The conversion

In principle, the conversion kit fits pretty much any bike. The limiting factor is the battery; if there is no room for it in the frame triangle, it will be difficult. To check this quickly, you can download a template from the website (www.maxonbikedrive.com), print it out, cut it out and hold it up to the frame. Or you can quickly dash to the nearest Maxon dealer. The spoking of the wheels/motor can be done by Maxon, whose experience will certainly save you time and money. The rest is hard work: The battery is attached to the screws of the cup holder using an adapter. Mount the Powergrip switch on the handlebars, attach the cable neatly and you're done.

The technology

The motor developed in Switzerland delivers a maximum torque of 50 Newton meters (1400 watts maximum power), 25 Newton meters continuous torque. According to the manufacturer, the efficiency is 85%. This means that 85% of the current coming from the battery is converted at the motor and only 15% is lost. We were unable to verify this, but our 500 Wh battery (prototype) lasted an astonishingly long time, so the following applies: "When in doubt, give the test rider the benefit of the doubt".
How much power the motor delivers is controlled via the power grip switch. This has three stages and a "turbo boost". Stage one supports with ten Newton meters, stage two with 20, stage three with 30 and in turbo mode you are literally catapulted up the mountain with up to 50 Newton meters. While the twist grip engages in levels one to three, it has to be turned down permanently to activate the turbo - similar to a throttle grip on a motorcycle. This mode is intended for short bursts of peak power on steep climbs. After around one minute, it is automatically switched off to prevent the engine from heating up too much. If the engine heats up too much, it reduces the power but does not switch off.

The "pedestrian mode" works in the same way as the "turbo mode", turn the switch down and you walk up the hill, the speed is rather too fast for normal walking. When asked about this, the manufacturer gave us the following information: "The app, which is about to be launched on the market, will include this function and customers will be able to set the desired speed themselves."In addition to the respective assistance level, the switch also displays the battery charge status, while a small status LED at the bottom warns of motor overheating.

The test ride

When other companies advertise the "Uphill Flow", we are the first to put it to the test on the Bikedrive and ride up a route that we usually only ride downhill. We skip the first stage - cruiser mode - and fight our way up the hill in stage two. The engine is already putting a lot of extra power on the tires here. We also make rapid progress on the 12 to 15 percent steep ramps, with our pulse beating in the higher endurance range.
In the third stage, you get an almost outrageous amount of power. Normal gravel roads fly up without much effort, and steeper sections are also mastered with a smile instead of a pant. Although the engine temperature LED occasionally changes color to orange/red, we were unable to detect any overheating or emergency shutdown. However, we did not explicitly set out to do so.

For short, very steep climbs, there is also the turbo. Turn the twist grip all the way back and off you go. Here you have to push the handlebars down so that the front wheel doesn't come up immediately when rolling over roots, steps or stones, this power boost is really impressive and requires the rider's full concentration.
There are a few more hairpin bends in the top section, which the finely tuned Maxon drive masters with ease. The power is always applied in a well-controlled manner, and there is hardly any noticeable push-back.
An obstacle is too steep, even with Turbo Boost, and we push the bike up. Pedestrian mode is very helpful here, even if it is almost too fast.

The 600 meters of altitude that we have ridden up are then destroyed on the way down. We are particularly curious to see how the motor in the rear wheel affects the balance of the bike. After a few Elevation losses with small jumps, crests and deep water channels, it quickly becomes clear: it's all half as wild. the weight on the rear wheel is clearly noticeable, but the battery in the frame triangle keeps the bike in balance.

To test the performance of the battery, we rode up and down the difficult and steep route again the next day - without charging the battery. In the individual sections, we noticed a reduction in performance compared to the previous day, but the Maxon-Bikedrive didn't let us down, mastering the challenging 1200 meters in altitude and 48 kilometers without any dropouts.

Conclusion

The Maxon-Bikedrive really surprised us with its (turbo boost) power. The motor kicks in very powerfully and remains very easy to control in technical passages. Another great feature of this design is that you can easily shift up and down through the gears at full power. Compared to other motors, however, the drive is a little too loud. We were divided on the Powergrip shifter: some found it too smooth and therefore too undefined when shifting, while others liked precisely this smoothness.
So if you want to add a little extra power to your beloved bike and occasionally want to ride without any additional assistance, we can recommend the Maxon Bikedrive without reservation.

www.maxonbikedrive.com