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This e-bike is the Perfect Example of German Design and Ingenuity

Try not to judge us for showing you an e bike whose name we have a hard time pronouncing, the Platzhirsch. It’s not an issue, though. It’s from Germany, and you know they take pride in the products they put into the market. And you won't even need to remember the name, you'll recognize one the next time you see it.
Platzhirsch eBike 12 photos
Photo: Urwahn Bikes
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If you’re an avid biker like myself, there is absolutely no way you cannot fall in love with the bike. Just look at it. Look at that “different” frame. Short, compact, curvy. Not the old-school bike design we may be used to. On top of it all, she's electric.

But let's leave all the equipment aside and have a look at just the fork and frame design. If this was a McDonald's commercial, “I'm lovin' it!” would be everywhere in these images. But we aren't Mcdonald's. However, that doesn’t stop us from saying the we are absolutely loving this design. There's just something about that bend in the rear fork, or possibly the matte finish that still offers a bit of shine when light hits it.

That frame is composed of Urwahn CT1-FR1 CrMo steel with an integrated belt-port and flat-mount. On top of it all, the wiring and cables for brakes, battery, and motor are all hidden away in the frame. This might be one of the reasons for the bike's allure, little or no exposed wiring. The fork too, boasts Urwahn CT1 steel.

Platzhirsch eBike
Photo: Urwahn Bikes
And now for what would make up the rest of a functional e-bike. One, if not the most important aspect of any electric bike is the battery. Here we find a Mahle ebikemotion battery with a 250 Wh capacity. This trinket allows for a range up to 50 miles (80km), and guess where it is, because we can't see it on the frame like on other bikes or kits. It's in the down tube, just like on the Babymaker.

All this energy is meant for the motor, so let's see what German ingenuity has put together for us. Once again, Mahle was the choice company for the e-bike, providing it with a rear wheel hub motor that cranks out 250W of power and 40Nm of torque. The motor also functions within three different ride modes, controlled by a remote mounted on the handlebars.

To make everything work properly, we can find a Gates Carbon CDX belt drive system. If you don’t know anything about Gates, have a look into them. They offer a very durable product that ups the stats on anything it’s installed on.

Platzhirsch eBike
Photo: Urwahn Bikes
One of the neat aspects of the Platzhirsch is that it comes with a range extender. Here too, Mahle provides the hardware. 208Wh offer up to an extra 37 miles (60km) of distance on top of the 50 it can already carry you.

For braking systems, we find the ever-present Shimano BL-MT 200 disc brakes. Ready with full stopping power through hydraulic application and a 160 mm flat-mount. More than enough to cover your braking whenever you need it.

tIf we were to run through all the other options on the bike, we would need to take up about 10 to 15 minutes explaining all of them, and let's face it, the reason you’d get an ebike is to help you save time and energy. So just click here if you want to find out more and do check out the videos below.

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About the author: Cristian Curmei
Cristian Curmei profile photo

A bit of a nomad at heart (being born in Europe and raised in several places in the USA), Cristian is enamored with travel trailers, campers and bikes. He also tests and writes about urban means of transportation like scooters, mopeds and e-bikes (when he's not busy hosting our video stories and guides).
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