Ridden: Rundeer's Attack 10 E-Bike is Inspired by the A-10 Warthog, Let's Test It

As a not-so-cheap but very cheerful addition to North America's moped-style off-road e-bike segment, the Attack 10 has some fierce competition. But with its innovative construction and top-shelf battery EV drive train, this e-bike has what it takes to keep up with its rivals. But what's an e-bike like this really like to live with? Can it be a livable daily rider on top of its obvious exploits on the trails? The answer is so complicated that I'm about to spend the next 1,600 words and change trying to explain it. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Let's start at the very beginning.

Per Rundeer's official web page, the Attack 10's namesake is one synonymous with ruggedness and dependability—the US Air Force's A-10 Thunderbolt II attack jet, also known as the Warthog in civilian circles. You know, the plane with the car-sized autocannon sticking out of its nose and can shrug off missiles and small arms fire like a flying tank. Lucky for Rundeer, I'm a guy that knows a fair bit about the A-10. I've flown them in Ace Combat for the last 15 years, photographed dozens of them in aviation museums across America, and even stood on the very spot in suburban New York where the first two A-10 prototypes rolled off the Fairchild-Republic production line.

So, is Rundeer being sincere in applying the Warthog philosophy to their off-road e-bike? As far as I can assess, the answer is, surprisingly, not a no. Keep in mind there are two bespoke models within the larger Attack 10 model lineup, the Attack 10 Standard, with an LED headlamp-integrated front fairing, and the Attack 10, which ditches the headlamp and front fairing for beefier, more capable suspension hardware in the front and rear. It's the Attack 10 Standard that we'll be profiling today. With the aesthetical differences between the two in mind, this fat tire bike sure does look the part.

From certain angles, the Attack 10 Standard, which we'll just call the Attack 10 from now on, uses its single LED headlamp to almost mimic the GAU-8 Avenger 30 mm autocannon that made the A-10 Warthog a household name. Its build construction is equally A-10-like, at least on paper. With a frame formed through an innovative metal injection molding process similar to the one used by Tesla, the front and rear sub-frames are fused together seamlessly to make a single piece so strong you can depend on it not splitting in half on rough trails.

Without a single weld to blemish it, the Attack 10's frame is nothing short of sleek. Even without the Attack 10 Advanced's increased suspension travel, the front and rear shock absorbers on the Standard scream capability and looked the part all the while. Twenty-inch fat tires add to the Attack 10's considerable off-road repertoire. With a special blend of magnesium and aluminum in its construction, the Attack 10 is at least beefy like a Warthog. But you're going to need some decent power to make an e-bike this chunky fly over rough terrain.

Hapilly, Rundeer thought about that and delivered accordingly in the form of a Bafang brushless electric motor with a base power delivery of 750 watts. The upper echelon of the Attack 10's five-level e-power delivery system can boost this motor up to 1250 watts. With a very healthy 89.7 N.m (66.15 lb-ft) of torque to play with, there's enough low-end grunt to jaunt over most terrain at sub-45-degree angles. To power it all, a 48-volt, 20-amp, and 960-watt-hour-hour battery from Samsung helps the Attack 10 muscle out at least 40 miles of all-electric range and a minimum of 50 miles of mixed electric and pedal power. 3A Fast Charging capability also means you won't spend all day waiting for the Attack 10 to charge.

That's assuming you don't spend all day blitzing around on level five max power delivery all day, mind you. But, in short, this bike has the range to get you through most woodland trails, not smack-dab in the middle of a national forest or about a third of the way up a mountain. Speaking of altitude, the Attack 10's EV drivetrain doesn't give a rat's you-know-what about what height you're riding. You can't say the same about a 250 cc two-stroke dirt bike; that's an advantage that counts when you're in the thick of it. All this power is visualized through a high-fidelity center screen that serves as your odometer and speedometer.

With a seven-speed gearbox courtesy of the industry heavyweights at Shimano, there's enough adaptability between the drivetrain, gearset, and suspension hardware to cater to just about any application. That said, I don't exactly live near an expansive forest or the foothills of a mountain range to really stretch out the Attack 10's guts. But what I can provide is a more practical test, using this bike as an around-town boulevard cruiser. You might think this is an absurd misuse of a chisel-jawed, no-nonsense off-road e-bike. But for one critical reason, that might not be the case here.

