One motor or two, and a $360 gap. Whether the S8 is worth it comes down almost entirely to your gradient.
Published 2026-08-21 · updated 2026-08-22 · 9 min read
The short answer
This resolves on terrain and almost nothing else. On flat and rolling ground the S8’s $360 of extra hardware barely surfaces: a second driven wheel cannot help traction that was never the limit, and full suspension on smooth roads mostly adds weight. On sustained climbs, sand, snow or loose gravel, all of it shows up on the first hill. What the S8 is not is a range upgrade — 1200Wh feeding two motors is not reliably further than 960Wh feeding one. If distance is the goal, buy the G60 and keep the money.
AMYET lists the V9-G60 at $689, down from $899, and the S8 at $1,049, down from $1,599. The gap is $360, which makes the S8 roughly 52% more expensive — $1,049 ÷ $689 ≈ 1.52. Put another way, it costs about half as much again as the G60. It does not cost more than the two single-motor bikes bought together: $689 + $669 = $1,358, which is $309 above the S8's price.
That $360 is not spread thinly. It buys four distinct pieces of hardware: a second 1000W motor driving the front wheel, 240 extra watt-hours of battery, hydraulic rather than mechanical disc brakes, and full suspension in place of a fork plus rear shock. Any one of those would be a meaningful upgrade on its own.
$0.72 vs $0.87
price per nominal watt-hour
$689 ÷ 960Wh ≈ $0.72 for the G60. $1,049 ÷ 1200Wh ≈ $0.87 for the S8. On battery alone the G60 is better value — but the S8's premium is buying three other things besides cells, so price per watt-hour understates what you get and overstates what you pay for it.
Both figures are worth holding against the wider market, because they are the reason to look at AMYET at all. The VTUVIA SX20 works out at $1,599 ÷ 672Wh ≈ $2.38 per watt-hour and the EUNORAU FLASH 2.0 at $2,499 ÷ 832Wh ≈ $3.00. Even the dearer of these two bikes buys energy at roughly a third of that. The useful framing is not whether the S8 is worth more money in the abstract, but whether your terrain will ever ask for what the money buys. A dual-motor, full-suspension bike ridden exclusively on flat tarmac is an expensive way to carry a spare motor around.
One motor or two
The G60 has a 1000W rated rear hub motor with a claimed 1500W peak. The S8 has two 1000W brushless motors — 2000W rated combined, with AMYET claiming 3000W combined peak — driving both wheels. Rated power is what a motor sustains without overheating; peak power is a short-burst figure. When a listing leads with the peak number it is describing the best few seconds of the motor's life. AMYET publishes both figures for both bikes, which is to their credit, and our motor wattage guide explains why the distinction matters.
Traction, not just power
The more important difference is not watts. It is driven wheels. A single rear hub motor puts all of its effort through one contact patch, and on a steep pitch the rider's weight shifts rearward, which helps. On loose gravel, wet grass, sand or snow it does not help enough: the rear wheel spins, the motor loses purchase, and the bike stalls. Two driven wheels split the effort, so each tire is asked for less grip than it has.
That is why all-wheel drive changes loose-surface riding far more than the raw power figure suggests, and why it changes flat tarmac riding almost not at all — on good grip, one wheel was never the limiting factor. Our single vs dual motor guide works through where the second motor earns its keep.
Both bikes run a 7-speed drivetrain, and on a hub-motor bike gearing matters less for multiplying motor torque than for letting you contribute. Spinning a low gear on a long climb and adding 150W of your own reduces how hard the motor works, which reduces heat, which keeps it delivering rather than cutting power to protect itself. That is true on either bike. See our e-bike for hills guide if gradient is why you are shopping.
Battery: why the bigger pack may not go further
The S8 carries 48V 25Ah, which is 1200Wh. The G60 carries 48V 20Ah, or 960Wh. On paper the S8 holds 25% more energy. It does not follow that it goes 25% further, and this is the single most commonly missed point when people compare these two.
AMYET lists 30 to 65 miles for the G60 and 70 to 75 miles maximum for the S8. Run the S8 claim backwards: 1200Wh ÷ 75 miles = 16Wh per mile, which is the consumption of a light rider on low assist on flat ground, almost certainly with a single motor doing the work. It is a ceiling, not a plan. Two motors mean two sets of electrical and mechanical losses, more unsprung weight and a heavier bike overall, and every pound has to be accelerated away from every stop.
G60, moderate assist, mixed ground, about 25Wh per mile: 960Wh ÷ 25 ≈ 38 miles. An estimate.
S8, both motors, loose or hilly ground, about 40Wh per mile: 1200Wh ÷ 40 = 30 miles. Also an estimate — and lower than the G60's figure despite the larger pack.
S8 ridden gently on flat ground, about 25Wh per mile: 1200Wh ÷ 25 = 48 miles. The extra capacity does show up, but only when you are not using the reason you bought the bike.
≈38 mi vs ≈30 mi
G60 on mixed ground against S8 on loose ground
So the S8 is not a range upgrade. It is a capability upgrade with enough extra battery to stop the capability from costing you range. That is a reasonable engineering decision and a poor reason to spend $360 if distance is what you are after. One practical S8 advantage: AMYET lists dual charging support, which should shorten the time to fill a 1200Wh pack, though they publish no charge time for it. The G60 is listed at 5 to 8 hours. Our guide to claimed versus real range explains where these numbers come from.
Brakes: the upgrade that is hardest to add later
AMYET lists hydraulic disc brakes for the S8. For the G60 they list only dual disc brakes, with no hydraulic claim — and because they do say hydraulic where they have it, the reasonable reading is that the G60 uses mechanical, cable-actuated discs.
