Review: Moustache Samedi 27 Xroad 3 Open
Overview
- Enjoyable and useful bike
- Great motor system
- Mostly high quality build
- Suspension parts let the side down a bit
The Moustache Open Xroad 3 is a very well specced bike that’s good for a mix of commuting and leisure riding. It’s tough enough to handle a bit of light trail use too, although it’s a better bike for city trips than for anything too rough-and-tumble. It’s not cheap, but given the spec it’s still reasonable value.
“At Moustache when we mixed an E-MTB and an urban bike, the result was the Xroad!” says Moustache. “With its rigid frame with an integrated Bosch 625Wh PowerTube battery, the Bosch Performance Line motor, an 80mm travel fork as well as a suspension seatpost, the Xroad 3 is dynamic and comfortable. It is also perfectly equipped with a lot of practical accessories… perfect for getting about day to day as well as going on holiday!”
A mix it might be, but most of the DNA here is from the city side of the equation. It looks like a city bike, especially in this open-frame version. Both the diamond and step-through builds of the bike use a hydroformed 6061 T4-T6 Alloy frame that conceals Bosch’s biggest battery - the 625Wh PowerTube - in the down tube. The cabling is also neatly concealed within the frame, running in channels either side of the battery. The motor drives a 65Nm Performance Line motor, controlled by the Purion display.
As city motor systems go, the Performance line is pretty hard to beat. At 2.9kg the motor is reasonably light, and it’s functionally silent, no noisier than the big tyres on the tarmac. The big battery gives the bike a great range, too: I could get a week of commutes out of the Moustache, and although that’s only 45km it does include over 800m of climbing. Normally I’ll use the highest mode for my commute home as the hill steepens to 12%, but I didn’t really need to go into Turbo on this bike and most of the time I was in Sport or Tour modes.
If you were doing a leisure ride at no great pace, this bike would go all day. You get the full fat 4A charger, so getting back to full power is reasonably rapid, taking about 5 hours, so easily less than a working day if you’re using the company’s electricity! One of the best things about the Bosch system is the linear nature of the battery depletion: Turbo on one bar of battery feels very much Turbo on five bars, although the system will eventually throttle the power to eke the last out of the powerpack.
The Purion display isn’t a highlight, but it’s perfectly serviceable; a good upgrade down the line is the Kiox display, or the new Nyon, which offer benefits such as more granular battery status, bluetooth integration and mapping.
It’s a good bike to ride, the Samedi. I like the convenience of a low step around town, and the Xroad Open’s frame felt plenty stiff even though the front end isn’t triangulated. That’s not surprising given its girth, and the fact it’s cross braced internally. The ride position on the bike is reasonably upright but not so much that the bike doesn’t feel purposeful, and the handling is pretty good.
On the tarmac the 2.1” Hutchinson Python tyres roll better than you might expect, and there’s plenty of air in them to soak up road imperfections. There’s plenty of grunt in the motor to cope with some steep off-road climbs too, if and when you hit the dirt.
The 40T chainring and 11-42T cassette give a really good range of gears, controlled by a Shimano Deore Rapidfire shifter and rear derailleur. That’s as reliable a system as you can really get. Some city riders swear by hub gears, and they offer the advantages of lower maintenance and the ability to change gear at a standstill. They’re heavier and less efficient, though, and derailleur gears make a bike feel sportier, which suits the nature of the Xroad very well.
The Suntour XCM ATB fork, with 80mm of travel, is pretty average: bikes like this don’t tend to score very good forks and the Moustache is no exception. The bike isn’t especially heavy for a fully kitted city machine at just over 25kg, but that’s enough weight to get the fork flexing a bit, especially under braking when there can be a bit of judder through the front end.
At the back the suspension seatpost, a 40mm telescopic suspension unit, is also a bit underwhelming. That being said, the Moustache is perfectly happy on gravel trails and towpaths and the like. That’s more down to the tyres than the suspension, and although they’re good on hardpack surfaces they struggle in the mud. Realistically this isn’t the bike you’d pick if you’re looking to be off road for the majority of the time, and it copes well enough with the odd sortie onto the trails.
