French brand Kilow may be familiar to you for the La Bagnole, a compact, lightweight electric car that can pretty much drive anywhere. The brand has a certain aesthetic about it, fusing minimalist and rugged elements to create visually unique products. The same is true about its first venture into the world of e-bikes.
The Savoyard company has decided to make its first electric bicycle a gravel bike, because, why not? E-gravel bikes are rapidly gaining popularity, and embody pretty much the same ethos as the early mountain bikes of the 90s: excellent road-going capabilities with the ability to ride on less-than-ideal terrain. This makes sense as most mountain bikes of today are highly specialized specifically for off-road use. Kilow’s new electric gravel bike is simply called Gravel, and is on display at the Roc d’Azur 2023.
According to Kilow’s marketing director, Arthur Allamand, there’s a big need for e-mobility options for use outside the city. “There is a whole offer to be developed for areas outside of cities. . . because the public transport offer is almost non-existent and not everyone can afford an electric car,” Allamand told French e-mobility publication CleanRider. This is why Kilow opted for the Gravel, instead of a regular commuter or utilitarian cargo bike.
In terms of technology, it makes use of the Swiss-made Bikedrive Air motor housed within the bike’s carbon-fiber frame. Unlike other performance-oriented systems, the Air dials down the power and torque in exchange for smoothness and natural pedal feel. It has a max torque rating of 40 Newton-meters, and 250 watts of continuous output. It offers three pedal assistance modes which can be toggled via a console on the toptube. The bike’s battery is housed sleekly into the frame’s downtube, and provides 30 to 50 kilometers (19 to 31 miles) of range on a single charge.
Other components consist of Hutchinson Touareg tires, and a 12-speed Sram Force AXS groupset with electronic shifting. In terms of pricing, the Kilow Gravel is by no means a budget-friendly option, as it’ll set you back a steep 9,490 Euros, or about $10,000 USD. Pre-orders for the bike are now open, but Kilow has yet to announce when deliveries of the bike will begin.
