Meet C3STROM ASTRO: A Revolutionary Electric Bike From Hong Kong

The ASTRO is a far cry from conventional e-bikes packing both futuristic looks and impressive performance

While the electric mobility industry has always been rapid to innovate and launch unique offerings, there’s constantly been a large disparity between electric cycles and electric motorcycles. Well, a Hong-Kong based startup called C3STROM aims to bridge this gap with the introduction of ASTRO, an electric cycle that has the aesthetics and performance of an electric motorcycle.

Unveiled in two variants, namely ASTRO and ASTRO Pro, this bike has a motorcycle-styled frame built around the battery pack, which is suspended from the top tube. This battery too is no ordinary one, as the base variant has a 780 Wh battery, while the top model has a 1040 Wh battery, capable of offering a range of 125 km. The batteries are built using Samsung 21700 format lithium ion cells and are coupled to a 750W hub motor integrated into the rear wheel that produces 80Nm. Of course, being primarily an electric cycle, it has a set of pedals connected to the rear wheel via a chain. So if you were to run out of juice, you could always pedal home. The bike also gets a bright LED headlight with an integrated DRL, so riding in the dark shouldn’t be an issue.

The ASTRO bikes come with two riding modes - C3 mode that restricts the top speed to 45 kmph, and off-road mode that allows for a top speed of 52kmph. This bike features chunky puncture-resistant tyres that allow riding on bad or broken roads. That said, these aren’t block pattern tyres and look best suited for tarmac use. While the front telescopic suspension should help smooth out bumps, the lack of a rear suspension setup would definitely restrict off-road riding (think of it like a cross between a hardtail mountain bike and a moped then). Braking duties are shared by four-piston hydraulic discs at both ends. 

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The company says that a smartphone app for the ASTRO will also allow the rider to view riding data and make changes to the performance parameters of the bike. Available in black and grey, the pre-launch price for the base variant is $1699, (Rs 1.32 lakh) and $1899 (1.47 lakh) for the top variant. When the bike is officially launched later in the second quarter of 2022, only the ASTRO Pro variant will be on sale for $2699 (Rs 2.10 lakh).

The price definitely makes it prohibitively expensive for the Indian market where you can get economical feature loaded conventional EVs like the Ather 450X, Ola S1, TVS iQube and Bajaj Chetak. Or if you were looking at an e-bicycle in India, you could always check out the Essel Energy GET 7 and Polarity Smart Sport for just a fraction of the price of the ASTRO.