NEW BIKE

Tern Orox R14

£8,100| Half utility cargo bike, half off-road fat bike

Weight 33.8kg (M) Frame 6061-AL Fork Atlas X, butted chromoly steel Gears Rohloff 14-speed hub Brakes 4-piston hydraulic disc, 203mm rotor Wheels Tern Atlas X Motor system Bosch Performance CX, 800 Wh, Bosch Dual Battery pack ready, Bosch Kiox 300 with LED remote Finishing kit Syntace P6 AL7050, 34.9 mm seatpost, Ergon SM E-Mountain Sport saddle, Level Nine 45mm stem and AL-7050 800mm riser bar, Schwalbe Johnny Watts 27.5” x 4” tyres Extras Bell, kickstand, lights, mudguards & more

The Orox just can’t be pigeonholed. It’s designed, say Tern, for adventure and utility, be it personal or commercial (it even has a built-in tow bar!). It comes in two builds: this premium Rohloff-equipped version (the R14, with 29” wheels option) and a Shimano XT-equipped model (the S12) for £5,900.

The long-wheelbase frame hosts a Bosch Performance Line CX mid-motor and has room for twin 800Wh batteries (the second battery is an option). The carrying capacity depends on how you specify the bike: ours came with Tern’s Stow Decks on the rear triangle. These can provide a platform for carrying kit (or for passengers to rest feet on) or help support the massive Cargo Hold 72 panniers, which as the name suggests, can hold 72l of luggage each. That’s a massive 20kg/44lb of load per pannier on the road, or 10kg/22lbs per pannier off-road. At the front, the Trail Rack (a top platform and side rails for panniers) can take a further 25kg/55lb per side on tarmac or 12kg/26lb on dirt. That’s a potential 90kg of load carrying potential right there (the bike has a maximum carrying weight including the rider of a gigantic 210kg/462lb).

Bomb-proof build

The Atlas X70 rims are built to handle serious weight plus the 27.5 x 4-inch Schwalbe Jonny Watts seen here (the frame can take up to 5-inch-wide tyres). Upfront, a Tern Atlas boost hub with disc-cooling fins is also burly, and inside the front thru axle is a hidden Tern tool.

The 14-speed Rohloff rear hub is controlled via a twist shifter and driven by a Gates belt. Up front, the short 45mm stem and wide 800mm riser bar (with sculpted Ergon grips) both come from Level Nine.

This 33.8kg bike, without added racks and panniers, has serious stopping power thanks to Magura’s four-piston disc brakes with huge 203mm rotors.

What a ride!

It came as a huge surprise that the Orox is a blast to ride. The motor provides impressive power and more than enough torque, especially as you can quickly switch through the modes to help you.

The massive tyres give loads of cushioning and roll over anything in their path. Even going uphill, the Orox is impressively dogged, especially on off-road climbs: the neutral ride position allows you to sit in and hammer down on the pedals, working with the power to ascend slippery singletrack or rocky fire roads. The front end feels smooth, stable, and surprisingly light considering you’re turning a very wide tyre. It meant I felt confident riding on trails where this bike shouldn’t belong.

Bosch’s E Flow system allows you to change many of the modes to suit you, and much more. With the Bosch eBike Flow app, you can also record data on rides with the help of your phone’s GPS. The Kiox head unit and remote can also be used to control the integrated lights.

This model with its Rohloff 14-speed hub and belt drive looks great on paper, and should require minimal maintenance, but you have to stop pedalling to allow the complex internal hub gear to shift gears, which breaks up your rhythm when climbing. The powerful Bosch unit also meant I didn’t need all 14 gears.

“I’ve found the Tern Orox a massive amount of fun, though I’m not entirely sure who it’s aimed at”

A bramble thorn gave me a rear-tyre puncture. The bike had been set up with inner tubes even though the tyres and wheels are both tubeless compatible. Even though you can stand the bike on its rear rack, removing the tyre was a two-person job as it was such a tight fit with the innertubes. We’ve told Tern so hopefully dealers will make the Orox tubeless.

The Orox has ample range! I maxed out at 65.9 miles/106km in a mix of off-road and tarmac with 3,881ft/1,183m of climbing in cold conditions. Those rides only used one of the two 800Wh batteries, which means I could in theory get a huge 130+ miles/210+km on it. Cleverly, a frame pack houses the main battery to help shield it from power-sapping cold conditions.

I’ve found the Tern Orox a massive amount of fun, though I’m not entirely sure who it’s aimed at. Tern suggest all-weather family transport; a fisherman looking to get to a pristine fishing spot that’s otherwise tricky to get to; an urbanite looking for a car replacement, or even an adventure tourism company looking for support vehicles for single-track bike tours. It’s now on my wishlist – but in the simpler, cheaper Shimano XT option – as you never know when you might need a bike like this! Warren Rossiter

Photography Russell Burton