2026 Amflow PL Carbon Pro E-Bike

One of the most talked about recent developments in the e-MTB market has been the arrival of the Avinox motor and battery system. Created by a company that has its roots in using batteries and motors to make things fly, it shouldn’t have come as a big surprise when the performance of the newcomer turned out to be quite spectacular. Amflow is the bike brand launched in parallel to essentially showcase the new motor system, and the PL is their first model. Today, Amflow makes its highly anticipated debut in the North American market, so we thought this would be the appropriate time to tell you what we think of the bike after a month on the trails in California. Keep reading to dig into every detail, or watch the review in video form below if you prefer.

Amflow PL Carbon Pro Highlights

• Amflow PL Carbon Frame (Cosmic Black)
• ASTM F2043-13 category 4 approved (including “technical downhill, trail, and uphill riding”)
• 150mm rear travel / 185×55mm Trunnion shock mount
• 148×12mm axle spacing
• Compatible with 27.5" and 29" rear wheels via flip chip and app set-up
• ISIS crank interface / BCD104 chain ring
• 31.6 mm seat tube diameter
• 1 ½ IS headset
• Avinox M1 Drive Unit: 105 Nm
• Avinox Screen: 2-inch OLED Control Display
• Avinox Integrated Battery: 800Wh
• Avinox Wireless Controllers: Right and left sides
• Avinox Fast Charger: 12A/508W
• Amflow PL Carbon Pro weight (size L, no pedals): 20.3 kg / 44.8 lbs (verified)
• Warranty: 5 years for the frame, 2 years for the motor
• Amflow PL Carbon Pro MSRP: $10199 USD
• (Amflow PL Carbon MSRP: $7499 USD)

Initial Impressions

The Amflow PL Carbon Pro shows up in a box, essentially ready to ride (you can presumably get your dealer to set it up for you should you purchase it that way). You’ll need to attach the handlebar and the front wheel, and perform the rest of the initial set-up tasks like setting shock and fork pressure, adjusting your cockpit to your preferences etc. All in all nothing difficult and we had our bike ready to roll pretty quickly.

The PL Carbon Pro is of course built around a carbon frame, which is remarkably light for this category of bike. Since the motor system and battery are also very light, the full build as tested only weighs 20.3 kgs in size L – impressive for a full-power e-MTB with 800 WH of battery capacity and the most powerful motor currently in the market. More on that later though.

The battery is not only very light, but it’s very slim as well. This allowed the designers to give the PL very svelte proportions, definitely closer to an “SL” e-MTB in appearance than most full-power bikes. The lines are smooth and harmonious, while the Horst-link rear triangle layout will seem familiar to anybody who has ever laid their eyes on a Stumpjumper, for example. Amusingly, the designers have managed to spec a Trunnion shock WITH a yoke, in a somewhat befuddling move that aims to make the shock both shorter and longer. The overall build quality and finish is high, certainly not a source of disappointment for anybody who forked over the hefty asking price for the Carbon Pro model (the non-Pro is considerably less expensive, or you can spec a lower capacity batter on the Pro to save some dollars and grams).

Looking into the overall bike aspect of the PL, we find geometry numbers well in line with modern trends, although a bit conservative when it comes to seat tube length and BB height (the stack is not overly generous either). There are 4 sizes to choose from, and taller riders will be well served – at the expense of the shorter folks who might find the medium a tad too big already with its reach of 452 mm. The head angle clocks in at a shred-worthy 64.5 degrees, while the 77-degree seat tube angle will ensure a decently upright position for climbing. The 445 mm chainstays (same length for each frame size) are becoming par for the course in e-MTB land. The PL was designed around a 160 mm fork, but Amflow says you can fit a 170 mm if you need it. There is a flip chip to allow you to run a 27.5” rear wheel while preserving the geo (or…run that smaller wheel and leave the flip chip in the low position to lower the BB height and slacken out the HA). All told, so far, nothing extraordinary to report…but…

Moving on to the motor system (we’ll cover the specs of our test bike later on in this article), this is of course where things get really interesting. The Avinox drive unit uses a “compound planetary gearset” with polymer materials inside to achieve its remarkably low weight and also reduce motor/gear noise in use. At just 2.52 kgs it is 300 grams lighter than a Bosch CX gen 5 for example, and the 800 WH Avinox battery tips the scales at 3.74 kgs, 160 grams less than the Bosch PowerTube 800. As previously mentioned, the dimensions of the Avinox components are also impressively slim. All told, the light frame and motor system help the PL Carbon Pro keep its weight down to just 20.3 kgs, not a lot of heft for the power and energy numbers it serves up. There is no range extender available, and the battery cannot be easily removed without dropping the motor first.