It’s more likely to be picked as a leisure and commuting bike, and that’s where it shines. The AXA/Spanninga lighting is excellent for town use, and the full length mudguards are good too.
The rear rack is excellent: nice and solid and equipped with Ortlieb’s QL3 system that allows a range of city bags to be fitted with ease. The Samedi is also available in builds with slightly larger wheels and narrower city tyres, but the bigger chamber rubber on this bike doesn’t ever feel like it’s holding the bike back and generally just makes riding a more enjoyable experience around town.
In fact, there’s lots of builds of the Samedi. It’s available as the Xroad in cheaper and more expensive builds than this, and it even comes in a full suspension version, which is probably overkill - although I wouldn’t mind giving one a go.
It’s fair to say that if you’re looking for a mid- to high-end city bike that’s also capable of leaving the roads and hitting the trails you’ll probably find a bike in the Samedi range that’ll match up with what you want.
For me this £2,899 Samedi Xroad 3 Open is somewhere near the sweetspot: it’s a good quality bike, with good looks and plenty of practicality. You could buy it and never leave the tarmac and never feel like the bike was compromised over a more traditional city bike, but the more rough-and-tumble build can handle a bit of light trail use too if you want to throw some in. It’s a nicely balanced bike that’s enjoyable to live with.
Model
Xroad 3 Open
> Frame
Xroad,, variable thickness hydroformed tubes, Bosch PowerTube battery integration (vertical), integrated cable routing
> Fork
Suntour, XCM ATB, HLO w/preload adjustment & lockout function, 80mm travel
> Motor
Bosch, Performance Line 250W - 35/65 Nm - Assistance from 55 to 300 % - 25 km/h - Natural - Noise free - Frictionless - Compact - Lightweight
> Battery
Bosch, PowerTube 625Wh
> Battery Range
Estimate your ebike battery range
> Charger
Bosch, 4Ah
> Display
Bosch, Purion - 5 modes (Eco, Tour, Sport, Turbo, Off) - « Walk assist »
> Rear derailleur
Shimano, Deore, RD-M4120-SGS, 10-speed
> Front cog / Chainring
Samox, Alloy, 40T w/chainguard
> Cassette
Sunrace, CSMS2, 11-42T
> Chain
KMC, X10, 10-speed
> Shifters
Shimano, Deore, Rapidfire Plus for flat handlebar
> Crankset
Moustache, Alloy, 170mm
> Brakes
Shimano, MT200 hydraulic disc brakes
> Rotors Front/Rear (in mm)
Shimano, 180mm front & 160mm rear
> Hubs
Front= Shimano, 32H, 9x100mm, w/QR Rear= Shimano, 32H, 9x135mm, w/QR
> Rims
Moustache, Alloy, double wall, 32H
> Tires
Hutchinson, Python, 27.5x2.10
> Saddle
Selle Royal, Shadow Ergonomic
> Seatpost
Suspension, Alloy 31.6mm, 350mm, 40mm travel
> Seat clamp
Moustache, Alloy, 34.9mm
> Handlebar
Moustache, Ergonomic, Alloy, 680mm, 25° backsweep
> Stem
Moustache, Alloy, 90mm Adjustable
> Headset
FSA, No 57-B
> Grips
Ergonomic, dual-density
> Headlight
AXA, Blueline, 30 lux, powered by main battery
> Taillight
Spanninga, Presto2Guard, powered by main battery
> Kickstand
Moustache, adjustable
> Mudguards
Moustache, Alloy, double wall design, w/alloy stays
> Rear carrier
Moustache, Alloy, QL3 low-rider carrier, MIK Bag/Accessories compatible
> Pedals
Resin with plateform and reflectors
> Warranty
5 years frame and Moustache Bikes fork - 2 years motor, battery (or 500 cycles) and accessories
> Sizes
Small, Medium, Large
> Color
White Grey, glossy
> Weight
25.4 kg
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