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Technium Privilege Pedelec Electric Town Bike
We have just received a batch of 30 Technium Pedalecs (Electric bikes). I can certainly say these raised a few eyebrows here at Wiggle HQ.
A mad scramble to get a test ride occurred and after a good blat around the car park, my first impressions of the Technium Privilege Pedelec are good. Once the battery is switched on and ready to go you have three levels of power low, medium and high. As soon as you start pedaling you feel an instant and gentle surge of assisted pedaling power. I can only best describe this as a feeling similar to somebody gently pushing you from behind.
This extra assistance provided by the modern 26V Li-ion type battery makes light work of the pedaling duties making this bike a joy to ride. With it’s upright continental riding position you feel very relaxed and comfortable.
This electrically assisted bike is designed to provide battery-powered assistance to make pedalling easier when carrying loads, cycling uphill, against the dreaded wind or just cruising along for journeys of up to about 50 miles.
With regards to the power settings, on the low setting you do approximately 70% of the work and the battery provides the other 30%; on the medium setting the effort is shared 50:50; whilst on the high setting the battery provides approx 60% of the power. The intelligent management system senses how much power you are providing and adjusts the motor to suit. In normal use you would expect to keep it on medium to make normal pedalling a breeze, switching to high power for an extra boost as you go uphill.
The motor automatically switches off when you stop pedalling to coast down a hill. Once you pedal faster than about 10mph the power is gradually reduced until at about 15mph the motor stops helping altogether. This helps prolong the battery life, prevents you from accidentally going faster than you really should be and keeps it legal so that you don’t need a motorbike licence.
The battery is secured to the bike by a lock and is removable to be charged on a mains charger, where it takes approximately 3 hours to fully charge. The battery is a modern 26V Li-ion type battery with a rated capacity of 10Ah when new. In practice this gives a range of approximately 50 miles in average conditions when new, but if you live in a particularly hilly area and are constantly using High power then obviously you will get less. The battery has an expected service life of 2-3 years, approx 500 charges, before it’s useful capacity drops below 50%. Replacement batteries are available.
The bike itself has an 8-speed Shimano Nexus hub-gear on the rear wheel for trouble-free shifting and easy maintenance. The motor is cleverly hidden at the cranks, helping to drive the front chainring. It is a fully equipped city bike with dynamo-powered front and rear lights, rack, stand and mudguards, but weighing just 21kg including the battery.
These are incredibly similar to the Kalkhoff Agattu, The Technium and Kalkhoff are made at the same factory in Germany. The Technium I feel looks better and is £50 cheaper!
Top Features of the Technium Privilege Pedelec Electric Town Bike
• Alloy city bike with Shimano Nexus 8-speed transmission
• Suntour front suspension fork
• 28″ wheels
• Deore V-brakes
• Alloy rack and kickstand
• Shimano dynamo hub, front and rear lights
• SKS Mudguards and pump
• Panasonic 26V 10Ah (260Wh) battery
• Panasonic 250W brushless pedal motor
• 3-stage power assist with all necessary controls on the handlebars
• Maximum power-assisted speed 15mph
• Upright city design accommodates rider heights of approx 5’2″ – 6’2″
So grab yourself a superb city / hybrid bike available and in stock at Wiggle.
