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+ON TEST<br />
Hero Eco<br />
A2B<br />
Hybrid 24<br />
With its distinctive frame and sophisticated<br />
electronics, the £1999 A2B Hybrid 24 from Hero Eco<br />
stakes a claim at the <strong>high</strong> end of commuter electric<br />
bikes. Can its performance live up to its looks?<br />
26 <strong>Electric</strong> <strong>Bike</strong> Issue 6
ON TEST: Hero ON Eco TEST: A2B Hybrid Ezee Torq 24<br />
Hero Eco is part of the<br />
world’s biggest cycle<br />
makers, Hero Cycles of<br />
India. They acquired<br />
established electric bike makers<br />
Ultramotor in early 2012, and now<br />
promote the electric bikes under two<br />
distinct sub-brands: F<strong>as</strong>t4ward (mostly<br />
using Pan<strong>as</strong>onic crank drives) and A2B<br />
(using direct drive hub motors).<br />
Alongside the £1999 Hybrid 24<br />
reviewed here, A2B offer the Metro<br />
with 20" wheels (£2499). This h<strong>as</strong><br />
a similarly chunky frame and tyres,<br />
and both benefit from a two year<br />
standard warranty which includes the<br />
batteries.<br />
Spare battery packs (36 V, 9,5 Ah)<br />
cost £499. Custom side panniers to fit<br />
the rear rack are also available <strong>as</strong> an<br />
optional accessory (from £49) with a<br />
rack b<strong>as</strong>e which also allows you to use<br />
many other panniers.<br />
Hero Eco have a network of over 50<br />
dealers covering all but the far north<br />
BELOW: The display<br />
console is neatly and<br />
solidly mounted to<br />
continue the lines of the<br />
angle-adjustable stem.<br />
RIGHT: The connector<br />
for the battery is a good<br />
quality type with a<br />
threaded collar to lock it<br />
into place securely.<br />
of England: see their website to locate<br />
your closest. They have distributors<br />
in many other countries, too.<br />
» ON THE BIKE<br />
With its sculpted aluminium frame,<br />
wide tyres, suspension forks and the<br />
almost fuel-tank like battery pack<br />
there’s definitely a hint of motorbike<br />
design cues about the Hybrid. But<br />
it is of course still a bicycle, and I<br />
rather liked the look: it h<strong>as</strong> strong<br />
futuristic lines, and the detail is<br />
good too. See, for example, those<br />
tidy mudguard supports, or how well<br />
the display console is integrated<br />
with the stem. All of the cables run<br />
internally, protected from damage and<br />
contributing to the clean visual effect.<br />
The battery pack slides neatly and<br />
firmly onto the back of the frame,<br />
rattle-free and locking into place<br />
with a positive click. There’s a <strong>high</strong><br />
quality screw-locking connector at<br />
the back of it, under the frame, and<br />
you can in theory plug this to charge<br />
the pack on the bike. I found this<br />
tricky, <strong>as</strong> there’s little ‘slack’ in the<br />
cable to allow the plug to move far<br />
enough to come free from the socket.<br />
E<strong>as</strong>ier to unlock the battery pack and<br />
slide it backwards a little – or remove<br />
it altogether and charge it off the<br />
bike. The charger supplied gives a<br />
fairly f<strong>as</strong>t charge: A2B say up to 80%<br />
in two hours, and 100% in five.<br />
There’s a small tubular rack over<br />
the battery, but I’m not really sure<br />
how much use this really is. It's only<br />
rated to 10 kg, and you could maybe<br />
mount a rack pack on top. But if you<br />
want to fit normal panniers, generally<br />
the best way to carry luggage by<br />
bike, you'll need the optional adaptor.<br />
Specification<br />
Weight overall (inc batteries):<br />
28.5 kg<br />
Battery weight: 4.05 kg<br />
<strong>Bike</strong> only weight: 24.45 kg<br />
Charger weight: 1.03 kg<br />
(inc. mains cable).<br />
Battery type: Sanyo Li-Ion.<br />
Battery capacity: 342 Watt<br />
hours (36 V 9.5 Ah).<br />
Gearing: 8-speed Shimano<br />
Alivio derailleur gears. 44T<br />
ring, 12-32T sprockets. Ratios<br />
36-95".<br />
Brakes: Avid BB5 mechanical<br />
disk brakes.<br />
Lighting: front LED, rear LED.<br />
Other accessories fitted:<br />
mudguards, carrier rack,<br />
stand, bell.<br />
Price <strong>as</strong> tested: £1999.<br />
Issue 6 <strong>Electric</strong> <strong>Bike</strong> 27
+ON TEST<br />
This would make the bike rather<br />
more useful for utility riding such <strong>as</strong><br />
shopping, though that weight limit is<br />
