E-Bike? Motorbike? The LMX-64 E-Bike’s Smart Tech Combines Both Worlds

ByWilliam Roberson

, Contributor.

The LMX-64 is right at home off the pavement - in fact it's more at home on dirt than on the street.

There are e-bikes on the market in a sort of grey area that treads into electric motorcycle territory, and electric motorcycles that dip close to being glorified e-bikes without pedals. With a few exceptions, most have been studies in compromise instead of standout performance.

Now, French e-bike maker LMX Bikes has taken a novel and surprisingly effective approach to this interesting niche with the $7,499 LMX 64. The company recently sent me a unit for review, and while it is a seemingly complicated piece of riding kit, it is also wildly effective. Here’s the breakdown of this most unusual two-wheeled fun machine.

The mountain bike stance belies the LMX 64's dual-purpose capabilities.

The LMX 64 is technically a bicycle, as it has pedals, a chain drive, and a rear 11-speed SRAM derailleur with ratios including actual granny gears for climbing and downhill free-ride cogs for blasting across open terrain at high speed (or down urban bike lanes). It also looks like a mountain bike, not a motorcycle.

However, it also has a centrally mounted electric motor mated to a self-tensioning carbon fiber belt drive that’s mounted on the opposite side of the rear wheel from the gears. The motor is rated for a Class-3 750 Watts, but making a very tiny physical alteration to the LMX-64 unleashes it’s full 2,500-Watt (3.3 hp) output capabilities. And of course I made the modification, which takes just a few seconds to do. Sorry, can’t say more than that.

Got torque? Lofting the front wheel is very easy on the LMX-64.

The dual-drive system is patented by LMX, and while it sounds impressive on paper, upon seeing this literal Rube Goldberg drive system in person, I had my doubts as to its efficacy as either a mountain bike or a lightweight electric motorbike. How could it do both well? Much riding would be required.

In “e-bike” mode, there are three assist levels up to 20 mph (Class 1), plus a motorcycle-style throttle (Class 2), while in “Race” mode - and with a small modification mentioned previously - the three assist levels can push the LMX-64 to a verified (and out-of-ebike-rating) 31 mph under pedal power and maximum assist, which includes a massive 170nm of torque. About the only other bike I’ve ridden with more torque was the NIU XQi3, which is a light motorcycle (it doesn’t have pedals).

There's a lot happening put back, but the labor is cleanly divided up between gears and belt drive.

Beyond the dual powertrains, the LMX-64 is loaded with high-grade MTB kit, including oversized Formula Cura hydraulic twin-piston disc brakes with 203mm rotors, a long-travel (170mm) adjustable RockShox ZEB fork, and a Rockshox Vivid R2C rear suspension with 180mm of travel. The frame is robust 6061 T-6 aluminum, and big Mach 1 Trucky 30 27.5-inch hoops shod in real-deal Schwalbe Eddy Current 2.6-inch wide mountain bike tires keep things rolling.

An informative but discreetly small color LCD display sits atop the handlebars. Motor control buttons and such are on a pod by the left hand grip. The lightweight MTB seat is fitted to a dropper post, and somehow, the LMX-64 weighs in at just 64 pounds (thus the name), far less than many other eMTBs I’ve ridden.

The LCD display is small but tough and shows a lot of information.

Power comes from pedaling, of course, plus a removable 52-volt, 850Wh battery that goes into a sunken cradle built into the lower frame spar. LMX says the bike has a range of 60 miles with pedal assist activated at the lowest level, or just over 20 on throttle alone, which is limited to 20 mph. Also, the steering head and bottom bracket are adjustable to a small degree, allowing for more custom setup options, but I left it as received as the bike fit me and worked fine as is.

The LMX-64 does not come with any bike lights or a bell, which is fairly typical for high-performance electric mountain bikes at this price point. I simply added my own, including a Knog Blinder headlight and Knog Cobber rear tail light.

SLiding the back wheel is easy under power after making a slight modification to the LMX-64.

I thought riding the LMX-64 would be as complicated as its dual drivetrain, but it isn’t. In fact, it’s as easy to ride as any e-bike; no special skills are required—unless you already have mountain biking or motocross skills, in which case it will allow you to expand on them. Once I had the suspension dialed in for my weight and the seat set for my height, it was game on for fun, both on pavement and off of it.

