This Urtopia E-bike Is So Light You’ll Forget It’s Electric (Plus, It’s Cheap)
· Vice
“Man, you like it?” What? Who, me? I was at a stoplight in a bike lane in East Williamsburg, Brooklyn, straddling an Urtopia Carbon Classic, and as tends to happen in New York wherever there’s a bike lane, bikes bunch up at the starting line before red lights. “Yeah, very stiff. It’s the carbon fiber frame.” I answered back, still adjusting to the attention this matte black bike was demanding. Then, with genuine surprise, I asked him, “You’ve heard of Urtopia?”
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“Yeah, I’m considering getting one,” said the cyclist next to me. “Just pricey, man. I’m saving up.” Fair point. It is a $1,999 ride, although that’s on the lower end of mid-priced for an electric bike. And then the light turned green, and we sped away, no time for goodbyes. I’m neck deep in the ebike scene, given that it’s a chunk of my daily job, but I was surprised at how many people on the street had heard of Urtopia. Specialized, Super73, Aventon. Those are household names among ebike riders and the ebike curious.
After giving the Urtopia Carbon Classic a workout on New York’s winter-beaten roads, I’m wondering why even more people don’t know its name.
TL;DR – My Quick Verdict
The Urtopia Carbon Classic, for $1,999, is a wild value for a carbon fiber ebike that tips the scales at a relatively light (for an ebike) 38 pounds. Some genuinely clever engineering went into its design, from its inner-rotor hub motor to its excellent torque sensor that provides for a surprisingly natural pedal feel. Made of brand-name components, such as Toray carbon fiber and a Shimano gearseat, the build quality is spot on. You’ll notice riding on a carbon fiber frame feels different from most bikes, which are almost all aluminum alloy; stiffer and more responsive, yet not prone to transmitting shocks through the frame as harshly.
(opens in a new window) UrtopiaCarbon Classic (opens in a new window)
Available at Urtopia Buy Now (opens in a new window)how i tested
There’s no getting around New York City’s gravel-strewn streets of cracked pavement and puddles, and even if I could get around them I wouldn’t. I’d ride straight through because that’s how I test ebikes. While I don’t try to abuse a bike beyond what’s reasonable, I don’t baby them either.
I need to know how well the fenders block road spray from painting a wet stripe of dirty water up my back, so I swerve into puddles rather than around them. I have to see if the tires have enough grip not to get squirrely around turns when there are pellets of busted safety glass from an old car accident in the intersection. I’ve got to know if I can load up the rear rack with a cargo of boxes and pannier bags. So I put these ebikes to work carting me around the city the way you would actually use them.
f1 tech at chevy prices
I’m beginning to find it unfair for a Chinese brand to have to preemptively justify or defend its build quality in a way that other countries’ brands do not, but I know the question is always one of the first ones lobbed.
It’s asked of me often when I’m discussing any high-end piece of tech gear, ebike or not. I was grilled on ENGWE’s quality several times this past weekend just for pulling up to various stores and stoplights on an obviously Chinese ebike. I think I’ve only dodged the question with the Urtopia because few people seem to be aware that it’s a brand from China.
So I’ll just hit it early and get it out of the way. The Urtopia’s build quality was quite good. From assembly to its road test, there was an obvious high quality of fit and finish and attention to detail that went into this bike’s engineering. There are only two colors available: a glossy white and the matte black finish that I tested.
The carbon fiber used for the frame comes courtesy of Japanese company Toray, a major name in carbon fiber. It supplies carbon fiber to Formula 1 and Tour de France teams. There are many grades of Toray carbon fiber, so I would hedge that you’re not getting a bike made out of exactly the same stuff. But you are getting a frame from a reputable brand name in the industry, which should soothe your concerns if you’re wondering how an ebike at this price could be made of carbon fiber.
When you crank down on the pedals, some of your effort is lost in the twisting of the frame, which springs back like elastic. It sounds merely theoretical, but you can feel it. Carbon fiber’s extreme stiffness translates to less of that elastic sensation, which makes the bike feel more like a solid object and less like a piece of cooked pasta. It’s not a night and day difference; modern bike manufacturers have gotten good at making stiff frames from all common materials. But it was something I noticed that gave the bike a tighter, more responsive feel compared to the usual aluminum ebikes I ride.
light as a sprite (for an ebike)
Those used to an analog bike might scoff at the Carbon Classic’s Pro’s 38-pound weight as not particularly light, but for an ebike it’s considered quite lightweight. It was easy enough for me to hoist up with one arm and carry level with my shoulder as I headed up a basement staircase, leaving my other arm free to open the door.
I’m obsessed with lightweight ebikes. All else equal, they’re not just easier to carry up and down stairs, nor to maneuver when locking up your bike in an awkward spot. They handle more nimbly, stop more quickly, and accelerate more briskly. For an ebike with fenders, built into headlight and taillight, and built-in smart features, like an alarm system and GPS tracking, most of the lightest examples tend to land in the 37- to 44-pound range. For whatever bevy of reasons, I hardly ever see one below 37 pounds.
I’d have liked to see the Carbon Classic come with a rear cargo rack, which is a glaring omission on a bike that’s positioned to be a city bike useful for commutes to the office, errands at the grocery store, and escapes to the café, but you can add one on in the guise of an official rack for $99 that’ll hold up to 33 pounds of cargo, whether strapped on top or via hanging pannier bags; that’s a very average amount of weight for a cargo rack. Urtopia doesn’t say how much weight it’ll add to your lightweight ebike, but from my experience I’d say about two pounds, which is reasonable enough. I just wish it came with the bike.
