If Nick's OK with it, you should totally do an offroad video with this. ...and if Nick's NOT ok with it, make sure Jen films the chase through Wellington when you try to make off with it!
Putting a second hub motor in the front wheel is a good idea that we might see more of it in the future. Powerful electric skateboards (e-scooters) also use the same principle.
That looked so awesome. I thought, "Cheap little naked bike, Just enough power for a local commute and would be fun." HOW MUCH. In the UK, it's £5,360 GULP. Could of been fun. It's a shame, but price is the only thing that stops me jumping to electric. Thanks for sharing.
Yeah I agree that these things are WAY too expensive for what they are, even though they're a blast to ride. It's hard to compete with China on prices, I think.
Yeah that's not cheap lol. Dont know where these prices come from( I guess tax and shipping has a big part to play ) , I built a couple of ebikes now with conversion kits and old bikes for 300 to £500 inc buying the old bike so you dont have to wait to ho electric I'd price is the only issue.
@@jace2wheel762 not a cheap ebike, but Sur-rons and Super Socos are Chinese. Bang for buck is really hard to compete with, but when it comes to ethical purchases, it's hard to support China. Such a dilemma :\
Really cool bike Sam. Be good for commuting. It's minimalist but does the job. I didn't even know these were made in NZ. I can imagine what they'd be like really powered up heaps. Great video thanks! 😊
It looks super utilitarian for sure. I kept thinking a little more power, maybe some bolt on pieces, and you could take it from a work bike to a weekend runabout... just before you showed the other bike they make, which looks way more sick! I could also imagine these being set up as a rideshare fleet in some cities.
Yeah totally! That's a great idea. I wonder if they'll try and set up a ride share like that. These things would be perfect for getting around the city. But yeah, we need some modders to get their hands on them and boost the power up haha.
Well like most underpowered utility convalescences it would find a place in the corner, with spiderwebs. I noticed the front tire is larger than the rear, thus like all wheel drive vehicles they must be the same size or you’ll get that “drink pull” sensation.
Anyone remember the mountain goat? New Zealand made trail bike in the 70s. 2wheel drive, 27 gears (probably wrong here),reverse. I'm going to look it up now.
Cool, been looking forward to this since you mentioned that they existed. I recently bought a super-cheap Chinese ebike kit to convert a bicycle. Really handy for pottering around town - it helps that this area has a really good cycle lane network though. It's FWD, and I do find that applying power in a corner causes it to really tip into the corner, so was wondering if this would do the same, but it seems like they've got it sorted. :)
@@NewZeroland The front (hub) motor kit was cheaper than the rear motor kit, and involved less messing around with the gears etc. It's a 250w motor, which is the most powerful you can legally use in the UK on a bicycle without registration, insurance, etc etc etc. That's the continuous rating though, climbing a steep hill it'll put out about 700w for a while.
Nice New Zealander chap to let you ride his bicycle! Seriously, I must prefer the shopping cart full of chips or in this case Energica racing motorcycles!!!!🚀🚀🚀🚀🔥🔥🔥🔥 C’mon, order one!
My unit looked at the Ubco before settling on the SuperSoco TC Max, the CCC parks team went with the Ubco. The feedback I received from my team leader indicated that the parks team had had some issues with the Ubco bikes, he didn't provide any details, unfortunately.
Yeah for the same price, the Super Soco is a better commuter. We finally rode one and that video will be coming soon. It's a great commuter, but that's all it is. I really wish it was easier to get Zeros here.
@@NewZeroland definitely could do with a couple of Zero dealerships to open here. I find the SuperSoco too small, the ergonomics make it problematic to ride, a number of my colleagues have expressed concerns.
What a great little bike. Would be perfect to do shopping and commuting. I love the removable battery and the rear/front racks. Do you know if they only sell them in NZ or in the EU too?
In wellington with a Super Soco TC MAX. if you want another electric bike to do a video on. :-D. a little bit more power then an ubco for similar cost. but with out the offroad.
That is awesome, great to see some Kiwi ingenuity in the EV market. This reminds me of your astute observation regarding NZ's failure to subsidize electric motorcycles and bikes. I think it's time we all signed a petition as a wake-up call for the Labour and Green parties. What better way to support local talent?
