Rambo Bikes 1000XPC Review

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

Rambo Bikes has gone full speed ahead for 2019 and with that full speed comes a super powerful extra fat-tire electric bike. What I am talking about today is the 1000 XPC. It features front suspension, powerful battery, mid-drive motor from Bafang with a 1000watt nominally rated setup. Yep, that’s 1000 nominal, so it is capable of getting up to a massive 1500watts in power. Before we get into that, let’s go over some of the features here. As stated before, it is fat-tire with a front suspension fork and that is one of the areas of comfort. The front fork is a RST Renegade fat-tire specific fork with both preload adjust and lockout. This has extra wide stanchions to accommodate the extra wide fat tires. Those tires are another point of comfort. These are Maxxis 26” x 4.8” and have some great nobby tread that actually can help as little dampeners adding a bit of absorption, so overall, very comfortable for riding. As mentioned before, this is an extra wide setup, so almost a full inch wider than a normal 4” wide fat tire setup. This allows for tons of grip, and matches the high-power motor capabilities as well. Assisting even further in comfort is this slopped top tube for easy approachability as well as this Selle Royal saddle. It’s so great that Rambo Bikes is putting so much comfort on a ride that is also very capable and fast… really just a lot of reassurance from something so powerful. Rambo also supports this bike with a lot of accessories, the bike shop in the video had Rambo bags and a Rambo tailgate cover… they even had a cart that can carry a hunting trophy! Unfortunately, there are no integrated lights here in either the front or the rear, but they do have some rack provision on the front to add to the possibilities. Other features include locking flat grips, a twist grip shifting lever, and a adjustable length kickstand (although it is mounted near the cranks, so you could get pedal lock when reversing).

Driving the 1000 XPC is the Bafang HD geared mid-drive motor. This motor offers 1,000 watts of nominal power with up to 1,500 watts of peak power! But even more impressive is it’s 160 newton meters of torque. Yes… 160 Nm. It’s the torquiest motor I’ve personally tested and seems to fit the bike quite well. Compared to most ebikes which offer 50 to 90 Nm, the 160 here can feel exciting but might also put increased strain on the drivetrain and frame. Powering up moderate hills was a breeze (literally) and for all but the most extreme hills, I was able to rely solely on the throttle without pedaling at all. When tackling real hill climbs – ones where I actually had to get out of the saddle – I found the torque made the difference between me having to get off and walk up. One of the coolest things about this particular motor is that it’s Bafang’s newest version, which replaces some of the lower power designs that used nylon gears inside, this one uses all steel components. This upgrade in internal parts should help the motor handle the extreme torque being produced and improve its overall longevity. I think it’s great that there is a chain ring guide to keep the chain from bouncing around and coming off at high speed as well as a narrow wide tooth pattern that locks onto the chain more securely. The torque sensor did a nice job of smoothly administering power equal to my output. So when I pushed lightly on the pedals, I got a little bit of assist; when I hammered down on them the motor unleashed all its power. The motor cutoff was also pretty quick, and cut power almost immediately after I stopped applying pressure on the pedals. I appreciate this aspect, especially with the high torque of the motor, as I’ve found that on some cadence sensor designs found on cheaper ebikes, the motor cutoff lags quite a bit, making navigating trails at slow speeds difficult and even a bit unstable and unpredictable. This particular setup has no top speed limiter. So they throttle may get you up to 28mph, but pedaling can take you as far as you and the motor can go. For this reason, it is beyond a class 3, so make sure that local laws permit your riding. Once nice thing is that the motor will power down as you shift gears to keep everything smooth and inline, as well as avoid any potential mishaps of over taxing the system. Mechanically, you get a nice SRAM NX 11-42 tooth cassette, and a 36 tooth chain ring up front. A big win here are the Tektro Dorado hydraulic disc brakes. You get a 203mm rotor in the front and a 180mm rotor in the rear. These are super responsive and one of my favorite parts about the bike. They also have built in motor inhibitors to cut power to that robust motor when you press on the brakes, making stopping just as powerful as starting.

Powering the bike is a 48v 14.5ah lithium ion battery pack. I would consider this a high capacity battery pack and really necessary for that super powerful motor. The battery has an easy to use handle and I love that it is even color matched to get the same cool blue camo color we have on the frame! Anyway, the battery is mounted via lock and key, however, you don’t need the key to start the bike, it is just for battery security. The battery has a power button and I love the LED display read out on it so you can check to see round about how much juice is left. 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.

