Gravel with electric sauce, it's magic

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For bicycle purists, the last bulwark against the wave of electric models was Gravel. This secret garden that the uninitiated would never find. Unfortunately for them and fortunately for all the others, the Gravel, too, are entitled to their electrified versions. Mustache is one of the first to have taken the plunge and even to have reoffended with this Sunday 29.3 that we are testing today.

An electric Gravel, really?

The Gravel (for gravel in English) is a type of bike very popular in recent months. Like a camera with interchangeable lenses, it combines the best of two worlds. In this case, that of road biking and mountain biking. Straddling the two uses, the Gravel allows you to go almost everywhere. As comfortable on the road as on the roads, it can be an ideal solution for commuting, which explains its recent boom. Long confined to a DIY consisting of integrating mountain bike parts on a racing bike and vice versa, the Gravel is now entitled to specific developments and even to complete ranges from cycle manufacturers. This is the case with Mustache, which has chosen to go a step further with an electrically assisted version.

Perfect geometry and impeccable finish quality

Mustache has not thought of a specific geometry for Sunday 29.3. The work had already been done, and praised, a year earlier on the Sunday 28 road bike. There is therefore no major difference from the previous frame with one notable exception: the fork. This has a specific carbon braiding which allows more vertical flex. Thus, the various vibrations, whether on tar or on the ground, are better absorbed. In fact, on this point, the electric Gravel was surprisingly comfortable, even on the paved roads that we took during our Review.

The road-type hanger with a “flare” flare also helps to reflect on a specific Gravel geometry. Ultimately, Sunday allows two very different positions, the first passive with the back more raised turns out to be very pleasant and makes it possible to chain the kilometers of stroll in a pleasant way. The sportier second is close to that adopted on a classic road bike, but it is just as effective, we can never remember it enough. When you invest a substantial sum in a bicycle (more than 3700 euros in the case of this Mustache), take the time to have it adjusted by a specialist, your back will be eternally grateful to you.

As for the design, it is in line with what Mustache has been offering for a few years, namely neat finishes, polished welds and specific colors which make it possible to distinguish the brand's bikes at a glance. In fact, it is an understatement to say that the aesthetics of Sunday 29.3 is neat. To convince yourself, just look at the reactions of passers-by and other cyclists when stopped at a traffic light.

Equipment designed for versatility

The recent development of Gravel is such that props now offer equipment dedicated to this hybrid practice of cycling. That is to say parts that are certainly less robust than those intended for mountain bikes, but much lighter, while remaining stronger than those likely to equip a classic racing bike. This is the case with the Shimano GRX range and it is quite logical that Mustache opted for this group and in particular the Japanese manufacturer's RX-400 transmission.

In use, the choice of an 11-42 10-speed cassette seemed very relevant to us. As for the hydraulic disc brakes, well helped by saucers 180 mm at the front and 160 mm at the rear, they are quite simply cut for a high level Gravel.

Motorization and battery: the right choices for Gravel

The rather judicious choices noted as regards equipment are also found on the electrified part of the bicycle. Its motorization was entrusted to Bosch, but the merit of favoring a 250W "Performance Line" motor over a "Powertube" model goes to Mustache. Admittedly, the first is less powerful and caps at 63 Nm, but it is above all lighter and allows you to fetch a few grams without the loss of power being too damaging. As for the battery, the choice is more classic with a Bosch PowerPack battery of 500 Wh widely proven.

As is often the case, it is very difficult to determine the exact range of an electric bicycle. And for good reason, it depends on the use of it (type of road, level of assistance, weather conditions, etc.) and the pilot's profile. In our case, by favoring the EMTB assistance mode, we were able to exceed 90 km of autonomy. Again, the relatively small weight of the bike is a definite advantage.

Comfortable everywhere, a little less in town

It’s on driving sensations that Sunday 29.3 can do well compared to an electric mountain bike in particular. Lighter and more manageable, it allows a slight gain in speed. Indeed, with its 18.8 kg, the electric Gravel is significantly lighter than a VTTAE whose average weight oscillates around 24 kg. This is particularly palpable on the first laps or on each recovery phase. The 25 km / h, critical threshold where the electric assistance disappears, is reached in only a few seconds. But unlike a heavier bike it is possible to go up to 30 km / h without having the impression of providing an intense effort. Beyond that, obviously, it is the thighs and the shape of the moment that will be the justices of the peace.

Regarding the rather prosaic question that follows from this observation, namely: Sunday 29.3 allows it to go faster and save time, the answer is certainly yes. In our daily 20-km “bike ride”, slightly bumpy (a hundred meters in elevation) and interrupted by twenty red lights, the difference is relatively obvious. Indeed, on a dozen return journeys, the electric Gravel allowed us to save 3 minutes, bringing our reference time down from 55 minutes to 52 minutes.

As for pure driving sensations, they are there. The steering on Sunday 29.3 is rather balanced, the bike keeping the line well, helped in this by its large tires. When going downhill, you have to take into account its weight, which implies a certain inertia when cornering, but it is something that is integrated by the pilot from the first kilometers traveled. Very comfortable on roads and on very wide roads, the Mustache Electric Gravel has a little more trouble in a purely urban environment. Its wide hanger and rather imposing dimensions are not ideal when it is necessary to zigzag between the cars which run at a walk, but there is nothing unacceptable.

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