Thanks Jimmy! Apparently the people in charge of such things don't want to support motorcycles because they aren't as safe as cars. It's a bummer, but at least the EV rebate exists now (over $8k off a new electric car!) so I'll try to take advantage of that while I can.
As well as pulling you through mud, I'm guessing that two 1kw motors is cheaper than one 2kw motor. Just a guess. Also, I think it's more like a jeep than an Ariel. Boxy, utilitarian and slow. But it does have a cool exoskeleton.
@@NewZeroland defo mate, that is what i'm tryna build. I have an internally geared hub, mid-drive motor, so i can have range if i want but also go bananas for a day too.....just have to hope it doesn't chew through the gears ;)
Nice man. That looked like fun. If you had to choose between that and an FTN motion which would you want? Ultimate utility or ultimate style? Both locally made but one is like a jeep and one is like a lotus. They both have way less power than you want but imagine riding something that had local vendors and support. That would be a wild change for you. 😁
Dude great points! The FTN accelerates way quicker. Top speeds are the same but the FTN gets there really fast. I like both equally in their own ways though. The UBCO is more comfortable and easier to ride, but I like the build-in storage of the FTN. You're giving me video ideas now haha.. I should get the two of these kiwi-made bikes together for a showdown!
My experience with my FWD 12" tire 250 Watt ebike is that the front wheel breaks loose. Even with that lttle power. Bikes have a very short wheelbase, and most of the wight is already on the rear tire, so the weight transfer under acceleration really takes the weight off the font tires. Even at only 250 Watts, I want through three front tires to one rear on that bike. And changing tires on that bike is a huge pain. No more front motor ebikes for me. I'm all for dual motor, especially for mud and soft surface, but I suspect that even with better weight distribution on the UBCO (my much smaller battery is behind the seat), it probably has a similar issue if driven hard and mostly on pavement. It does seem very underpowered to be called a "motorcycle", but as you said it's fine for urban commuting and just zipping around locally.
What you're saying makes sense, and that's what I expected this bike to be like, but it was totally the opposite. Handling was great and it was the rear wheel that lost traction. I have no idea what's going on there haha, but I loved it. Yeah less "motorcycle" and more "moped" for sure.. these can be ridden on a car license. I'd totally buy one if it wasn't $8k nzd!
UBCO vs Honda CT110, different tests and trials, give the people what they want! (Although the CT110 is discontinued and the CT125 is kicking goals now.)
@@NewZeroland Also, front hub motor is very useful for steep hill climbing. A rear drive can make a bike do a backflip but a front drive won't. That combined with electric not needing oxygen makes it perfect for high altitude mountain climbing.
Not sure actually.. it might be a legal thing. Electric bicycle vs electric motorcycle. Running out of battery is really difficult to do because you'd have to be ignoring the gauges for 50km 😂
Hollywood Electrics used to sell them, but UBCOs aren't on their site anymore. They're about $8k nzd though, so after taxes and shipping they'd probably be $8k usd. Kinda insane :\
The rear wheel traction problem is probably due to the angle of the swing arm being completely wrong. A motor cycle chassis needs to have the geometry of the rear suspension correct for the type of drive. For instance, a chain or belt drive offsets the thrust applied to the rear axle and reduces the squat the suspension experiences under acceleration. The swing arm still needs a small downward angle to contribute more anti-squat. These UBCOs have a very steep swing arm angle and no external drive forces offsetting the high anti-squat forces. I suspect the rear suspension is topping out ,resulting in poor traction. Nothing to do with the front motor at all. If anything, the front wheel should be the one loosing traction under acceleration. Ever since these bikes were released the geometry looks totally wrong and I could never understand how they arrived at that geometry.
If Nick's OK with it, you should totally do an offroad video with this.
...and if Nick's NOT ok with it, make sure Jen films the chase through Wellington when you try to make off with it!
Looks like you had a bit of fun - you should try out the new generation bikes, even more torque! Thanks for sharing
UBCO! Thanks so much for the comment. You guys are building awesome stuff and I can't WAIT to ride more of it :D
I layed carpet in that subdivision
😂 small world
Putting a second hub motor in the front wheel is a good idea that we might see more of it in the future. Powerful electric skateboards (e-scooters) also use the same principle.
