EVELO Aries Mid-Drive Review

To run the forums, host the website, and travel, I charge a universal service fee for my reviews. This review was sponsored by EVELO. My goal is to be transparent and unbiased, this video and written review are not meant to be an endorsement of EVELO products.

EVELO makes a number of bikes and has been around for a while. I would have to say one of the coolest rides they have is this full suspension all purpose bike, the Aries. Now the Aries we are looking at today is the Aries Mid Drive. It also comes in a hub-drive, and that is a separate bike we reviewed as well. The two are very similar with the Mid Drive being scaled up in motor, brakes, and gearing, so if you read my review on the hub-drive, you will see a lot of parallel information. As I said though, there are some differences, so I will try to call those out as we go along. First off, let’s talk about this frame a little bit… It almost looks a bit like a mountain bike without much of a chain-stay. The choice of frame design here keeps it more stable, lightweight, and makes it easy to get to the back wheel. Adding to that all-purpose feel are these high-volume tires. These are 26” x 3”, so with that greater width, you get more stability and comfort. There is not knobby tread, instead, they went with a more efficient and comfortable tread you might see on a cruiser. The tires have puncture protection, and they do a great job getting the bike up to speed. Speaking of comfort, the bike has a lot to go around, like the ergonomic grips, swept back handlebars, and special in-house custom stem design called the “Stargazer” that has a lighter, more robust, and comfortable rise to it compared to most. This bike seems to float on air thanks to the suspension.. the front is an SR SunTour XCM fork with 100mm of travel, lockout, and preload adjust. The rear is also an upgraded rear air suspension with some adjustability, but I have been specifically told to use a dedicated shock pump, not a bike pump to change the air pressure, as it can damage it. I love the battery integrated lights here, they have them both in the front and the rear. Safety has always been a priority for myself and other cyclists, so it’s nice to see that more and more companies are including these on ebikes. I should also mention that the back light is an active brake light when you press the brake levers, and both lights are hooked into an ambient sensor to have them turn on automatically when it is dark…very cool! The bike also includes a kickstand in the rear. It is nice to have it back there since having it near the crank arm can produce ‘pedal lock’; an annoying occurrence that locks the pedals when you reverse a bike with the kickstand down. Luckily, this bike eliminates that by having it positioned further back.

Driving the bike is a unique mid-drive motor from Bafang. This is a 750watt nominally rated mid-drive that has a peak rating of 1000watts and 120nm of torque! Very fast, very capable, and a lot of fun to drive. The bike is electrically powered by either the throttle mounted on the left, or by cadence based pedal assist. Either work great although cadence based systems can have a very pronounced feel of being ‘on’ or ‘off’. Complimenting the system very well is this internally geared Enviolo shifting hub. By using the internally geared hub, EVELO eliminates gear-grinding potential and allows you to shift at standstill. This is great for riders who might not be as coordinated or familiar with traditional derailleurs and trigger shifters. All in all, the two pair very well together. I should also mention in the rear the bike has what looks like a derailleur, but it is actual a chain tensioner. Stopping the EVELO Aries Mid Drive is a set of Tektro Auriga hydraulic disc brake rotors. The rotors are 160mm and I love that there is a motor inhibitor built in to cut power to the motor when braking. Hydraulic disc brakes are easy to maintain as well as adjust, they are easier to actuate than mechanical and don’t require as much adjustment over time, because there is no cable stretch happening.

Powering this bike is a large 48v 11.6ah lithium ion battery. This makes for a total of about 500 watt hours, so the bike is both powerful and able to hit decent ranges. It is located on the downtube and can be charged both on and off the bike. Removal is done via lock and key, and overall is pretty easy as you take it out from the side. Charging the battery is done via the included 2amp charger. Not the fastest, but I am told charging it at lower amps can reduce wear on the charging cycles over time. To really care for this and other lithium-ion packs, I have heard that storing in a cool dry location vs. extreme heat or cold will extend the life and try to keep it about 50% full when not using for long periods so you won’t stress the cells. Try not to let it run down to zero, because that’s really hard on the cell chemistry.

