My wife and I have been borrowing two Raleigh Motus bikes to test commuting in anticipation of selling one car later this year and biking to work full time (except for really bad weather days when we'll use our other car! ).

 

The Raleigh bikes have been fun and effortless. We bought a Yepp child seat which mounts on the rear pannier and works well for our 3.5 year old daughter, although come September we'll be walking both kids to school before cycling into work.

 

A local shop near us stock the Motus but I was looking at alternatives and the Kalkhoffs looked interesting. We might be able to get to 50 Cycles in Richmond in Easter to take a closer look, but in the interim I'm wondering how they compare. Something I like on the Agattu 7G is the internal hub, which strikes me as being less maintenance. I also like the idea of switching gear when stopped. The tech specs don't say if the rear pannier accepts a 25Kg load. And the Impulse 2.0 drive sounds like a good alternative to the Bosch Active on the Motus.

 

To give us maximum flexibility we're also considering getting two step-through or trapezoid bikes.

I looked seriously at the Motus and the KTM Macina when I was out shopping for my first bike. I ended up with the Kalkhoff Pro Connect with the Alfine 8G hub. I love the hub. I thought I wouldn't as it reminded me of all those old three geared jobbies my sister used to have to ride when we were kids. Now, I wouldn't be without one.

 

I love my bike. It's powerful and feels indestructible. I've done approx 2500miles on mine and it still feels like new to me.

 

The one concern that people will have you chewing your nails over here is that there are questions on whether the Impulse 2.0 motor is a reliable as you'd be led to expect. Personally, mine is flawless but there is a thread on here that would put off most people from considering the motor. From owning one that is working perfectly then I have no reservations about recommending it to others. The two year warranty on their bikes is peace of mind for me. Highly recommended.

Maybe you should look at the AGATTU B8 HS

 

The Impulse motor does not have good press around here several forum members have had problems. The Nexus Inter 8 is also better than the 7 speed version because it uses more and better bearings easing shifting.

Twenty five kilos is some weight for a rear pannier.

 

A child seat that clamps to the seatpost would be a better option.

 

One of those also gives the child a smoother ride.

Something I like on the Agattu 7G is the internal hub, which strikes me as being less maintenance. I also like the idea of switching gear when stopped. The tech specs don't say if the rear pannier accepts a 25Kg load.

 

The carrier on these Agattu bikes is definitely not good enough for 25 kilos and alone is not safe for child carrying. That's because there's only one small bolt taking the weight each side and they are only prevented from rotation around the wheel by being anchored to the mudguard. There's no front stay to the frame or seatpost:

 

Ah yes, I see the difference between how that fixed and the Raleigh.

 

Our budget is £2000 max per bike, but preferably more around £1600-£1700.

Twenty five kilos is some weight for a rear pannier.

 

A child seat that clamps to the seatpost would be a better option.

 

One of those also gives the child a smoother ride.

 

We've already bought the Yepp (www.yepp.nl). They're great quality and work well on the Motus. I didn't think many seat post style ones would work on an ebike because of the cabling and other differences in geometry.

 

It seems like bikes with internal hubs are ones where the panniers aren't braced on the frame. The Raleigh Motus H Low Step is an example, whereby the non-hub Low Step does.

Edited March 1, 201610 yr by Jason Scott

Hi Jason,

 

I'm not far from 50 cycles if you want to compare a KTM Macina Bold and Raleigh Motus and are planning to visit the area,

Thanks Tom, we will as we aren't far away when in London.

Hi Jason, not wishing to complicate matters for you but we have a store in Camden: https://www.electricbikesales.co.uk/londonstore

and believe the Gazelle Orange C7+HM could be of serious interest to you. Happy to hold our Mothers Day offer for you if you let me know you'd like to consider it and visit our store.

Thanks. Like others have pointed out, if the rear rack isn't braced against the frame then there's nothing stopping it from rotating. Fine for standard pannier bags but not for fitting a Yepp bike site.

if the rear rack isn't braced against the frame then there's nothing stopping it from rotating. .

 

it's actually not as bad as that. There is a piece of steel supporting the rear mudguard to which the rack is bolted. You just can't see it from the picture because it's under the mudguard.

Thanks Trex, we'll take a closer look if we get to the shop at some point.

The Evo Integrale I looked at had the rack secured to a fairly heavy gauge metal mudguard.

 

Downward weight is taken care of by the carrier legs, but 25kg+ is a lot for any rack, although I believe the Tubus on my Rose will take it.

 

The OP already has a child seat, but a better solution would be one fitted to the seat tube - designed to do the job, and the child gets a better ride because there's some spring in the support arms.

 

That type of seat will fit on nearly any bike, some have special clamps to accommodate the cable for a front mech, if it's routed down the seatpost, although many front mech cables go under the bottom bracket.

The rack on my scott is rated to carry 25 kg.

http://www.cyclingmadeeasy.co.uk/electric-bikes/scott/scott-e-sub-tour-20-men/

Those Scott bikes look nice.

Have you had a proper search on the impulse 2 motor and read some of the problems reported?

 

Both of the bikes you're looking at have that motor and having been in the same position as you a couple of months ago I ended up going for a Bosch powered ebike instead.

 

If you do choose to go for a Kalkhoff make sure you do your homework on prices in Europe. Find your best price then go to 50 cycles and they'll pretty much match it.

 

I don't know why Kalkhoffs are so much more expensive here than in Europe but it's not the same with other manufacturers.

 

Whatever bike you go for make sure negotiate price!!

 

(I very nearly bought one of the s class kalkhoffs from 50 cycles for over 1000£ less than their advertised price!!)

Worth checking the listing here:

http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/forums/manufacturer-dealer-promotions-and-offers.13/

There is an ex display ktm on offer. Max (rider and luggage) load on ktm is lower than on scott but if you don't exceed it you could get yourself a bargain.