In the market for an e-bike that doesn’t look like an e-bike? Want to make your day-to-day rides a little more effortless, or simply want an alternative transport method or to replace a second car in your household? The Voya e+ 3 could be the perfect fit for you. Read on for our thoughts on the latest hub drive city e-bike from the lifestyle-inspired offshoot of the world’s largest bicycle manufacturer, Momentum.
At a Glance
Who’s It For?: Anyone in the market for an assisted ride that thrives in the urban environment, looks like a regular bike and doesn’t break the bank.
What’s It Cost?: RRP $3,199*
What We Liked: Class-leading hub-drive drive unit, comfortable geometry, excellent specification and value for money.
What We Didn’t:No belt drive option, BYO lights, Battery life could be better, the fact we had to give it back.
Riding the Momentum
Before getting stuck into the bike itself, first a little about the brand. Momentum is an offshoot of industry titans Giant Bicycles and is a home for the group's lifestyle inspired commuter and leisure bikes. Covering both analogue and electrically assisted options, the Momentum product line-up emphasises comfort, efficiency, quality and value for money, with every bike in the range priced at under AU$4,000*.
The 2022 product range makes use of the group’s ALUXX aluminium for their frame construction and in house componentry, which as anyone that ridden aluminium framed, Giant or Liv product in the last ten years can attest to, is a good thing.
Designed for Urban Life
Released in early 2022 and touted as the lightest e-bike in the Giant groups' leisure stable to date, the Voya e+ 3 is offered in just one iteration for the local market and carries an RRP of $3,199*. The Voya uses the Giant groups’ ALUXX-grade aluminium for the frame and fork, while Tektro provides powerful hydraulic disc brakes gripping 160mm rotors front and rear. Shimano provides an Altus/Alivio mix 9-speed shift kit for our test unit.
Moving to the drive system and the Voya makes use of an all-new integrated 250Wh battery system co-developed with Panasonic. Momentum claims the EnergyPak 250 is good for up to 70km of assisted riding.
Powering the Voya e+ is an all-new hub drive motor developed by Giant dubbed the SyncDrive Move. With 250w and 20Nm of assistance on offer and weighing in at just 1.7kg, the drive unit comes in at under half the weight of many of its mid-drive competitors from the likes of Bosch and Shimano.
The Voya e+ 3 has a claimed weight of 18kg and is available right now across three sizes; Small, Medium (Tested), and Large. A range that should suit riders ranging from 160-200cm. Contact your nearest Bike Store for local availability.
An Energized Ride
Having enjoyed the refined simplicity of mid-drive e-bikes within the Giant group’s stable on past reviews, we were keen to throw a leg over the Voya and sample the first foray into hub drive e-bikes for the world’s largest bike manufacturer. First impressions of the bike were strong; the Asphalt Green colourway offered down under is an absolute winner in our books, leading to an aesthetic that makes you second guess the thing is electrically assisted in the first place.
The mechanical components supplied by Shimano and Tektro were flawless during our review period and are well suited to the bike's intended usage. Touchpoints on the Voya are all in-house offerings (except for the saddle) and are finished in a tan colour that compliments the deep paint scheme. Selle Royal offers the saddle and is aimed at an upright to athletic riding position, which suits the bike's geometry well. I found it to be supremely comfortable; as a matter of fact, I’d go as far to say it’s the most comfortable commuter saddle I've perched on in the last few years.
Speaking of geometry, the Voya e+ leans towards the hybrid end of the spectrum, blending speed and comfort. Its generous top tube is offset by a steeper 72º headtube angle and a wheelbase around 6cm shorter than its key competitors, such as the Specialized Turbo Vado SL. Much like the Vado SL, the Voya, with its semi-athletic position and step head angle, had a supremely maneuverable ride and was easy to handle at low speeds. At the same time, the increased weight from the drive unit and battery system provided a nice mix of stability and comfort when surpassing the assisted speed limit of 25kph.
Despite being sceptical of the decision to outfit the bike with a hub-driven motor, I was pleasantly surprised by the unit's performance. It’s by far the most refined hub-drive unit I’ve ridden, offering a linear power delivery that rivals that shown by mid-drive units. While there is still a slight delay in the initial power delivery when setting off from a complete stop, the unit doesn’t suffer from an overcorrected surge in assistance like most over hub-drive motors on the market. Instead, it feels like a natural addition to the power being output by your legs rather than replacing it.
On the performance of the drive unit, much like the class-leading lightweight SL 1.1 mid-drive unit found in the Specialized Turbo Vado SL, the SyncDrive Move motor offered here feels much more responsive than its sedate figures suggest. With 250 watts and 25Nm of torque on offer, combined with the 18kg total weight of the bike, there’s an ample amount of assistance to tackle just about any terrain you’re likely to encounter in the urban landscape. The motor is controlled by a frame integrated LED display and power mode setting. While the lack of a display may be a turn off for some potential buyers, the unit is easy to use. Hit the power button to turn it on, tap the power button to cycle through the ECO, Adaptive and Turbo modes and hold the power button to turn it off. While some may see the lack of a display as a detractor, the bike is compatible with ANT+ wireless displays. As previously mentioned, we liked the minimalist aesthetic, so we were unphased by this.
Fuelling the SyncDrive Move is an all-new EnergyPak 250Wh battery semi-permanently integrated into the bike's downtube. The battery itself took around 3 hours to fully charge from dead flat, with the access port and associated charger feeling rugged and likely to outlast the battery's overall life. While the smaller battery unit does lead to a sleeker aesthetic, the trade-off here is battery life. Despite being able to eke out 50-55km of range riding purely in ECO mode on my rolling commute to the train station and around the inner suburbs of Melbourne, we were unable to mirror the claimed 70km touted by Momentum. With the range falling to around 35km when using the bike in adaptive mode, while this is in line with other hub-driven bikes we’ve previously tested, we’d like to see a slightly larger battery unit fitted to future iterations of the bike.
While the below aren’t deal-breakers, they’d make for nice additions to future iterations of the Voya e+. The bike ships locally without racks, fenders or any integrated lighting packages. I’ve been critical in the past of integrated lighting packages feeling like an afterthought on e-bikes in the past (which they largely are), so I don’t see this as much of a loss; however, while rack and fender options are set to be available directly from Momentum (pricing TBA), it’s worth setting aside a little coin for to enhance the versatility of the bike. We’d like to see a fully loaded option offered with the full complement of fenders and racks included in the future. While we’re dreaming, we can’t help but feel like this frame would suit a belt drive system perfectly, while this would be unlikely due to the need for an internally geared hub or pinion style gearbox between the cranks, the rear-hub drive unit and added costs associated with such an offering make these pipedreams unlikely.
Final Thoughts
It’s no secret that we’re fans of e-bikes here at BikeExchange. After all, anything that encourages more people to get mobile and active, all while saving a short trip in a car, is something to be celebrated. While the market is seemingly teeming with affordable electrically assisted options, the Voya e+ 3 reviewed here is easily one of the most refined, accessible and well-rounded bikes at its price point. Simply put, it competes with bikes costing twice as much and is well worth spending the extra couple hundred dollars to step up from a white label option occupying the same price range, in our honest opinion. So if you’re looking for a bike to use for your day-to-day, assisted or not, this is one ride seriously worth adding to your garage and your life.
Prices accurate at the time of publishing. Our tester stands at 186cm and tested a Size Medium.
Looking for your own easy-riding steed and don’t know where to start or simply want to know what your money can get you? Check out our in-depth E-Bike Buyer’s Guide for all you need to know.
