Gruber Assist auxiliary drive turns nearly any bicycle into an ebike
Bicycles can be a great way to reduce fuel consumption. They are efficient, relatively inexpensive, easy to store and care for and are often a fun way to score a little exercise while also getting you where you need to go. Of course, it's not always practical to pedal, which is one big reason that electric bikes are gaining in popularity so quickly.
What if you've already got a good bike but would like to add a bit of electric assistance? Enter the Gruber Assist, a new retrofit ebike system that fits into any standard 31.6mm seatpost. A small electric motor slides into the seat tube and engages with a geared bottom bracket to add 200 Watts of assistance when needed.
The entire Gruber Assist system weighs just 900 grams including a nickel metal hydride battery pack with enough juice to provide up to 1.5 hours of assisted pedaling. An even lighter lithium ion pack is also available. The price may be a little steep at £1649 (about $2,473 in U.S. funds), but the technology is undeniably cool.
[Source: Gruber Assist via Gizmag]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Organic 6:24PM (5/12/2009)
What a great way to cheat in a MTB race.
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required 7:35PM (5/12/2009)
Nice. The only problem with ebikes is that you can't leave them unattended. I'd love one for trips to the coast, but...
Maybe once they come way down in price and have some sort of security feature other than your run of the mill bike lock.
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Nick 8:12PM (5/12/2009)
"about $2,473 in U.S. fund"
That's much, much too expensive. How can they justify the price when you can buy complete electric bikes for around the same?
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Will 8:58PM (5/13/2009)
I'm not positive but many of the bikes that are good for commuting are steel bikes with seatposts smaller than 31.6.
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Andy 4:27AM (5/13/2009)
European pricing never ceases to amaze me.
It's like everyone wants to be paid for just getting out of bed and having an idea. Where's the reality?
Take think electric cars as another example.
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Ernie 3:41PM (5/13/2009)
Well, when *everything* costs twice what it does here, it's not like that's unusual either.
Willie 9:40AM (5/13/2009)
This technology is undeniably overpriced garbage. Neither the power output nor the battery capacity is sufficient. It is plenty stealthy, but 200 watts is well below US legal limits for e-bikes. And this unit costs as much as some fairly high-end e-bikes that have been covered in ABG, namely the A2B e-bike / scooter thingy, which if not stealthy nor lightweight is at least well built: http://www.autobloggreen.com/2008/08/13/ultra-motor-2-bring-a2b-2-usa/
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Just Me 8:02PM (6/10/2009)
I think the biggest issue for this device would be efficiency. For this size motor I would think it is high speed (like RC motors) and geared right down, with the final gear being 90 degree bevel - gears hurt.
I think if efficiency curves were presented we would see a better picture and most likely see this is a novel idea but hardly of any value.
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