Are Low-Priced Carbon Frames the Next Big E-Bike Trend?

Considering the carbon fiber frame and 11-speed drivetrain, it seems likely that at $1999—which OFIITO says is a 50 percent discount from the regular price of $3999—OFIITO will be losing money. Considering this is Indiegogo, which is a way of funding a product when you lack deep pockets by taking pledges for orders, we can’t help but wonder how they can afford to sell an e-bike at a loss and make a go of this. That, in turn, makes us worry about whether or not the company will be around long-term to support their buyers.

We have a habit of reminding our readers that there’s no such thing as a free lunch, that when a deal looks too good to be true … it is. If it was possible to sell a carbon fiber e-bike with an 11-speed drivetrain for $2000 and make a profit, someone would already be doing it.

The question remains, though: Will low-priced carbon fiber frames be the next big e-bike trend? The answer is, probably not. Carbon fiber is an inherently fragile material. What makes carbon fiber attractive as a material for bikes and e-bikes is that it can allow a skilled engineer to design and build an extremely stiff and light bicycle frame. But it’s not especially durable. And the material, unlike aluminum, is expensive. The process of laying up the sheets of carbon fiber to make the frame is labor intensive, and that labor must be skilled. By contrast, while building an aluminum frame requires some skill, it doesn’t require as much skill and it is substantially faster.

The cost on carbon fiber frames is dropping, but it seems unlikely that they will ever be as affordable as aluminum frames, but even if they do become that affordable, there will still be the issue of durability. An e-bike with a carbon fiber frame isn’t something you want to lock up to a bike rack outside of work. All it would take is one good bump against the metal rack to damage the frame, making it unrideable. Aluminum frames aren’t indestructible, but they can take quite a bit of abuse before they are compromised.