First Ride on the new 2024 Norco Fluid VLT C1 140 Ebike
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- čas přidán 19. 03. 2024
- Today Norco officially launched the new Fluid VLT series of E Bikes for 2024. These new e bikes are the lightest E Bikes Norco has ever produced with targeted weights in the 39-45 lb range depending on the model you purchase.
You can see all the bikes on Norco's website here:
www.norco.com/bikes/e-mountai...
Full disclaimer Alert - I work for Norco Bicycles so this is not so much a review as an overview of the bike and my first ride impression but of course you should know I have some bias built in...I can't help it! I hope you enjoy the video and if you have any questions please drop them in the comments and I will try to reply as soon as I can. For more details keep reading & watching...
I have been riding ebikes since Norco first started making E MTBs in 2020. I am in the 50+ crowd and have been mountain biking for over 30 years. I still like to rip and ride multiple times a week but a busy work and home life sometimes means bike rides take a back seat. EMTBs have changed that for me! Now I can get a solid ride in on my home trails in just 1 hour and feel the stoke of riding! That was getting harder and harder for me to do on a non e-bike so that is why I love e MTBs and how they have changed my riding opportunities...
Over the last 4 years I have had a Sight VLT (Simplo Battery Gen) a Range VLT (Simple Battery Gen) and then the Range VLT (BMZ Gen) and Sight VLT (BMZ Gen). I've put thousands of KMs on ebikes in the last 4 years and so when our engineer and product management team told me we were going to be building a new light weight ebike in conjunction with Bosch and their new lightweight SX drive system I could not "weight" to try one. My main "complaint" about ebikes has been the weight. Almost all the bikes prior to this Fluid VLT that I had ridden weighed in the 55lbs to 60lbs range so getting this one at under 45 lbs had me excited!
The bike I am riding in this video is pretty much stock spec. It is an early production sample so sometimes these early bikes don't have the exact spec you get when they launch but they are generally are very close. The only incorrect spec on the bike in this video was that it had SRAM Level 4 piston brakes when it should have had SRAM Code Stealth Silver 4 piston Brakes. Since filming this video I have changed to the proper spec and can say the braking performance is significantly improved but since this bike was an early production bike it came with off spec brakes to start with. Otherwise it's stock. With Crank Brothers Mallet pedals this bike weights in at 43lbs which is super impressive to have an bike drop 12lbs off my previous bike - the Sight VLT BMZ which was in the 55lb weight range (it was a full power ebike btw).
I'll try and make some update videos on this bike once I have more time on it to speak to topics like battery life, motor performance, tunability etc. Stay tuned and Subscribe to stay in the loop. - Sport
Nicely Done, love this video my bro… ❤
Thanks Griz! 🔥
Amazing video my friend🤩🤩!🙌🏼🙌🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Thanks Raf...I'm trying bro! One day I'll be half as good as you!🤣
Thanks! Canmore guy here and very curious for more data on this bike in terms of range. Looking forward to more from you!
Thanks Derek. I will try and get another update on this bike soon once I have some more KMs on it! Stay tuned.
I've been waiting for this bike to get released. It looks really great for a trail bike. What's the cadence requirement like on the SX motor? Thornhill is pretty buffed, how do you think it will perform in rougher terrain? Thanks for posting so quickly!
Hi Rick. The SX motor likes a higher cadence rpm spin to get the most assist out of it for sure. The 600w Peak Power requires a high rpm for it to kick in - seems like when I look at the Bosch Flow App my average cadence is 85rpm and my max rpm was 128 - my peak power shows I hit 557w so I know I am getting the full boost from the Turbo mode when I need it.. I'd say that vs the Shimano EP8 system that I had previously the Bosch is a higher cadence but I will also say the Bosch SX feels more "normal" vs the EP8. The Shimano system seemed to be setting the cadence for me, whereas the Bosch is natural - the harder I pedal the more assist I get, the softer I spin the less power I feel, so it gives you a non bike kind of pedal feel but the benefit of a smooth assist. As far as capability goes My last bike was the Sight VLT C1 - 1600/150mm travel. This Fluid feels as capable in the 150/140 configuration as my Sight did. I plan to ride everything I rode on the Sight with the Fluid. I can't understate how much more playful and closer to my "acoustic" bikes that this Fluid rides though! My Sight was just over 55lbs. This one is 42.5lbs. That's a big difference! I know our engineers tested this bike in some serious jank and tech trails like Cypress, Fromme, Squamish, and Pemby so it is seriously capable in an advanced rider's hands. I also like to ride Bear Mtn, Woodlot, Squamish, Eagle Ridge, and Burke and after 200km of riding on this Fluid I am not feeling like I need another bike to ride the kind of stuff I like to hit. Hope this helps!
