I’ve ridden the new Avinox M2S motor and, while I think it's hands down the best ebike motor on the market, it has too much power for me – and I expect that’s true of many other riders, too.
While its natural feel, incredibly smooth power delivery and masses of control make it stand out above anything else in the eMTB segment, the 1,500 watts of peak power is unnecessary.
When am I going to use all that power and push the motor to its limit? Certainly not on a group ride. Unless you're riding with friends who also have Avinox motors, you can expect to only tickle the motor's potential, or do a lot of waiting around at the top of climbs.
Ride it solo and it’ll likely blow your socks off. This motor is like feeding your regular eMTB steroids with some EPO thrown in for good measure. It’s masses of fun and stupidly fast, but maybe a bit too much for nearly everyone.
I may well be in the minority here. Many will love the big power numbers and be desperate for an upgrade to the latest and greatest motor.
But these extraordinarily powerful bikes require real care – they bring new concerns over safety, trail etiquette and trail access.
Read more
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- Avinox's new 1,500W ebike motor is legal, but Bicycle Association calls for restraint, fearing new ebike regulations
- Reader poll | Avinox's 1,500W motor has sent shockwaves through the industry – is it time to cap ebike power?
Race to the limit
Bikes equipped with Avinox’s motor all comply with local rules. Here in the UK and in the EU, that limits bikes to a maximum speed of 25km/h. The issue is the huge power of the motor means you can reach that speed limit faster – and easier.
My first ride aboard the Avinox-powered Mondraker Zendit had me screaming with laughter. In the turbo or boost mode, the bike surges forward with barely any effort required. Within metres of trail, you can bounce off that limiter and scream up almost any climb without dropping speed. It’s ludicrous, but that’s what 800% support feels like.
As much fun as it is, that obscene level of power isn’t necessary.
With so many watts to tap into, exceeding the speed limit of the motor feels easy. You can do it without breaking a sweat.
Of course, toggling down into lower-assistance modes limits power and, in doing so, gives your legs and lungs more of a workout. But that begs the question – why have that much power if you’ll so rarely tap into the motor’s full potential?
Granted, if you’re riding solo and want to get as many laps in as possible, great. This is for you. But if you’re more of a social butterfly and ride with friends who don’t have the Avinox drive unit, don’t expect to leave the lower-assistance modes any time soon, unless you’re keen on ditching them on the climbs.
Good manners cost nothing
The power (and how well its delivered) is seriously impressive, but it's the control and power application that’s the selling point for me, not the watts available. That feels like more of a novelty and raises concerns about trail access.
If you’ve ever found yourself grinding away up a climb on a regular bike, only to be scared half to death by a rider on an eMTB squeaking through the tightest gap on the trail so they can buzz past you, you’ll more than likely see where I’m going with this.
Etiquette on busy trails is really important. We’re all there for the same reason and, outside of racing, there’s no stopwatch running, so there’s time to make space for folk to pass or give ample warning to ride round slower climbers, without upsetting anyone.
And if it’s just the odd ego getting bruised here and there, I think that’s fine.
But this new breed of ebike motor demands caution.
With power figures creeping up, those instances of riders squeezing through tight spaces without warning just to save a few seconds on the climb might not necessarily increase, but the consequences if there’s a collision could get worse.
That’s simply because a motor such as the M2S enables you to sit easily on the 25km/h speed limit, no matter what the gradient is. Clipping another rider or having a full-on collision with them at a higher speed could up the likelihood of someone getting seriously hurt.
And, although it's less of an issue in the UK, for areas with two-way trails, things could get spicy without due care and diligence being taken. Granted, this is already a problem in some places, but we need to be mindful that one serious injury against the backdrop of wider concerns about ebikes could create bigger trail access issues later down the line.
We spoke with Peter Eland, technical and policy director at the Bicycle Association, in our recent article in which we discussed the legality of the new Avinox M2S motor. He said: “As the UK trade body, we recognise concerns that peak power can be very high within the 250W continuous rating, and would support calls for restraint from both manufacturers and riders.”
Torque the torque
I love the torque on offer and what the Avinox enables me to do on the climbs. The smooth power application and control that feels so easy to access enables me to creep slowly up the most savage, technical climbs going. It’s incredible.
But would it be possible to have the torque and for Avinox to reduce the power? Probably.
The Bosch Performance Line CX motor has 100Nm of torque and less power at 750 watts. Avinox’s M2S motor, by comparison, offers 1,300 watts of peak power and 130Nm of torque. That jumps to double the power of the Bosch in ‘Boost’ mode, though, with 150Nm torque, although this is only for a shorter burst (around 30 seconds).
However, at no point when riding the Bosch motor have I ever wanted more power.
It’s the same story for the S-Works motor from Specialized, which delivers 111Nm of torque and 850 watts of power. That works just fine for me.
While neither of these motors feel as refined as the Avinox unit, they’re still ridiculously good.
The Avinox’s selling point is the motor feel, not the power – stick a lower-powered version of the motor with a hefty dollop of torque in a good bike and I’ve no doubt it’ll be a top performer.
What does the future hold?
There’s no doubt eMTB motors are better than ever, and the Avinox M2S is leading the charge.
But its incredibly high-power figures could come with consequences.
We, as riders, need to be mindful of the potential implications, and realise that with great power comes great responsibility – as a web-related superhero’s uncle once said.
At present, that lands with us, the riders, to do the right thing and use the power carefully.
Some of that onus sits with bike brands, too.
I’m sure many brands are very mindful about how they’re approaching the M2S, recommending their own, toned-down settings. But they can only do so much. The Avinox M2S drive unit is perfectly legal, after all, so who can blame the brands for wanting to sell bikes with it bolted on?
It’s hard to say whether we’ll see a power cap (something Bosch has been vocal about) any time soon, but I’m sure something will happen in the coming years as eMTBs become even more prevalent on the trails.
As for me, while I love riding bikes with the Avinox motor, when I do throw a leg over them, I think I’ll aim to ride in a lower-power mode. Go a little slower, get more of a workout and scare myself less on the climbs.
