DJI’s bike brand has significantly upped its game when comes to the bike attached its E. As for the motor? Blimey.
- Brand: Amflow
- Product: PX Carbon Pro
- Price: £8,999
- From: Amflow Bikes
- Tested by: Benji for 1 week
Why do I say “game over, man”? Well, apart from any old reason to feature Bill Paxton’s Aliens catchphrase on Singletrackworld, there’s a whole host of things that could be potentially done away with due to arrival of this bike. Or specifically, the Avinox M2S motor contained within it.
With a frankly ridiculous amount of power – 1,500 watts of peak power and 150Nm of peak torque – there will understandably be a lot of folk who will be worried about the future of e-bikes being classed in the same arena as pedal bikes. Although electric motorbikes, such as the much-despised Surrons, have quite a bit more power in terms of watts (around 6000 watts or more) some of the more popular ones ‘only’ have around 250Nm of torque. So in terms of where it counts offroad, the Avinox M2S motor is not a million miles away in torque.
Needless to say, we here are Singletrack are concerned. We don’t think that general trail access for acoustic bicycles is at risk at all. But it does feel like e-bikes are in danger of getting a clumsily imposed blanket ban if we’re not careful. I’m not going to go any more into the matter much in this review. We’ll be addressing the debate very shortly elsewhere.
What I will categorically state is that DJI didn’t have to do this. It already has by far the best ebike system out there, regardless of power. It has the best interface, the best rider response, the best range, the best weight. Some brands may equal certain aspects of DJI’s system but none better it, anywhere. Even should any new regulations come in to limit ebike power, Avinox would still be the class leader. It does almost feel like it’s “game over, man” for DJI’s motor rivals. In riding terms, why would you opt for another system?
DJI really didn’t need to stick in the new ‘SuperMario mode’ 1500 peak power. Nothing being used as a bicycle really benefits from having such high levels of power. Tyres struggle for traction, trails get ripped to shreds, it can very hard to keep the front wheel down. Such power makes no sense on an off-road bicycle. The only place where the Avinox M2S’s top power was vaguely applicable was on tarmac or similar metalled surface.
Now, here’s the thing…
I think the Amflow PX Carbon Pro is the best off-road bicycle I’ve ever ridden. I almost wish that it wasn’t. It would be easier to have the aforementioned debate if the bike wasn’t up to snuff (which the MK1 Amflow PL wasn’t in my opinion).
After a couple of rides with the assistance left un-tweaked I was finding even the system’s ‘Auto’ level of assist to be shove-y and front wheel lifty. So via the Avinox Ride app (which is also undeniably brilliant by the way) I reduced the M2S motor’s top end power. I settled on limits of 800 watts and 100Nm of torque – coincidentally (ahem) the same sort of figures mooted to be followed in any future eeb regulations.
The result? Amazing. Simply amazing. As powerful as any rival system currently available but way, way, WAY more intuitive and unintrusive. Like the very best things in the history of bicycling technology, the motor felt like an extension of yourself. An amplification of you, not a replacement or interruption.
And it doesn’t really have much in the way of compromise in terms of the Holy Trinity of Eebs: power, range, weight. It has more power than you need, a battery with stunning range (even when not being ‘nursed’) and the bike seen here weighs 21.3kg. Yes, even with Schwalbe Gravity Pro tyres shod front and rear. As I’ve said before, mountain bikes that weigh around 20kg are the best handling mountain bikes. Loads more traction than sub-20kg bikes but still easily manouvrable and wholly without the scary running-away-from-you panic moments when things aren’t quite going the way you expected/want/need them to.
I need to stop talking about the e-stuff. What about the bike stuff of the bike?
For anyone familiar with the previous generation Amflow bikes, the new models are quite a step up in my opinion. Although the ‘stock’ geometry is relatively on the conservative side of things, the shortened seat tube length and improved dropper insertion are both extremely welcome changes that massively open up the capability of the bike. There’s also the move to a mixed wheelsize mullet layout, of which I am a big fan of (provided the chainstays aren’t too short).
The other two excellent aspects about the new Amflow PX are the suspension adjustment options and the improved rear suspension. Details are scarce on the precise details of the rear suspension changes but it feels way more sensitive and yet supportive than the previous layout (reduced anti-squat and a less hammocky leverage curve maybe?).
As for the geometry adjustment, Amflow has seemingly taken (yet another) page out of Specialized’s Stumpjumper recipe. You can mess about with three general dimensions. Firstly, head angle. Via +/- push-in headset upper cup you can slacken the head angle to 63.2°. Secondly, you can change the chainstay length via a set of flip chips offering four positions (0-10mm). Thirdly, it took me a while to find them, you can flip the chips in the shock yoke to run the BB at two different heights. And yes, through a combination of all the flip chips you can run a 29in wheel in the back should you wish.
