The Eskute Voyager Pro would be a great choice if you want the performance benefits of a mid-drive – in the form of excellent hill climbing ability and impressive power consumption – without having to pay in the region of £2000 to £3000 which is the more usual price for a mid-drive on the UK market.
We were surprised how capable a hill climber it was, even off-road and how able it was on technical trails – whilst not in the same league as, say, a Bosch Performance-powered e-mtb it was certainly superior to every hub motor e-mtb or trail style e-bike without an independent throttle that we have tried (regular readers will know throttle only machines are not classed as e-bikes in the UK).
Who would the Voyager Pro suit? Perhaps ‘adventurous off-road beginner’ would be an ideal rider profile description. If you fancy the idea of trying off-road riding with some slightly technical and harder tracks mixed in with forestry tracks and the like but don’t feel ready to splash out thousands on a premium off-road machine then this e-bike sits pretty much in a niche of its own.
We are not talking a bike capable of extreme adrenaline inducing descents and vertiginous climbs with big rock steps, which much pricier e-mtbs may be made for, rather an e-bike that will allow you to dip a toe into trail conditions that are less perfect than smoothish fire roads and canal towpaths, which is the natural territory of many hub-motored e-mtbs; the responsive mid-drive and reassuring hydraulic disk brakes give you the performance potential to make that small step up that might lead on to bigger and more expensive things one day…
Having said all this the Voyager Pro would also make a great commuter or leisure e-bike if fitted with a rack, especially if you have lengthy unsurfaced tracks you want to cover on a regular basis – the combination of large battery and efficient motor give that impressive range whilst the comfortable ride quality also lends itself to longer days in the saddle.
Whilst there appears to be the occasional third party retailer of Eskute e-bikes, the brand is, by and large, a direct to consumer set up, with a Chinese HQ, an assembly plant in Poland and a UK warehouse, but no dealer network in the UK. In other words you buy direct from the manufacturer and get any spares or replacement parts directly from them too.
‘Happy Riding, make sure to let us know if you have any questions down in our comments section or if you think we left anything out in this review of the Eskute Voyager Pro.
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