CHEAP AMAZON ELECTRIC BIKE VS EXPENSIVE TOP OF THE RANGE E-MTB!

Cheap Amazon electric bike VS expensive top of the range E-MTB! Can this £500 MTB keep up with the £6000 Canyon E mountain bike while riding MTB trails, jumps, hill climbs and urban MTB freeride spots, how long will it last?
The Canyon Torque: On is my favourite electric mountain bike and i just received a new one so I thought I'd buy a cheap Swifty ebike off Amazon and put the head to head in the ultimate bike vs bike challenge. I start off in the woods hitting hill climbs and trails before getting more crazy and sending it harder on both these bikes to really show you what is possible on both ends of the price range. After performing off road I then switch to an urban environment for some more freeride action and craziness. But how long will this cheap bike last?
I hope you enjoy the video!
MERCH:
www.tothesky.store/
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Welcome to my channel, I'm a professional Freeride Mountain biker and former FMB world champion(2013).
This channel is all about Mountain biking, I make a huge variety of videos for everyone who loves dirt: From downhill biking to slower paced trials riding and everything in between like dirt jumping, slopestyle and enduro!
As well as making entertaining videos(I hope) I also like to help YOU out too, with videos such as:
- How to ride better
- Trick tips and How to's
- Travel VLOGS
- GoPro camera tips
- In-depth entertaining features
- POV craziness
- Funny videos
I also try to reply to everyone so leave some comments too!

[@MechEagle]

One burn your apartment, the other burn your wallet...

[@SamPilgrim]

😂😂

[@MarvinWestmaas]

Old misconception with 'cheap' battery cells. Cheap cells != fire hazard, cheap bms + 'refurbished cells' do equal a burned down house.

[@A_shreddingDad]

Invest in the house burner, burn house, cash insurance check, buy wallet burner 🤙🏼

[@thepowersource1602]

Crotch rocket!

[@Berm_Blaster]

​@@A_shreddingDadtechnically both could burn apartment. And technically both could burn his wallet if the batteries exploded while he was riding lol

[@Sam97979]

The dual POV at <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="215">3:35</a> is badass, you should do that more often on comparison videos, or just in general!

[@Ross-ql9fi]

Idk that bike has sticker no jumping or stunting but he was. Highly inappropriate

[@sum1majik598]

I feel like that style of drum and bass is just playing in Sams head 24/7 really loud 🤣 such an absolute legend this guy

[@jonlavigne3270]

You should start making t-shirts in "mud-stippled white" like that. And "white cat hair black" while you're at it.

[@paulstingray]

The canyon on the stair set of D00m was insane!

[@Kinann]

Should have put the same tyres on the cheapie!

[@RealMTBAddict]

He ran out of tire magic

[@jonathanzellner906]

I’m thinking the opposite, should have left the stock tires on the Canyon, but I don’t think it would have made much of a difference 😂

[@Kinann]

@@jonathanzellner906 Other than Goodyear is one of his sponsors. They had to have some kind of 'advantage' or they might have lost more than one segment.

[@kubafalkowski97]

I think Sam is a cheat code here...he could jump over the log with a folding bike even 💀 As always canyon smashed the test 🙌 Swifty's getting the point for durability. Only

[@wilsarno]

The swifty geometry gave me bronchitis.

[@Kinann]

Have to play "Born to be wild" to ride it.

[@webbwarrior1805]

that's the bikes best feature 😂

[@dimensionsofearth]

"Ain't nobody got time for that"

[@MidwestMountainBike]

Sam you are the GOAT at stairsets of doom. I’d love to see you in a real urban downhill race, honestly think you’d crush it.

[@bre8333]

Reflectors and a kickstand will win the girls every time

[@Ross-ql9fi]

Nope it's the tassels

[@BenjySparky]

Today was EPIC, Sam and Lewi, y'all rock! Wow, who would've thought the outcome of this was gonna be the expensive one😂. Only 6k more, that's nothing. To the sskkyyy. Peace 🤘 ✌️

[@styleyK]

"No I don't need to make excuses up! It's terrifying.. look at it" 😂 hahaha comedy gold 👌🏿 Cheers Sam that made me chuckle 😄 🙏🏿

[@FreakNasty52]

"Would you like to go 110mph in a Toyota Corolla or a BMW M5?" That's essentially the question here lol Thanks for the videos, brother - my son and I are fans!

