The Roadmachine AMP switches to a TQ HPR50 motor for a quieter life
The Roadmachine 01 AMP Two is the electric road bike in BMC’s revamped endurance bike range, with 38mm tyre clearance and a newly adopted TQ HPR50 motor, chosen for its light weight and quiet operation.
BMC updated its Roadmachine range in April, with the new bikes now sporting clearance for voluminous 40mm tyres, in addition to integrated down tube storage.
BMC concurrently released its Roadmachine AMP electric road bike platform. While it misses out on some of the bells and whistles of its non-assisted siblings, and its clearance is a smidge tighter at 38mm, there are plenty of interesting details afoot, particularly in the frame design.
Goodbye Mahle, hello TQ
BMC used Mahle’s X20 hub-based motor on its outgoing Roadmachine AMP, but the brand says it has made the switch to TQ because the motors are quieter.
The Roadmachine AMP uses the TQ HPR50 electric bike motor, which provides 50Nm of torque and is claimed to be one of the lightest, quietest and most compact systems on the market.
The lower torque is also claimed to be more natural to ride than more powerful motors. We’ve found that to be the case with the TQ-equipped bikes we’ve reviewed so far, including the Trek Fuel EXe and the Scott Lumen eRIDE.
A display is integrated into the top tube, where you can cycle through the various motor modes and monitor battery life.
A neat feature on the Roadmachine 01 AMP is there aren’t any ancillary buttons awkwardly integrated into the shifter, as there are on the Trek Domane+ for example. This gives the cockpit area a much cleaner appearance.
The new electric road bike’s battery is in its down tube. This means you miss out on the down tube storage and Aerocore bottle cages found on its non-electric equivalents.
Neat frame details
The Roadmachine 01 AMP frame uses BMC’s top-flight Premium Carbon, with the rear end heavily revised to increase compliance.
The Stealth Dropouts hide the thru-axle insert in a captive nut, which is bonded in the dropout. The design looks seriously clean and is claimed to improve aerodynamics.
The tyre clearance on the Roadmachine AMP is slightly less generous than the non-assisted Roadmachine’s at 38mm. According to BMC, this is because of shifting design trends between the non-assisted and electric variants’ development timelines.
The electric Roadmachine has the same D-shaped carbon seatpost as the non-assisted version. The same post is found on the brand’s URS and Kaius gravel bikes. It’s claimed to weigh a scant 179g.
Tucked behind the seatpost is a removable 20-lumen StVZO USB-chargeable rear light. The light fits snugly into its own recess and has a claimed 90-minute run time.
The front end integrates the bike’s hydraulic hoses and Di2 wires. These run alongside the proprietary fork with flat steerer faces before passing through the upper headset bearing.
On this particular bike, you get the ICS 2 stem with an aluminium handlebar rather than the fancy ICS Carbon Evo integrated cockpit found on the Roadmachine 01 Two.
A mid-tier spec for a high price
The Roadmachine 01 AMP Two is one of four bikes in the Roadmachine 01 AMP range, retailing for a not-insubstantial €7,999 / $7,999.
The Roadmachine 01 AMP One above it will set you back €8,999 / $8,999 and steps up to a Shimano Ultegra Di2 R8170 groupset. A gravel-flavoured BMC Roadmachine 01 AMP X with SRAM Force AXS has the same price.
Finally, there’s the Roadmachine 01 AMP Three, which also retails for €7,999 / $7,999, but swaps to a Shimano 105 Di2 groupset.
The Roadmachine 01 AMP Two is specced with a Shimano GRX Di2 RX-815 groupset. BMC pairs a relatively wide-ranging 11-34t cassette with a Rotor eVegast 48/31t crankset.
The rolling stock comes in the form of BMC’s own CRD-400 SL wheels. The 40mm-deep carbon rims sport an on-trend 23mm internal rim width. BMC claims the front wheel weighs 710g and the rear 867g.
The Pirelli Cinturato Velo TLR tyres are set up tubeless on the rims. These are all-year tyres in a 32mm width, so should be nice and comfortable on a variety of terrain.
A Fizik Argo Tempo R5 saddle rounds off the build in a 150mm width.