Bosch CX Gen 5 in-depth Review: Good... but is it enough?

[@andrextr]

Best motor review i’ve seen by far … love the graphs & data

[@adnanmajeed6916]

Fantastic review, one of the best I’ve seen with regards to the level of detail, would love to see a comparable to the DJI motor.

[@VelomotionEN]

Thanks! We're working on a review for the DJI Avinox. If everything goes as planned, we can publish it in October!

[@RaufZero]

I thought I had seen enough detailed and technically embedded reviews and yet this was something on a completely new level. Congratulations, great and informative presentation. The only element I would like to see expanded is the water resistance issue, has it been improved and how? Anyway, amazing vid, sub/like! btw my gues were: A - Bosch CX4 B - Shimano C - Bosch CX5 D - Brose

[@HondaVTECify]

Good video, great job 🙂

[@paulsutton6746]

Thanks for a great in depth review of the new bosch motor.

[@Johnny_Stargate]

Wow, this is some really high-quality stuff! I've never seen such well-prepared content before.

[@228slide]

At least this guy is honest about the difference between gen 4 and gen 5, with DJI on their behind I believe Gen 6 will be coming out very soon. This is a good video

[@Raumance]

This is really thorough testing. Nice to see so much new information.

[@rokorok40]

excellent review. thank you, looking forward for next reviews

[@IgorAntarov]

Absolutley the best review, thank you!

[@rudyhernandez247]

Wow. Thanks so much for all the information that you all shared.

[@ОлегЗакиев-т5к]

Thanks for review! So waiting for Bosch SX and DJI testing

[@Codeset08]

This is exceptionally detailed, great work 👍

[@bj231bj]

Thanks, Just subscribed

[@cannonballebikesltd9660]

Excellent comparison thank you

[@rickmoz]

Amazing video and love that’s in English, have watch many on the German channel with subs

[@VelomotionEN]

We'll have all the reviews for the drive units on here in English in the future. Thanks!

[@Kurikost_]

@@VelomotionEN i wish my english was that good.

[@martins4056]

Hopefully Bosch will fix the annoying rattle on the SX motor next. After living with a EP801 I'm ready to buy any EMTB that doesn't rattle, though I like the lighter weight of the SX.

[@dansadventures5514]

Thanks for the extra-detailed review! It would be awesome if you could measure the smoothness of dynamic modes to see how smoothly the support ramps up as you add progressively more torque on the pedals. A natural-feeling assistance is one of the most important factors for a great feeling bike.

[@VelomotionEN]

Yeah, that would be amazing. We're constantly trying to expand and develop our testing further. So hopefully we'll be able to visualize those behaviours in the future.

[@jaydub308]

Wow what a well put together and objective video. Thank you. I'm looking at getting my 1st ebike. With all the extra price for the brand new gen 5 I'm not sure that it's worth it for the dollar. I think if Bosch had made those quality improvements as well as jumped up 20NM, then it would be much easier to justify the money.

[@Животсизкуственастава]

amazing video man

[@VelomotionEN]

Thanks!

[@jpravetz]

As already mentioned by others, this review was on a whole different level. Thank you. Aber, what about serviceability, right to repair without needing to go to a shop, build to keep out the elements, longevity? These topics almost never get coverage

[@christianrasmuss]

Hello, good and informative video. Did you test or consider the drag in the motor? Our local trails are quite flat but requrire speeds above the limitir on the motor. This means I need to do some pedaling to get more speed to do gaps and fun lines. I ride a Kenovo SL now and this motor does only have very very little drag. I tried the levo with the Brose motor, that motor has way too much drag.

[@JeanSilvereMagniez]

Hi, thanks a lot for this work and review. I am really curious about the electric engine AVINOX in comparaison because this one, may be, will changed the game about the soft and the performance. What is you your opinion ?

[@Nomade2801]

Hi😊 Should have also compared to the Yamaha motors.

[@andreerickson717]

Anti slip is probably only a software issue, update available to older version?

[@lukasvrana6388]

Really nice review. Can you make maybe shorter video comparing more motors on the market (all the graphs from this video)? Yamaha, Dyname, Panasonic, etc...

[@VelomotionEN]

Really nice idea. We'll look into that! Thanks for the feedback.

[@pppjourneyonabike5992]

Do u sell the e-motor by itself to.consumer? But 85nm output is too low.

[@jarms4444]

I want to see a comparison with DJI’s motor.

[@DanielG-p1q]

Wouldn't be surprised by another "Power-Update" in 2025 as we've seen with the Gen4.

[@filipemonteiro5504]

Missing the comparison with DJI. Any plans?

[@VelomotionEN]

We're waiting for our review bike. If everything goes according to plan, we'll have the test finished until the end of the month.

[@trevormoore1037]

Great video. Thank you. Curious on the new Bosch battery - will it work with the old gen 4 motor? That would be really cool to see how you could mix and match old with new.

[@VelomotionEN]

Yes, you can mix and match batteries and motors inside the smart system. However, you will need a frame that fits both batteries.

[@jeanmartin963]

I do not understand, he speaks with a german accent but in Germany, Austria and switzerland the max power output is 250W by law. What are these motors ? Only for private area use ? For speedelec bikes only ?

[@Johnny_Stargate]

There's one thing missing in the summary. Where you think there's room for improvement for this motor e.g range or power etc? I don't buy the sound problem, it's not a big deal and rather minor problem, I didn't even notice it.