still very low.<br />
Right below the battery pack is<br />
the back wheel, housing the fairly<br />
large motor system. This is of the<br />
direct drive gearless type, in which<br />
the moving part is driven directly by<br />
magnetic coils in the hub shell. Such<br />
systems tend to be completely silent<br />
in operation, and this one is too. It<br />
can also operate ‘in reverse’ to provide<br />
regenerative braking, recharging the<br />
battery <strong>as</strong> it slows you down. This<br />
is a fairly gentle effect, triggered<br />
when you half squeeze the brakes. It<br />
slowed the bike smoothly, but not very<br />
powerfully.<br />
The pedal drive is via a mid-range<br />
Shimano Alivio derailleur transmission,<br />
with a single chainring, complete with<br />
chain protectors each side to keep<br />
your trousers clean. The top run of<br />
the chain is also well shielded by the<br />
frame and a guard sheet.<br />
The rack mounted battery and<br />
rear motor give a definite weight<br />
bi<strong>as</strong> towards the rear of the bike, but<br />
this is noticeable more when you’re<br />
wheeling the bike than when you<br />
ride it. It’s not the e<strong>as</strong>iest bike to<br />
lift; not just because of the weight<br />
(we me<strong>as</strong>ured 28 kg) but also because<br />
there’s no particularly e<strong>as</strong>y place to<br />
grip the frame around the balance<br />
point. However A2B have designed<br />
in a very useful handle at the rear of<br />
ABOVE: There are some<br />
long weld seams on the<br />
frame, but the result<br />
is a rigid bike to ride.<br />
The chain is also well<br />
protected so your trousers<br />
stay clean.<br />
BELOW: The display<br />
console turns on at the<br />
touch of the key fob, and<br />
the blue backlit display is<br />
visible even at night. The<br />
‘click knob’ control on the<br />
left makes a nice change<br />
from the usual buttons.<br />
the battery pack so it’s e<strong>as</strong>y to lift<br />
the back of the bike. They’ve also<br />
fitted a strong kickstand to a purpose<br />
designed mounting plate at the rear<br />
wheel, and the bike stands up well<br />
on this.<br />
Looking up to the front of the<br />
machine, it’s the handlebar set-up<br />
which grabs the attention. The angleadjustable<br />
stem is smoothly contoured<br />
and it leads neatly up to the control<br />
console, which sits perfectly centred<br />
above the bars.<br />
This console is a clever box of tricks.<br />
It eschews the usual set of buttons<br />
in favour of a little knob on one<br />
side, which you click round to scroll<br />
through the power modes and other<br />
options. It takes a few rides to get<br />
used to, but then I came to like its<br />
minimally cluttered interface.<br />
First, though, you need to turn<br />
the thing on. Here the Hybrid h<strong>as</strong><br />
a rather unique trick. Instead of a<br />
key, there’s a little fob which you<br />
just touch against the display to turn<br />
it on or off. Then the display lights<br />
up with its clear blue backlighting.<br />
Battery status and which (if any) of<br />
the three power modes is engaged are<br />
always shown, while the large central<br />
display can be scrolled through speed,<br />
trip distance and the like. The power<br />
modes control the torque sensor type<br />
drive, setting by how much your<br />
pedalling effort is amplified. There’s<br />
no throttle, so you do have to pedal<br />
and put in some effort!<br />
The bars also host the trigger shifter<br />
for the gearing, and brake levers (with<br />
motor cut-off contacts) which operate<br />
the mechanical disk brakes. These<br />
are Avid BB5s, not a bad brake but it<br />
would have been good to see the next<br />
model up, the BB7, used instead on a<br />
£1999 bike. Much e<strong>as</strong>ier to adjust and<br />
generally better regarded.<br />
Finally, LED lights are fitted<br />
front and rear. These are controlled<br />
automatically via a light sensor to<br />
operate whenever it dark, and they’re<br />
powered off the main battery.<br />
» ON THE ROAD<br />
My first impression of the Hybrid 24<br />
w<strong>as</strong> that it felt superbly solid on the<br />
road: it proceeds without any rattles<br />
or drama, even over the potholes and<br />
rough tarmac of winter roads. Those<br />
fat tyres and the front suspension<br />
really soak up the bumps, while the<br />
frame feels completely solid beneath<br />
you. That bulky stem keeps the<br />