Great point! I loved the feel of it, and I hope more motorcycles get on board with this.
Every time I hear you talk about Wellington, I giggle. We have a Wellington in Kansas also. It is about 45 minutes away. :)
No way! 😂 That's hilarious. Are there hipsters there too?
@@NewZeroland it's small town USA. They have a Walmart. 😁
Hey, that's a cool, little bike. Looks super practical for light-load carrying. Great that it's native to NZ too. 👍
Yeah man! I think English Electric Motor Co sells them now too. They seem like the perfect vehicle for green-laning :D
That looked so awesome.
I thought, "Cheap little naked bike, Just enough power for a local commute and would be fun."
HOW MUCH. In the UK, it's £5,360
GULP.
Could of been fun.
It's a shame, but price is the only thing that stops me jumping to electric.
Thanks for sharing.
Yeah I agree that these things are WAY too expensive for what they are, even though they're a blast to ride. It's hard to compete with China on prices, I think.
You can almost buy a Vespa GTS 300 HPE for that money. 24HP/26Nm Just saying. So yes, price is kill electric at the moment.
Yeah that's not cheap lol.
Dont know where these prices come from( I guess tax and shipping has a big part to play ) , I built a couple of ebikes now with conversion kits and old bikes for 300 to £500 inc buying the old bike so you dont have to wait to ho electric I'd price is the only issue.
@@NewZeroland despite how cheap the Chinese stuff is...would ya really want to use a Chinese ebike? Really? Lol
@@jace2wheel762 not a cheap ebike, but Sur-rons and Super Socos are Chinese. Bang for buck is really hard to compete with, but when it comes to ethical purchases, it's hard to support China. Such a dilemma :\
I love this! And in my hometown. Wellington. So cool. 👌
Awesome! Thanks for watching. Wellington is awesome 😁
Really cool bike Sam. Be good for commuting. It's minimalist but does the job. I didn't even know these were made in NZ. I can imagine what they'd be like really powered up heaps. Great video thanks! 😊
Cool! Hub motor: No belt to break!
Great point haha.
Are these geared hub motors? The sound and the way it takes off makes me think they are.
I have no idea how hub motors work haha, but these ones make cool sounds.
It looks super utilitarian for sure. I kept thinking a little more power, maybe some bolt on pieces, and you could take it from a work bike to a weekend runabout... just before you showed the other bike they make, which looks way more sick! I could also imagine these being set up as a rideshare fleet in some cities.
Yeah totally! That's a great idea. I wonder if they'll try and set up a ride share like that. These things would be perfect for getting around the city. But yeah, we need some modders to get their hands on them and boost the power up haha.
Well like most underpowered utility convalescences it would find a place in the corner, with spiderwebs. I noticed the front tire is larger than the rear, thus like all wheel drive vehicles they must be the same size or you’ll get that “drink pull” sensation.
Anyone remember the mountain goat? New Zealand made trail bike in the 70s.
2wheel drive, 27 gears (probably wrong here),reverse.
I'm going to look it up now.
That sounds cool as!
I just got my UBCO 2x2. Looking forward to putting some miles on it.
Niiiiice! Congrats man 😎
Thanks. Plan to use it for food delivery.
Cant wait till you make your way up to Tauranga, bud!
Right?? Hey btw, how is UBCO pronounced? I should have asked you this before making the video hahaha.
@@NewZeroland You pronounced it right! One free ride for you as a celebration haha.
Cool, been looking forward to this since you mentioned that they existed.
I recently bought a super-cheap Chinese ebike kit to convert a bicycle. Really handy for pottering around town - it helps that this area has a really good cycle lane network though. It's FWD, and I do find that applying power in a corner causes it to really tip into the corner, so was wondering if this would do the same, but it seems like they've got it sorted. :)
@@NewZeroland The front (hub) motor kit was cheaper than the rear motor kit, and involved less messing around with the gears etc.
