We have tried them and immediately ordered two but they will not be with us until June as the order book seems to be filling up fast.
My main point of comparison is my Superdelite Rohloff. I love my Superdelite but there is no denying the improvement to fit and finish of the Delite 5 Pinion. The mudguards are so much more solid and completely free of rattles. The Fox front and rear suspension may not be quite as compliant as on my SD, but I seem to recall that when I chose the GX option on my Superdelite I also had the option of upgrading further the Fox, which naturally I did. Now that Fox is standard I wonder if the travel or quality is different. Of course it may just have been set firmer than I need but it did not seem to have the magic carpet ride of my current bike.
But the real reason you are asking is the Pinion MGU. I found the shifting to be a little faster and more positive than the Rohloff. The actuators seemed louder but that added to the sense of a strong hand shifting the ratios. The shifter paddles have a perfect action with short throw and pleasing click. The default is to have change up closest to your body and down further away. All my other (non-reise and Muller) bikes have a derailleur and have the opposite set up so I was constantly shifting the wrong way. I finally just put the bike in automatic. This mode worked well, it probably waited about five seconds of lower cadence or harder pushing before it changed down. This was probably about right for road cycling, and I suspect I would not use automatic at all off road.
I have not compared the specs but in my test the torque output of the Pinion seemed about the same as my Bosch Performance. When I tried peddling without the motor on at all I was pleased how little drag there was on the pedals. In fact I would rank it the best out of all the e-bikes I have owned to date.
I am glad to see the back of the Magura brakes, the fitted TRP were strong and very well modulated. All my magura brakes suffer from leaks and failing seals so I am hopeful for the revised system.
I get on well with the Kiox on my Superdelite but the new Comfort display is significantly better. I like the way it gives you proper notification of upcoming turns, better situational awareness and better readability.
Of course I would have preferred more than 800Wh of energy, but this bike will be replacing a Haibike with a 500Wh battery so I still hope to see a range improvement.
This bike is a real step forwards. After 6 Bosch powered e-bikes I was so nervous about moving away from their natural feeling torque sensing. I was delighted to experience a system that was no less refined as the Bosch in a package that I hope will prove more reliable.
