PB’S GIANT REIGN E+ 1
MONTH 1: PB’S latest e-bike’s got a tasty spec sheet, a big motor and a born to rule attitude
£6,299 / 29/27.5in / giant-bicycles.com
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When looking for a new longtermer I always put together a wish list. This usually includes bikes I’m interested in trying for the first time and others I tested in the past but that have recently been updated. Giant’s new Reign E+ 1 is definitely in the latter camp; I actually reviewed the Full E+ 1 SX Pro a few years ago, a precursor to the Reign with 160mm travel, a Yamaha motor and a Panasonic battery pack. Giant still uses the same brands for those components, but it’s bumped up the travel to 170/160mm and completely rejigged the geometry. Where the SX Pro was short, steep and underpowered, the new Reign E+1 has up-to-date geometry and one of the most powerful motors on the market.
On paper, the Reign E+ 1 looks like an e-bike for charging, and I don’t mean just in the garage. With its slack 63° head angle, generous 475mm reach
(in size L) and 170mm of
WHY IT’S HERE Race-ready e-bike with alternative motor & battery technology
travel, this bike looks like it’s going to get into trouble quicker than a ‘work event’ in Westminster. It also has highlevel Fox Performance Elite suspension, Shimano XT four-pot brakes and reinforced Maxxis tyres – EXO+ up front, Doubledown on the rear. So I shouldn’t have any issues navigating a lot of those tricky situations without having to make any embarrassing U-turns.
At the heart of the E+1 is the Giant Syncdrive Pro motor, which generates 85Nm of torque and has virtually instant pick-up. This is something that may take a little getting used to, because on the first few rides, I’d wheelspin just getting off the bike, having left my foot on the pedal for too long. Giant sets it up this way because it lets you get on the gas during those tricky hill-starts. The bike also has a super-steep seat angle, which keeps rider weight forward and the front end down.
The user interface consists of a new Ridecontrol Ergo 3 remote fitted to the handlebar right next to the grip. It’s super-neat and low profile, so you’re not going to scuff it even when turning the bike upsidedown. The Ridecontrol Go display is in the top tube. It has a power button and a double bank of LEDS that show battery life and ride mode. Like most modern e-bikes, the Reign E+ 1 has several fixed assistance levels for fine-tuning power and battery life, but it defaults to a Smart Assist mode when it turns on. It’s all adjustable using the Ridecontrol app, and you can even change the brightness of the LEDS when riding at night.
Powering the system is a Panasonic Energypak battery. It is branded Lithium ion but is actually Lithium cobalt manganese. Giant says this gives it