For those of you more familiar with my review rantings, it will come as no surprise that I ended up running the geometry in the slackest, lowest and longest settings possible. With a super low BB height (sub 330mm by my eye) I still never had an issue with pedal strikes. That’ll be partly due top the 155mm length cranks (M and L frame sizes, 160mm on XL and XXL).
Which brings us to the specification. I can’t remember a bike with a better chosen spec than this one. Even the cockpit is great (35mm stem, 40mm rise bars, actually nice grips). The Magura Gustav Pro brakes are excellent. The Schwalbe Radial tyres are fabulous. Amflow’s own carbon wheels are something of an unknown in terms of reliability but so far, so fast. And I get on well with the Fox 36 and Float X suspension combo. Amflow’s own saddle was fine. The one and only thing I would change is the dropper and that’s because I could fit a 210mm travel dropper in there (instead of the 190mm supplied).
Overall
Whilst more time on the bike is required before I come out with an overall verdict and star rating, there’s no getting away from the fact that the new Amflow PX is a significant bike. I imagine the first batch have all been sold by the time you finish reading this. As well as being a significant bike in terms of the headline-grabbing hand-wringing levels of power – that is entirely needless and (dare I say) potentially reckless – the Amflow PX is just a fantastic thing to do mountain biking on. For me, it’s at its best once it’s been tweaked: turn the power down, flip those geometry chips and prepare to have the time of your life out there.
Amflow PX Carbon: £6,499
Amflow PX Carbon Pro: £8,999
P.S. there’s also the Amflow PR Carbon…
Also announced today is the Amflow PR Carbon model which is estimated to be available later this year. The PR Carbon has an Avinox M2 motor and a removable 800Wh battery. It weighs around 2kg more than the equivalent Amflow PX Carbon. The M2 motor gives out a peak power of 1,100W and peak torque of 125Nm. A 600Wh battery option is also available which can either be run on its own in the downtube or be mounted externally on the bike frame as a range extender. The geometry of the Amflow PR Carbon is slightly different to the PX (slightly shorter reach, higher BB, slacker seat angle etc). Which we’ll cover in tomorrow’s Fresh Goods Friday.
Amflow PR Carbon: £3,999
Amflow PR Carbon Pro: £5,399
Amflow PX Carbon Pro specification
- Frame // Carbon, 150mm
- Shock // Fox Float X Factory, 210x55mm
- Fork // Fox Float 36 Factory GRIP X2, 160mm
- Wheels // Amflow XMC-30 Carbon w/ alloy hubs
- Front Tyre // Schwalbe Magic Mary Radial Gravity Pro 29×2.5
- Rear Tyre // Schwalbe Albert Radial Gravity Pro 27.5×2.5
- Chainset // Avinox SL, 155mm (Large), 38T
- Brakes // Magura Gustav Pro, 203/203mm
- Drivetrain // SRAM Eagle XO Transmission
- Stem // Amflow Mountain Bike Split 35, 35mm
- Handlebars // Amflow Enduro Carbon 35, 800x40mm
- Grips // Amflow Enduro Grip 2 Lock-on
- Seat Post // Amflow dropper, 31.6mm, 190mm (Large)
- Saddle // Amflow Mountain Saddle Titanium
- Sizes Available // M, L, XL, XXL
- Size Tested // L
- Weight // 21.3kg
Geometry of our size Large
- Head angle // 63.2-65.2°
- Effective seat angle // 78°
- Seat tube length // 427mm
- Head tube length // 120mm
- Chainstay // 438-451mm
- Wheelbase // 1,259mm
- Effective top tube // 619mm
- BB height // 333-345mm
- Reach // 478mm
So at least now we know what motor the new Atherton bike is getting
Cant decide if I agree with all this power or not. However I am pleased that it’s happening as it might make the rest of the industry sit-up and realise it can’t keep fleecing people paying huge sums of money for products that are now completely it of date
Does make you wonder if Shimano will pull out f the ebike market all together
Depending on spec, I can see that being a huge seller at that price. Sub-£4k for the AVI motor and battery (with a bike attached).
The new bike is a couple of kilos heavier than the previous model IIRC. That’s a pity, as one of the things that impressed me when I had a fiddle with the lower spec version was how light it was relative to the power of the motor – lighter than my Orbea Rise, with more power.
Only reason I can see for having one of these over what I have already (mine is lighter and has better (I guess) geometry) is to run it in low power modes to get really good battery life. But I’m different to most people who’d get into EMTBing through this type of bike, where power is everything. Stick it in turbo and ride fast til you go home. I understand the appeal, but that’s not for me.
With a smaller battery too