Ares Aero is an ultralight, aero road e-bike you won’t believe has a motor

Posted on July 25, 2022 by Tyler Benedict

Compared to the Superleggera, the first e-road bike collaboration between HPR and design firm ARES Modena, the new Ares Aero is a steal at ~$15,000.

The new bike reshapes the tubes into a modern all-purpose aero road bike, but still hides the 200W HPS motor system inside the very normal-looking tubes. Here’s how it all comes together…

Powered by HPS’ WattAssist Pro, the bike integrates their bottom bracket shell gear cluster, using a motor inside the downtube to apply up to 20Nm of assistance directly to a custom crank spindle.

The battery bottle sits on the seat tube, using an plug integrated into the custom Elite bottle cage. Two batteries are available from HPS, a standard model (1.2kg, 193Wh) and a travel battery (720g, 85Wh) for flying with the bike.

They say those are good for up to 3 hours and 1.5 hours of climbing assistance, respectively. They have two modes, Peloton (6 levels of assist) and Attack (3 levels), and it’s all controlled via a compatible GPS cycling computer (Garmin and Wahoo are listed) through an ANT+ connection.

This bike blends subtle aero shaping into a fairly traditional-looking road bike. Dropped seatstays should add compliance, but they’re noted for providing a stiffer rear end to maintain expected stiffness with the added power.

Being a European product, it’s limited to assisting up to 25km/h, which is plenty for climbing but will max out well before most riders do on flat surfaces.

Only 24 will be made, all custom upon order, for €14,950 each. That includes custom geometry and your choice of cockpit specs to fit you. Details on their website here.

Now, about ARES Modena…because I’m a car geek, too. They’re a boutique firm that’s designed some amazing vehicles and builds. Have a look:

Custom Land Rover Defender SUV.

The S1 hypercar concept.

And the S1 Speedster convertible hypercar concept.

Bullet for BMW R Ninet custom concept motorcycle.

Scrambler for BMW R Ninet custom concept motorcycle.

And my personal favorite is this Legends Reborn concept. Those of a certain age will appreciate this modern take on the Pantera. It’s a V10 with zero-to-sixty in just 3.1 seconds. Now, where to put that bike rack?

Check out more at AresDesign.com.