Amflow First Steps

It feels like it’s been a long time coming, it was months ago when we first started getting reviews through and the hype has been steaming.
After the wait, it was a relief to get the bikes in and get going on them.

My first impression of the bike the guys brought with them was mind-blowing. It’s my favourite line and I use it too much but it makes the Bosch and Shimano motors feel like Flintstone cars. The pickup on the motor is instant, smooth and feels like a sports car.
That’s the motor, the screen is great, easy to use and the app has all the standard features. A great plus compared to the competition is the fact that you can very easily update and change things on the system without faffing around too much.

To be frank, I had a few reservations about the frame, it is after all an electronics brand, not a tried and tested race bike like most bike that have seen this much development. The motor and electronics could have been the greatest thing in the universe but if the bike was terrible I’d be less interested.
You can find the Amflow PL Carbon here and the Amflow PL Carbon Pro here. It’s a lightweight trail bike.
The bike has 150mm of rear travel facilitated by a Fox Float on the PL carbon and a Fox Float X on the PL carbon pro. If you’ve ridden a 4 bar or a horst link bike before you’ll be used to the feel, it tracks well, brakes well and thanks to the excellent shock has a nice light springy feel. In the world of complicated linkages and separating suspension forces it can seem a little simple but it works.
As a heavier rider, the lightweight bike was noticeable. It does flex a bit but that’s only really noticeable when really pushing it and I don’t have any real reservations about it's longevity. Compared to the Santa Cruz Heckler which we’ve spent a lot of time with it’s definitely not as stiff or burly but it is significantly lighter so you have to take it based on the trade-off.

From a workshop point of view having had a chance to take one apart, I’ve mostly satisfied my curiosity. The cables are easy to change, the motor and battery are simple to remove and the routing is all fairly predictable.
We’ve changed brakes and forks and drivetrains on our builds and it’s a pleasantly simple affair. The cable guide bolts are on the bottle cage bosses with another up the frame. Just loosen them off a turn and the cables move freely. No cable ties to cut and no weird snagging that you see in many frames.
It’s simplistic but that’s definitely to its credit.

A few positives and a few negatives.

Aviniox setup: Easy doesn’t cover it, you download the app, make an account, turn on the bike and scan the QR code. It syncs to your account, activates the bike and updates the system.
It’s worth noting that while you can ride it without activating it, it’ll only do a few miles before the system locks unless you do it.
Controls and ergonomics: Wireless controllers on the bars. It’s not unusual these days but a welcome addition. I’m not a fan of the wired units and the endless tiny cables. The buttons feel well-built and we haven’t managed to brake one yet.
Integration: The bike plugs in well with the Sram components, the PL Carbon Pro comes with Sram Transmission, the derailleur is powered by the battery on the bike and the system pairs with the screen showing you which gear you’re in. Not something you’d often want to look at but it’s a cool feature.
The app works with other platforms such as Strava so you can use the onboard GPS to record your hill climb records.
Launch and stock availability: So far so good, they had bikes in the country when they said they would and the stock, though over a set of drops every couple of weeks. There’s been plenty of stock. What we didn’t expect was that all of them would sell before we even had them in the building. They’ve clearly nailed the marketing with that one.
Motor drag: We had a few reports in the first week of the motor feeling quite draggy when you’ve got the system powered off or past the limiter. We did a bit of investigating and it’s due to the tight seals on the spindle. Amflow suggests after around 20-30 miles they’ll loosen up. Certainly, our demo bikes have done so.
This is designed to keep the IP rating high and keep water out, as we’re in the winter, I think I’d rather have that!
Specs and parts: The named brand parts are your normal high-quality and super reliable staples. Fox suspension, Sram drivetrain, Maxxis tyres and Magura Brakes. The wheel bars, stem, grips and cranks are all Amflow branded. Nothing super fancy but functional and looks great.
Seatpost adjustment: Rather than the push/pull cable system found on most bikes, the Amflow has a guide clamped to the bottom of the downtube, this can make the seat post a bit tricky to adjust if you’re not clued up. We found that by loosening the mounting bolts a turn, the cable can move nice and freely to enable the adjustment. Handy for our demo as the XL only came with a 175mm post.
Amflow makes a whole set of user guide videos which explain that well.
Shock considerations: The bike comes with a super progressive leverage curve which makes the bike really poppy with the Fox Float X shock. If you want a more burly bike that floats over terrain we’d likely want to use a large air can shock like the Rockshox Vivid air or the Fox Float X2. Amflow say it’s compatible with a coil shock which would be our preference but due to the yoke design on the suspension, you won’t be able to use a Fox shock. Just ones designed to be used on that style of linkage with a longer yoke.
If you want to read up on it, you can find the Fox Suspension tech doc HERE
Amflow recommend these shocks.
- Ohlins TTX22m.2
- 2023 Super Deluxe Coil and Deluxe Coil
- X-FUSION H3C
- Formula MOD (yoke mount version)
You can also up the travel to 170mm on the front if you’re hitting bigger terrain.
Sim Cards: Not all networks are supported, we’ll update the article as we go but at the moment we’d go for Three Mobile.
Stems: If you've bought one of our bikes you might have noticed a spec change, Amflow had an issue with the first batch causing them to rotate even under significant tightening. We made the decision to swap out any that weren't up to the task, hopefully they'll get that sorted out with the future deliveries. 
Amflow have a huge amount of information on the website, we’d recommend watching all the videos when you first get it so you know what you’re doing.
Click here for a link to the support page

Suggested upgrades

Tubeless: The bikes don't come tubeless out of the box, the rims are taped but you'll need some valves and sealant. We'd go for the Hope Tubeless Valves and Stans Sealant. 
Fork: For the Silver PL carbon, a great upgrade you can make is the fork, we've got some mega deals going on the previous model Fox 36 Factory in orange. If you want to buy one with an upgrade let us know and we can do you a great deal. Fox 36 Float Factory GRIP2 Fork
Front Tyre: An eMTB with this much power doesn't particularly need to worry about drag and efficiency, for the winter months I want a MaxxGrip. We'd go for the Maxxis Assegai Tyre in MaxxGrip or Maxxis High Roller III Tyre.
Grips: The stock grips are a bit thin and hard for my liking, my go to would be the new DMR Deathgrip 2 Race or the Peatys Monarch Grips.