The front brake felt weaker than I’d have liked. Lightweight ebikes often get away with using less robust braking systems than heavier ebikes because there’s less mass to halt, but Urtopia could’ve used a stronger brake. It wasn’t bad. It just wasn’t particularly strong. The tires’ tread patterns didn’t look like it, but they handled New York City’s gravel-strewn streets very well. They planted the bike solidly over broken pavement, giving the bike a stable feel.
Urtopia knocked it out of the park when it came to the display that shows the odometer, speedometer, and settings menus. The screen was large, in color, and beautifully balanced between intuitiveness and showing plenty of information. One of the best screens and user interfaces (UIs) on the market.
small motor, small weight
The Carbon Classic doesn’t need a particularly powerful motor because of the bike’s fairly low mass. The 350W motor powers it to a maximum speed of 25 MPH, as long as you’re pedaling; there’s no hand throttle. It’s a weird top speed. Because the electric motor keeps providing power past 20 MPH, it’s classified as a class 3 ebike, which allows for an electrically assisted top speed of 28 MPH.
Nearly every other class 3 ebike runs right up to that 28 MPH. Who knows why Urtopia made this call. The Carbon Classic’s Shimano eight-speed mechanical gearset is perfectly capable of carrying you past 25 MPH if you don’t mind the electric motor cutting out above this and relying purely upon your leg muscle power. There’s a hand throttle for acceleration without pedaling (up to 20 MPH), but I didn’t like to use it because I had to hold it down for three seconds before power would flow to the wheel. Strange choice, because I’ve never ridden another ebike with such a throttle.
The Samsung 352.8Wh removable battery pops out from the frame cleanly when unlocked with one of the two included keys, and it’s wickedly small and light. Lots of ebikes batteries, heavier and larger, make me feel like I’m helping give birth to a cow when the bulky battery drops out of the frame and I have to catch it. Not so with the Urtopia. On a full charge it can give you a theoretical maximum range of 80 miles, although that’s with the electrical assistance level set to its lowest setting. I never got that far because I liked cranking up the power mode to its highest setting. What can I say? I like speed.
Most ebikes use a hub motor, meaning it’s mounted to one wheel, with an outer rotor design. You can instantly spot an ebike with one of these conventional outer-rotor hub motor because it looks like a big drum in the center of the (usually rear) wheel in the middle of the spokes. The Urtopia Carbon Classic uses an inner rotor motor, which is both smaller and has less rotating inertia. That means, at least in theory, quicker throttle response.
Pedal feel was excellent. Part of that came down to Urtopia’s effective torque sensor. Cadence sensors measure merely how fast you pedal, which can lead to a disconnected feeling between pedaling and an ebike’s acceleration. The sensation can feel like the pedals aren’t connected to the bike at all, just free spinning in the air. Torque sensors tend to feel more natural, like pedaling a regular analog bike.
Most ebikes, even with good torque sensors, make it a struggle to begin moving from a standstill for a second or two, like I’m pedaling a heavy analog bike. The Carbon Classic would zip away under electrical power the instant I nudged the pedals forward when the light turned green.
the urtopia carbon Classic at a glance
The 38-pound Urtopia Carbon Classic runs $1,999. Despite its relatively low price (for an ebike), its frame is constructed of rather exotic carbon fiber, a material usually seen only on ebikes that cost at least twice as much. The brakes could be better, and I wish it came with a rear cargo rack, given its positioning as an urban commuter bike, but those quibbles don’t take away the bike’s excellent pedaling feel and fantastic display screen.
Why the carbon fiber frame is a big deal
Down in this price bracket at $2,500 nearly everything, lightweight or not, is built around an aluminum alloy frame. From the Aventon Soltera 3 ADV to the Specialized Turbo Vado SL 2 5.0 EQ, it’s all aluminum. Ebikes are already heavier than comparable analog bikes, so hardly any of them use steel. But carbon fiber? That’s a frame material used almost exclusively by very high-end bikes that are downright expensive, like the $7,700 Trek Domane+ Carbon.
RELATED: Aventon Soltera 3 ADV Review: This E-Bike Turned Me From Skeptic to Fan
Carbon fiber, as we’ve noted, is not just very stiff. It’s also incredibly strong, gram for gram, in comparison to aluminum. The specific recipes and construction of both the carbon fiber and aluminum alloys used in bike frames varies quite a lot, but when a bike manufacturer wants to drastically cut weight as much as possible, carbon fiber becomes the hands-down choice. That Urtopia could justify this expense on a bike that costs this little is unusual. And impressive.
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Urtopia’s Carbon Classic is an intriguing take on the affordable, lightweight ebike, which is already the most interesting category of ebike. It’s difficult to make a sub-40-pound ebike that doesn’t cost as much as a motorcycle. Urtopia’s decision to construct the Carbon Classic’s frame out of carbon fiber, a material I often find only on ebikes costing at least twice as much, is a unique and intriguing idea. Well made and light enough to carry in one hand, the Carbon Classic is a capable city commuter and joyrider.
(opens in a new window) UrtopiaCarbon Classic (opens in a new window)
Available at Urtopia Buy Now (opens in a new window)The post This Urtopia E-bike Is So Light You’ll Forget It’s Electric (Plus, It’s Cheap) appeared first on VICE.