It's a 250w motor, which is the most powerful you can legally use in the UK on a bicycle without registration, insurance, etc etc etc. That's the continuous rating though, climbing a steep hill it'll put out about 700w for a while.
Awesome subscribers helping out 👍👌😍
Yeah man!!
That image of bolting a turbo onto it made me giggle.
Electric zututu is a must lol
Great vid Sam, glad you enjoyed your ride 👍
Cheers bro! Now let's turbo it XD
Nice New Zealander chap to let you ride his bicycle! Seriously, I must prefer the shopping cart full of chips or in this case Energica racing motorcycles!!!!🚀🚀🚀🚀🔥🔥🔥🔥 C’mon, order one!
Right?? I have a mighty need for some Italian electric superbikes 😍😂
My unit looked at the Ubco before settling on the SuperSoco TC Max, the CCC parks team went with the Ubco. The feedback I received from my team leader indicated that the parks team had had some issues with the Ubco bikes, he didn't provide any details, unfortunately.
Yeah for the same price, the Super Soco is a better commuter. We finally rode one and that video will be coming soon. It's a great commuter, but that's all it is. I really wish it was easier to get Zeros here.
@@NewZeroland definitely could do with a couple of Zero dealerships to open here.
I find the SuperSoco too small, the ergonomics make it problematic to ride, a number of my colleagues have expressed concerns.
@@iallso1 haha yeah good point. My wife loved the short seat height. I on the other hand felt like a giant 😂
What a great little bike. Would be perfect to do shopping and commuting. I love the removable battery and the rear/front racks.
Do you know if they only sell them in NZ or in the EU too?
I know the English Electric Motor Co sells them, but maybe other shops over there too. It would totally be a great commuter around town :D
They are sold in the US
In wellington with a Super Soco TC MAX. if you want another electric bike to do a video on. :-D. a little bit more power then an ubco for similar cost. but with out the offroad.
I'd love to ride your bike, if that's cool with you! Send me a message whenever: mistasam@gmail.com Thanks!
Beautiful!! (stripped of all the plastic junk) mebbe paint the frame black?
A black UBCO would be amazing! Are you watching all my videos?? I'm so excited haha.
That is awesome, great to see some Kiwi ingenuity in the EV market. This reminds me of your astute observation regarding NZ's failure to subsidize electric motorcycles and bikes. I think it's time we all signed a petition as a wake-up call for the Labour and Green parties. What better way to support local talent?
Thanks Jimmy! Apparently the people in charge of such things don't want to support motorcycles because they aren't as safe as cars. It's a bummer, but at least the EV rebate exists now (over $8k off a new electric car!) so I'll try to take advantage of that while I can.
As well as pulling you through mud, I'm guessing that two 1kw motors is cheaper than one 2kw motor. Just a guess. Also, I think it's more like a jeep than an Ariel. Boxy, utilitarian and slow. But it does have a cool exoskeleton.
Haha yeah totally the jeep of electric mopeds. I liked it a lot, and it makes me wonder if anyone has modified them to go faster :D
FRX1 looks cool, i won't look at the price though....just steal the frame design for mine.
Nice Sammy.
Haha yeah the price is ludicrous, but I want to ride one :D
@@NewZeroland defo mate, that is what i'm tryna build. I have an internally geared hub, mid-drive motor, so i can have range if i want but also go bananas for a day too.....just have to hope it doesn't chew through the gears ;)
I guess the VERY sturdy frame explains part of the price, plus the fact that a lot of parts seem to be bespoke for UBCO.
Yeah for sure. Materials are expensive in NZ too so that probably adds to it. Definitely a fun bike though :D
Can’t wait to see you all on the Energica! Did you get the Ego?
Thanks! You'll have to wait for them to get here :D
Nice man. That looked like fun. If you had to choose between that and an FTN motion which would you want? Ultimate utility or ultimate style? Both locally made but one is like a jeep and one is like a lotus. They both have way less power than you want but imagine riding something that had local vendors and support. That would be a wild change for you. 😁
Dude great points! The FTN accelerates way quicker. Top speeds are the same but the FTN gets there really fast. I like both equally in their own ways though. The UBCO is more comfortable and easier to ride, but I like the build-in storage of the FTN. You're giving me video ideas now haha.. I should get the two of these kiwi-made bikes together for a showdown!