[@romansenger2322]

A grandma will do 110mph in a Corolla on the autobahn. Try 150mph.

[@sandy_knight]

Before watching: Rear hub drive!? I bet that's 'fun' for whips! After watching: That's about what I expected, LOL. Its good to see Lewie in his element 😜

[@neillawton6076]

I bought the non integrated battery version in orange in 2020. It actually lasted up until a couple of months ago.. I upgraded the forks from the really, really bad zoom fork to a suntour xct I had in the shed.

[@carlgoetzinger6876]

Mr Pilgrim you have the ability to make any bike seem like the ride of a lifetime, but even with that I'd still choose the Canyon over the Swifty haha

[@phobos7176]

Be interesting to see the swifty with the upgraded wheels and tyres on as a comparison

[@grim_rebel5415]

Man love the vids ur the reason why i started mtb thanks for all the good vids

[@lamawon2912]

This is so cool! Awesome to see you shredding on any bike.

[@Shorebreak_]

Yessss here for the upload 🤘

[@my2017raptorhardtail]

Love your vids as always. The shirt with the mud spots actually looks cool. You should design one like that. After all, we are mtb riders. Being dirty is the point 😄💪🤙

[@jerremyvinson6310]

If canyon went with Bosch motors I would have bought it but went with trek rail instead. Also Sam don’t sell out your awesomeness comes from riding cheap bikes awesome !!!! Just getting out there

[@KJ-bz3ol]

The man who can ride ANYTHING and make it look good. Hey Sam, can I get one of your Canyon's you don't ride anymore?

[@KJ-bz3ol]

...its worth a shot.

[@garyalexander3281]

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="684">11:24</a> Perfect line choice! 😂🤙

[@vivabenogre]

every video you release is a hit, you're a true professional!

[@Arash1996]

Perfect , it was great as always

[@VRCommy]

“To be more fair I got this cheap e-bike” *proceeds to compare full suspension to hard tail* 😂 I would’ve liked to see the times of the race though.. the whole time I was wondering how many seconds slower it’d be

[@Sydney_2011]

Mate you’re a mental case. I absolutely love you. The most Aussie Brit I’ve ever seen. Legend!

[@YTLIT]

I appreciate how much work you put into your videos and they're so sick!

[@SamPilgrim]

Thanks dude!

[@JayDizz92]

The fact the kickstand lasted the whole video impressed me on the swifty

[@MykeBinaryMan]

I would be very interested to see how the swifty did with the canyon wheel and tyre set up. I think it would improve the braking and control.

[@Kradlum]

Was thinking the same. It would probably do better at braking and climbing, but not lose out a bit on the drifting.

[@eternaloptimist2840]

But lose its motor ...

[@dillonpedals2179]

That triple you hit in the stair section was legit. The next double was huge too!

[@glennsalmon9493]

The swifty won the drifting challenge for smiles per £. Many dream of a bike like your but could never get one

[@hervegenelle5044]

Bonjour Sam, Ta video c'est Top gear version vélo. Bravo à toi pour ce moment de partage.

[@1hipcrip771]

When Sam lands the 360 on the Swifty, he sounds like Napoleon dynamite when he Biffs the jump on Pedro’s bike…

[@DOS-jx9wy]

Proof at last, the high end Canyon, from your sponsors, is better than the Amazon junker!

[@Mtbmi]

That’s a good looking color on that canyon! Feel like I’ve almost seen it before!

[@pimis8585]

congrats hitting 2 mil subs🎉

[@AquarianSoulTimeTraveler]

I absolutely love that purple and green that purple is amazing

[@eyedee1987]

Unfair test. Your too good on a bike for the average nan to compare lol. Epic as always sam. You legend ❤

[@xyrius]

"I don't have to make excuses, it's terrifying!" :DDD

[@ryanBaker-ly3qd]

this man is a legend

[@stevegardner7027]

Brilliant Sam. What a great idea for a vid. Are more pilgrips coming back in stock? In need of a set in red and black for my fatty.

[@hippynurd]

Often the biggest difference between the cheapest tool, and the most expensive tool, is ease of use, or how nice and comfortable it feels, and not so much about what you can do with it. Ease or joy of use may seem inconsequential, but when you spend a lot of intimate time with something, its everything.

[@Aka.Aka.]

