Bike Review: GREYP G6.2 EXPERT FS
GREYP G6.2 EXPERT FS
By Alex Boyce
If anything, what Greyp has not produced is a standard e-bike. What they have produced is a supercharged electric motor e-bike, the G12, for supercar buyers, but they have special expertise in the electric transport market as their parent company is Rimac, the electric supercar company.
The Concept 1 car from Rimac is the fastest electric production car in the world, and the G6 e-bike has been designed in the same way as the Concept 1 as a platform to demonstrate technology and smart devices. B2B is an important strategy for Greyp. The private group of companies is carrying a total investment currently of €100+ million as they develop new transport products, with Porsche owning a 20-percent stake. They are owned and controlled in majority by Mate Rimac, the Elon Musk of Europe.
Greyp launched the G6 range of bikes. We tested the G6.2, their middle-of-the-range e-bike based around a MPF motor, Greyp custom battery and exceptional electronic package. The G6 is highlighted as the most connected bike on the market today with a permanently integrated 4G/LTE connection.
THE BIKE
The geometry is fairly conservative and not designed to make people panic. The type of rider who will like riding this bike is the easygoing trail rider to someone who might like to have a bit of fun sometimes. The wheelbase and chainstays will maintain stability in all conditions and provide an upright riding position.
THE PARTS
There are a ton of moving and non-moving parts on this bike and a lot of gear wired up for all the connectivity. There are two cameras and a permanent internet connection as well.
A SRAM EX1 e-bike-specific 1×8 drivetrain helps deliver the power. A RockShox Yari fork offers 150mm of travel and a RockShox Monarch RT shock matches that in the rear. The Greyp custom handlebar is a controllably wide 760mm with a 38mm rise.
THE MOTOR
It’s more than just a battery and motor—a lot more. Greyp have created a whole ecosystem of electronic parts that can measure everything and stream live to the world what you are doing with the bike. Greyp worked closely with MPF motors, which produces the only completely sealed units with oil-lubricated bearings on the market today. These motors will not allow water or dust inside. The software is provided by Greyp.
The battery unit is a high-density unit with 700 Wh of capacity available to riders. It is easy to remove and is charged through a Rosenberger plug. Interestingly, it is mounted across the center of the front triangle.
THE TECHNOLOGY
To best understand the on-board electronic systems, the rider will have to dedicate a bit of time to the G6 before riding. Each bike is connected to the internet at all times and is fully connected to your phone. The concept of Greyp is to provide users with a bike that measures every movement the rider makes, including the physical state of the rider through the heart rate.
The software can vary the power mode to allow a rider to maintain a constant heart rate and power output, video important moments front and rear of the ride, and is also a full security system, which locks the bike via the Greyp app and a block chain-based encrypted password. If someone picks up and moves your bike, it will tell you, activate the cameras to record it and also disable the electronic parts of the bike remotely.
Although we did not try it, the G6 can be used as a gaming device, and you can compete against other G6 riders with their Gamification software, which is a bit like Strava, but the technology is embedded in the bike.
Riders can transmit their ride stats live to the central server, which allows them to compete. It is also possible to record the ride or even live-stream the camera view to those who wish to watch it. We didn’t try these features, as we didn’t have enough time; however, during the official press launch a live Gamification stream was transmitted from two riders racing around Zagreb and displayed live on the screens, so we can say it works.
All riders who use Strava or take lots of selfies need a USB port to charge their devices. The Greyp has one within easy reach, which to be honest is the slickest version yet of a USB port on an e-bike we have seen.
WHO IT’S MADE FOR
This press launch was very different from standard-issue bike industry press trips we’ve done. In fact, bike journos were few compared to the number of those from the world of mainstream and social media. We were riding alongside Instagram influencers who wore white jeans with holes in the knees instead of kneepads—admittedly they looked more stylish compared to us, but it highlights who this product is geared for. The new generation are connected, and Greyp has a platform that enables them to connect more whilst riding. The mass market will go this way, we are sure.
Will some hipster influencer more popular than me sell more bikes by their presence due to the power of social media? Is this bike designed for mainly these people? With all the bells and whistles, it just might be.
