General: Panasonic has been active in the e-bike market for over 20 years. However, very few people know that the Japanese have been producing bicycles for much longer and that the two-wheeler has even played a decisive role in the technology giant's success story. We paid a visit to the Panasonic campus just outside Munich.
Very few people are likely to think of e-bikes or bicycles when they hear the name Panasonic. This is not a big surprise, as the technology giant from Japan is active in countless areas and is often at the forefront: from battery cells for e-cars, for example, to photo and video cameras and industrial applications. However, bicycles and e-bikes occupy a special position in the group and play a decisive role in the company's success - at least indirectly.
From lamp socket to technology giant
After the company was founded in 1918 under the name of its founder Matsushita and mainly sold lamp holders, its success story began in the 20s with a battery-operated bicycle lamp. The product was revolutionary, because up until then people had used either conventional candles or oil lamps to light bicycles. In comparison, the new, electronic lamp lasted over ten times as long, was brighter and more robust. In the years and decades that followed, Matsushita experienced a meteoric rise, especially in the area of household appliances. The name Panasonic first appeared in the 50s to sell audio products under a name that was more appealing to the international market. Up until 2008, Panasonic was "only" a brand of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co, until it was renamed Panasonic Global.
Panasonic with bicycles from the 50s
But back to the bicycle: In the Japanese homeland, the National brand was very successful from the 50s onwards, selling a wide range of bicycles - from everyday bikes to racing bikes. In the early 70s, the Panasonic brand began exporting bicycles, first to the USA and then to Europe. Even at that time, the company was also cautiously venturing into the field of e-bikes: in 1979, a bicycle with a battery and electric drive was presented to the public. From today's perspective, the bike had more in common with a moped than with a bicycle, but it still did important pioneering work. However, it would be almost two decades before real series production of e-bikes began, until Panasonic presented one of the first real mid-engines for bicycles in 1996.
Panasonic 26V: A real e-bike pioneer
Its maximum output of 60Nm seems pretty low from today's perspective, and the low operating voltage of 26 V also brought its challenges, but you have to remember: This motor appeared 15 years before the first Bosch Classic Line mid-engine! In 2000, sales began in Europe and found a strong partner in the e-bike pioneers at Flyer. The Swiss company's first real success model, the C series, relied on this Panasonic 26V drive. At that time, the e-bike was of course still an absolute niche product and development was accordingly somewhat slower than we know it today. That's why it took quite a while before a real successor to the first Panasonic motor came along: in 2012 the time had come - the maximum output increased to around 70Nm, the operating voltage was increased to 36 V, and the batteries were also significantly smaller and lighter. In contrast to its predecessor, this model now also had a speed and cadence sensor for significantly improved support. In the meantime, numerous other bicycle manufacturers also offered e-bikes with Panasonic motors, including KTM, Raleigh and Kettler.
Constant development and new ideas
Just four years after the switch to 36 V, the Panasonic X1 or Multispeed followed - a motor that was way ahead of its time and has unfortunately been somewhat forgotten today. The housing, which was admittedly quite large by today's standards, contained not only the well-known and proven motor technology, but also a gearshift. You heard right: almost ten years before the topic of motor-gearbox unit made it to the masses with the Pinion MGU, Panasonic had a very similar product in its range - at least from a technical point of view. Yes, OK, the Panasonic X1 or Multispeed drive only had two gears and a fairly low range of 141%. But that was also born out of the area of application, because at the time this so-called Multi-Speed-Assist system was seen primarily as a replacement for the then well-known front derailleur and the motor was thought of in combination with a gearshift on the rear wheel.
The next big step followed in 2020, when the GX drives were switched to a completely new motor technology that has continued to exist to this day. The youngest of these motors, the GX Ultimate Pro, came onto the market in 2022 and is still one of the most powerful mid-engines we have tested - despite its relatively low weight of 2,9 kg. If you are interested in the details of the motor, I would like to refer you to our detailed test here on the channel. There you will find all the information, test bench values such as performance and consumption and of course subjective test impressions from practice. Somehow this also brings things full circle, you will find the new Panasonic drives mainly in Flyer's portfolio - so the cooperation continues to this day, around two decades after the venerable C series.
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