Mavic designed a new road e-bike motor system called the X-Tend.

The development of the X-Tend motor dates back to 2016, before Mavic ran into financial difficulties and the brand went into receivership. However, Mavic continued to invest in the project.

Mavic claims that the e-road bike segment has not exploded in the same way as other electric bike segments, and that addressing the issues of weight, range, ride comfort and rolling resistance could change all that.

As reported by Road.cc, the new system has not yet been officially released, and Mavic claims that it could be in 2025 or 2026. As noted in the linked article, Mavic is seeking additional investment and partnerships to bring the motor to market.

A Mavic spokesperson told Cyclingnews that the company is "looking for reliable partners, both industrial and financial, to produce (but commercialize) the drive unit concept and offer it to OEMs who have expressed a lot of interest."

But the technology certainly looks interesting: the 1.2 kg X-Tend brushless motor is a neat, lightweight unit with a diameter of 87 mm, mounted on a bottom bracket shell, and manufactured in Europe. Mavic worked with BMC for four years to develop a prototype frame capable of mounting this motor. It is compatible with Shimano's Hollowtech 2 crankset and maintains the usual Q-factor. According to Mavic, more than 120,000 km have already been tested and the technology is covered by 15 patents.

One of Mavic's main claims is that an e-road bike weighing less than 10 kg can be achieved due to the light weight of the motor. While this is true, it assumes an ultra-lightweight build of 6.8 kg or less to begin with. The motor itself is claimed to weigh 1.2 kg, but when batteries and additional components are taken into account, the total weight of the system comes to 3.2 kg.

It also has a built-in power meter that is claimed to have an accuracy of ±2%, a 360 wh battery (with an optional 180 wh extender), and, according to Mavic, no additional friction created by the motor when it is turned off.

If you like the sound of what you're reading, you'll have to watch this space; we'll report back when we get more information from Mavic, but at this time there is no official release date; retail pricing is unknown, as it will only be sold to OEM manufacturers.