Orbea Diem 20 review: beautiful bike with flaws

We mainly know the Spanish Orbea for its unique racing bikes and mountain bikes. In recent years, however, the brand has also taken a big step in the field of e-bikes. The Urban range alone, with e-bikes for city traffic, includes five categories, including the Diem. With the Diem-reeks Orbea has clearly focused on design, without deviating too much from its core principles: performance, smart designs and personalization.

During the presentation of the Diem, it also became clear to us that the Spanish brand mainly wants to contribute to a seamless and carefree cycling experience. However, this comes with the necessary concessions, which we question. Especially because the Diem 20 is not exactly a cheap e-bike. On the contrary: the cheapest Diem, the Diem 30, will cost you 3,799 euros. The 20 we went out with is available for 4,599 euros.

Specifications

• Mid-engine: Shimano EP6 (65 Nm, 250 watt)
• Battery: 630 Wh, not removable
• Gears: Shimano Nexus Inter-5E
• Belt/chain: Gates CDX belt drive
• Brakes: Shimano MT200/MT201
• Service: Shimano EN600-L with light button
• Tyres: Vittoria e-Randonneur

Diem variants

In this review we discuss the Orbea Diem 20, one of the variants within the Diem series. As mentioned earlier, Orbea offers various models within this range. The differences between these models go further than just a different color or saddle. The battery, motor and gear setups also vary per model. Below you will find the most important differences:

The most expensive model is equipped with a more powerful Shimano EP8 motor, Enviolo automatic gears and high-quality Cues brakes. The Diem 20 and Diem 30 are distinguished by a smaller battery and different gears. The cheapest model has derailleur gears and a chain, while the more expensive Diems have low-maintenance gear hubs and a Gates CDX belt drive.

Comfortable without suspension

Regardless of the Diem model you choose, the frame remains identical. The appearance immediately makes it clear that it is a city bike. The e-bike looks incredibly sleek, with sharply drawn lines and unique shapes. These shapes have not been applied arbitrarily by Orbea. During the presentation, the Spanish brand highlighted their Diamond Glide technology, which should significantly improve the driving experience. In concrete terms, the diamond shapes ensure that the frame can bend vertically to absorb bumps in the road surface.

Initially, this technology raised many questions: is this technology as effective as a suspension frame? After almost two hundred kilometers on the Diem, we can answer that question with a resounding ‘yes’. Vibrations from cobblestone roads are barely noticeable and bumps in the road surface are no obstacle for the Diem. Your wrists are also spared: the front fork is made of carbon, which is ideally suited to absorb irregularities in the road surface. There are of course situations in which a suspension fork would be useful, but we did not experience the lack of one as a nuisance.

Form over function?

The shapes not only contribute to the driving experience, but are also a real eye-catcher. You won’t miss the Diem, especially in white. No matter which angle you view the e-bike from: you will always encounter ingenious design elements. For example, the Diem offers built-in daytime running lights that fold around the steering tube. The rear lights also fold with the shape of the bicycle, albeit on the rear fender. Moreover, all cables run directly into the frame: so there is certainly no cable spaghetti. Every detail of the Diem is aimed at offering a sleek design, but that also has its disadvantages.

Take, for example, the operation of the Diem via the EN600-L controller. On the controller you can see the current support mode and the current state of the battery. However, the light does not provide much information about the battery: the light is green up to about 30 percent. Then it only turns orange and at 10 percent the Diem starts complaining about an empty battery with a flashing light. Would you like more information about your ride, such as how fast you are cycling and how much power you actually have left? Then you have to mount your phone on the handlebars. We don’t think that is very ‘seamless’, as Orbea describes the concept of the Diem. As far as we’re concerned, Orbea’s next city bike should have a screen again, even if it is a small one. Then the design is only slightly less sleek.

What matters is that we are also not very pleased with the Shimano app for this bike, the E-Tube Ride. The app regularly fails. For example, we regularly had to restart the application or bicycle to establish the connection. When this is successful, you will end up in a somewhat old-fashioned feeling interface. However, the functions you would expect are present, such as planning routes or recording trips. You can also keep an eye on the battery percentage.

Sporty sitting position

Even before you get on the bike, you can see from the low handlebars and high saddle that the bike is aimed at the sports enthusiast. The resulting bent forward, sporty seating position ensures ‘the lowest possible air resistance’, but will certainly not be to everyone’s taste. In any case, this seating position is not our preference for a longer, comfortable ride. After a two-hour drive our backs started to hurt seriously. There is also no option to place the handlebars a little higher. So pay close attention to this when you purchase the bicycle: buy the model that suits your height and be sure to go out with the Diem to try out the sitting position. We are not very pleased with the saddle, which also contributes to seating comfort. It’s just a bit too hard to sit on comfortably for long periods of time. This is not such a problem for city rides, but the Diem quickly invites you to longer rides, far beyond the city center. If you can live with the Diem’s ​​seating position, then there is the driving experience itself.

