The most current Audi to wear E-Tron branding is an electric mountain bicycle, and it’s not refined about it truly is branding. It can be practically termed the Audi E-Tron Electric powered Mountain Bike. Automakers partnering with bicycle providers are nothing at all new. In fact, a single of the most famed is Audi mum or dad business Volkswagen’s team-up with Trek, which threw in a bike when you bought a Trek Version Jetta. In this scenario, even so, the Audi ain’t giving absent the E-Tron Electric Mountain Bike because it retails for an eye-watering $10,126.
Audi suggests the bike was motivated by its RS Q E-Tron Dakar Rally car, which itself appears to be extra like the shoe you would dress in though using a mountain bike than a motor vehicle. It wears the similar development sign orange-and-black colors as the Dakar racer, making the bicycle seem quite utilitarian. Audi experienced large hopes for beating returning champion Toyota at this year’s Dakar Rally with a revamped RS Q. Sadly, two of the true Dakar devices crashed out in the course of the 2023 race (read through our in-depth, behind-the-scenes tale listed here), one so really hard that driver Stephane Peterhansel blacked out, even though a 3rd piloted by Mattias Ekstrom concluded 14th total.
Hopefully the Audi E-Tron Mountain Bike has far better luck having its riders to their places. It need to, because it truly is truly created by Italian e-bicycle professional Fantic, using its XMF 1.7 as a foundation. It is really driven by a 250-watt Brose S-Mag 36 electric motor great for 66 pound-toes of torque, while the bulging reduce body rail has a Fantic-built lithium-ion, 36-volt, 720Wh battery. No prime pace or assortment had been specified.
Both the Audi and Fantic-branded e-bikes arrive with derailleur, chain, shifters and brakes by Sram, as perfectly as a Selle Italia saddle. When a non-Audi branded Fantic XMF 1.7 would price tag close to $6,700, there are a number of bits that you should not come common on the Fantic e-bike. Audi geared up its version with a fork, springs and shocks by the suspension experts at Öhlins, which supplies 180mm of journey more than the typical Fantic’s 170. You could even now most likely piece with each other your personal duplicate of the Audi for a lot less than its inquiring cost, but if you can fall $10,000 on an e-bike the difference will be negligible.
If the Audi E-Tron e-bicycle is far too pricey for your wallet, you will find usually other automotive-branded tie-ins. Harley Davidson’s e-bikes begin at $3,399 but are not crafted for off-street. Equivalent dirt-deserving e-bikes like Hummer’s charges $3,999, while Jeep’s e-bicycle rings in at $9000.