VanMoof S5 e-bike evaluation: good however twice the value

“Generally it’s important to kill your darlings,” is a phrase utilized by designers to justify the elimination of parts they discover personally thrilling however fail so as to add worth.

The final time I heard it was in April, 2022, after I rode pre-production variations of VanMoof’s new full-size S5 and smaller A5 electrical bikes. The phrase was uttered by co-founder and CEO Taco Carlier to justify the elimination of VanMoof’s iconic matrix display for a brand new “Halo Ring” interface. 

One 12 months later and each e-bikes are actually — lastly — being delivered to prospects, effectively after their authentic goal of July 2022. The worth has additionally been raised to $3,998 / €3,498 from an early preorder worth of $2,998 / €2,498, which was already way more costly than what you’d pay for VanMoof’s earlier era e-bikes — the VanMoof S3 / X3 — when launched for a somewhat outstanding worth of $1,998 / €1,998 again in 2020.

Look, all the pieces is dearer in 2023, e-bikes included. However by way of worth for cash, the $4,000 VanMoof S5 must be twice pretty much as good because the $2,000 S3, proper? In any other case the newest flagship e-bike from this former investment darling is perhaps useless on arrival. 

If solely it was that straightforward.

Though the S5 and A5 pedal-assisted e-bikes nonetheless seem like VanMoofs with that prolonged prime tube capped by entrance and taillights, all the pieces from the body all the way down to the chips and sensors have been reengineered. The corporate says that solely a “handful of components” have been carried over from the earlier fashions. 

Listed here are among the most notable modifications:

• New LED Halo Ring visible interfaces flanking each grips.
• An built-in SP Connect cellphone mount (you present the case) with USB-C charging port.
• New virtually fully silent Gen 5 front-hub motor with torque sensor and three-speed computerized e-shifter (the S3 / X3 had four-speed e-shifters).
• New multi-function buttons have been added beneath the bell (subsequent to left grip) and enhance (subsequent to proper grip) buttons.
• The enhance button now affords extra oomph with torque rising to 68Nm from 59Nm.
• The S5 body which has been criticized for being too tall has been lowered by 5cm (2 inches) to higher accommodate riders as tall as 165cm (5 ft, 5 inches), whereas the A5 caters to riders as tall as 155cm (5 ft, 1 inch) and permits for a neater step-through than the X3 it supersedes.

These be a part of a really lengthy record of normal options discovered on VanMoof e-bikes like a effectively designed and helpful app, built-in Kick Lock on the rear wheel, baked in Apple Discover My assist, hydraulic disc brakes, muscular metropolis tires, vibrant built-in lights, mudguards, and a sturdy kickstand. And since it’s VanMoof, it’s also possible to subscribe to a few years of theft safety ($398 / €348) with assured restoration or substitute inside two weeks, and three years of upkeep ($348 / €298) in choose cities.

I picked up my darkish grey (additionally out there in mild grey) VanMoof S5 loaner in late March however I bumped into a couple of points that delayed this evaluation. These included intermittent connectivity failures between the app and bike, a Kick Lock that didn’t at all times disengage, and an alarm that might briefly set off for no obvious purpose. These points have been all corrected by an over-the-air firmware (v1.20) replace launched in mid-April earlier than I may even report them again to VanMoof assist.

I’ve blended feelings about this. In March the S5 and A5 began delivery in amount — albeit, eight months late — so that you’d suppose they might have had time to kind out any points in VanMoof’s new testing labs. That’s annoying given VanMoof’s history of initial quality issues and assurances supplied by the corporate that they wouldn’t be repeated. Then once more, premium e-bikes from corporations like VanMoof are more and more advanced machines, and seeing the corporate remedy points so rapidly is commendable.

One difficulty that hasn’t been fastened is idle battery drain, however VanMoof tells me {that a} firmware replace is coming to unravel it in “two weeks” time. In my case, the problem triggered the idle S5’s battery to empty from 86 % to 65 % over a interval of 10 days. I usually lose about two % cost every day whether or not I journey it or not.

Oh, and since I’ve put in a number of firmware updates within the final month (I’m at present at v1.2.4), I want to say this: the S5 performs a jaunty little tune the complete time the firmware is being put in. It was cute at first, my daughter even supplied a bit of dance to go along with it. Nevertheless it takes 5 to 10 minutes, and after the primary time you hear it, it’s simply annoying and there’s no strategy to flip it off. 

Concerning new options, the Halo Rings subsequent to every grip are probably the most seen change from earlier VanMoofs. No less than till you hit daylight and people weak LEDs washout virtually fully. The Halo Rings are supposed to present pace, cost remaining, present pedal-assist energy degree, and extra via a sequence of sunshine bars and animations. General they’re effective, if gimmicky, however I don’t have a lot of a necessity for standing info when bicycling. I additionally didn’t miss the outdated top-tube matrix show.

