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In this week’s news:

• The Equal Bike – Light & Affordable
• BH Core Carbon – Big Battery & Light Weight
• Good Value Co-op eBikes from REI Cooperative
• eBike Ambulance Hits Parisian Streets
• COVID Cafe to the Rescue
• eBike Racing in Oregon for 2021?
• Peachtree Solar Road Innovation
• eScooters Getting Sturdier and Expanding in UK’s Trials
• All the Latest eBike Biz News

New eBikes & eBike Systems

The Equal Bike – Light and Affordable

Finnish start-up Urban Cycles has launched the Euro spec (15.5mph assist) Equal Bike. 

‘With a starting price of €1,490, we want people to stop comparing the cost of a decent e-bike to a used car, ”says Andriy Sytnyk, Co-Founder and CEO.

The single-speed bike itself is very much in the line of slick city bike offerings from Van Moof, Ampler and COBOC though the price certainly undercuts them all.  It features a rear hub motor with frame integrated lights and battery (225Wh) plus hydraulic disc brakes and fenders. Inevitably there is an app but it isn’t vital to use of the bike. The basic version gets a chain drive with belt drive an optional extra. Rack and kickstand are due in 2021.

[Read more…] about eBike News: Lightweight eBikes from Startup Equal and BH, REI’s Good Value, eBike Ambulances & More! [VIDEOS]

In this week’s news:

• COBC’s New Lightweight Hybrid Due 2021
• Furo Aventa Lighweight Urban Bike
• CBT’s Artik Responds to Your Heart Rate
• Premium Ducati eMTB Announced Featuring Shimano’s EP08 Mid-drive
• Lezyne e-bike LEDS and PED Indicating Pedals
• Lime’s 4th Gen eScooter and Micromobility News from London
• Cycling UK’s Missing Links Campaign
• London 2021 Cycle Show Dates
• All the Latest eBike Biz News

New eBikes & eBike Systems

COBOC Announce Trekking Hybrid Model with Front Suspension

German e-bike manufacturers Coboc have launched their first hybrid bike with front suspension. The Iseo has a claimed weight of 17.5-18kg (depending on frame size), which is pretty light for a front suspended bike with a reasonably-sized 380Wh battery. The suspension gives 60mm of travel and is air sprung. Like all their other models it features a rear hub motor but another difference here is that the torque sensor is integrated directly into the motor rather than in the bottom bracket where it is on othern Coboc e-bikes. Coboc say this offers ‘an even more natural response behavior’. 
[Read more…] about eBike News: COBOC Lightweight Hybrid, New Furo & CBT eBikes, Missing UK Bike Links & Much More [VIDEOS]

In this week’s news:

• Serial 1 eBikes ‘Powered by Harley Davidson’ Revealed
• OHM Powers Ahead with Shimano EP8 Models
• Knaap’s Motorbike Style eBikes Arrive in UK
• Shimano E5000 Firmware Update
• Reevo Hubless eBike Crowdfunds
• Pirelli’s New Winter Tyre
• New Cash Released for UK Infrastructure
• Over 80s eBikers Safety Concern

New eBikes & eBike Systems

Interested in just where e-bikes might be heading as we head towards 2021? We take a look at five e-bike trends set to accelerate over the coming months and years.

Lighter, More Responsive and More Automated Motors

There have been plenty of new motor releases and upgrades in 2020. The power increase and weight reduction war between the big four mid-drive motor manufacturers (Bosch, Brose, Shimano and Yamaha) continued in 2020 with the release of Shimano’s headline-grabbing EP8 as exemplified by the Orbea Rise with the EP8 especially tuned for a ‘more natural and sportier’ ride as the ‘RS’ version.

Just by tweaking the software of the motor, Orbea managed to reduce the maximum torque from 85 Nm to 60 Nm – Orbea realised that, at cadences between 80 and 90 rpm, neither the Performance Line CX nor the EP8 use their full torque at maximum power and the difference in torque becomes evident particularly when setting off, accelerating and negotiating steep technical climbs: here the EP8-RS requires more input from the rider and thus makes for a very natural, sporty ride feeling and reduced battery consumption.’ This in turn means less power consumption, a greater range and so a smaller battery is suitable (Orbea went with 360Wh capacity for the Rise with the option to extend the capacity to 612Wh via a ‘bottle’ battery if required).

Bosch have also been tweaking their software in 2020 to get a more natural feeling ride for off-roaders. I’ve done a lot of serious off-road miles in this semi-automatic e-mtb mode which switches between power levels for you based on your effort and the terrain – and really like the feel of it. 2021 sees the release of an e-mtb mode software upgrade for the Performance Line CX motor which is fitted to many, many top-line e-mtbs. The motor itself boasts a headline-grabbing extra 10Nm of torque but the real innovation comes in how and when the power is applied in an effort for a natural ride that is aimed at getting the rider over more obstacles in difficult positions and toning the power down in some situations such as at high cadences with light pedal pressure.
[Read more…] about eBike Trends To Expect In 2021