Brooklyn-based e-bike conversion package maker CLIP has launched BOLT, a front-mounted electrical motor designed to remodel normal bicycles into e-bikes. The corporate is advertising the system because the world’s most reasonably priced quick-install e-bike improve, with a give attention to making electrified transportation accessible in low-to-moderate earnings communities and rising markets.
Not like conventional e-bikes, which frequently begin at round US $1,000 and go up shortly from there, BOLT is positioned as a low-cost different. The system includes a 450W motor and a swappable battery system, offering pedal help as much as 15 mph (25 km/h).
The package installs on the entrance fork of most grownup bicycles, making it an choice for riders who need an e-bike expertise with out buying a devoted electrical bicycle.
Whereas CLIP has beforehand focused the business-to-consumer (B2C) market with its simply mountable e-bike conversion kits, BOLT will likely be distributed primarily via business-to-business (B2B) channels. The corporate appears to have its sights set on bike sharing and different industrial operators of motorcycle fleets.
Within the US and Europe, CLIP is promoting the system to companies for $250, together with two 144 Wh battery packs. In rising markets, BOLT will likely be supplied at a $100 worth level, excluding the battery, with customers paying a $5 monthly subscription charge to entry rechargeable battery swaps via native companions.
“BOLT is designed to make e-bike commuting really accessible and equitable for folks in every single place, from New York to New Delhi,” mentioned Som Ray, Founder and CEO of CLIP. “BOLT removes the worth obstacles of conventional e-bikes whereas maximizing environmental influence to scale sustainable transportation worldwide.”
CLIP is framing BOLT as each an environmental and social mobility device, citing the excessive price of conventional e-bikes as a barrier to widespread adoption. The corporate states that over 60% of its riders come from low-to-moderate-income communities, and it plans to accomplice with native organizations to broaden entry.
The product is being marketed as a low-impact different to full e-bike manufacturing, with CLIP claiming that BOLT requires 50 instances fewer sources to fabricate and has a 30 instances smaller logistics footprint in comparison with typical e-bikes. The system is manufactured in Kolkata, India, with localized meeting in North America, Europe, and India.
CLIP has positioned BOLT as a disruptive drive in e-bike affordability, which tracks with the system’s fairly uncommon design. As a substitute of a standard hub motor or mid-drive motor, CLIP makes use of a friction drive that presses towards the entrance tire of the bike, forcing it to roll ahead. The system’s front-mounted motor configuration is notably completely different from mid-drive or rear-hub e-bike motors. Moreover, its business-to-business gross sales mannequin signifies that particular person riders won’t be able to buy the system straight, relying as an alternative on third-party distribution networks.
The corporate has but to announce particular partnerships or large-scale deployments, although it has set bold local weather objectives. It claims that widespread adoption of BOLT might eradicate as much as 3.7 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions yearly.
As BOLT seems set to enter the market, its influence on the rising e-bike sector stays to be seen. With its low worth level and modular design, the system might attraction to budget-conscious riders if it proves to be a viable and dependable different to conventional e-bikes.
