Electric hunting bikes bring so many benefits to the table and they’re gaining the trust of hunters who are looking for a compact yet powerful way to move stealthily and quickly. However, you might spot an all wheel drive electric bike.
But what is an all-wheel-drive eBike and does it offer an advantage over regular eBikes?
If these are just some of the questions you have right now – you’re in the right place. Why?
Down below, we won’t only review one of the most valuable AWD hunting eBikes on the market, but we will also let you know more about this fairly new system and how it works.
Lastly, we’ll help you know exactly what to look out for so if the Rambo Megatron eBike we reviewed in this post isn’t good enough of an option for you – you will have the knowledge and the confidence to make the choice yourself!
One Wheel Drive VS All Wheel Drive
So far we have seen one-wheel drive electric bikes. You had the ability to choose things such as:
- Mid-drive motor or rear-hub motor
- Power-assisted eBike or throttle-powered eBike
We wrote an in-depth guide that explains everything you need to know about these options. It’s clear that each option has advantages and disadvantages, but is this the case with all-wheel drive eBikes?
That’s certainly not the case with all-wheel-drive electric bikes, and here’s why.
All-wheel-drive electric bikes come with two motors, one is placed in the hub of the front wheel and the second motor is placed in the hub of the rear wheel.
Therefore, you won’t have a choice of a motor placement/type, but you’ll have new advantages.
Since both motors are placed in the wheel hubs, this increases the stability and removes excess weight in the middle of the eBike.
With power on both wheels, you will have more traction, better stability, and most importantly, more power on both wheels!
And since almost all hunting eBikes come with great wide tires such as Maxxis Minion super-wide tires, you’ll love having the extra power on both wheels.
This will help you feel more stable riding the eBike in unstable terrain, you won’t have to worry about your rear wheel sliding, or one of the wheels locking during braking which could lead to sliding.
Most AWD eBikes also come fitted with both PAS and throttle options so AWD eBikes really resemble dirt bikes in some way. If you’re looking for having much more fun than just getting from A to B – keep on reading as we have the perfect eBike for you!
What Range Can You Expect From Dual Motor eBike?
If you have any experience with electric bikes and you came across the dual motor option – we can guess the first thought you had.
Don’t dual-motor eBike consumes more power which results in less range?
That is right. But of course, some of the best hunting eBike manufacturers took this into consideration when they were producing some of their best eBikes.
With that being said, almost all quality AWD hunting eBikes also come with a dual battery pack.
This slightly increases the weight of an eBike, but this isn’t as important as the weight is well-distributed thanks to the dual motors. This only improves the stability and traction of an eBike which is another great advantage of AWD eBikes.
We would like to see a slight increase in maximum weight capacity too, but the standard 300 lbs capacity is more than enough for most hunters.
Best All Wheel Drive Electric Bike Review
Even though there aren’t that many all-wheel-drive eBikes on the market so far, the choice was still pretty hard.
We decided to go with a choice that is unmistakenly one of the best options at the market right now – so keep on reading to learn more about Rambo Megatron!
Rambo’s Durability Standard
If Rambo’s name wasn’t written all over the Megatron eBike, we’d still be able to tell that this is a Rambo eBike just by paying attention to the quality.
Megatron eBike is a perfect example of Rambo’s quality & durability standard. This eBike is based on a durable aluminum alloy frame that doesn’t drastically increase the weight of the eBike.
With the two motors and two batteries, this ultimate hunting eBike sets a new standard for the hunting eBike industry.
If you think you had all the freedom with a single-drive hunting eBike, wait until you take this all-wheel-drive eBike and discover paths you still haven’t.
The top speed is slightly higher (about 30 mph), but the two biggest advantages come in the range and the power Megatron eBike can produce.
We also noticed that Rambo took some of the components to another level by introducing something we couldn’t be seen on their single-wheel drive eBikes.
Two Hub Motors
Megatron eBike is classified as a 1000 watt eBike, but you shouldn’t forget that this eBike comes with two motors. This doubles the power and therefore, you get to unleash 2000 watts of power (up to 3000 watts at peak performance) on both wheels.
Rambo went with the quality forward and introduced two Bafang 1000W hub motors which are wisely placed in the front and rear wheel hubs.
They’re also well connected which allowed Rambo to introduce a completely new feature we weren’t expecting. With the compact control buttons, riders now get the chance to choose which motor they’d like to engage.
Therefore, you can choose to only use a rear-wheel motor, front-wheel motor, or go all out and use both motors at the same time.
You won’t ever have to worry about the path you’re taking as you’ll have more power than needed to climb steep and rocky hills, ride in deep snow, or be quick on sandy beaches. If you’d like to save energy and you don’t need the power of both wheels, you’ll further extend the range of an eBike.
Two Low-Sit Batteries
Not only Megatron comes with two batteries that extend the range, but they’re also wisely placed. This is something we never saw coming from Rambo, and yet they outdid themselves with this technology.
