Benno Bikes is a player in the premium commuter e-bike segment with a specific niche: utility. The brand prides itself in releasing some of the best utility-focused electric bicycles under a category it calls etility, which is a portmanteau of the words Electric and Utility. The brand’s selection of electric bicycles may look a bit odd at first glance, but they’re designed specifically to carry as much stuff as possible.
Take, for instance, the Boost 10D, a rather strange looking electric bicycle that claims to offer the agility and ease of use of a standard electric bike, but with the added utility of a cargo electric bike. However, the Boost 10D doesn’t just claim to be able to haul your stuff, it claims much more than that by offering you three times the carrying capacity of your standard e-bike. How does it do that? Well, for starters, it packs a simple yet effective 6061 aluminum alloy frame and a long wheelbase providing as much rigidity and stability as possible.
This results in an electric bicycle that can haul up to 200 kilograms of rider plus cargo, while tipping the scales at a rather manageable 30 kilograms. This means that you could just as easily use the Boost 10D as a regular old e-bike without any of the cargo. That being said, Benno includes the rear rack as standard, but tons of other optional luggage options are compatible for the Boost, further boosting its overall utility.
Moving on to the performance side of things, the Benno Boost 10D is packing a Bosch mid-drive electric motor with 250 watts and 65 Nm of torque on tap. Meanwhile, there are two battery options to choose from, with the base model packing a 400-Wh battery pack, and more premium models rocking a bigger 500-Wh unit. The former claims to offer range figures of around 25 to 75 miles, while the latter offers 30 to 80 miles of range on a single charge. A dual battery option is available, too, and can bump that distance up to 50 to 150 miles, depending on riding conditions.
Making for much easier operation is the integration of the Bosch Purion On-Board computer, which apart from displaying pertinent ride information, also offers you five riding modes to tailor the electric motor’s output to your preferences. Other hardware include 24 inch wheels with dual-purpose rubber, and a 10-speed Shimano drivetrain to make pedalling much easier.
With all this technology on display, the Boost 10D is undeniably a premium offering in the rapidly growing utility-focused e-bike segment, and its price tag is proof of this. Depending on how you configure it, the Boost can set you back about $5,000, but this price can quickly rise as you add on more accessories.
