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Bike Perfect

Lifestyle

Graham Cottingham

BMC releases its first gravel e-bike along with adventure-ready updates to the rest of the URS range

BMC SRAM

BMC has overhauled its URS adventure gravel range adding several new features to increase the capability and performance across the range, the most significant being the addition of a TQ motor to create BMC's first electric gravel bike.

URS stands for UNRESTRICTED and denotes BMC's adventure gravel bike range. The new lineup features four versions; URS, URS 01, URS 01 LT, and URS AMP LT. While the all-new URS AMP LT e-gravel bike is the headline news, the other URS models also see some significant updates.

BMC has made the URS more capable and ready for adventures (Image credit: BMC)

When the URS and URS LT were originally released in 2019 it was BMC's do-it-all gravel bike, now that BMC has the race-focused Kaius the URS range has been focused on adventure and bikepacking duties.

To start with, all URS now use SRAM's UDH (universal derailleur hanger) so it's compatible with SRAM's recently released RED XPLR AXS groupset. BMC has increased tire clearance on all URS bikes to 47mm – from 42mm – and added cargo mounts to the forks. There is also downtube storage (apart from the bike) and frames with the MTT suspension system feature a cargo strap for mounting accessories like inner tubes.

The URS 01, URS 01 LT, and URS AMP LT use BMC's MTT rear suspension system which uses an XCell damper and flex stay to offer 10mm of vibration absorption. While that might not sound like much, I have ridden the previous generation URS and it's surprisingly efficient. Up front, the URS 01 bikes are equipped with BMC's ICS MTT Stem which uses Redshift Shockstop technology and offers 20mm of tunable suspension using different elastomers. The URS 01 LT and URS AMP LT use BMC's MTT fork, developed with HiRide it delivers 20mm of coil-sprung suspension.

BMC's URS is the latest gravel bike to move to the UDH system (Image credit: BMC)

BMC has always prided itself on the progressiveness of the URS geometry and tweaks to the latest URS should make the bike even more capable. The bottom bracket has been dropped from 69mm to 76mm, the head angle is now 69.5 degrees and the longer 430mm chainstays should all improve stability on fast blown-out gravel tracks.

The seat tube has been steepened too for an improved climbing position and the D-shaped seat tube is now compatible with short travel dropper posts or a standard round post using a shim.

BMC has rejigged the sizing too, adding a new XS size to cater to a wider range of riders.

BMC has equipped the URS AMP LT with a TQ-HPR50 motor (Image credit: BMC)

The BMC URS AMP LT is the newest addition to the URS family, adding an electric gravel option to the range. The bike is powered by a lightweight TQ-HPR50, capable of producing 50 Nm of torque and 300 Watts of peak power. The bike comes equipped with a 360Wh battery that's integrated into the downtube.

BMC hasn't provided any official weights of the URS AMP LT, however considering the TQ-HPR50 weighs just 1,850 grams the added motorization shouldn't add too much additional weight to the bike.

Our take

I rode the outgoing BMC URS 01 when it was released and while it impressed me, there were a few areas where it didn't live up to its name. Increasing the tire clearance and adding more mounting options remove these restrictions and significantly improve the capability of the URS for adventurous riders. Geometry was already really sorted on the URS and the latest tweaks should improve performance further.

Those looking for assisted gravel riding will be well served by the new URS AMP LT, although only having one ultra premium build will put it out of reach for the majority of riders.

Pricing and availability

The BMC URS range starts at $3,799 / €3,799 for the SRAM Apex 1 Eagle and DT Swiss G 1800 SPLINE BMC URS Three. The URS 01 range which is equipped with the MTT stem and rear suspension comes in three versions and begins at $5,999/ €5,999 while the URS 01 LT with the HiRide fork has two models starting at $6,499/ €6,499.

There is a single URS AMP LT build which is loaded with a premium spec and asks for an equal premium $9,999/ €9,999 price tag.

For full specs and pricing, see below.