bike, and most city e-bikes come in somewhere between 22kg and 25kg. The Upstart is a bit lighter though. Momentum claim a weight of 18.5kg for the bike, ours (a Large size) tipped the scales at 19.2kg. That’s a chunk lighter than most, though, so where are the savings made?

One of the main things Momentum have done is cut down on shiftgear. You’ll often get a derailleur setup or, increasingly, a hub gear on electric city bikes. The Upstart uses a SRAM Automatix two-speed hub. It’s auto-shifting: as soon as you reach the shifting speed the hub clicks over to the higher gear. Clearly that doesn’t give you the same kind of gear range as a fully geared bike but it’s designed for an urban environment, not climbing mountains.

The aluminium alloy frame is simple and fairly lightly built, and the battery sits low down behind the seat tube to give a lower centre of gravity. Momentum use a torque-sensing system, AUTORQ, to apply the power and there’s three levels of assistance available, selectable from the simple bar-mounted display which also shows you how much battery you have left. Momentum claim a range of 45-80km from the 374Wh battery which sounds achievable, and a spare battery is available for £350 if you like to be prepared.

The power is applied by a Bafang 8Fun front hub motor, putting out 250W and 40Nm of torque. It’s a popular motor and offers plenty of assistance. Stopping is handled by Tektro V brakes, actuated by lightweight levers. The handlebars and seatpost are allot, and there’s an adjustable stem so you can tune your position. A lighting system is also included (controllable from the display), and so is an alloy rack, full mudguards and a kickstand. There’s no chain case but you do get a rustless chain which should run fairly clean.
We’ll be putting the Upstart through its paces over the next few weeks, so stay tuned for a review.