What Do We Get When Spending Four Grand on the New Ducati e-Scrambler?

We’ve been hearing a lot about Ducati lately, as the Italians have been on the offensive on the motocycle front. But they are doing the same on the bicycle market as well - most recently, we've talked about the MIG-S, but there are other products in the offering, like the the e-Scrambler and the TK. Today we're going to talk about the e-Scrambler.

So, what do we get when going for this $3,995 e-bike? Let’s find out - but before we go any further, I want to mention one thing: try not to look at this bike like to a Ducati, but rather as two-wheeler that has no actual brand history behind it. I find this is the best way to evaluate all aspects of such a trinket.

We can kick this off with the frame, as it is the base for everything a bike should be. For the e-Scrambler we find an aluminum alloy 6061 frame from hydroformed tubes with forged and CNC milled extras. All set with internal cable routing.

One thing I want to point out about the frame is that dropped rear. It gives it a sort of BMX bike feel which should be just right for city riding. This also allows you to ride high up with an extended seat post, or low to the ground, to where you can feel your knees squeezed out or your jeans every time you pedal.

Underneath the down tube we can see the battery bulging off the frame. Shimano is the brand here, pushing 504W of juice. Now, we don’t know what sort of range we’ll get with this battery, as it’s difficult to gauge ever-changing road conditions.

But we do know that this pack powers a Shimano Steps E7000 motor. This fresh powerhouse puts out 60 Nm of torque from 250W and only comes in at 6.17 lbs (2.8 kg). As for the transmission, a Sram NX with 11 speeds is available.

For suspension, we are offered a Suntour SCR 34 coil front fork with 100m of travel. Nothing on the rear. But don’t be bummed out. For what this bike needs to do, ride around the city, it’s best you don’t have a rear suspension as you’ll lose traction and precious speed.

Speaking of speed, that’s something the e-Scrambler website makes no mention of. However, seeing how most electric motors are software adjustable, it makes some sense for the team not to mention this. As a rule of thumb, the EU has a limit at 25 kph and the U.S. around 20 mph.

To help you cruise around, you’ll be using a set of Pirelli Cycl-e GT 27.5-inch tires, which should also help a bit with that absent rear suspension. And to make sure you can control everything safely, a pair of Sram Guide T 203mm rotors are clamped down onto by four-piston caliper brakes.

Seeing how this bad boy is to be released starting this month in the U.S., my personal opinion is to wait a bit longer - at least until we see the full lineup coming from other players next year.