THE RIDE
During our test ride I chose to ride without a phone; I wanted to rely on the embedded electronics on the bike alone. I found myself riding along, looking at the beautiful view, and not paying attention to anything on the screen and following the trail markers, apart from adjusting the power mode sometimes. My riding partner used a fully loaded-up bike with the phone and app, and tried all the features so we could compare experiences. We still both got lost and had to resort to a paper map to get home.
Let’s be clear, impressive as they are, we felt the electronics are really a bit of a distraction for a purest e-bike riding experience and didn’t help us enjoy our ride any more than we did anyway in the moment. We rode on gravel roads and rough singletrack, plus some dirt tracks in the dry, and we had a fun ride anyway.
“Will some hipster influencer more popular than me sell more bikes by their presence due to the power of social media?”
We covered about 30 kilometers, which I did mostly in Turbo mode. The motor is new to us and proved to be reliable and incredibly smooth—the smoothest—and most silent motor we have used so far. This surprised us, because we didn’t expect that from a small-player motor brand. With the EX1 gears, the motor worked quite well, with five power modes we didn’t have enough time to try them all out, but we felt the push feeling of the motor was similar to a Brose Mag-S.
It was hard to judge battery consumption, but after about 30 kilometers in Turbo mode and 800 meters of climbing, we had 20 percent of the charge in the battery left. We did not climb steep trails to comment on technical uphill performance.
UPHILL
Long climbs up white roads were smooth and enjoyable. The G6 is an easy bike to pedal along, and it gives the rider a comfortable ride position that encourages an easy-going style. It is not meant to race up hills. We didn’t have time to test the heart rate ride function and compare it to the normal ride function—all we can say is it worked and maintained our ride power. On some small rocky trails we found the bike did corner well uphill, due to the short wheelbase and 67-degree head angle.
DOWNHILL
The G6 was fun to ride but couldn’t push it to the same limits that we are used to with more aggressive geometry. It is not designed for an enduro rider; however, we really appreciated the Magic Mary tires, which meant we had really good grip on all the surfaces we rode across. The wide HT1700 DT Swiss rims are bomb-proof, which we demonstrated when we pinched the tire on a descent. We also liked the Formula Cura brakes, as they never faded and had a constant bite point.
The suspension is fairly linear and was easy to set up. It kept the ride smooth and uncomplicated. The RockShox fork worked well on rough trail sections. The ride position on these descents was not about speed. You have to maintain concentration and be clear where you want to put the bike on the trail if you want to go fast. The carbon frame’s geometry allows the bike to respond quickly in corners and is great for tight switchback trails.
We found that we preferred to just ride along with this bike, and the G6 isn’t about doing anything extreme. It is very robust and strong, although we did lose the rear camera on the last descent, probably because we had adjusted the saddle and not done up a seat bolt properly. We can only assume it was our fault, as the other riders all returned to base with all electronics intact.
THE VERDICT
The Greyp G6 is no doubt a bike with more on-board electronics than any other bike on the market by a really incredible long way. It is designed for the future for those who want to share everything that they do and analyze everything post-ride if they want. The security features alone are a very interesting feature that can secure your bike and are unhackable, as they are protected by the block chain.
Ride-wise, the bike is fairly similar to other trail offerings, but we think the price for specification and features, it is very competitive—if not class-leading—with all the electronics and will receive over-the-air updates for free for years ahead. Snapchat glasses might one day turn into a Snapchat bike.
SPECS
GREYP G6.2 EXPERT FS
Price: $8500
Motor: MPF 6.0c, 250W, custom firmware, OTA updatable
Battery: Greyp custom battery pack, 36V, 700 Wh (Li-ion), OTA updatable
Charge time: 5.5 hours
Top speed: 25 kph (with assist)
Range: 15–30 miles
Drive: SRAM EX1 cassette CS XG 899 11-48T
Brakes: Formula Cura (2 pistons, electronic brake sensor)203mm front / 180mm rear
Hubs: Front: Formula DC511/rear: Formula DHT148
Controls: Greyp
Fork: RockShox Yari RC 27.5” Boost Debonair, 150mm travel, 15mm axle
Frame: T700 carbon fiber reinforced composite (sizes S, M & L)
Headset: FSA Gravity SX Pro
Tires: Schwalbe Magic Mary 27.5”
Weight: 52.8 lb.
Color Choice: Black, yellow and grey
Sizes: S, M, L,XL
