Velo City: Bicycle Culture and City Life

M55 The Beast

M55 The Beast e-Bike

No, it’s not a colloquial title. M55 is a Hungary-based manufacturer of e-bicycles and The Beast is their flagship model. The Beast is actually a hybrid bike, meaning it is an electronically assisted ride. It’s the result of a long evolution of engineering and development, and has raised the bar of environmentally friendly personal transportation.

Specified to handle off-road expeditions, the Fox Talas fork is usually found on cross-country mountain bikes, while the Brembo brakes are more commonly found on motorcycles and F1 cars. This is their first appearance on a bicycle, which is, apparently, an M-55 exclusive. The frame is constructed from 7075 aluminum, and houses the electric motor and battery cell. The solid cast swing arm is suspended by a single pivot, and offers 172mm of travel. The shock is a Fox DHX RC4 with a Nukeproof titanium spring. There’s a Rohloff tandem hub in the rear wheel, and the saddle, pedals, rims, front hub and head set are all Syncros, so the dirt-bound aspirations of The Beast are in the right place.

M55 The Beast e-Bike

The rated speed is 2400 RPM, with a torque of 5.2 NM. There’s a speed reduction transmission that can raise the torque to 104 NM; that means a top speed of around 77 km/h at 120 pedal cadences. The total weight is around 33kg.

All Transformers allusions aside, it will be interesting to see how hybrid bicycle technology and styling develops over the next few years. We’ve seen how quickly the fixed gear aesthetic was integrated with BMX and MTB engineering. How long will it be before we start seeing Yeti, Specialized or even Brooklyn Machine Works empowered by electric hybrid technology? If you don’t believe it will take off, remember how skeptical industry types were about the emergence of track bikes on the street…

You can read more about The Beast on the M-55 website, where you can also place an order for one. Although, at a retail price of around €25,555 and a limited run of 55, you’d better hurry.

M55 The Beast e-Bike

M55 The Beast e-Bike
M55 The Beast e-Bike
M55 The Beast e-Bike
M55 The Beast e-Bike
M55 The Beast e-Bike
M55 The Beast e-Bike
M55 The Beast e-Bike