Another area worth mentioning here is the control center. I’m kind of a control center geek and I always love to see comprehensive stats while riding. The Bafang control center on the 1000 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. 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. On the plus side though, it does have the ability to enable a passcode, adding another layer of security to the bike which is a bigger deal if you have kids around or are just concerned about safety. 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.

When it is all said and done, I found the 1000 XPC to be a ton of fun. The suspension and extra wide fat tires really give it a rugged quality that can handle anything, and the powerful motor is… really something that can leave you speechless! The pricing is fair at $4,699 considering you get an extremely powerful mid-drive, wonderful name brand hydraulic brakes, extra wide capable tires, and suspension. However, there are some tradeoffs here so I did want to call those out. The bike was really comfortable, but I did feel the icing on the cake would be to add a suspension seat post. It doesn’t come with one, but that can be fixed by stopping by your bike shop and having one installed. There are no included lights, be they integrated or independent. And finally, the grip twist shift is good that is cleans up the cockpit, but it lacks the accuracy of traditional trigger shifters. Overall, the bike is really a blast and well put together, I would like to thank Rambo Bikes for inviting me up to come 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 Other Brands ebike forums and share your own photos, videos, and review updates to help others! Have fun out there, and ride safe :)

Pros:

• Incredibly powerful and torquey Bafang HD motor with 1000 watt nominal output and 160 newton meters of torque makes climbing even the steepest hills possible, it also drives the bike to speeds of almost 40mph
• SRAM system and derailleur are specifically designed for e-bikes and should be able to handle the power and torque coming out of the motor, they also shift incredibly smoothly and have built in shift sensors to cut power to the motor when shifting, preventing the components from enduring unnecessary strain
• Maxxis 26” x 4.8” extra wide fat tires, these have some great nobby tread, almost a full inch wider than a normal 4” wide fat tire setup, this allows for tons of grip, and matches the high-power motor capabilities as well
• A big win here are the Tektro Dorado hydraulic disc brakes, you get a 203mm rotor in the front and a 180mm rotor in the rear, these are super responsive and one of my favorite parts about the bike
• Motor inhibitors cut power to the motor whenever the brakes are the levers are depressed, ensuring the rider isn’t fighting agains the motor when trying to stop, another great safety feature
• Control center is easily visible even in direct sunlight and offers a plethora of information including current speed, max speed, average speed, battery level, range, pedal assist mode, wattage output and more
• RST Renegade front suspension does a great job of soaking up hard hits and making for an overall pretty smooth ride, features preload adjust and lockout
• I love that the electric controls are reachable from your left hand without having to take your hand off the handlebars, it really keeps your eyes on the road
• Grippy platform pedals are extra wide and grippy and help keep my feet in place even when hitting extra bumpy terrain
• Battery has a capacity of 14.5ah, great size for such a powerful application, battery is locking and removable and even has a LED charge level readout
• Gearing is good for high speed thanks to the 11-42 teeth cassette in the rear and 36 teeth chainring up front
• Tons of available accessories like bags, tail gate lift, trophy cart, it even has provisions for a strong mounted front rack
• The extra wide fat tires really excellent in soft and loamy terrain, even does great in gravel, even more capable than regular fat tires!

Cons:

• No included rack, fenders, lights, rear suspension, many accessories are available, but you must purchase after the $4,699 price
• Many will be drawn to the idea that the electric system has no speed governor other than the throttle capping out at 28mph, but this can limit the legal trails you can take it on, check with your local laws before proceeding
• I did like the front suspension, but I did wish that it had a suspension seat post, it would really round off the comfort well
• The grip twist shifting was not my favorite, trigger shifters would offer a more tactile and accurate feel, however, this type of shifter does work a lot better with work gloves
• Control center can’t be removed, leaving it vulnerable to theft and scratching when the bike is left at a public bike rack
• Only one frame size may limit the range of rider heights the bike can accommodate
• I love that it includes a kickstand, but it is mounted near the crank arm, so it can produce pedal lock when reversing in a garage for example

Resources:

• Official Site: https://rambobikes.com/