3 Companies Making E-Bike Drive Units In Europe - Eurobike 2022
Just like with suspension and drivetrains, it’s likely that the e-bike motor and battery game will come to be dominated by just a few big names. And likewise, if any underdogs want to gain a foothold, they’ve got to have something unique to offer. Eurobike, of course, is never short on unique e-bikes, but this year features three motor brands that actually do their manufacturing in Europe. Each has a pretty fresh take on the e-bike concept, but they aren’t just here to be weird.
Revonte One
Ok, maybe a little weird. No, this monstrosity is not a mountain bike, but it’s what’s inside that counts. Beneath that gaudy carbon weave made by fashion-first framebuilder, Lavelle, is the Finland-made Revonte One drive unit. The motor components are made by hGears, a small-motor supplier of the auto industry founded in Germany in 1958. We’ve been seeing 3d renders of Revonte’s automatic-transmission motor since 2020, but this was our first chance to actually see one in person.
There, that’s better. Though not as smooth and swoopy as, say, a Shimano Ep8 drive unit, the Revonte looks remarkably compact, especially when you consider everything they fit in there. That includes the continuously variable transmission and not one but two motors.
One of those motors works like most other e-bike drive units by directly turning the chainring or belt driver. This is what’s inside that cube that’s oriented perpendicularly to the bottom bracket. The other motor is concentric to the bottom bracket itself, and it’s what powers the transmission. Responding to rider torque, it drives a planetary gear mechanism that essentially changes the gear ratio while also providing a driving force. Revonte explains how it works here.
Or, if you want a more fun explanation, Revonte had a Lego representation of how the One actually works. Let’s hear it for educational toys.
Effigear and Valeo
Another system that we’ve previously seen mocked up in plastic is the Valeo Cyclee drive unit, featuring a gearbox by France’s more gravity-focused answer to Pinion, Effigear. But there are actually working models at this year’s Eurobike. Valeo, like hGears, manufactures the little motors that do just about everything in your car but make it go vroom. On display at this year’s Eurobike were a few Valeo units bolted into bikes from Cavalerie, which, like the Valeo motor and Effigear gearbox, are also all manufactured in France.
Talking to the folks at Effigear, they have a refreshingly practical motivation for getting into the e-bike game. Of course, they want to put both a gearbox and an e-bike motor under one top tube, but they want to do it in a way that serves smaller e-bike manufacturers. Especially now in the age of The Great Supply Chain Disruption, it’s hard for some designers to get the attention of Shimano, Bosch, Brose, or Yamaha. But Effigear wants to serve those out there with a not-so-mainstream idea for a bike that could use a not-so-mainstream drive unit.
The Valeo Cyclee is built around Effigear’s 9-speed system with a 450% gear range. Both of those numbers are lower than what you’ll see from Pinion, but Effigear has its perks. It’s possible to do the actual shifting under load, though downshifting won’t actually occur until you let off the pressure. This system makes it possible for the non-motorized Effigear gearboxes to work with a trigger shifter, not just a twist shifter. Or, in the case of the Valeo Cyclee, a push-button electronic shifter. Of course, a 3-D printed prototype for now, but hey. Give it time.
Intradrive
Perhaps the furthest along among the underdogs is Intradrive. There’s even an essentially off-the-shelf Orange Phase e-bike at this year’s Eurobike that’s been fitted with an Intradrive system. That’s possible because Intradrive built their motor around the same mounting interface used by Shimano. They even went so far as to produce a battery with the same mounting points that Shimano uses. The long-term impact of this approach could be earth-shaking for the e-bike industry. In the same way that a brand can choose to spec RockShox or EXT suspension on the same frame, they could theoretically spec a Shimano motor with a traditional drivetrain, or they could spec an Intradrive unit.
The Intradrive gearbox offers a 430% gear range across 8 speeds, it’s shifted electronically, and is driven by Intradrive’s 80 nm motor. That motor, and all of its components, are designed to be serviced or recycled. There’s a whole drop-down tab on Instadrive’s website about their commitment to sustainability. Step one was to base manufacturing in the U.K.. Step two is to manufacture enough to keep up with demand.
Author Info:
Must Read This Week
Sign Up for the Pinkbike Newsletter - All the Biggest, Most Interesting Stories in your Inbox
PB Newsletter Signup
The real selling point is the gearbox.
I don’t get the need though for the current power levels though, as someone over 50 and not in the greatest shape of my life the current Bosch system seems ridiculously powerful to me, no need for Turbo mode ever.
A smaller motor with a gearbox seems like the best solution, I can understand Shimano not wanting to get rid of the rear mech but thought Bosch would have been falling over themselves to make a gearbox solution.
I also thing that all manufactures should make sure the motors are fully rebuildable at a sensible price and the battery packs should be rebuildable with new cells.
I doubt users will change motors separately outside after warranty;
You cannot swap car engine from different model, etc
Main purpose of the bike is -> ride / commute, not details swap
"Of course, a 3-D printed prototype for now"
Why do they do that? Not only does it look crap, but it looks like that part you could prototype properly out of an offcut of aluminium in about half the time it takes to print that raggedy ass plastic bit.
Does this mean the motor is only 80 nanometer in size? Awesome!
Even fancy bikes in 1989 were affordable(ish) and between the whole having to generate your own power thing and the fragile tires, gutless brakes, dropped chains and lousy geometry, they were challenging to ride.
At least something valid here in Ch. Because here the eBikes are taking over. On our local hill we are close to 50% ratio of eBikes compared to Mtbs.
And funny thing is that most of those eBikers are downhilling the very same fire roads we all use to climb up.
In the UK, the answer would be no.
Ebikes are pedal assist so regardless of what was assisting, it would only be a motorcycle if if self propelled. A mechanically propelled vehicle is any thing that can propel its self. This would be everything from an electric skateboard, hover board, childs battery powered jeep right through to an earth mover. This includes cars. To be used on a road, they need to comply with construction and use regulations around lights, registration etc and there are licencing requirements for the operator.
In the UK, electric scooters are illegal to use on the highway (some experiment areas exempt). Pedal assist Ebikes are not.
Hope that snapshot helped
@brodoyouevenbike Your joke would work better if it was "you're not a criminal until you've been caught". The activity is still illegal.
@imbiker - I just switched from 27.5 to 29 and I'm loving it tbh, never thought I would.
because motor≠bicycle