Since the motors are placed in the wheel hubs, this left Rambo with plenty of space to integrate the batteries. The low-sit approach places the batteries lower in the bike frame than standard batteries.
This puts the battery weight closer to the ground which results in better stability, especially considering that the weight is equally distributed throughout the eBike.
Rambo went with one of the best lithium-ion batteries used for electric bikes which is the Samsung 48V 17Ah.
These two batteries in combination with two motors allow a range of up to 80 miles on a single charge! This is the biggest range ever offered for any electric bike. Of course, you have to consider the weather and other elements that might affect the battery.
Also, the battery range will depend on how often do you use both motors and how much power you get out of the eBike on average.
But knowing that you can cover up to 80 miles on a single charge (without having to strictly use only one motor) is a pretty great thing to know. This means that you might get up to 100 miles if you really pay attention to the range.
Superb Comfort
This eBike is faster, stronger, more durable, and can go further – but this doesn’t mean that you will have to sacrifice your comfort.
In fact, Megatron is very well designed since the weight is well distributed and batteries are placed lower than usual which allows you to ride this eBike without a single thing to worry about.
With power on both wheels, you won’t have to worry about the rear slipping or losing control or balance when you hit the rough patch.
Rambo Megatron is also equipped with a front GT MRK air suspension and super comfortable Velo handlebar grip that will make this powerful eBike fun.
High-End Components
Other than two Bafang motors and two Samsung batteries, you’ll benefit from a high-end full-color display. This display will keep you up to date with the most important information such as the range, distance covered, speed, and other bike-computer settings.
When you achieve high speeds or you enjoy a super-fun downhill ride, 4 Piston Tektro brakes will provide great stopping power at all times, no matter the surface you’re riding on.
But one of probably the best high-end components featured on Megatron is the custom-made Rambo 36T narrow-wide chain ring. This chain is made to provide better resistance, be less prone to damage or failure while taking a higher level of stress.
Rambo even paid attention to little details such as saddle selection and handlebars. The seat is the Selle Royal while handlebars are 7Romax 770mm that provides great maneuverability at both slow and high speeds.
Of course, we shouldn’t forget the Maxxis Minion tires that are 4.8″ wide which provides great grip and stability on any terrain type.
Free Accessories Included
Just like any Rambo eBike purchase from eBikeGeneration, you will get free accessories that will make up most of what you might need to be really prepared for your hunt.
This includes the official Rambo R150 rear rack, R146 rear fender, and R147 front fender.
Therefore, you might only need a Rambo cargo trailer to be fully ready for your hunt if you plan on recovering your game with the help of Megatron.
Also worth mentioning is that Megatron is built on a medium frame size (19.7″) which makes the standover height just slightly over 31″.
However, we highly recommend checking out other official Rambo eBike accessories. They even feature replacement batteries that can further extend your range. Even though one of the batteries is integrated into the frame, the other one is not so you can easily swap it out when you drain it out.
How Much Should You Spend on an All Wheel Drive Electric Bike?
Electric bikes aren’t the cheapest investment you will be making. However, the greatest thing about all-wheel-drive electric bikes is that they’re not double the price of regular electric bikes.
Considering that AWD eBikes feature two motors, two batteries, and other components of a higher standard – Megatron is very reasonably priced.
Also, considering that Megatron comes from one of the best hunting eBike manufacturers, Megatron is a deal and it’s no wonder that it’s often out of stock as the demand is high.
If you find a great eBike retailer such as eBikeGeneration, you will be able to get a discount or even finance your eBike to pay monthly.
For example, if you decide to use the eBikeGeneration’s no-interest financing plan, you could get Rambo Megatron for only $181/month with no interest at all. This makes it a great decision even if you had the budget ready as you can use the eBike and have it pay itself off in the meantime.
We wrote a full guide on how to finance your electric bike so we highly recommend you read that. Or you can visit eBikeGeneration directly and find the latest offers they have available.
At the time of writing, there’s a 7% discount at eBikeGeneration which might not seem a lot at first, but it’s actually $500 off.
Click Here for the Price of Rambo Megatron!
Conclusion
Finding an all wheel drive electric bike isn’t easy, but many of them are still being developed and are in production.
Rambo was one of the first eBike manufacturers that took the advantage of the technology to create one of the most powerful hunting eBikes on the market.
Considering the quality, new features, use of high-end components, and the extended range Megatron can achieve, we believe that this all-wheel-drive eBike is definitely worth the price.
The value is doubled, if not tripled in comparison to regular electric bikes and that’s great for two reasons. One-wheel-drive eBikes might become more affordable to the most average hunters, while all-wheel-drive eBikes are becoming the new advanced standard for most demanding riders.
What are your thoughts? What do you like the most about Megatron eBike and why?
