Issue Six - Spring 2013 - Electric Bike Magazine

+ON TEST
This would make the bike rather
more useful for utility riding such as
shopping, though that weight limit is
still very low.
Right below the battery pack is
the back wheel, housing the fairly
large motor system. This is of the
direct drive gearless type, in which
the moving part is driven directly by
magnetic coils in the hub shell. Such
systems tend to be completely silent
in operation, and this one is too. It
can also operate ‘in reverse’ to provide
regenerative braking, recharging the
battery as it slows you down. This
is a fairly gentle effect, triggered
when you half squeeze the brakes. It
slowed the bike smoothly, but not very
powerfully.
The pedal drive is via a mid-range
Shimano Alivio derailleur transmission,
with a single chainring, complete with
chain protectors each side to keep
your trousers clean. The top run of
the chain is also well shielded by the
frame and a guard sheet.
The rack mounted battery and
rear motor give a definite weight
bias towards the rear of the bike, but
this is noticeable more when you’re
wheeling the bike than when you
ride it. It’s not the easiest bike to
lift; not just because of the weight
(we measured 28 kg) but also because
there’s no particularly easy place to
grip the frame around the balance
point. However A2B have designed
in a very useful handle at the rear of
ABOVE: There are some
long weld seams on the
frame, but the result
is a rigid bike to ride.
The chain is also well
protected so your trousers
stay clean.
BELOW: The display
console turns on at the
touch of the key fob, and
the blue backlit display is
visible even at night. The
‘click knob’ control on the
left makes a nice change
from the usual buttons.
the battery pack so it’s easy to lift
the back of the bike. They’ve also
fitted a strong kickstand to a purpose
designed mounting plate at the rear
wheel, and the bike stands up well
on this.
Looking up to the front of the
machine, it’s the handlebar set-up
which grabs the attention. The angleadjustable
stem is smoothly contoured
and it leads neatly up to the control
console, which sits perfectly centred
above the bars.
This console is a clever box of tricks.
It eschews the usual set of buttons
in favour of a little knob on one
side, which you click round to scroll
through the power modes and other
options. It takes a few rides to get
used to, but then I came to like its
minimally cluttered interface.
First, though, you need to turn
the thing on. Here the Hybrid has
a rather unique trick. Instead of a
key, there’s a little fob which you
just touch against the display to turn
it on or off. Then the display lights
up with its clear blue backlighting.
Battery status and which (if any) of
the three power modes is engaged are
always shown, while the large central
display can be scrolled through speed,
trip distance and the like. The power
modes control the torque sensor type
drive, setting by how much your
pedalling effort is amplified. There’s
no throttle, so you do have to pedal
and put in some effort!
The bars also host the trigger shifter
for the gearing, and brake levers (with
motor cut-off contacts) which operate
the mechanical disk brakes. These
are Avid BB5s, not a bad brake but it
would have been good to see the next
model up, the BB7, used instead on a
£1999 bike. Much easier to adjust and
generally better regarded.
Finally, LED lights are fitted
front and rear. These are controlled
automatically via a light sensor to
operate whenever it dark, and they’re
powered off the main battery.
» ON THE ROAD
My first impression of the Hybrid 24
was that it felt superbly solid on the
road: it proceeds without any rattles
or drama, even over the potholes and
rough tarmac of winter roads. Those
fat tyres and the front suspension
really soak up the bumps, while the
frame feels completely solid beneath
you. That bulky stem keeps the
28 Electric Bike Issue 6