Aventon Current EXP First Look

Aventon put a carbon front triangle, wireless SRAM shifting, and Maven brakes on a full-suspension eMTB, then priced it thousands under a Turbo Levo.

The Current EXP is Aventon’s swing at the premium full-suspension crowd. It shares its motor, battery, and geometry with the alloy Aventon Current ADV, then spends the extra $2,000 on the parts riders argue about: a carbon front triangle, a RockShox Lyrik fork, SRAM Maven brakes, and wireless SRAM shifting. The pitch is a carbon eMTB with big-name components for thousands less than a Specialized Turbo Levo or Trek Rail. We have not tested it yet, so here is what stands out from the claimed specs and early reviews.

Current EXP Overview: What’s New

Aventon launched the Current line as its first full-suspension electric mountain bikes, and the EXP is the top of it. The frame pairs a carbon front triangle with an alloy rear, which is where a lot of the weight savings and stiffness come from. Suspension is a RockShox Lyrik fork at 150mm up front and a Super Deluxe shock at 140mm out back, a step up from the ADV’s setup. It also runs SRAM Maven Base 4-piston brakes and SRAM’s S1000 wireless 12-speed drivetrain, so there is no shift cable to route or fray.

Everything under the parts is shared with the ADV: the Ultro X mid-drive motor, the 800Wh battery, the 4G ACU connectivity stack, and the same trail geometry. If you have read our Current ADV first look, think of the EXP as that bike with a carbon front end and a premium build kit. It comes in Midnight Black and Glacier Mint, sizes S through XL, and it is in stock now.

Claimed Specs and Price

Everything below is manufacturer-claimed unless we say otherwise. We have not put the Current EXP on our scale or through our range loop yet. Aventon has not published the battery’s exact voltage and amp-hours or a rated payload, so we are not going to guess at those.

Motor and Performance

The Current EXP uses the same Ultro X mid-drive as the ADV. Aventon claims 750W of peak power that jumps to 850W in BOOST mode, with 110 Nm of torque that climbs to 120 Nm when you need it. That is real full-power eMTB output, meant for steep, technical climbs rather than mellow bike-path cruising. It ships as a Class 1 bike and unlocks to Class 3, so you can set it up for up to 28 mph where that is legal.

Electric Bike Review scored the Current EXP a 92 out of 100 and wrote that “dealers will have hard conversations” once shoppers see what it costs against the big brands. That outlet did flag some things to keep an eye on: EXO tire casings that may be light for aggressive riding, a motor-cover rattle, and rotor glazing. The Loam Wolf called it a top-five eMTB regardless of price for one of its testers, but noted it can feel under-damped for hard, aggressive riders. Those are their findings, not ours. We will run our own numbers once we get a unit in.

Battery and Claimed Range

The EXP carries an 800Wh removable battery, the same pack as the Current ADV. Aventon claims up to 105 miles on a charge, though that figure assumes low-assist, efficient riding. On real mountain-bike terrain the number drops fast. Aventon itself points to roughly 30 miles with about 3,000 feet of climbing in Turbo, which is a more honest expectation for full-power trail use. Aventon has not published the exact voltage and amp-hours for this pack, so we are reporting capacity in watt-hours only.

Because the motor, battery, and tune match the ADV, we would expect similar real-world range between the two. The EXP’s lighter weight might help a hair on long climbs, but battery capacity is the same, so do not buy the carbon bike expecting extra miles. We will post tested range once the EXP goes through our standard loop.

Current EXP vs Current ADV

This is the decision most buyers actually face, since the two bikes share so much. The Current ADV is the alloy bike at $3,999. The EXP costs $5,999 and spends that extra $2,000 on a carbon front triangle, a burlier RockShox Lyrik fork, SRAM Maven brakes, and wireless S1000 shifting, while shaving weight to about 53 pounds against the ADV’s roughly 56. Same motor, same battery, same geometry. If you want the lightest, best-equipped version and the wireless drivetrain matters to you, the EXP is the one. If you would rather save $2,000 and put it toward tires, a rack, or just keep it, the ADV covers the same trails.

If a full-suspension eMTB is more bike than you need, Aventon’s hardtail is the cheaper way in. Our Aventon Ramblas review covers that entry point, and it sits well under both Current models on price.

Who Should Buy the Current EXP

First-look verdict

On paper and in early third-party reviews, the Current EXP looks like a lot of carbon eMTB for the money. Aventon put premium parts, a carbon front triangle, and wireless shifting on a full-power trail bike, then priced it thousands below the Specialized and Trek bikes it is chasing. The catch is the EXP’s own sibling: the alloy Current ADV shares the motor, battery, and geometry for $2,000 less. If the carbon frame, Lyrik fork, Maven brakes, and wireless drivetrain are worth that gap to you, this is a strong-looking flagship. We still want to put our own numbers to the range, the suspension, and the durability questions other reviewers raised. We will update this review with full tested figures once we get a unit in.

Aventon Current EXP FAQ

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