Brompton owners

My routine has been to use mine to get to the station in the morning every day (~1 mile), then ride all the way back home a couple times a week (~14 miles). Hard to commit every day when 1.) weather happens and 2.) I'm feeling lazy. The ride home is really enjoyable though. Sometimes I even take a scenic route home and add a few bonus miles. But with the clocks about to change, I see more walking in my future...

This is definitely the win, there are days where you quite fancy one leg of a commute but not the other. A Brompton is great for that scenario, previously i'd have to grind through a bike i wasn't feeling or more likely leave the bike and be on a tube/bus thinking about the bike. Particularly on a wet winter night

G line reviews starting to drop:

Brompton G Line review: It’s better in so many ways, but I can’t work out what it’s for

Marketing copy: 'most versatile bike in the world'
CN review: ' The campervan crowd will likely be a key market'

I think the writer likes it, but doesn't like it enough. I suspect the reality is that Brompton are trying to enter a new market i.e target customers who aren't commuters/would ever think of buying one.

I know a couple of people here have seen them, but has anyone actually ridden one or dare I say it purchased and had one delivered yet?

Got my Brompton when my missus got pregnant and didn’t want to do the 15 mile commute to feltham I’d been doing for the previous 5 years. The thought of doing an hour plus commute on no sleep plus late returns and missing out on bathtime wasn’t appealing. So got Brompton for the ride too and from station.
Don’t remember if I ever rode the whole way to feltham on it, but did plenty of journeys to Richmond from Stockwell. It really depends on how hard you want to go, my two speed is for pottering so I’m never really trying to get anywhere super fast, but I’ll happily ride 6-10 miles in one journey on it, could probably do more but the pull of just jumping on a train for most of it, and getting there a bit quicker is usually too strong..

Someone on here has one, Andy the architect but it’s can’t remember his username

I bumped into and chatted for a little while with a Brompton employee who was riding and testing the G line electric yesterday on the way to work. It looked very impressive - very solid, nice planted stance and very stable. Overall was very impressed with how it looked and rode, but the size and weight do still make me wonder how practical it would be or for what...

Half Price Electric P Line in nice Emerald Green Lacquer.

I've always wanted the p line in that colour but have no need for the electric assist. Is there a market for people wanting front motor wheels and batteries? Tempted to take them off and sell them and stick a regular Brompton front wheel in...

I'm looking for a larger front bag for an m-type, considering the borough and restrap (want a side drink bottle pouch). Any other 3rd party ones i've missed, looked at the Carradice. Currently have one of the lime greenroll tops but 9 litres isn't enough for current needs

Hey Gary. I can change the username to Andy the architect if it’s easier…

Campervans and maybe boats , folding bikes are very useful when you want to get around a new area but the means of transport you arrived in is in some way unsuited to the task.

I’ve had Brompton bikes for a while on and off and now have the following:

• C line urban 2 speed in black
  
• C line explore 6 speed with dynamo (for office shared use)
  
• G Line electric 4 speed
  
  

It seems that I was mentioned for an opinion on the G Line. I have been riding this since 30th September and have done 500 km on it according to Strava. I was kindly loaned this for use by Brompton and I haven’t paid for it. I was not asked for anything in return. However, I have done a few pics and put them on my Instagram and also chatted to anyone who has shown an interest in it. I’ve also given lots of test rides to friends who all seem to be positive about it.

The other thing to note is that I am now a massive fan of electric bikes and they are keeping me moving, even in terrible weather. I get quite miserable in the winter months and sometimes default to using the train/tube to get to work - which then makes it worse and repeat etc. I have an electric bike, good jacket, waterproof trousers and some mudguards and hoping to not use the tube at all this year.

The “make it make sense” comment is fun in that when I tried a Brompton for the first time it took two weeks to get used to. Riding the G Line makes more sense when you jump on it for the first time as it rides like a normal bike. It feels so much more planted and comfortable to me and less fragile than the original (which I still love). The big volume tyres make a difference and I corner like I do on my MTB on them. A lot of fun commuting. The electric is great and also kicks in nicely. It’s much more progressive and less on/off than a Lime bike or cheaper hub motor. I go everywhere at full gas all the time and charge it a lot but only because of how much I use it. I use it to commute to work and to go all over London for work. Last Friday I did 35/40km on it around London. It stops me needing to use public transport really. I wish I had some canal path sections on my commute as it’s an absolute hoot off-road. I’m not selling my gravel bike for it but it does make riding everything possible. I will also take it to the South Downs for a camp out when the weather is warmer.

The mixed modal transport thing isn’t quite as easy for a few reasons - it’s bigger, a bit heavier, and the bars are wider. It’s generally much easier to fold it and leave the bars out and wheel it. If I were to own the bike I would probably take 10mm off either side of the bars too as I’m still getting use to them and shop doors. The other thing to consider is that the seat post doesn’t go all the way through to form a stopper on the floor. So when on the Thameslink to Brighton the other day I used a little Voile strap (from Seabass Cycles) to tie it to one of the blue pillars.

Overall I love it and can’t stop using it. It’s incredibly well engineered and feels seriously solid. As I say, I’m not a fan boy but do like it. There are a few compromises of course. I would buy one with my own money and use it as my main bike for London without hesitation. Let me know if you want to swing a leg over it.

Another use case for the G Line is for those that live in flats in London or have limited space. You can have a bike that rides like a normal bike but folds down to sit in the hall.

The pedal coming off and clipping under the crown of the fork is a genius move.

Brompton’s stance is that non electric bikes cannot be retrofitted. There should, in theory, be design considerations to make e-bikes more robust than non e-bike models due to the different forces placed on the bike (especially with a front wheel motor).

In practicality, one could fit a non e Brompton with the kit and it would work. It would void any warranties, but no reason it wouldn’t work mechanically.

Interesting review. Thanks.

I've seen a dude on what I thought was a green, electric G Line going up and down Homerton in the morning/s. This was a few weeks ago. That you? 👀

Ahh, not me. I’m on an orange one.

It’s a great way of talking to strangers at the lights.

“Is that the…”

Yeah, I was driving and was considering stopping all traffic (in old school Hackney fashion) just to ask some questions lol. Looked big, bit also looks good.

Electric Bromptons have a strengthened fork and extra holes in the bottom bracket for the torque sensor. I'm sure you could make it work but it's not a simple bolt-on replacement.

The number one reason for the existence of the G Line is that Brompton has a load of extremely loyal rich customers who the company struggles to extract money from once they've sold them One Brompton. It doesn't need to make sense, it needs to be different enough that they'll buy another one and interesting enough they'll pay a premium price.

People have been asking for bigger wheels and disc brakes since forever, so it's obvious thing to build.

If it accidentally attracts customers for whom disc brakes or bigger wheels are useful I suppose that's a bonus.

Yeah that's what I thought. So a really limited second hand market for new batteries and hub motor wheels. I had initially hoped I could quite easily sell them and essentially get a P Line for a decent price but quickly figured I'd just be left with loads of bits no-one wanted and no cost saving.

Can you not do ‘Lucky’ ;-)

C line explore 6 speed with dynamo (for office shared use)
Must be like the dealer giving you something for free...

I was kindly loaned this for use by Brompton
Do you know if they expect it back?

I knew my lack of Instaface presence was holding me back...

Thanks Andy the Architect, for your open review. If you are ever west I might ask you to try it, but I can also see the electric element is important for you and I doubt I need the electric option. If I see an orange bike with a smiling architect, I know it is you...

Does anyone know if the G-Line will fit into the front luggage compartment of a 911

Hold on let me go have a look.

Shit. Dont have a g line.