[@jamesfeltham1250]

This is a great review. The only feedback is actually on your voice recording - there is a subtle doubling effect on your voice throughout, which is a bit distracing. Is there any news on the water seals on this motor ? Thanks.

[@VelomotionEN]

Thanks! We're aware of that and we'll try to improve the quality for the next video.

[@eaze7324]

That's because it's AI voice and mouth movement generated from the german version, yes, we are already this far...

[@Bogdan_Ch]

Why nobody touched on the reliability issue that could arrise from going to a plasting gear wheel / instead of all metal like in the CX4 ? Same thing in the DJI , plastic gears don't last. It's a big flaw that happened in Bosch knowed hammer tools for years, now they have a much life cycle as plastic, on the long run, get's chewed quite easy.

[@LarsFerdinand]

So... TQ120 motor that was the star of the Haibike Flyon range is still the power king. Waiting for Pinion Gen2 and perfectly happy with my proven, 95% repairable and fantastic Bosch Gen2.

[@siriosstar4789]

along with the sachs/BMz motor 112 Nm at low cadence without overheating .

[@VelomotionEN]

Yeah, it still is unbeaten..maybe the DJI can challenge it. Well know soon enough!

[@LarsFerdinand]

@@VelomotionEN I don't get the hype around DJI, quite frankly. Could be the most powerful motor. Still it will be: - Untested in reliability; - Will not have a dealer network; - Will not have any assurance relating to spare parts to fix in the short term; - Above all, will eat CHAINS and CASSETTES; - Will still not be on par with TQ120S because that one had a decoupling system that made it feel like a normal bike with no assistance (not to mention TQ was doing motors for NASA, so they may know a bit more about motors for extreme conditions). If I'm going to place my bets, is on Pinion MGU, Gearbox is the future anyway, replacement oil kits are already available and at least FIT (their electronics partner) has a network of dealers. I couldn't care less about DJI, honestly. It's still a derailleur bike either way. Between DJI and ZF, ZF will be the better motor IMHO. Reliability and engineering is what matters for me. If that comes with innovation and power, great. If not, reliability is still my first consideration.

[@dixie600mhz]

Can we see how dji compares? Everyone is waiting to see dji performance before making the switch.

[@TorAtleLunde]

Did you consider using a trainer tyre on the roller?

[@VelomotionEN]

As we measure the rolling resistance for each bike individually so we can calculate the power of the motor itself, it wouldn't make any difference... Apart from being way less noisy 😉

[@Johnny_Stargate]

One question , where is cx4 race difference come from?. Can you add some material about cx4 cx5 and cx4-race motor comparison ?

[@VelomotionEN]

As the CX4 Race has a higher maximum support level of 400% it will hit its max power with less input from the rider. We're working on another look at the CX4 Race

[@Sarin2024.]

the new generation bosh cx 5 has a plastic cog inside compared to the old generation

[@rawmancemtb]

Those energy consumption numbers are not accurate at all. I'm sure you get those on a bench but in real world use EP8 has less range so the complete opposite of what your chart is showing. Probably 2 problems. 1 you didn't switch to the 85Nm full power mode but did the test on 75Nm like Bike Radar claiming EP8 had the best range. 2 with steady power EP8 has "natural" meaning lazy power production so it's going to give less power. But in real world use that doesn't work. You will go slower and use more power because it takes more time. And any technical terrain will take even more power because you can't carry speed. You have to do terrain tests to get any real usable numbers of the range. With different type of power curves and peak power responses you can't steady state bench power consumption. With Bosch the problem with this test is that as I've understood the new gen 5 also now has a "natural" meaning lazy power production. So that is going to consume more power in any technical terrain compared to the gen4 which has instant power production when touching the pedals. Instead of being able to carry speed you are now losing it because the motor doesn't give as much power as fast. If that is how the gen5 works. The software side just seems all around worse for technical riding. Less overrun when putting less watts. So when you are cranking one pedal in difficult rocks it's giving you less overrun when you need more... Gen4 had the winning formula for 3 years and now Bosch is bringing out something worse. Slippage is really the only problem but that is a marginal concern compared to having less overrun and lazier power production. I have 4500km on gen 4 of only terrain and I never noticed the rattle. The sound is also something that allows you to know if the motor is on or not so being quieter has it's disadvantages as well. All the changes in gen5 are for riders who don't care about performance or speed. Gen4 is the better faster motor. Gen5 is the more comfortable motor.

[@siriosstar4789]

The Nm wars are mostly psychological considering that the majority of moderately fit riders can handle almost any terrain with 85 Nm . i have an older CX 75 NM and even that is enough for my old legs (79 years old) . i do have a much more powerful bike also which i'm using most of the time because i'm lazy and tired but when i do occasionally ride the cx it's is still enough to get me up some steep hills. the hype around the DJi is just that , HYPE. it's not even on sale yet and commenters are raving about how it's going to ruin business for Bosch. Rubbish . 1- Weight - Carbon or alum. the weight difference is negligible for the average rider . yes it might make a difference for a pro or intense sport rider ,but for most they won't notice the slight difference . 2- non removable battery on the AMFLOW? 👎 3- Bosch has long term real world testing and a massive service network . DJI has none of that yet. If you want a extreme powered motor that has been tested for ten years go for the Sachs /BMZ 112 Nm or the TQ 120Nm

[@CharlieHarper-d4x]

You ride the bike with the most power. 🤷

[@Raumance]

Speaking like someone who does not ride their bike hard. I'm sure 75Nm is plenty for going slow as fakk.