In the case of ebikes it's the battery safety

[@hippynurd]

@@Aka.Aka.I think thats just fear talking

[@Tom-ol5zz]

​@Aka.Aka. and motor strength. Also suspension. Wish he included a mid tier e-mtb to see the comparaison

[@Aka.Aka.]

@@Tom-ol5zz yep I love my Engwe M20 but at the 899$ price point they had to make sacrifices like the suspension which only works on heavier riders and the motor which only has 50nm torque

[@Taz9118]

Jo Bruder hat geklappt! Nach dem drehen einfach weiter drehen und drehen, also den Joint... Danach ging alles wie Butter von der Hand 😂

[@jkasaunder228]

"I wouldn't even dare risk buying that to ride in a bike park" after he's just done exactly that haha

[@MikeGlorfindel]

You should have taken the reflectors off the Swifty, that would have made it lighter and faster! 👌🤣

[@cakeyllama4913]

Gotta love the Danbury common 😂

[@TBSLUCA]

Coolest video from coolest youtuber on earth💪💪

[@michibl]

Yo can we talk about that huge 360 and the crazy stairset with the canyon just nuts

[@mrbbqcraig]

We've all had a swifty at some point, go the swifty 🤟✨ Cheers to you 🤟🎶

[@pc.9008]

the speed on that doomer was nuts😱

[@PoopZombie970]

With all that mud on your T-shirt you should make it a design 😂 looks cool. Also love the vids

[@InfectAion]

Yea I mean who doesnt like dirty looking clothes. Also I'd recommend to use some stinky scent it would be perfect

[@PoopZombie970]

@@InfectAion 😂

[@bensince892]

I've missed these cheap bikes!

[@dimensionsofearth]

50 PSI?! Has Sam gone crazy? Thats no where near enough!

[@longtodger]

Hey Sam it would be sooo good to see a new 2 hour build and ride challenge!

[@SamPilgrim]

Good plan!

[@longtodger]

@@SamPilgrim legend!

[@Villham49]

Ye Sam do that this vids are sick and if your riding it I love the pure riding vids Wich is you just going god mode on stuff

[@gethappycyclingcampingoutdoors]

Epic, the stair was awesome ✌❤ to the World.

[@l.j.4577]

Would be a nice Merch-Shirt! White + Mudd printed all over it 😂👌

[@Alfie_77]

Always a good day when Sam post’s.

[@Berm_Blaster]

We need another custom crazy built bike episode like the four wheeler or bed frame bike 😂

[@RJKYEG]

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="463">7:43</a> had me laugh legit out loud.

[@kelevra558]

Ill stay on 26 inch dirt jumpers for the rest of my life. 2 weeks ago i bought a BRAND NEW 2023 yz250 2 stroke for $7122 out the door. That's taxes and fees included aka "out the door". How can i justify paying $80 less for a downhill bike that electronically helps you pedal? The answer is, i cant. Never could. I do own a DH bike as well. The frame is a XXL Commencal from like 2016 i bought on marketplace with just a shock and the crankset attached for $400. I bought the absolute best of everything else and i own the bike for under $3000. And shes TRICKED out jack. E-derailer, dropper post, halo wheels, titanium spokes and hubs, manitou dorado pro fork i got an INSANE deal on, super trick Ohlins shock, all titanium, sleeved chassis hardware, pro taper Pastrana freestyle bend bars....if ur a 6'5 230 pound person who really sends it like me, you HAVE to try freestyle bend MX bars on your big bike. I dont know exactly what it is but i will never buy mountain bike specific handlebars for my DH bike again for as long as i live. Ill never buy another DH chassis either so, i digress.

[@seworday]

Doubling those stairs on the Canyon was insane😳 so horrifying mate

[@enranomis7089]

@Stairset of Doom ; Try the Stairset at the "Mamma mia" -Cliff at the Island of Skopelos

[@everett393]

Man that is an absolute weapon! Your canyon isn't yo bad either

[@Durwood71]

"I don't need to make excuses up. It's terrifying!" Glad to see Sam has become self-aware enough not to risk his life pushing a bike beyond its limits.

