Ninety One Meraki S7 Alloy 27.5T: ChooseMyBicycle Expert Review

The Ninety One Meraki S7 Alloy is built on a full Alloy frame. This frame has a slanting top tube which connects to the seat tube and ensures the rider has comfortable standover clearance. This comfort focused frame geometry ensured the rider has a straight and open chested riding posture without any aggressive body positioning. The seat stay has a cut and bend design which is unique and stylish.

The stock front suspension fork comes with an 80mm travel which is sufficient to handle bumps and speed breakers on urban roads. The lock-out feature on this suspension fork was useful to ride faster on flatter surfaces.

The Meraki S7 Alloy from Ninety One which we test rode came in a dual shade of Black and Blue primary colours on the frame with White as the secondary colour for the text. The gloss finish paint job was top notch in quality and the bold text was definitely eye-catchy on the frame. This Electric Bicycle has an internal battery placed inside the bottom tube. The size of the bottom tube along with its shape and welds made the Electric Bicycle look neat and seamless in design.

This Electric Bicycle comes with a 1x7-Speed drivetrain with a Shimano Acera rear derailleur. Whilst it is not a compulsion to have gears on an Electric Bicycle, it is useful when wanting to match the electric speed of the E-Bicycle with the pedalling cadence. It also helps when you run out of battery power during a ride as the gears help in controlling the pressure you want to put into pedalling. The 7-Speed Shimano Acera rear derailleur was smooth in shifting during the test ride. This Acera rear derailleur is controlled by Shimano’s SIS 7-Speed shifter.

The Ninety one Meraki S7 Alloy 27.5T Electric Bicycle runs on a rear hub BLDC 250W rear hub motor. This motor is powered by a 6.3Ah Panasonic Lithium-ion battery, concealed in the bottom tube. The half throttle on the right grip was easy to use and there was a clear surge in speed from a stationery position, thus making it fun to experience an electric bicycle. The 5 level Pedal Assist gives different levels of power assist from the battery for each pedal. There is also a walk mode which helps get a constant speed for easy walking with the E-Bicycle and this can be activated by pressing and holding minus button. The LCD display on the left side of the handlebar bar has the on/off power button, assist level changer, speed and also the battery level indicator. The maximum speed using battery power is 25Km/hr. As a safety feature there is a lock and key system under the right hand side gip accelerator which can be used to switch on and switch off the battery power, thus making it tamper proof.

With 1 full charge this battery is capable of giving 18-35Kms. These mileages might differ a bit with the varied riding conditions, pedal assist or throttle mode and the rider weight. This battery takes 3.5-4hrs to charge from 0 to 100% with any normal Indian plug point. The charging point for the battery is on the left side of the frame on the top tube, almost near the head tube. The small downside to an internal and concealed battery is that the E-Bicycle has to be near a charging point as the battery is not detachable.

This Electric Bicycle’s stopping power is controlled by Logan Mechanical Disc brake at the front and rear. These brake were powerful enough to get the E-Bicycle to a stop safely and quickly even while riding at 20-25 Km/hr.

The riser handlebar on this Electric Bicycle was of the perfect length with a slight raise from the middle to give a comfortable riding posture for the rider. The grip throttle on the right was smooth and easy to use to accelerate.

As in the name of the bicycle this Meraki S7 Alloy rolls on a pair of 27.5” x 2.10” Hartex Hi-Traction MTB tires. These tires are heavily treaded to tackle the rough and wet urban roads and flat trails easily. The alloy rims contributed to the strength of the wheelset.

The stock Saddle did not have the most ergonomic shape but it definitely had enough cushioning to keep the rider free from soreness.