Power is nothing without control, and Avinox has certainly done their homework to provide the rider with the motor system adjustability needed to set up the PL to their liking. First of all, there are two small wireless remote units that allow for easy manipulation while riding. The left-hand side remote toggles between support modes and also gives access to the walk and boost functions (more on boost later). The right-hand side remote flips through the display screens. 

The display features a touch screen that gives access to more advanced set-up features (some of which can ONLY be accessed from the display, and not the accompanying Avinox app). You’ll find extensive opportunities to personalize the behavior of the motor system in each of the four main riding modes (+ Boost), playing around with parameters like amount of support power, torque, motor over-run, etc. You can also turn on anti-theft features and configure other general system aspects.

The Avinox system automatically adjusts power output and max speed settings according to geography (linked to the user’s account in the Avinox app), and as far as we know, the max speed settings cannot be easily overridden by the user. That means you’re stuck with the motor support cutting out at 25 km/h in Europe for example, while in the class 1 e-bike setting, US riders can enjoy 32 km/h. The max power numbers can however be adjusted beyond standard limits with a simple warning from the system telling you to “comply with local rules and regulations”. The includes being able to set max power at 1000 W in all riding modes if you so wish (exceeding the 750 watt maximum allowed for an e-bike in many US states for example). This much-hyped 1000 W setting was previously reserved for the original 30-second Boost function, but a recent software update has made it available in other support modes permanently. Only the 120 Nm max torque setting is still reserved exclusively for Boost, while other modes “make do” with 105 Nm. Boost can also be extended to 60 seconds now. What about US class 3 then? Yep, you can simply enable that from the touch screen display as well – again, you’ll get an on-screen warning telling you to obey the law, but click “OK” and you’re free to enjoy the 45 km/h max speed of a class 3 e-bike. The bike reverts back to class 1 every time you turn it off, but it’s very easy to set it to class 3 again when you need it. Both the high power and max speed settings are sure to spark some debate, with Avinox following Specialized’s recent example of producing a bike that can be easily configured to deliver levels of power and speed that exceed the classifications used in many geographies to allow or limit access to trails and multi-use paths, and putting the onus on the user to be responsible about it.

Avinox has implemented some really cool features in their system, which aim to improve the riding experience. For example, there’s a shift assist function that briefly cuts motor power each time you shift (available only with SRAM AXS shifters). There’s also a function that “preloads” the drivetrain as soon as you start moving the pedals, to help take up any slack from the freehub engagement. There’s also a quick start feature that does something similar when you start from a standstill, essentially providing some motor support from the very moment you start turning the pedals as opposed to waiting for the wheel to register the bike rolling. There’s a walk assist mode and a hill start function, which holds the bike in place using the motor while you get ready to pedal uphill. Avinox uses a magnetic Hall Ring that gives wheel speed readings 42 times per revolution, which provides far better granularity than systems that rely on a single wheel sensor magnet for example. It’s some pretty clever stuff, and it all works as intended – more on that now in the next chapter.

On The Trail

Let’s start this section off with what you really want to know – how good is the Avinox motor system? The answer is that it is very good indeed. The overall level of smoothness and sophistication is impressive, and despite the copious amounts of power on tap, the bike is easy to control. Start pedaling, and the power comes on gradually, making sure you don’t have to worry about slipping a wheel or looping out. The quick start function works as advertised, which can be very helpful in many riding situations (not talking about hill start which is more of a gadget if you have your basic riding fundamentals down). Toggling between support modes is easy, and the different modes work well with the out-of-the-box settings.

There is a notable step up in power with each support mode (Eco, Trail, and Turbo), and there are several settings you can tune for each of them. By setting a support response range (min to max) you tell the motor how much support you want in a given scenario (the algorithm takes into account speed, incline, rider pedal power etc), or you can use a single curve to always get the same level of response to your input. There’s also an Auto mode that adjusts everything on the fly in response to how you’re riding and what the terrain looks like. The Auto mode is very smooth and useful in a wide range of riding scenarios, probably something you’ll appreciate if you really want a natural support feel. If you want your bike to react to a given level of input in exactly the same way each time, use one of the other modes and set a single response curve.

1000 W and 105 Nm of torque (120 in Boost mode!) is a lot, and the Avinox really feels every bit as powerful as the numbers would indicate. We’ve drag raced it against a Bosch gen 5 CX Performance Line motor (with the latest SW updates giving 750 W of power and 100 Nm of torque), and the Avinox pulled ahead with ease once the terrain got really steep. In terms of day to day usability, the difference is not as marked, and the level of support available from the Bosch motor is undoubtedly enough, but you do get addicted to the extra oomph of the Avinox in some scenarios. Being able to cruise up a shuttle road at 35-40 km/h in class 3 mode for example, is a clear bonus. If you’re riding a well-built climbing trail, you’ll come to love how the bike picks up and accelerates in Turbo mode even when things get steep. Sure, you’ll burn through battery faster that way, but it’s a trade-off many riders will gladly make on some days – that quick, one-hour after-work ride for example. Full Turbo and get as many runs in as you can! For real technical climbing, you’ll want to tone things down a notch, and the adjustable over-run will be a much-appreciated feature here as you’ll be able to fine-tune the amount of over-run to really mesh with how you ride up technical obstacles.