You see, the infrastructure local to my area is so unfriendly to cyclists that claiming you are one should constitute a spike in your life insurance premiums. Bless some European and Asian countries where bikes, cars, and trucks mingle on the same roads without too much trouble. We don't have that luxury in the US in a fair number of cases. That leaves cyclists with the dilemma of whether to try their luck cycling with pickups and large SUVs on the road or take the sidewalk. Did I mention a good portion of the sidewalks in my neighborhood resemble lunar craters more than they do something human beings are supposed to walk over?

Try and navigate over these giant slabs of concrete poking out of the ground on lesser fat-tire e-bikes, let alone more on-road-focused ones, and your face is going to make a very macabre display of blood-red sidewalk art, even with a helmet on. In this regard, and with rush hour drivers ready to run me over if I tried my luck riding alongside them, the Attack 10 made light work of disrepaired sidewalks so egregious that a dog would think twice about walking over it.

If my tax dollars never even sniff fixing these sidewalks, my Attack 10 will allow me to avoid road traffic as much as humanly possible. Over more rugged terrain like uneven grassy fields, loose sand, and loose gravel that I did manage to find in town, the Attack 10 didn't miss a beat there either. When I was forced to mingle with cars and trucks a bit, a top speed I could manage around the knife edge of 30 mph at least meant I wasn't holding people up too much. The hydraulically-assisted front and rear disk brakes also worked a treat for getting this big, heavy bike to stop.

And remember, with its handlebar-mounted throttle control, you can ride the Attack 10 like a true-to-form electric dirt bike. In its upper levels of power delivery, it also feels like a normal small dirt bike. Admittedly, the Attack 10's curb weight of 88 lbs does mean it's not ideal if you're not confident handling that kind of mass. It also made putting the bike together when it arrived a challenge to do alone. Coupled with its thick tires and 66.93 inches of length, the Attack 10 is probably not the ideal choice for intra-city Door Dash delivery service unless you're also a bodybuilder.

So far, then, the Attack 10's been nothing short of a showstopper. With an electric drivetrain to die for and legit dirtbike levels of capability, there's every reason to think the Attack 10 is worth its nearly $3,000 price tag. That said, there are one or two negatives that I thought were important to mention. Although the foundations of the Attack 10's construction were very strong indeed, the fit and finish of some of one or two items could've been improved. Firstly, I got the impression the quality of the exterior paint could've been a little better. There were a couple of occasions where I only lightly brushed past features like small branches or bushes and wound up scratching the paint, even only with light pressure.

Most importantly, the Attack 10's kickstand appears to be made of cast metal. Combined with the considerable weight behind this bike, any light dust-up while transitioning the stand from its deployed to the stowed position could bear its entire weight, plus your own, down on the kickstand, causing it to snap off below its mounting point, as happened during my testing. Being a cast metal item, good luck trying to weld the kickstand back together. In all fairness, Rundeer very sweetly sent me a replacement kickstand to mount to complete the review.

But so long as you're cognizant of the Attack 10's admittedly scarce weak points and you're extra careful with the paint and kickstand, it's very easy to avoid the pitfalls I stumbled upon in the course of my review. At the end of the day, the Attack 10's overall build quality isn't too far off from an A-10 Warthog in terms of design philosophy, even without a titanium bathtub or a big rotary cannon. Like a Warthog, we're certain this bike can take a beating. But I can only wonder how many folks out there will really drop $3 grand on what's still an e-bike at the end of the day. I say that, knowing full well there are even more ludicrous and expensive options out there. It seems the cycling hobby isn't strapped for cash these days.

After taking everything into account, the only score I could think to give for the Rundeer Attack 10 Standard is a healthy 4.5 out of 5. A supremely capable off-road e-bike with a top-shelf drivetrain and all the capability in the world, just with one or two trim pieces that could've been manufactured to a slightly better standard. As far as I'm concerned, the Attack 10 is a heavyweight at its price point. One that any off-road junkie with a hole burning through their wallet should consider as one of their top choices.

But to answer the question, does the Attack 10 really mimic an A-10 Warthog? Well, at least enough for it not to be false advertising, in my opinion. Do with that what you will. Check back soon for more awesome e-bike test rides and so much more right here on autoevolution; you won't regret it.