Using a 23kg / 50.7lbs VanMoof S5 appears like an S3 albeit with fewer shifts and a lift button that gives extra torque when making an attempt to cross somebody or get an early soar off the road. The fifth era 250W motor of VanMoof design is completely quiet, even at its prime pace of 25km/h in Europe (which will increase to 20mph within the US). And the brand new three-speed e-shifter does a greater job of precisely discovering the appropriate gear than the S3’s four-speed e-shifter did. I nonetheless felt a couple of clinks and spinning pedals, particularly when mashing down arduous on the cranks when in a rush. However general the S5’s predictive shifting is far improved, particularly when rolling alongside at an off-the-cuff tempo. Nonetheless, it’s not as clean as the automated shifters from Enviolo, for instance, so there’s nonetheless work to be finished.

It’s a disgrace VanMoof doesn’t supply a easy belt-drive possibility for its e-bikes. That coupled with the S5’s torquey enhance button would obviate the necessity for any gears when using in all however probably the most hilly environments. That’s why I’m an enormous fan of the premium belt-driven pedal-assist e-bikes offered by Ampler and Cowboy. They value lower than the S5 however are additionally extra enjoyable to journey due to their lighter entrance ends (each manufacturers use rear-hub motors).

As to vary, VanMoof says I ought to be capable of get 60km on full energy mode. Nevertheless, I used to be solely in a position to eke out 48.6km (30.2 miles) from the S5’s 487Wh battery when using in full energy mode and often urgent the enhance button, in temperatures that ranged from freezing to 15C (59F). That’s about the identical vary I received when testing the VanMoof S3 — 47 km (29.2 miles) — and its greater 504Wh battery. The problem that at present causes the battery to lose power in a single day actually didn’t assist my vary. The battery could be charged from zero to 100% in a really gradual 6 hours and half-hour through the included charger.

I had been questioning how VanMoof would use the brand new multifunction buttons positioned slightly below the bell and enhance buttons. The small button on the appropriate (beneath the enhance) let’s you modify your motor energy on the fly, whereas the one on the left (beneath the bell) makes your lights flash, as some form of warning to folks round you. Each of those options tick containers on advertising and marketing sheets however aren’t very helpful in on a regular basis utilization.

And since this can be a VanMoof, the battery is built-in and might solely be eliminated throughout upkeep. The corporate does have a brand new “click-on” model (no velcro!) of its extended battery coming for the S5 and A5 which you could cost inside the house.

I’ve had a nagging concern about VanMoof e-bikes for the previous few years that I even talked about in the S3 review. Are they getting too advanced for their very own good? 

Electrical bikes — particularly commuter e-bikes just like the S5 — are subjected to every day put on and tear in every kind of climate situations. Even primary bikes are tough to take care of when used on a regular basis and VanMoof’s e-bikes are costly rolling computer systems. 

Actually, I may do with out the flamboyant computerized chain-driven three-speed shifter, superfluous multifunction buttons, programmable digital bell, Halo Ring interface, Apple monitoring, and perky sounds for startup, shutdown, and firmware updates. Give me one gear and a maintenance-free belt drive alongside that torquey enhance button on a pedal-assisted e-bike that may get me forwards and backwards to my workplace every single day, it doesn’t matter what, in model and with out fail. However that’s not the S5.

Don’t get me mistaken, the VanMoof S5 is an excellent electrical bike with an extended function record than some other e-bike I can title. It additionally has among the best networks of service hubs out there in cities world wide. That’s necessary as a result of most S5 / A5 components are solely out there from VanMoof so ensure you have a service middle close by should you’re enthusiastic about shopping for.

VanMoof for all its early covid successes bumped into monetary points on the finish of 2022 when it was compelled to ask traders for an emergency injection of capital simply to pay the payments. However the whole e-bike business was struggling post-covid as gross sales plummeted and provide chains wobbled. Rivals like Cowboy and industry giant Stella also had to raise cash to deal with overstock after e-bike inventories swelled. 

Nearly as good because the S5 is, the function set is verging on gimmickry, for my part, maybe in an try to justify its new larger $3,998 / €3,498 price ticket. They’re cute, entertaining, and certain, a tad helpful at first. However many simply aren’t wanted for normal commuters. The S5 has too many darlings, and never sufficient killing.

For context on that worth, the VanMoof S5 is at present $500 dearer than the comparable Cowboy 4 series and $1,000 greater than the less complicated Ampler Axel. Considered in these phrases, VanMoof’s pricing appears about proper.

Is the S5 price it? I’ll go away that so that you can resolve on this unsure and inflationary world. Whereas it’s positively an enchancment over the S3, it’s not twice the bike.

All images by Thomas Ricker / The Verge