Bicycles

Neematic throttles forward with fast, powerful e-bike

Neematic throttles forward with fast, powerful e-bike
The Neematic FR/1 gets dirty
The Neematic FR/1 gets dirty
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The Neematic FR/1 gets dirty
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The Neematic FR/1 gets dirty
Neematic plans a 2017 preorder campaign
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Neematic plans a 2017 preorder campaign
20 kW of motor power and up to 62 mph
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20 kW of motor power and up to 62 mph 
The Neematic FR/1 is powered by a 2.2-kWh li-ion pack
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The Neematic FR/1 is powered by a 2.2-kWh li-ion pack
Neematic debuted the FR/1 at Intermot 2016
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Neematic debuted the FR/1 at Intermot 2016
The Neematic FR/1 offers an estimated 31 to 62 miles of range
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The Neematic FR/1 offers an estimated 31 to 62 miles of range
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Somewhere between electric motorcycle and electric-assist bicycle lurks what we've come to call the electric superbicycle, your Stealth B52, Greyp G12S and Trefecta DRT. The all-new Neematic FR/1 is more powerful than all of those models, further blurring the line between e-bike and motorbike. Its electric mid-drive puts out 20 kW of peak power and drives the two-wheeler to speeds up to 62 mph (100 km/h). Whether you want to consider it a light dirt bike or a juiced up electric mountain bike, it's sure to be a thrilling ride in the dirt.

Development on the FR/1 began in 2014 and Lithuania-based Neematic formed last year. The startup introduced the FR/1 at Intermot last month, where it revealed the first details ahead of a 2017 preorder campaign. With its aluminum tube frame and bulging battery case, the Neematic definitely looks the part of a 50/50 motorcycle/e-bike split.

The FR/1's power comes from an electric mid-drive driving the rear wheel with help from a huge cog. To put the FR/1's 20-kW peak power into perspective, we could note that it's 80 times the EU-capped 250 W pedelec bikes that often grace our pages, but that feels too much like comparing a Nissan Leaf with a Rimac Concept One. A more apples to apples comparison still comes out well in the FR/1's favor: The Trefecta DRT puts out 4 kW and the Stealth B-52 5.2 kW. The Greyp G12S approaches the FR/1's ripped, double-digit muscle but still ends up closer to half at 12 kW. Twenty kilowatts is also well more than what some pedal-less electric dirt bikes, like the Kuberg Freerider and Armotia Due X, make. Suffice to say, 20 kW is an impressive number.

The Neematic FR/1 is powered by a 2.2-kWh li-ion pack
The Neematic FR/1 is powered by a 2.2-kWh li-ion pack

The FR/1 makes full use of that power in dialing speed up to 62 mph (100 km/h). Since we're already comparing, we'll note that the Stealth B-52 stops accelerating around 50 mph (80 km/h) and the G12S and DRT at 43.5 mph (70 km/h). There are a few other e-bikes out there that exceed 60 mph, including the 7 kW, 65-mph (105-km/h) Wolverine BM from Hi-Trek Cycles, so the FR/1 can't quite make the claim of being the world's fastest. When you're going full highway speed over dirt and rock on a bicycle, though, we don't imagine you'll be jonesing for an extra 3 mph (5 km/h).

"We wanted to create a top performance e-bike for rough terrain," explains Neematic co-founder and chief engineer Domas Zinkevicius. "Most importantly, we've been able to integrate the motor in the frame and remove unsprung mass in the rear wheel. It is this weight distribution alongside the bike's immense torque that puts Neematic at the frontier of high performance e-bikes."

Supporting that high-performance powertrain is a 2.2 kWh lithium-ion battery that provides between 31 and 62 miles (50 and 100 km) of range, Fox shocks and Hope Tech 3 V4 disc brakes. Beyond that, Neematic has remained quiet about the other specs, but we suspect that'll change when the bike goes up for preorder next year.

Until then, enjoy the video.

Neematic movie

Source: Neematic

View gallery - 6 images
3 comments
3 comments
paulblez
What's the point of having pedals when you've already got more power than a 250cc dirt bike? To be able to still ride home very slowly when the 'juice' runs out, or simply to pretend that it's really just an electrically assisted bicycle when it's nothing of the sort?! The truth is there are very few places, at least in Europe, where you can legally ride a machine like this, certainly no more than for a conventional motocrosser.
JasonCornish
I wonder about the rigidity and strength of the frame. Weak point seems where the front half attaches to the flange of the hub motor and the back half to the drive shaft of the hub motor. I am sure they have done finite element analysis on this but still, to me it looks like a likely failure point.
Anru
I get tired of saying this - but it concerns me advertising a bike going at high speed on a trail that may have hikers, children, runners, animals - I know they cleared the trail for the ad. Just thinking out loud about what the commercial saying. I run on a trail which is multi-use and have almost been hit an number of times by bikes coming up behind me - no, they haven't been electric ... yet. I wish bikes would stick to dedicated bike trails or really go much slower especially over blind hills, corners or coming up behind people, kids, etc. Just sharing.