To give you an idea of numbers, we’ve been riding the same test loop in a couple of different support settings: a 28-kilometer (20-mile) loop with 700 meters (2100 feet) of climbing split into 4 different descending trails, mainly on single track with one 150-meter asphalt road climb to finish. We first rode this loop mainly in Trail mode, with 750 W of max power and a speed limit of 25 km/h (Turbo was used on the last climb). This left us with 60% of battery still in the tank, so we could have easily done the loop again at this point. Note that in the factory setting, Trail mode provides support almost comparable to some other brands’ Turbo modes, so you could tone it down further to gain range. A day later and after charging the bike to 100% again, we did the same test loop in full Turbo mode, with max power set at 1000 W and the speed limit set at 45 km/h (US class 3) for that last climb on the road. After that loop we had 39% of battery left, so not enough for another full loop but definitely a couple of more trails at that same power level. The amount of work done by the bike for this loop was impressive, our tester’s (yours truly) HR was hovering around 120 for the whole last climb, indicative of just how little work was being done by the rider in this setting (all the HR peaks observed during this ride were recorded on the downhill sections). To complete our testing, we did the same loop WHILE TOWING A SECOND RIDER, which saw us finish the whole thing with 25% battery left. The motor never showed any signs of overheating nor did any other problems manifest themselves, despite all this testing taking place during quite warm days (several of the days saw the mercury climb into the 90s Fahrenheit…).

On the way back down the mountain, the Amflow PL puts in a good showing too. The angles are “enduro-ready”, although you do feel a little bit more “on top of the bike” compared to a full-fledged enduro or gravity machine. That does give the Amflow a good pep in the step though, and it is as happy pumping and flowing through a flatter trail as it is taking on more serious terrain. The suspension is smooth, although not THE most comfortable and forgiving we’ve ever ridden. It can sometimes hang up a little bit more than you’d expect, and it can feel a little unforgiving in high-speed chatter, but all in all its on-trail manners are congruent with the travel numbers and the build.

The frame seems to be quite sturdy, and the bike does not suffer from any unwanted flex. You can ride it hard, as the progressive rear linkage will be more than up for the task of helping you set the ship back down on earth after you get it airborne. The front-end is a little bit on the low side, especially since Amflow specs a handlebar with limited rise, but that’s something you can take care of quite easily if you want a little bit more bike “in front of you”. As stated previously, you could run a 170 mm fork, although we think the way the bike ships matches the overall frame characteristics quite well. It’s not the first e-MTB we’d think of if you’re riding big jump trails and steep, technical terrain on the daily, although it will let a skilled rider do all those things as well.

The bike is well mannered in the air, without any surprising quirks to potentially throw you off your game (we did end up slowing down the rebound a fair bit out back, as we found that the bike would sometimes kick a bit when loaded into compressions). The extra weight of an e-bike is always a bonus for stability and suspension performance, the same is true once you’re in the air – the low center of mass really calms the bike down.

So who is the Amflow PL for? We’d say that a very large group of regular e-MTB riders should be very excited about this new bike and motor system. If your idea of MTB fun is taking on big rides with rewarding descents, you’ve come to the right place. If you want to win drag races against any other e-MTBs, or you want to blast up your favorite access road as fast as possible for your after-work ride, again, this is the one you want. Not to say that other full-power e-bikes are that far behind, because they are not, but the Avinox does have a little extra punch and it quickly becomes the new norm once you’ve got a few rides in. Having this kind of power in a 20-kg (~45-lbs) package is quite remarkable.

Are there any drawbacks? Sure, a few little points could be improved upon. The stock tires are not soft enough, we’d definitely replace the MaxxTerra compound with something grippier for the front if this was our bike. The chain ring is exposed under the motor area, and it could easily end up falling victim to less than impressive line choices and technique when trying to climb a rockgarden, for example. All that power could also end up causing premature drive train wear and tear no doubt, but that is also up to you – you don’t have to bang through gears like a rally driver late for work, although it’s quite satisfying to do as well. The software on the bike is good, and the app is easy to use, but the anti-theft feature is a bit buggy and we often found ourselves with the alarm going off as we drove away with the bike on the car. The app is supposed to stay open and prevent this from happening automatically when in range, but we found it to be unreliable in this scenario. Still, it’s nice to have a solid feature like this to help deter thieves. As previously mentioned, the front end is a bit low and we think Amflow could ship this kind of bike with a taller rise handlebar. The stock grips are also not very comfortable. A final point concerns the water bottle – due to limited available space, you’ll need an adjustable bottle cage that can be slid down on the mounts towards the bottom, as well as a slightly smaller bottle. Our regular setup didn’t fit under the shock.