[@4_78u7]

i saw u at twisted oaks yesterday

[@shanemarkruffell6942]

Hi Sam n everyone else, could Sam help me out I only have just under £850 to spend on either a brand new or second hand I would like to get a decent MTB, Jump MTB, would I be best buying a normal MTB then getting a electric mtb wheel kit or just buy a electric MTB. I'm new to the electric MTB seen n don't have any idea of what to get or look out for. Any advice or help with my question would be much appreciated 😊😊 thanks 😊

[@destickert1307]

Sam, design a shirt that looks exactly like your shirt on <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="390">6:30</a> min! this would sell!

[@InfectAion]

Welcome to 2024 🤦🏻‍♂️

[@junka1975]

I think slow motion bike drifts are an art form. Great seeing Lewi styling it up a bit on the cheap bike down hill. I always wonder how much of a difference the e bike gives Sam over his other non e bikes. I personally would love to see him do a jump comparison between his different Canyons. Once again Lewi showed his epic filming skills as he took a tumble but still got the shot and even better, Sam didn't die during the trials test. That's always a good thing.

[@Doublethizzle]

Definitely need to make that a new shirt design. The mud look

[@FletcherHancock-ov8oh]

Hey sam what is your opinion on carrera bikes

[@user-rc2bk1co5i]

can you rate Drag C1 bikes, they are a good and cheap hardtrail mtb bikes

[@Beasthom]

I thought that the van pull was a really awesome test for ebikes. However this dose not change, hardatials for life.;)

[@braydenwrightmtb8091]

Whats that pouch thing on the canyon?

[@kennethcampbell7263]

Yeah I thought the hard tail might be faster on the pump track, Ha ha ha yeah, explain it to Lewie and everyone else and then do what you want and then say well you could have just done that, I didn't say you had to stay on the track. No but you didn't expressly say you could go off track either, in fact I thing the word follow the track down to the Olympic rings were mentioned.

[@xpndblhero5170]

Just the sound of the Swifty alone is scary.... I couldn't imagine trusting it on a big jump, or a Stair Set of Doom. SMH 😮😂

[@ADAT832]

We need more cheap bike challenges like the old ones where you just mess around give the bikes credit for taking the abuse rather than comparing them against obviously superior 6 grand e mtbs. Still the best mtb yt channel but has become a bit too serious lately

[@user-kl2ko2ln2n]

You should try to install a CYC X1 PRO GEN 4 on a enduro ! It's epic

[@amazinggrace6607]

What’s a good general women’s e bike for the other half? Been looking at the Carrera crossfire

[@mikesmith2551]

Ok. Convinced! Swifty is just as good as Canyon and costs fraction of the price!!!

[@SamPilgrim]

Hahah no chance!

[@zkx1048]

That 360 is insane

[@jacobvidjeskog]

Haha somehow this didn’t feel fair at all. However you did a great execution and it just came to show which bike was better!

[@goingoutotheparty1]

I did wonder why i feel like I need the canyon, but start somewhere, just bike anytime you can

[@samguy7587]

Now I wanna see a surron vs an e-mtb

[@MarvinWestmaas]

80nm is not that much, my cheap arse Tongshen tsdz2b has the exact same torque rating ( and I do use my bike to sometimes haul two cargo trailers ~40kg each ). imho a 'good' cheap ebike is a 'normal' mtb where you remove your bottom bracket and replace it with a Tongshen tsdz2b ( or Toseven if you want a bit more quality for a bit more money ). I have a Giant Talon, with a Tongshen tsdz2b and I know for a fact it will deliver more power then your 6k bike... simply because yours is regulated. Max torque is the same, but I can program mine safely to output 750w nominal ( close to 1kw with a fully charged 48v battery ). Ofc it wouldn't ride as well, and certainly jumping isn't something you buy a Tongshen tsdz2b for ( weak spindle, they have other models which are better suited and only slightly more expensive ). But I weigh

[@AquarianSoulTimeTraveler]

You mean to tell me that you don't have suspension lockouts on that expensive bike for the front and rear suspension‽

[@ssavasstefan]

I was just wondering when you're going to post a new video😅

[@bradlyallen2763]

That canyon is ridiculous I love it.

[@RealMTBAddict]

You should play Doom while going down a stairset of DOOM. 😂😂

[@daslupus4303]

Was expecting some taco action on the 360 step up.

[@user-om3gd3yd2y]

Not sure why but this is the first video to make me want an ebike

[@ivardovgan2255]

love these comparisons. Thay are always very interesting to watch

[@joshuamoody2941]

am i crazy or does the swiftys downtube for the seat seems to have a more slacker geometry than the fork?

