What is the Lightest Ebike?
E-bikes are getting popular day by day amongst different age groups and professional classes. The trend of sales of e-bikes is rising consistently and constantly. The surprising thing about this trend is that many users are now showing their interest in purchasing a lightweight e-bike over a heavier one. We shall discover what is the lightest bike in the market at the moment, as well as different aspects related to this question.
Why Do the Users Prefer a Lightweight Ebike?
There are numerous reasons why riders prefer lightweight e-bikes more than heavier ones. We are enlisting some of those reasons in the lines below:
1. Maneuverability
Lightweight bikes are easier to maneuver during the ride. This is true in particular for sharp turns, narrow streets, and other localized situations during the ride in urban areas.
2. Ergonomics
A lightweight e-bike is easy to lift. This is true for situations where the rider has to carry his e-bike over the head, be it for a short distance (say for a few steps only). So lightweight bikes in such a situation would bother the rider much lesser. Similarly, cycling an e-bike with a pedal assist feature for a long time makes the rider less bothered as compared to a heavier one.
3. Easier to Drive
Lightweight e-bikes are easier to drive because not only are they easier to handle due to being lightweight (as compared to heavier ones) but easier to accelerate in a comparatively lesser span of time.
The Negative Side of Choosing a Lightweight Ebike
There is a negative side regarding choosing a lightweight e-bike, knowing which might be beneficial for our readers, in case they want to buy a lightweight e-bike. Some of them are listed below.
1. Limitations Regarding Power and Range
The negative side of choosing a lightweight e-bike is that these e-bikes use lightweight batteries with limited charging capacities. Therefore a lightweight battery implies that the e-bike would travel a lesser distance within a single charge, as compared to a heavier battery.
2. Durability
Lightweight e-bikes have lesser durability and useful life as they make use of lighter material that has an unlimited useful life for Mechanical Fatigue (i.e. cyclic loading).
3. Economics
Lightweight bikes often make use of special materials in order to reduce the weight of the bike. For example, Carbon fiber-reinforced composite materials or aluminum etc. The use of such materials may increase the cost of an e-bike as compared to its peers.
What are the Lightest E-bikes in the Market?
Now we shall take a look at the lightest e-bikes available in the market. We are enlisting some of them in detail in the lines below.
1. HPS Domestique Ebike
HPS stands for High-Performance Systems. It is a company that manufactures e-bikes. Its CEO is Harry Gibbings.
Features and Specifications
The company has developed a system which they call Watt Assist.
The amazing thing about the system is that it is extremely lightweight. This system contains the motor, a few minimal controls and other electronics and the battery. At present, the system does not include any display.
1. The Battery
In order to keep the overall weight of the e-bike low, the manufacturer has introduced some interesting design features. One of these innovative steps is to design the battery of the bike in the form of a drinking bottle. Furthermore, the battery has been designed for low power as a high-power battery would be larger in size and add to the total weight of the bike unnecessarily. The battery’s power rating is 200W which spikes to 230W for a very short time interval as well.
There is however a limitation with this lightweight battery that it can provide power only for up to 03 hours, after which almost 193W of its charging is consumed.
As per the manufacturer’s claim, the total weight of this e-bike is around 8.5 kg. Based on that claim, this e-bike is the lightest e-bike in the world.
2. Lemond Prolog
Lemond Prolog is on the list of the lightest e-bikes in the world. As per the manufacturer’s claim, the total weight of this e-bike is just 26 lbs without fenders and 27 lbs with fenders (viz. 11.8 kgs approx.)
This is quite lower than the standard e-bikes which weigh as much as 45-55 lbs. They have managed to achieve this low weight with the help of a carbon-fiber tube that is incorporated into the frame. Besides, they have used a lightweight drive system. The battery is more powerful than the HPS Domestique e-bike and has a power rating of 250 kWh. This bike can produce double the amount of torque as compared to the HPS Domestique.
Conclusion
While lightweight e-bikes may appear slim and sleek as well as attractive, they might not be suitable for all purposes. We have listed the benefits as well as the limitations of lightweight e-bikes above.
Besides, we have enlisted two commercial options available in the market for those looking to buy lightweight e-bikes. The selection of these brands as the contender for lightweight e-bikes has been done on the basis of the claims made by their manufacturers. However, we recommend that our readers explore their nearby market for satisfaction as well as verification in this regard.
Frequently Asked questions (FAQs)
Q: On what basis do the companies make a claim for their bike (with different configurations) being the lightest in weight?
A: It is a norm and standard practice in the world of cycling that a company may opt to quote its least weight for the product i.e. the weight that corresponds to the lightest configuration of the bike.
Q: What is torque and what is its importance?
A: Torque is equivalent to Force in rotational motion. Therefore the higher the value of torque, the better a bike is for the drive where more force is required such as during an uphill drive.