@@freshpukesh That's great to hear. I ride the same trail networks so good to know it'll handle it. I'm coming off a Druid V1 and have been riding the Shuttle SL for the past 6 months so140mm in the back is more than I'm used to lately😀. I really like the Fazua motor but I'm eager to try the Bosch. Thanks for the intel!
@@rickwong676 No problem - happy to give you my 2 cents and some references for trails you know too! I have only ridden the Fazua once and liked it but the Bosch definitely has a more natural feel and more power in my opinion if you are comparing the two.
Do you know if the battery is easy to take out
Hi Frank. The battery can be removed by dropping the motor (2 bolts ) but the design intent was not to make the battery removable on the trail etc. it can be done but I think the trend is towards integrating the batteries into the bikes now to not have to make design compromises to the frame of the bike.
@@freshpukesh thank you
Nah, it's just an light E-Bike Thing. You just save a couple hundred Gramm without the Batterie Cover and Lock. @@freshpukesh
I''m disappointed by the range numbers you referenced in your video (specifically the elevation)... 504m and 25% remaining suggests this bike can barely get 700m of climbing. What boost level were you in for this? Any thoughts/comments on the poor elevation range?
And how much do you weigh in gear and what was the temp on the ride. It's hard to contextualize range without all the drtails
@TheBald0ne Yeah for sure it's a bit of "learning" on this bike after riding Shimano motors for 3+ years. The Bosch SX is definitely more sensitive to what mode you are in because it is using a 400wh battery. On my previous bike I had a 720W and also a 900w battery - no range anxiety there. I have about 200km now on the Bosch and what I have learned is that the Turbo mode is definitely a battery eater and my first ride spent a lot of time in Turbo. Since then I have been riding in the EMTB and AUTO modes which have great support/assistance but don't eat anywhere near as much battery juice. Also, living in BC and my riding so far being in colder winter temps I think may play a bit of a role 6 degrees celsius vs 15 degrees makes a difference in getting more battery life. Finally I will say that all of my rides are 100% off road and all on singletrack...no pavement or gravel - so the climbing is all on singletrack so I know that is working the motor and battery harder than mixed surfaces. I'm planning to do an update once I get some more time on the bike and more of a sample for battery life. Stay tuned...
@casestudymtb Good questions as those things factor in too. I weight about 205lbs in gear and I was riding in some "cool" west coast weather so I think those things will 100% factor in. I didn't include my personal stats on the video but those are good things I will try and include for my next review once I have some more trail time on the bike.
@@freshpukeshThanks for the additional info! I’m in Calgary and we just got a dump of snow so a bit before we are on dirt here. My typical ride on an analog bike is 1000m climbing so I’m looking for an ebike to at least get me that but a lot faster (and the more elevation the better… riding here is a lot of straight up and straight down).
@@TheBald0ne Yeah for sure! I totally get the faster uphill part! The folks at Calgary Cycle have these bikes in stock now and I am sure they would be stoked to walk you through the different options. I have ridden out at Moose, Husky, and West Bragg areas and know the kind of terrain you are talking about. I think this bike could be a killer option for those types of trails. I think the straight up climbing part will actually be less taxing on this system then just pure singletrack but thats just a guess. I know some of the staff at CC have gotten this bike as their personal ride so they may be able to give you some good intel from a practical experience side as they ride where you live. Sorry about the snow too. If it makes you feel better we are back to Raincouver mode here! lol.
Hi , can the battery be removed?
Hello! This design is built around a "non removeable" battery but it is actually super easy to remove - you need to drop the motor out first which is just 2 bolts and then you can access the battery, so for quick removal (ie trail side battery swap) I would say "no" it's not removeable but for actual service and support requirements its super easy!
@@freshpukesh Thanks for the info, I have it in my viewfinder. Have you ever run out of battery uphill? how do you step on it? I have a 17kg range so it should be similar, right?
Are you sponsored? That looks like a sweet whip...
@avybites - I am not sponsored but I know some guys :)