28 <strong>Electric</strong> <strong>Bike</strong> Issue 6
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ON TEST: Hero ON Eco TEST: A2B Hybrid Ezee Torq 24<br />
handlebars rigid, too, so it feels like a<br />
re<strong>as</strong>suringly flex free ride all round.<br />
Add power to the pedals and the<br />
motor joins in smoothly, boosting you<br />
up to speed e<strong>as</strong>ily. It felt like a really<br />
powerful <strong>as</strong>sist, negating the weight<br />
of the bike and making for an e<strong>as</strong>y<br />
ride. On hills it w<strong>as</strong> also impressive:<br />
in bottom gear and with a bit of pedal<br />
effort it would tackle all I could find.<br />
And it did so in total silence: I really<br />
couldn’t hear any motor noise at all,<br />
just the tyres and gears.<br />
The battery will be more than<br />
sufficient for any sane person’s<br />
commute; only really serious hills<br />
might challenge it. Because of the<br />
torque sensing drive you’re always<br />
contributing anyway, so the motor<br />
never h<strong>as</strong> to do all of the work. After<br />
a few ten-mile commutes to my office<br />
and back (fairly flat, heavy rider) the<br />
battery w<strong>as</strong> still over half full, and<br />
that’s in the cold of winter, when<br />
batteries always perform less well.<br />
The console is really nicely placed<br />
over the bars, and while you do<br />
have to lift a hand to change modes<br />
by twiddling the knob, it’s not<br />
I really couldn't hear any motor noise<br />
at all, just the tyres and gears.<br />
HIGH POINTS:<br />
Smooth, silent ride<br />
Good lively <strong>as</strong>sist<br />
Neat design, clever<br />
console<br />
F<strong>as</strong>t charge<br />
LOW POINTS:<br />
Bit on the heavy side<br />
Charge point a bit<br />
awkward to get to<br />
Won’t take standard<br />
panniers<br />
GOOD FOR:<br />
Stylish commuters<br />
Design connoisseurs<br />
Those who want to pedal<br />
but with <strong>as</strong>sistance.<br />
Available from:<br />
A2B dealers: Tel 01242<br />
807 420 or see<br />
www.heroeco.com for<br />
details of your closest.<br />
something you need to do often. It’s<br />
also no problem even with gloves<br />
on. The backlight keeps the display<br />
visible at night, too.<br />
Apart from an occ<strong>as</strong>ional squeak I<br />
couldn’t really fault the brakes: they<br />
stopped the Hybrid with good power<br />
and feel. The gears too worked <strong>as</strong><br />
they should, and the range w<strong>as</strong> about<br />
right: low enough for the hills and<br />
<strong>high</strong> enough to get well above the 15<br />
mph power <strong>as</strong>sist limit.<br />
All in all the Hybrid delivered an<br />
enjoyable ride. Some of the other<br />
people who tried it – especially<br />
perhaps the shorter and lighter ones<br />
– were a little more concerned about<br />
the size and weight of it. But once on<br />
the bike, few had any complaints.<br />
» SUMMARY<br />
The Hybrid 24 is an impressive be<strong>as</strong>t.<br />
Fit and finish is really excellent and<br />
while the looks may not appeal much<br />
to cycling traditionalists, I find<br />
them striking and contemporary. It’s<br />
smooth, sophisticated and rolls along<br />
with real composure. The bike is<br />
perhaps a little on the heavy side, but<br />
so long <strong>as</strong> you don’t have to lift it it’s<br />
not really that obvious.<br />
The bike’s technology w<strong>as</strong> polished<br />
and well integrated, with only a very<br />
slight whiff of overkill in the ‘touch<br />
key’ on/off, which didn’t strike me<br />
<strong>as</strong> an especially useful advance. You<br />
could just <strong>as</strong> well have a key on your<br />
keyring <strong>as</strong> the touch fob. But it’s clever<br />
and it worked. The little twist knob to<br />
control the power modes and menus<br />
w<strong>as</strong> also an interesting innovation;<br />
good to see a manufacturer breaking<br />
away from the crowd.<br />
If you’re after a solid, smooth<br />
and silent e-bike, the Hybrid 24<br />
would be worth a close look. It’s not<br />
a conventional bike in a number<br />
of ways, but don’t let that put you<br />
off. Life would be boring if all bikes<br />
were the same, and the innovations<br />
employed here do all work to produce<br />
an enjoyable ride. Give it a go!<br />
Peter Eland<br />
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