The power of the motor, which is nestled in the frame ahead of and above the pedals, is immediately apparent. Despite the stout output, the motor is remarkably small but likely too big to attempt a complete in-frame integration, and too heavy for use in the rear hub without affecting the bike’s balance and off-road rideability. That’s no demerit: I like the fact it’s out in the breeze as it were, especially if it needs service or replacement. While its not submersible, it is largely immune to splashes and mud; just clean the belt (and chain) after each ride to avoid undue wear.

Open-trail riding can be as swift as you dare.

With the motor capable of full power, the LMX-64 is a rocketship in terms of acceleration and goes up inclines more like a small motorcycle. I put all of the drive options into play on my mountain bike test area, pedaling up steep slopes, adding throttle on turns to slip the rear wheel back onto line, and generally doing whatever I could to try and trip up the propulsion system. No luck (thankfully): It always worked, and well at that, with crisp shifts and a good throttle ramp that was progressive and easily controllable.

Going up tight trails with the assist engaged, the moto-style throttle allows for cranking on more power and continuing the acceleration when I stopped pedaling. In the switchbacks, that allowed me to plant a foot and slide the rear wheel around a corner under power to maintain momentum, even going around a steep, tight 180-degree turn on dirt and small rocks. Great moto-style fun!

That much air is above my pay grade, but it's nice to know the LMX can handle such shenanigans.

The RockShox suspension was well up to the task of actual mountain biking, and I hammered it down my favorite passage at high speed before slowing to walking speed to traverse a recent washout. The LMX-64 was easy to control, easy to ride, and felt like pro-level gear - because it is. I was especially thankful for the dropper post seat as I rolled over whoops and humps in the trail. The brakes are very powerful and only require a light squeeze, but be warned they are “Euro style” (front brake lever on the right handlebar), or as we say in the motorcycle world, they’re “normal” instead of “backwards.” The comprehensive color display shows speed and output power in a sort of motorcycle-familiar twin clock display, which pleased this gearhead immensely.

The LMX-64 features a wheel-out-front riding geometry similar to real mountain bikes. This design helps keep the bike stable at high speeds and gives riders confidence during hard braking. The motor produces a whine that is noticeable but not distracting. The SRAM shifter manages 11 gears and offers precise, quick shifting. Additionally, the brakes are worth mentioning again for their progressive power and excellent feel.

A nice perk of the longer-range assist is the ability to get to high points on the trail quickly - ... [+] and then coast or free-ride back down.

This is one of the most unique—and most capable—electrified mountain bikes I’ve ridden to date. It’s from a company that clearly knows the needs and wants of both mountain bike riders, e-bike riders and even motorcycle riders and incorporates those varied desires into its design. They have wisely kept the powerful motor out of the hub to better preserve the balance of an analog bike—a big difference maker in handling, especially when the bike is airborne or moving at a good clip on the trail.

While the dual drive train setup looks complicated, it is in truth fairly simple (well, as much as it can be), consisting of a standard gearing set and a single-gear belt drive with a tension system. It may appear busy, but both systems performed flawlessly no matter how hard I pushed them. It was very impressive.

The construction quality of the LMX-64 is excellent; you can tell skilled craftsmanship is used to build it. There is some motor noise while the motor is activated, but I never found it annoying—it was actually a good audio cue for what the motor was doing. The SRAM switch gear is a joy to use.

Another look at the rear belt drive and chain drive duo-drive system.

I don’t really have any complaints about the LMX-64; it truly has the bases covered. Sure, it could be lighter, but even at 64 pounds, it’s pretty svelte for an eMTB. It’s heavier than some other eMTBs at this price range, but no competitor offers this kind of versatility, battery capacity and motor power (post-modification) in a real-deal mountain bike that you can take on actual mountain biking trails and truly enjoy. While I probably wouldn’t use it as a commuter bike, it certainly can switch-hit for that role as well, but you’ll need a backpack instead of racks and panniers.

Who is it for? Really, the LMX-64 seems like it’s shooting for the target on my back: a mountain biking enthusiast who is also a motorcycle rider. There are a lot of people out there with those same interests, so while LMX is fairly new to the U.S., riders with similar backgrounds would do well to check out the LMX-64.

Very Highly Recommended.

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