Last updated on March 5th, 2023 at 10:14 am
Design
This is a solidly designed bike, built using a lightweight aircraft-grade aluminium (6061) alloy and that frame comes with a five-year warranty. Even with the high-torque motor fitted, the Scrambler C still only weighs 22Kg.
The front suspension is easily switchable, giving you flexibility and a more comfortable ride when the off-track terrain gets rough, while letting you switch to fixed-forks in town, so the transfer of power from the motor to the tyres is more assured. You can manually adjust the suspension using the rotary control on top of the suspension forks.
Alongside the suspension, another feature that catches the eye is the addition of Shimano disk brakes. According to Mark2, these offer superior stopping power in the rain. The front disk is slightly larger, giving you more 'emergency stopping power', when needed.
There is also a Shimano 10-speed derailleur and gear set, which is useful if you decide to pedal the bike manually. Testing on a rough track meant that we tended to keep the ebike in mid-gear, which makes it really easy to pull away. It is possible to start peddling uphill in the toughest gear, but it's a lot more comfortable on an easier setting. You can also use the walk function to start things off, which engages the motor at walking speed.
Ride Comfort
The pull from the 90Nm motor is something to experience. We swapped back and forth with another eBike that had a smaller 50Nm motor and the difference was huge. Shooting up hills is effortless.
The Mark2 Scrambler C includes a special motor to provide that 90Nm of torque – almost double what you might expect. The Promovec motor was designed in Denmark and is powered with a removable powerpack, which has its own management system, and both come with a 3-year UK warranty. The higher torque is achieved with the same 250 watts of power as a regular motor, so this eBike remains street-legal.
As mentioned, this eBike has switchable front fork suspension as standard, which we left on most of the time. The set-up and ride position are natural and the solid feel gives you confidence when heading off track. No matter how hard you accelerate with the motor, you still feel balanced and in control. That's due in large part to the central position of the motor – as opposed to it being fitted to the hub of the rear wheel.
The Scambler C is fitted with RST Blaze RL front fork suspension to make downhill riding more comfortable – and that comes with a preload adjuster allowing for 10cm travel – as opposed to the 7cm of travel that a regular street cycle suspension might offer.
There's no kickstand fitted as standard, as this can cause issues with foliage when riding in forests, but it is something you can have added if you're more likely to be riding in town.
It could be an age thing but, having tried both options, we definitely preferred the ‘suspension gel saddle' upgrade (shown below). It is very comfortable and there was no noticeable fatigue, even after peddling for an hour at a time. The saddle has a quick release mechanism, so changing seats is easy.
Given the variable weather you can experience in the UK, it might be an idea to opt for full-sized mud guards.
It would be interesting to see how this eBike might handle if the UK laws around power-assisted cycles changed to allow for faster speeds.
Storage
While it could be possible to integrate a basket (or similar) at the front, it's hard to imagine needing more than a standard rack at the back for carrying loads. You can add saddle bags etc later if that's something you need.
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