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Making complex technology user-friendly is very much in vogue. In the case of bicycles, this means that low-maintenance belt drives, hub gears and even motor-gear units such as the MGU from Pinion have become real selling points. The less maintenance and servicing required, the better. But this technology is often really expensive. With the Owuru motor, Decathlon is now daring to take the opposite approach and is also showing a motor-gearbox unit in affordable e-bikes under 3000 euros.
All information about the Owuru engine at a glance
- Availability: B'twin LD 920 and Rockrider E-ACTV 900 LF
- Design: Mid-motor with integrated manual gearbox
- Max. Torque: 65 - 120 Nm
- High torque in fast gears
- Max. Power: 600 watts (250 W nominal continuous power)
- Max. Support: 375 per cent
- Support levels: Four (Eco - Turbo)
- Battery sizes: Around 700 Wh
- Connectivity: Bluetooth via Decathlon Ride app
- Gear ratio range: 265 or 310 per cent
- Weight: 4.6 kilogrammes
- Power transmission: Chain
Automatic transmission and engine: 2 in 1
The Owuru motor from motor supplier E2-Drives is the centrepiece of a new generation of Decathlon e-bikes. Starting with the B'twin LD 920 from 2023, the French outdoor supplier is presenting a whole range of low-maintenance and user-friendly e-bikes that will be expanded in the future.
What makes the Owuru motor so special is that it combines the electric motor and gearbox in a single housing. Thanks to the encapsulated gearbox, similar to a hub gear, this technology promises particularly low maintenance and a long service life. This is already familiar from other manufacturers such as Pinion with the MGU, Valeo or more recently Intradrive.
The motor from Decathlon supplier E2 Drives utilises two electric motors inside and a continuously variable automatic gearbox. This means there are no clear gear jumps as with derailleur gears or a spur-toothed gearbox such as the Pinion MGU. This is an invaluable advantage for the automatic transmission, but more on that later.
Technical data and weight of the Owuru drive
The entire motor weighs 4.6 kilograms and is therefore slightly heavier than a classic combination of electric motor and derailleur gears. However, the electric motor and hub gears together often weigh more than the Owuru. With a peak output of up to 600 watts, the Owuru is roughly on a par with classic 85 Nm drives, with a maximum torque of 65 to 120 Newton metres, depending on the gear ratio.
Decathlon has improved the bandwidth compared to the first version in the B'twin LD 920 E (>> available here) has been reworked again. The city bike offers 265 per cent, the newer E-SUV Rockrider E-ACTV 900 (>> available here) is 310 per cent. The difference between the smallest and the largest gear is therefore on a par with many hub gears à la Nexus or Enviolo. In other words: For normal tours, there are enough small and large gears, at least in the new version. Only on very long and steep climbs could you wish for a little more.
Without shift lever, display and simple remote
The Owuro hardly needs any additional controls, as there is no gear lever at all. Only the assistance can be preselected in four stages between Eco and Turbo. As with many other electric motors, the electric motor provides a maximum of around four times the rider's power on top. A central display shows classic speedometer functions. An additional button on the remote for selecting the support levels can be used to adjust the desired cadence between 40 and 90 pedal revolutions per minute.
How the Owuru engine drives in practice
What sounds like complex technology in theory is very easy to use in practice. Get on, switch on the e-bike and set off. If you are pedalling too slowly, you can select a slightly faster cadence on the fly in the display and vice versa. The rest is regulated by the motor without you being able to feel it and all by itself.
When you're at the traffic lights, the Owuro has preselected a light gear ratio and then continuously shifts up to a heavier ratio when accelerating. As there are no clear gear jumps, this works much more smoothly than, for example, with Pinions MGU or automatic derailleur gears from TRP, Shimano or Sram.
With the Owuru, you always pedal at roughly the same speed. Regardless of whether you're just rolling along at a steady pace, braking or accelerating. Only Enviolo's Automatiq system with separate gear hub can do this. The continuously variable transmission enables seamless transitions and also manages without clear acoustic feedback such as the clacking of classic gearsticks.
Only at medium speeds can a slight vibration be felt in the drive when accelerating or braking. Manufacturer E2-Drives explains this with resonances from the chain, which are still being worked on. The motor itself also remains relatively quiet, so the e-system as a whole remains pleasantly in the background.
Criticism of the Owuru drive
Of course, the system is not perfect. The motor block at the bottom of the bike looks bulky and the gear range cannot compete with a derailleur system, let alone Rohloff or Pinion. Some people would certainly prefer a belt instead of the drive chain.
However, Decathlon intends to make further improvements here in the future. And above 25 km/h or with the assistance switched off, the bike and gearbox pedal somewhat unusually. This is because one of the two electric motors - the one for the gearbox - still has to run. The system therefore consumes some power even when the assistance is switched off.
However, with almost 700 watt hours, the Decathlon should not run out of juice so quickly in touring mode. Around 70 kilometres on one battery charge was no problem in our tests and the gear range is completely sufficient for normal operation. In the uphill gears, the torque is slightly lower than in the fast gears with an equivalent of 65 Newton metres.
Nevertheless, the motor always has enough power for everything except heavy mountain biking. All in all, that's a lot of praise for Decathlon's motor-gearbox unit, which outshines many much more expensive competitor systems in terms of user-friendliness, at least in everyday use.
Conclusion on the Owuru geared motor from Decathlon
The Owuru motor developed by E2-Drives for the new Decathlon bikes performs amazingly. It combines the advantages of a geared motor and continuously variable automatic transmission in an extremely attractively priced overall package. The system has hardly any disadvantages worth mentioning and its function puts many much more expensive solutions in the shade. Chapeau! - Adrian Kaether, Test Manager MYBIKE
Adrian Kaether
Editor