Operating the bike is simple enough. I’m kind of a control center geek and I always love to see comprehensive stats while riding. The control center on the Aries does just that. It displays pretty much everything, including current speed, top speed, average speed, range, battery level, pedal assist mode, wattage output and more. More importantly, I could read it in direct sunlight! I love that it is color and uses an automotive motif. A big win here is that the battery power is listed in percentages. Some ebikes use just 4 or 5 ticks on the display to portray battery life. This can leave you guessing at the last tick. Do you have 25% battery life left? Do you have 2% left? You simply will have to guess. Not with this display… since it is written in percentages, you know exactly how much battery you have at all times. The only downside to this display was that it’s not removable, so I might worry about it getting dinged up when the bike is being parked or transported and just taking more sun and rain damage over time. It does however angle, and I love that the controls can be pressed easily by your left hand since they are positioned well as to keep your eyes on the road. Some versions of this setup allow you to enter a deep menu mode, but I am not sure if EVELO included this. By holding the UP and DOWN button, it will allow you to get in there and change things like the top speed or motor output.

The Aries Mid Drive is an extremely smooth and powerful ride. I love all the attention to detail and choices they made when putting it together. This is the upgraded version compared to the Aries Hub Drive, but there are still some tradeoffs here. The front headlight is a great feature, but it is mounted on the fork, so you could get some bounce in visibility if you are going over bumps. All in all, a good bike and I want to thank EVELO for letting me check it out!

As always, I welcome questions and feedback in the comment section below. Whether you own a previous version of the bike, have taken a test ride, or are brand new to the space, my goal is to provide an objective and honest resource. You can also join the EVELO ebike forums and share your own photos, videos, and review updates to help others! Have fun out there, and ride safe :)

Pros:

• A full suspension powerful yet comfortable all purpose ebike with wider tires, mid-drive motor, and a lot of attention to detail in engineering to get the most comfort and performance out of the system
• It almost looks a bit like a mountain bike without much of a chain-stay, the choice of frame design here keeps it more stable, lightweight, and makes it easy to get to the back wheel
• Features high-volume 26” x 3” tires with more stability and comfort, very efficient and comfortable tread, they include puncture protection, and they do a great job getting the bike up to speed
• Full suspension in front and rear via an SR SunTour XCM spring fork with 100mm of travel, lockout, and preload adjust, the rear is an upgraded rear air suspension from the Aries Hub Drive with some adjustability
• Besides the suspension and tires, there is even more comfort here like ergonomic grips, swept back handlebars, and special stem design called the “Stargazer” that has a lighter, more robust, and comfortable rise to it compared to most
• I love the battery integrated lights here, they have them both in the front and the rear, I should also mention that the back light is an active brake light when you press the brake levers, and both have an ambient light sensor to turn on automatically in the dark, super cool!
• Features a powerful Bafang 750 watt – 1000 watt peak mid-drive motor, 120nm of torque, and is a very strong and reliable setup, both cadence based pedal assist as well as a thumb throttle
• A large 48v 11.6ah lithium ion battery, this makes for a total of about 500 watt hours, so the bike is both powerful and able to hit decent ranges
• Easy to read as well as control color display with multiple readouts and settings, and I love that the battery level is shown in percentages! I wish all bikes did this because it takes out the guess work of how much battery you have left versus infographics with a few bars
• Super smooth internally geared Enviolo shifting hub, the Hub Drive version of the bike floated on air with its comfort and smoothness, the Mid Drive here takes that to the next level and floats in space! Super smooth and comfortable!

Cons:

• The front headlight is a great feature, but it is mounted on the fork, so you could get some bounce in visibility if you are going over bumps, something to be aware of
• Charging the battery is done via the included 2amp charger, not the fastest, but I am told charging it at lower amps can reduce wear on the charging cycles over time, I wish larger 48v batteries like this all came with more than 2amps though, like a 2.5amp, 3amp, or even a 4amp
• This is more cautionary than a con, but please be sure to use a dedicated shock pump when adjusting the rear air suspension, it uses a normal Schrader valve, and many may confuse that with it being okay to use a normal bicycle tire pump, I have been told this will not work and may damage your rear suspension, so something to be aware of

Resources:

• Official Site: https://www.evelo.com/