That would be so sweet. Plus you have some time to burn until the Energica arrive. Maybe a unicycle video?
@@stevenb7319 I should totally shoot some video on the unicycle!
First the world, then we take the sun!
Where we're doing, we'll need 2WD.
My experience with my FWD 12" tire 250 Watt ebike is that the front wheel breaks loose. Even with that lttle power. Bikes have a very short wheelbase, and most of the wight is already on the rear tire, so the weight transfer under acceleration really takes the weight off the font tires. Even at only 250 Watts, I want through three front tires to one rear on that bike. And changing tires on that bike is a huge pain. No more front motor ebikes for me.
I'm all for dual motor, especially for mud and soft surface, but I suspect that even with better weight distribution on the UBCO (my much smaller battery is behind the seat), it probably has a similar issue if driven hard and mostly on pavement.
It does seem very underpowered to be called a "motorcycle", but as you said it's fine for urban commuting and just zipping around locally.
What you're saying makes sense, and that's what I expected this bike to be like, but it was totally the opposite. Handling was great and it was the rear wheel that lost traction. I have no idea what's going on there haha, but I loved it. Yeah less "motorcycle" and more "moped" for sure.. these can be ridden on a car license. I'd totally buy one if it wasn't $8k nzd!
Hipster option. Perfect for wellington lol.....alrighty
XD
Wait there’s a hipster option? Haha I want it, but can’t find it
Yeah! Not sure how to get that one. You might have to email em.
UBCO vs Honda CT110, different tests and trials, give the people what they want!
(Although the CT110 is discontinued and the CT125 is kicking goals now.)
Hahaha as soon as Honda makes an electric version, I'll test the hell out of it :D
@@NewZeroland Also, front hub motor is very useful for steep hill climbing. A rear drive can make a bike do a backflip but a front drive won't. That combined with electric not needing oxygen makes it perfect for high altitude mountain climbing.
@@audiencemember26008 man, GREAT points! I wonder how high an electric motorcycle has traveled.
Is there an engineering reason why these can't also have pedals? What happens if you run out of juice?
Not sure actually.. it might be a legal thing. Electric bicycle vs electric motorcycle. Running out of battery is really difficult to do because you'd have to be ignoring the gauges for 50km 😂
Wait… Is that… pedals? On the FRX1? ‘Yes officer, it’s an e-bike…’ Haha :)
Kinda wanna see how much it would be to import one to the US
Hollywood Electrics used to sell them, but UBCOs aren't on their site anymore. They're about $8k nzd though, so after taxes and shipping they'd probably be $8k usd. Kinda insane :\
The rear wheel traction problem is probably due to the angle of the swing arm being completely wrong.
A motor cycle chassis needs to have the geometry of the rear suspension correct for the type of drive.
For instance, a chain or belt drive offsets the thrust applied to the rear axle and reduces the squat the suspension experiences under acceleration. The swing arm still needs a small downward angle to contribute more anti-squat.
These UBCOs have a very steep swing arm angle and no external drive forces offsetting the high anti-squat forces.
I suspect the rear suspension is topping out ,resulting in poor traction.
Nothing to do with the front motor at all. If anything, the front wheel should be the one loosing traction under acceleration.
Ever since these bikes were released the geometry looks totally wrong and I could never understand how they arrived at that geometry.
Hahaha that's a great point. Now that you mention it, they do look wrong, and it all makes sense now 😂
do you need license for this
Only a car license, yep.
I always pronounced it oob-co, but I have no idea what is correct.
Haha ootility bike. My buddy works there so I'll have to ask him. Now I'm wondering why I didn't ask him before uploading this video XD
Full torgue BREH !!!
This 15 kW bikes... that gets the topic in a absolutely ridiculous way of riding. LOL Damn now you got my attention.
Maximum speed is 50 KPH, no thanks.
Neematic, with no doubt, need a motorcycle seat. Other way 15kWt will shred apart your ass. And hub motors is a worst motors ever!
I'm sure you're meant to stand up while riding that thing haha. Agreed about hub motors... they heat up way too much.