We can be brief about that: it is very nice. The bike can be steered effortlessly through bends and on straight roads it does what it should do. However, the steering behavior at lower speeds, up to about 15 km/h, was negative. It can best be described as ‘uncertain’, although it is not entirely clear to us why. At those speeds we often have to make steering corrections to maintain our line. Steering therefore feels very unnatural. This may have to do with the limited steering radius of the e-bike. This should ensure that you do not simply fall over when getting on, but it also seems to have a negative influence on cycling behavior at low speeds. As mentioned, you don’t notice this at the cruising speed of the Diem, which is around 25 km/h.

Good bike, wrong hub

In our opinion, Orbea could have left one component at home: the Nexus Inter-5E gear hub. Unfortunately it is an old acquaintance. We have previously encountered the Shimano Nexus hub on the O2Feel Vern, and the hub turned out to be unable to withstand the power of the EP8 engine. However, the same also seems to apply to the EP6. Also not very surprising: it is again a combination with a powerful Shimano EP motor, albeit with a slightly lower torque of 65 Nm versus 85 Nm of the EP8. Unfortunately, when accelerating, the hub cannot withstand the power, causing ‘banging noises’ to be heard regularly. Sometimes this happened when accelerating on a slight hill, but even more often it was on a flat cycle path. It’s not very relaxing; not for yourself, but also not for your fellow cyclists who can be shocked by the noise. We also presented this problem to Orbea, who supplied us with a second copy of the Diem. However, this did not solve the problem, which indicates that the hub is simply not suitable for this powerful engine.

Fortunately, the Diem is available with two other gear options: Cues derailleur gears and Enviolo’s Automatiq gear hub. Unfortunately we were not able to test this. We are satisfied with the engine mentioned, the EP6. Shimano clearly knows how to make a mid-motor with natural pedal assistance. Even the highest support setting of the EP6 does not send you like a rocket onto the cycle path, but it does help you a long way to achieving that yourself. One drawback of the Shimano models remains and that is the transition at 26 km/h. It simply feels less refined than on Bosch engines and gives some jerks in the drivetrain. You will feel this most strongly in the highest support setting.

Battery and consumption

Before we conclude, we need to discuss two more details: the battery and the consumption of the Diem 20. The battery itself, with a capacity of 630 Wh, is quite large for a city bike. For comparison: e-bikes from Cowboy, VanMoof and Veloretti often have to make do with batteries of around 400 to 500 Wh. The range of the Orbea Diem shows that it is more than a city bike. In the middle support setting we easily achieved a range of 80 kilometers. If you choose the highest setting, the range drops to approximately 50 kilometers. Yet that is also more than enough for use in the city. You don’t need that highest setting for recreational use, unless you want to be home before it starts to rain, of course.

The range we mention is an average under the conditions in which we tested the Diem. If you climb a lot of hills, often have to accelerate at traffic lights or let the engine do all the work, the range will of course be lower. Our journeys consist of approximately 50 percent city traffic and the other half intercity journeys, where we can continue without stopping. What we also have to note is that it is not possible to remove the battery. If you live in an apartment and you do not have a storage room where you can put the bicycle on the charger, this may be an obstacle.

Final verdict

The Orbea Diem is a beautiful bike to look at and initially a pleasure to ride. Bumps and vibrations from the road surface are well absorbed by the special construction. The EP6 mid-motor lets you effortlessly cover longer distances, without propelling you like a rocket. In the middle position you can travel up to about 80 km: a very respectable range for an e-bike in the ‘urban class’.

Unfortunately, the Diem is not flawless. Take the Nexus gear hub: it simply cannot cope with the power of the EP6 engine. The lack of a screen to show the cycling data also detracts somewhat from the ‘seamless’ cycling experience that Orbea claims to offer. To view the data, you have to open an app that does not match the Diem series in terms of design. Finally, the Diem steers somewhat uncertainly at lower speeds. This is not a problem with the support of the EP6, which always gets you to the desired speed, but when you switch off the motor it is a pain point.

Every detail counts, especially on an e-bike that costs 4,599 euros. If you are considering the Diem, we strongly advise against choosing the Diem 20. If you want a comparable range with an integrated hub, the Diem 10 is an option. You have to pay a lot more for that: 5,599 euros. Fans of derailleur gears can also consider the Diem 30, but the range of that model is somewhat lower.