I have now had the new Pro Connect for 2 weeks and have managed to do 3 longish rides on it (40 - 50 miles each). I have this bikes as a demonstrator for anyone in the southwest that wants to try one out. The X24 is the cheaper of the 2 models currently available and comes with an 11Ah battery.
I have ridden most brands of e-bike (hub and crank drive) but most of my current bikes use the Impulse crank drive so this is usual day to day experience.
The first thing that stands out is that this bike wants to go fast - faster than the motor assist level. I found that most of the time I was riding over 30km/h. The gearing allows for a comfortable cadence at speeds well over 40km/h. When you drop below 25km/h the assist comes in smoothly and silently to boost your input.
There are 5 assist levels, I found the middle level gave the best (smoothest) ride - in the highest level I found the assist a bit jerky as is cut in / out. There is plenty of power in the middle level so I probably wouldn't use higher levels much, if at all. I didn't notice any difficulty is pedalling above the cut-off speed.
The new Xion rear hub motor delivers its power best at speeds above 15km/h, a speed that you are unlikely to drop below on this bike. I was able to climb hills up to 20% fairly comfortably at these speeds. Steeper hills (25% was the steepest I've tried) are manageable but you need to keep the speed up to take full advantage of the motor. It is only under strain at slower speeds that you can hear the motor at all.
This motor has energy recovery and hill descent assist features to control your speed and recharge the battery. These can be configured (and turned off completely). If you don't like riding fast these could be a useful feature (but if you don't want to ride fast you probably wouldn't buy this bike). Apart from the novelty - and the opportunity to answer the question that every non-ebiker asks in the affirmative - I think I wouldn't normally use these features.
With the 11 Ah battery, range-wise I found 50 miles on varied terrain was readily achievable since most of the time you are riding without any assist. The components are good on the X24 but even better on the X27 which also comes with a 15.5Ah battery for an extended range.
The display is clear and informative and the controls are easy to use. It does not appear to be possible to change the settings from km to miles.
The battery does seem to take much longer to charge than the Impulse batteries.
If you like sporty bikes and riding fast (and you don't like hub gears) you may choose this bike over the crank drive Impulse Agattu / Sahel.
I would have put this post in the reviews section but it wouldn't let me.
I have ridden most brands of e-bike (hub and crank drive) but most of my current bikes use the Impulse crank drive so this is usual day to day experience.
The first thing that stands out is that this bike wants to go fast - faster than the motor assist level. I found that most of the time I was riding over 30km/h. The gearing allows for a comfortable cadence at speeds well over 40km/h. When you drop below 25km/h the assist comes in smoothly and silently to boost your input.
There are 5 assist levels, I found the middle level gave the best (smoothest) ride - in the highest level I found the assist a bit jerky as is cut in / out. There is plenty of power in the middle level so I probably wouldn't use higher levels much, if at all. I didn't notice any difficulty is pedalling above the cut-off speed.
The new Xion rear hub motor delivers its power best at speeds above 15km/h, a speed that you are unlikely to drop below on this bike. I was able to climb hills up to 20% fairly comfortably at these speeds. Steeper hills (25% was the steepest I've tried) are manageable but you need to keep the speed up to take full advantage of the motor. It is only under strain at slower speeds that you can hear the motor at all.
This motor has energy recovery and hill descent assist features to control your speed and recharge the battery. These can be configured (and turned off completely). If you don't like riding fast these could be a useful feature (but if you don't want to ride fast you probably wouldn't buy this bike). Apart from the novelty - and the opportunity to answer the question that every non-ebiker asks in the affirmative - I think I wouldn't normally use these features.
With the 11 Ah battery, range-wise I found 50 miles on varied terrain was readily achievable since most of the time you are riding without any assist. The components are good on the X24 but even better on the X27 which also comes with a 15.5Ah battery for an extended range.
The display is clear and informative and the controls are easy to use. It does not appear to be possible to change the settings from km to miles.
The battery does seem to take much longer to charge than the Impulse batteries.
If you like sporty bikes and riding fast (and you don't like hub gears) you may choose this bike over the crank drive Impulse Agattu / Sahel.
I would have put this post in the reviews section but it wouldn't let me.