Build Kit Report

Suspension

The Fox Factory suspension featured on our test bike performed flawlessly during our month of riding, providing nothing less than exemplary levels of compliance and support. The rear suspension is a little bit on the chattery side, whether that’s down to the shock tune or the layout (probably a combination of both) is hard to say.

Brakes

The Magura MT7s provide enough stopping power and modulation to make riding the bike a pleasure, although they are down on power compared to something like a SRAM Maven or Hope Tech 4. All in all, a choice that still makes sense for the intended use case a lot of riders will have in mind for this bike.

Wheels and Tires

The MaxxTerra compound is a little bit on the sketchy side for a bike as capable as this one. The product manager probably wanted to favor outright rolling speed and range, but with such a powerful motor system doing the heavy lifting for you, there is no reason not to enjoy better levels of tire grip, especially up front. The 28-spoke carbon wheels have held up well to a few sideways landings so far, and they certainly seem tough enough to deal with fairly spirited riding. They are not the most compliant wheels ever, but they are far from skittish and will hold the lines you ask them to.

Drivetrain

SRAM’s T-Type Transmission drivetrain is a great choice on this high-level build. It shifts really well under power and is easy and intuitive to manipulate. It connects with the bike, which enables Amflow to provide the “SmoothShift” function – where the motor cuts out power momentarily each time you shift to minimize drivetrain wear and tear. The derailleur is also powered via cable from the bike’ main battery which means one less thing to forget to charge.

Finishing Kit

The cranks are short (160 mm), which is great on an e-MTB. The handlebars are a bit on the low side, but feature good angles otherwise. The grips are a bit small and a bit too harsh for our liking. The dropper post does a good job, although the return speed is a bit on the slow side. The saddle is comfortable, although this is of course subject to personal anatomy and preferences.

What’s The Bottom Line?

The Amflow PL has been one of the most hyped-up e-MTBs over the past year, because of the impressive power and torque numbers put out by the Avinox motor and battery system. After a month on the trail we can confirm that the performance lives up to expectations, and we’ve been won over by both the power on tap as well as the sophistication with which the bike delivers said power. Packing 1000 watts and 800 watt hours into a 20-kg package makes it all the more impressive, and should strike fear not only into the hearts of every other full-power bike on the market but a fair number of so-called “SL” e-MTBs as well. The bike is well suited to a wide variety of riding conditions and trail types, although it stops short of the “full enduro” experience. Novice and intermediary riders will be able to ease into riding the Amflow and progress together on mellower trails, while more skilled riders will be able to tackle nearly any kind of terrain. We don’t have enough time on the trail yet to deliver any kind of final longevity verdict, but after a month of heavy use, we’ve not seen any deterioration whether in the motor system or the bike itself. For its first entry into the e-MTB space, Amflow has delivered a well-rounded bike which benefits from an exceptional motor system.

More information at: www.amflowbikes.com.

View key specs, compare e-bikes, and review all the new Amflow PL models in the Vital MTB Product Guide.

About The Reviewers

Johan Hjord - Age: 52 // Years Riding MTB: 20 // Weight: 190-pounds (87 kg) // Height: 6'0" (1.84m)

Johan loves bikes, which strangely doesn’t make him any better at riding them. After many years spent practicing falling off cliffs with his snowboard, he took up mountain biking in 2005. Ever since, he’s mostly been riding bikes with too much suspension travel to cover up his many flaws as a rider. His 200-pound body weight coupled with unique skill for poor line choice and clumsy landings make him an expert on durability - if parts survive Johan, they’re pretty much okay for anybody. Johan rides flat pedals with a riding style that he describes as "none" (when in actuality he rips!). Having found most trail features to be not to his liking, Johan uses much of his spare time building his own. Johan’s other accomplishments include surviving this far and helping keep the Vital Media Machine’s stoke dial firmly on 11.

Nils Hjord – Age: 21 // Years Riding MTB: 13 // Height: 5’9” (1m80) // Weight: 185-pounds (84-kg)

Always committed to having fun on his bike, Nils likes to keep his wheels in the air almost as much as on the ground. Although he enjoys going fast and is no stranger to burping his tires off the rim, he has dedicated most of his riding time to mastering manuals and making his tabletops flatter – but that doesn’t mean he can’t put the hurt on his wheels through a high-speed rockgarden too, when needed. Good thing his dad is a full-time Vital staffer with access to lots of bike parts that need testing!

Photos by Johan Hjord and Shawn Spomer