The growing popularity of sleek urban e-bikes seems to have caught the attention of discounter Lidl as well. With the Urban E-Bike X and Y, such a bike is now available under Lidl’s own brand Crivit. The attractive price of 1,699 Euros is typical for the discounter. Let’s take a closer look at what you get for it and whether the offer is worth it.
The equipment of Crivit’s Urban e-bikes
The look of these bikes is relatively slim, and they are available as Urban E-Bike X with a diamond frame and Urban E-Bike Y with a comfort frame. Overall, certainly not a design highlight, but quite okay! Typical in this class, a compact hub motor is integrated into the rear wheel. This one is the M080 from MIVICE with 40 Nm torque and could already convince us here in the test of the Java Frenetica. A recommendable drive system that offers a very natural power assistance, especially through the torque sensor — surprising for this price range!
The same applies to the drive, which is designed as a singlespeed (without gears) and does without a classic bicycle chain. Instead, a modern belt drive is installed, which, however, does not come from the market leader Gates. Rather, a no-name product seems to be installed here.
The e-drive is operated via a button on the top tube, which can be used to select the five riding modes and also shows the capacity of the battery. A classic display, for example to show the speed, is therefore not available here.
For the 360 Wh battery Crivit Urban E-Bike has come up with something special: this is designed so that it also acts as a seat post. In other words, the saddle is attached to the top of the battery and the entire construction can be moved up and down to adjust the seat height. Likewise, the battery can be completely removed from the frame and charged anywhere — then also in one piece with the saddle. The power supply with the bike is via a spiral cable that flexibly adjusts in length according to the seat height. To protect against theft of the battery, a special and lockable seatpost clamp is installed.
ADVERTISEMENT
The rest of the components include hydraulic disc brakes from Tektro, 50 mm wide Kenda tires in 27.5″ size and a permanently installed lighting system that is powered by the bike’s battery. In addition, the bike is equipped with a kickstand and comes standard with a smartphone mount from SP Connect (reviewed here). However, app connectivity is not explicitly mentioned.
Lidl states “approx. 20 kg” for the weight – so you should be aware that this statement still applies to a weight of 20.9 kg ;-). And with that, it is indeed not really easy, especially when we look at the competitors.
Lidl vs. Tenways in comparison
In this price range, we directly ask ourselves how the new Lidl E-Bike X stacks up against the Tenwys CGO 600 Pro. We have already tested the bike here and with a current retail price of 1,799, it is currently only 100 Euros more expensive. In return, Tenways offers different frame sizes with an adjustable stem, while Lidl only offers a unisize size. In addition, a compact display is installed on the Tenways, which also provides graphical information on speed and distance. The belt drive on the Tenways comes from Gates, and the battery on both bikes has a capacity of 360 Wh — but on the Tenways, it is classically installed in the frame and can still be removed.
Thanks to a seatpost in regular design, you still have the option here to replace it with a suspended seatpost if necessary — which is not possible with the Crivit X. The electric drive on both bikes comes from MIVICE: the Tenways from the type M070, which is somewhat weaker, but also more compact and lighter. Thus, the Tenways is also overall with about 18 kg the lighter of the two bikes.
Conclusion
Basically, Lidl’s Crivit Urban e-bikes are certainly not a bad debut. The installed technology of the e-drive is solid and with the torque sensor even surprisingly high-quality in this price range. The fact that the battery and seatpost form a single unit is an interesting solution – but it also has some drawbacks. In addition, the bike is not really light with a weight of 20 kg and is only available in one frame size. In a direct comparison, the 100 euro surcharge for the Tenways CGO 600 Pro is therefore certainly worth it. However, it is rumored that Lidl still has room for maneuver in the price of the Crivit Urban e-bike — so it does not seem unlikely that the bike will also be available at a lower price on sale!
Update from March 4, 2024: Lidl is now offering the second generation of the bikes under the names X.2 and Y.2. Information on all the new features can be found in this article.
2 thoughts on “An urban e-bike from the discounter: we take a look at the new Crivit bike from Lidl”
The bike is now available for 1299,- via Lidl. Would you recommend this bike for this price? As it is now significantly cheaper than the Tenways CGO 600 Pro?
Levi
Sorry, too late – its 1499,– now. Personally, I would lean towards the Tenways as I think it is nicer and I like the position of the battery better. But if you want to get the maximum for your money, the Crivit bike is quite a good deal.