[@ShadLife]

The cheap eBikes are unregulated and they are scary and a huge fire risk!

[@SamPilgrim]

Yeah I bet!

[@SKBKER]

I've seen an expensive ebike catch fire but definitely need to ban these cheap bikes and that goes for standard ones too .

[@Couchtripper]

huge fire risk? Millions have been sold, so how many news reports are there of them being on fire? Since 2015 the batteries have had control systems to prevent fire. You're pushing anti-bicycle propaganda.

[@MarvinWestmaas]

bs, the fire risk is not only related to the cells the battery use and many cheap bikes come with decent quality cells. There are many more manufacturers with decent cells then just Samsung, and even Samsung cells are not worth anything if you don't pair them with a decent bms. I got EVE cells, Chinese manufacturer, on my 'kit bike' Giant Talon with tsdz2b I put on it myself. If you look them up, they are well regarded for both their LiFePo cells as li-ion. Again, the 'fire hazrard' part of batteries are seldom the cells ( .. unless you get 'refurbished' cells which are not properly mated to each other, which will create imbalance between cells which in turn can cause individual cells to run way out of spec ) but almost always the battery managements system. monitoring the individual cell voltage's, temp sensors to avoid charging under conditions no li-ion cell should be charged and even more importantly -> it's the bms which decides how many amps a pack will deliver down the line. This is what causes fire's while under load for instance ( opposed to a bms which doesn't do individual cell leveling / monitoring during charging ). 'cheap' != fire hazard. And as to being not regulated... lots of folks don't really agree with current ebike laws.. adding to that, you CAN buy e-mtb's from the factory ( name brands ) which aren't restricted but they will come with a 'not road legal, only use on trails' disclaimer. There is open source firmware for the Tongshen I'm using, giving it a 750w limit instead off 250.. But even road legal 250w firmware will pull much more for short duration of times ( like accelerating ). And that's fine, the 250w max limit is a nominal one, not an absolute one. Can't compete with a BBSHD with 1000W, but I rather have mine with torque sensor then a Bafang with just a cadence sensor. I do agree on the scary part, but that's mainly because most cheap embt's you can get use generic big box frame sets and cheap forks which aren't really meant for trail use. If you look around though, there are some cheap embt's straight from China which use decent quality frames and geometry and come with 'decent' SR Suntour forks ( they won't break.. that's what I mean with decent ). --------/embtb---------- I just bought my daughter an Accolmile Antelope 1S 700C city bike for ~1100 ( got a small discount ). These are the specs: Bafang ,m200 ( restricted, and it's one of the newer one's using canbus instead of uart so no easy unlocking not that I would want that on that bike! ) Tektro hydraulic disc brakes Some Suntour touring fork with 20mm of 'suspension' Alu frame, decent women citybike geometry. 36v 15.6Ah battery ( using the same Chinese EVE cells I have on my 'kit bike' ) This same bike would cost 3x as much here at the least. The only downside is warranty, sure they have an EU warehouse and service point but it's Poland. I don't expect any issues with the major components like the motor, name brand also means that even if worst happens I can get parts locally. Same trust I have in those Tektro brakes, which are ample for the intended use and also by now a name brand. With these bikes, you buy it knowing you will be doing all the maintenance yourself ( unless you buy it through a dealer, then you have dealership warranty but you also pay the premium for that ). *btw my cheap Tongshen tsdz2b has more power then that 6k bike.. even with stock firmware let alone open source. As reliable... heck no, certainly not if you're going to do a lot of jumping since spindel is the weakest point. But for me, living in pancake flat country, that's less of an issue. I also weigh

[@matt45540]

I think huge is a bit overstated. Majority of the e-bike fires you see are from people fast charging using bad chargers or damaged batteries. Runaways do happen and it is mainly limited to the cheaper e bikes, but you could simply ensure that their batteries are UL tested instead of banning them as they're still a great way for people to commute and get in to the category

[@anthonyestevez118]

Gettin drifty with the Swifty!

[@guillermomendez6361]

DH fork on the swifty

[@danieldaniel43]

Not a fair comparison really is it! You’re a pro rider on a top of the range bike vs a cheap budget entry with just front suspension forks..If it was average Joe on the cheap bike then it would be more than adequate

[@michibl]

Really the best rider ever

[@felixdasauro1901]

This is TOPGEAR of the bicycli