July 13, 2021 - Thanks to the marvelous fusion of genius and technology of Greyp and its sister company Rimac, Greyp T5 e-SUV - a new, high-tech 100-kilometer electric trekking bike was born. Here is Micah Toll's experience on Greyp T5's first-ever external test ride in the lovely Croatian countryside!

Micah Toll is a highly experienced mechanical engineer in the electric vehicle industry who is also the author of #1 Amazon bestselling books such as DIY Lithium Batteries, DIY Solar Power, The Ultimate DIY Ebike Guide, and Electric Motorcycles 2019. It is not surprising that Greyp would invite Micah to their headquarters and give him the honor to do the first-ever external test of the new bike. 

"Nestled in the outskirts of Zagreb, Croatia, sits an unassuming building where some of the most high-tech electric bicycles in the world are dreamed up, designed, and then manufactured. Greyp applies the same kind of forward-thinking approaches as its electric supercar parent company, Rimac, resulting in e-bikes that are both high performance and high tech. Now the company has branched out into yet another e-bike category as it tackles trekking bikes with the new Greyp e-SUV T5.", Micah Toll wrote at the beginning of his review on Electrek.co.

Filling the gray area between the limited capacity of road and mountain bikes, trekking bikes offer a more rugged yet comfortable ride than gravel bikes but also have better performance than a regular hybrid bike. According to Micah, Greyp's new e-SUV T5 has wider tires and handlebars that are perfect for riding in less ideal conditions; the added electric motor, too, helps riders to push longer and farther on their adventures. The bike usually comes with components needed for road and utility use such as lights, racks, and fenders.

The Greyp T5 intensive design is perfect for both a city ride and a bike ride through the Alps. "Adorning the frame is a host of high-end components that each impact the experience of the ride. While flying fast over dirt trails I had the confidence of a dedicated mountain bike, yet I still felt quick and efficient in the city – not like I was lugging a mountain bike through an urban jungle. That’s thanks to the hybrid design of a good trekking bike like the T5, something that can split the gap between the two distinct disciplines," Micah Toll commented. The T5 also comes with high-power Busch+Müller LED lights. 

Greyp Bikes Smart Technology

T5 e-SIM | Courtesy of Greyp Bikes

The Greyp team proudly says: “A Greyp bike wouldn’t be a Greyp bike without its integrated eSIM which delivers constant connectivity, and for the complete experience, the accompanying Greyp App provides additional numerous handy features. The Greyp App can be used in two modes: Dashboard and Remote. The Dashboard mode transforms the smartphone into an extended dashboard and gives access to various features like turn-by-turn navigation, terrain-based range, camera, and Retro Video, while the Remote mode can be used much like the bike`s remote control, so users can text, take a photo, remotely lock the bike, or activate the kill switch to shut it down completely.”

All of Greyp's e-bikes come with an integrated e-SIM technology, too, which provides constant connectivity to The Grey App.

T5 App Ride Session | Courtesy of Greyp Bikes

Micah Toll's Final Thoughts on the Greyp T5 e-SUV

Micah Toll praised how much Croatia's Greyp e-bike company pays attention to every bit of their products' details. Since all the production is done in-house, Greyp bikes are built from the ground up and under the constant scrutinizing eyes and hands of Croatia's top engineers and experts in the electric vehicle industry.  According to Greyp, “Some companies just choose an e-bike out of a catalogue and sell it. Others go farther and choose a frame from the catalogue. Others are even more involved and choose from a catalogue of tubes to build a frame. We start from scratch and design our own tubes.”

Courtesy of Greyp Bikes

The difference between Greyp and other companies is that Greyp is a company where top engineers, mechanics, battery builders, designers, testers, and the sales team work under one roof whilst closely supervising the creation of their products down to the very last detail - and that is something most companies cannot claim. Greyp's excellent teamwork shows in the level of quality and design of Greyp's e-bikes and that is what customers and avid e-bike enthusiasts will pay for. It certainly isn't cheap (Greyp's manufactured suggested retail prices start at 4,449EUR) but as Micah Toll wrote at the end of his product review, "As a premium model, this obviously isn’t an e-bike for everyone. But for those that can afford it, the quality and ride experience will make it worth every penny. I’d kill to have one in my garage, that’s for sure!"

For more on lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

For more about Croatia, CLICK HERE.

Mladen Trinajstić writes for novilist.hr about the plans to install the network for charging and the rentals of the electric bicycles (e-bikes) throughout the Krk Island: in Vrbnik, Baška, Malinska, Dobrinj, Punat, Krk, Omišalj and Njivice one charging station each will be built. The network will be built thanks to the efforts of all seven local communities on the island and support by the Ministry of tourism and The Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund. The modern e-bike sharing system which has been developed for a while is a part of the ambitious strategic plan to improve electromobility on the island, also supported by all local communities, and financed by the Ministry of tourism as well.

During this spring the first charging stations will be built, and after that, the sophisticated software solution for the rental of the e-bikes will also be installed. The software will provide an oversight feature, where the position of each e-bike will be monitored using GPS - one of the features will be automatic locking of the e-bike if and when attempts are made of taking it across the Krk bridge, to the mainland. The entire e-bike sharing system on the island will be created by Croatian experts, using Croatian technology, and even the e-bikes themselves will be "Made in Croatia". Although some of the financing comes from already mentioned sources, the municipalities on Krk decided to give parts of their budgets towards the creation of this system, including the purchase of the actual e-bikes which are to be rented out in the future. Once the system is fully functional each of the charging stations will have 10 e-bikes ready to be rented, 24 hours a day 365 days a week, with the option to return the e-bike at any of the charging stations, not just the one where you rented it from.

The locations for the charging stations have already been selected, and in the next few weeks, the construction in Krk, Punat, Baška, Vrbnik, Malinska, Njivice and Klimno are supposed to start. The prices of the future rentals have not been finalized yet, but it is obvious that the rental shouldn't be too expensive, especially if we consider that the system is meant to serve a public service, it is not planned to bring any profits.

This is just another step into making Krk a fully ecological island: they are Croatian champions in recycling, using sustainable energy and energy efficiency, and there are 11 charging stations on Krk for electric cars. The hope is that by 2030 there will be no more CO₂ emissions on Krk island!