“Luxury” isn’t a word that’s often associated with cycling, that is, unless you’re Pard Design. The Italian outfit previously known for its lavish and somewhat classically designed commuter bikes and its, frankly, mental-looking Extreme e-road bike has broken into the gravel scene with the Impervia, and the most normal things on it are perhaps the suspension fork and dropper post… and that’s saying something.
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Let’s address the aluminium elephant in the room. Pard’s first e-gravel bike’s frame is built around a Pole-esque CNC-machined 6082 aluminium frame. The brand says that it weighs 18kg in total, but it follows Pard’s distinctive looks as it states that its “sculpted lines” are the “hallmarks of Pard Design elegance”.
Though what this CNC-machined frame means for the customer is that every one is designed and custom-built for them. To do so, we’re told that the brand considers the customer’s personal needs, allowing for a choice in materials and some customisation in the frame’s details. We expect this also means a degree of geometry choice.
As for the motor, the Impervia runs Mahle’s recent mid-drive motor, the M40. This magnesium/aluminium-housed beast outputs 105Nm of torque and up to 850W of power. It’s then paired with a rather sleek top tube display. Together, they provide handy features such as the Hill Brake, which is designed to help with hill starts. Pard doesn’t include any details on the battery that powers the motor, but according to Mahle’s website, there are a couple of battery options – 534Wh and 800Wh. We expect the former to be equipped on the Impervia.
Available in a range of builds according to the customer’s tastes, the Impervia uses BCA Performance components, including a BCA crankset and CNC braking system. Elsewhere, there’s a Cane Creek Invert SL suspension fork, Carbon H25 rims wrapped with Maxxis ‘Revenge’ (likely Ravager lost in Italian translation) tyres and SRAM brake levers. Shifting also comes from SRAM in the form of its Force groupset.
The bike’s sure to upset gravel purists that bit more as it comes with a RockShox Reverb AXS dropper post. Atop the dropper is then a San Marco Shortfit saddle.
For many, ‘luxury’ often means expensive, and that’s exactly the case with the Pard Impervia, as it’ll set you back a rather nice €15,700.
