Austin Atto

£2250

LIGHTNESS BUILT IN

At the heart of the Atto is a carbon fibre frame built using high-grade Toray fibres. It has seen plenty of development from the original, resulting in a drop of more than 400g from the frame alone. This means a complete bike that tips the scales at 10.4kg with the hefty 11-speed hub gear – or opt for the simple, cheaper singlespeed that drops down to around 8kg.

SHARP RIDING FOR A FOLDING BIKE

Some small-wheeled folders can feel twitchy. The Atto is better than most with its long wheelbase and big 20-inch wheels. The front-end steering response is quicker than a standard bike, but remains stable at speed.

LOTS OF GEARS & RANGE

The 11-speed hub gear offers a huge range of gearing – with a 40% spread (with each gear at 14% intervals). That means the Atto can motor on the flat, but you won’t be troubled by even the steepest of climbs. The Alfine hub is fully sealed and runs on an oil and grime-free Gates carbon belt.

IT’S COMFORTABLE TO RIDE

Austin has chosen well when it comes to contact points. The straight Ergon grips have a comfortable rubberised surface and the slim diameter is comfortable to hold, too. You sit on a swoopy saddle with a pressure relief channel that works when you’re in cycling kit – and in your civvies, too. The foldable pedals ensure that, once folded, the Atto doesn’t have any protrusions that can dig into your side when lifting it onto a train etc.

ONE THING WE’D CHANGE SHAKY SEATPOST

The 650mm long carbon seatpost saves a lot of weight but we found that, whilst the flex in the post adds comfort over rough surfaces, when you're powering along on the flat it has a tendency to ‘bob’. We’d like to see the post beefed-up a little to reduce bounce.