The difference is not marketing. Mechanical discs pull the pad through a cable, so lever feel is softer, braking force depends more on hand strength, and cable stretch means they drift out of adjustment as they bed in. Hydraulic discs are self-adjusting, need far less hand force, and modulate better — which matters most on a long descent when your hands are tired and you are trying to control speed rather than simply arrest it.
On bikes carrying this much mass at these speeds, we would rank braking above almost every other specification, and the S8 is both the heavier bike and the one aimed at descending. That it has the better brakes is appropriate rather than generous. Neither listing publishes a rotor diameter, where every VTUVIA and EUNORAU bike we cover that names a brake type states hydraulic discs and several state a 180mm rotor. If you buy the G60 and ride steep terrain, budget for good pads and a careful setup.
Suspension and water resistance
The S8 is listed as full suspension; the G60 as a dual shock absorber setup, meaning a fork at the front and a rear shock. Neither listing gives travel, damping type or adjustability, so the practical difference cannot be quantified from the published specifications. What can be said is that full suspension is the appropriate architecture for the terrain the S8 is sold for. On water resistance, AMYET lists IP54 for the S8 and publishes nothing for the complete G60.
Certification, assembly and the small print
Here the cheaper bike wins, and it is worth stating plainly. AMYET states that the G60 is UL 2849 certified. On the S8 listing, that claim does not appear.
UL 2849 covers the complete e-bike electrical system — battery, charger, controller and motor tested together — rather than the pack alone, and several US cities, building managers and insurers now require it before a bike may be stored or charged indoors. To be precise about what the gap means: the claim is not published for the S8. That is not the same as the bike being uncertified, and we are not saying it is. It means a buyer who needs the certification has documentation for the G60 and does not have it for the S8, and should ask AMYET directly before ordering.
Assembly differs too. The G60 ships 90% assembled with a toolkit, manual and key. For the S8, AMYET recommends professional installation, which is a sensible position for a full-suspension dual-motor bike with hydraulic brakes and is also a real cost on top of the $360. Both carry a one-year warranty and a 30-day risk-free trial, and both are rated for a 330 lb payload — rider, clothing, rack and cargo combined. If you are near that ceiling, our guide for heavier riders explains how the number interacts with spokes, rims and brakes.
Speed, weight and living with them
Both bikes run 20 × 4-inch fat tires, so both are short, both store relatively well for fat bikes, and both have the air volume that makes potholes and gravel unremarkable. Our fat-tire guide covers what that tire size does and does not do.
On speed, AMYET claims up to 32 MPH for the G60. For the S8 they quote 32 MPH in some places and up to 35 MPH in others; we use the lower, more consistently published figure and flag the discrepancy rather than picking the flattering one. Either way both sit above the 28 MPH Class 3 ceiling used by around forty US states, which means neither fits the standard three-class framework at its claimed top speed. Most bikes in this category ship with a configurable speed limit; check your local rules, particularly for shared-use paths.
On weight, AMYET publishes nothing for either bike. What can be reasoned is direction, not magnitude: the S8 carries a second motor, a 1200Wh pack rather than a 960Wh one, and full suspension, so it is clearly the heavier machine. By how much, AMYET does not say — and this is where the gap with the rest of the field is widest, because eleven of the seventeen non-AMYET bikes we cover publish a weight, from 39 lb to approximately 110 lb, and thirteen of the seventeen also state their assist sensor type. If you have to lift the bike onto a rack or up a flight of stairs, ask AMYET before ordering.
Common questions
Is the AMYET S8 worth $360 more than the G60?+
It depends entirely on your terrain. The $360 buys a second 1000W motor driving the front wheel, 240 extra watt-hours, hydraulic instead of mechanical disc brakes, and full suspension. On sustained climbs, sand, snow or loose gravel, all four change how the bike behaves. On flat tarmac almost none of them surface, because traction was never the limiting factor and suspension on smooth roads mostly adds weight. If your route is flat, the G60 does the same job for $689 and you keep the difference.
Does the S8 go further than the G60 on one charge?+
Not necessarily, despite the larger pack. The S8 holds 1200Wh against the G60’s 960Wh, but it feeds two motors and a heavier bike. Running both motors on rough ground can push consumption past 40 watt-hours per mile: 1200Wh ÷ 40 = about 30 miles, an estimate. The G60 at a typical 25Wh per mile gives 960Wh ÷ 25 ≈ 38 miles, also an estimate. Ridden gently on flat ground the S8 does go further, but that is riding which does not need a dual-motor bike.
Why does the S8 not mention UL 2849 when the G60 does?+
AMYET states UL 2849 certification for the G60, but the same claim does not appear on the S8 listing. That is a gap in published information, not evidence that the bike is uncertified, and we will not report it as one. UL 2849 covers the whole electrical system rather than the battery alone, and some US cities, building managers and insurers now require it for indoor storage or charging. If it matters where you live, ask AMYET directly before ordering.
How fast is the S8, really?+
AMYET publishes both figures. Their pages quote up to 32 MPH in some places and up to 35 MPH in others, so we use the lower, more consistently published number and flag the inconsistency rather than choosing the flattering one. The G60 is claimed at up to 32 MPH. Both sit above the 28 MPH Class 3 ceiling used by around forty US states, which means neither fits the standard three-class framework at its claimed top speed. Most bikes in this category ship with a configurable speed limit.
Which is easier to live with day to day?+
The G60. Both run 20 by 4-inch fat tires so both are relatively short and store similarly, but the G60 ships 90% assembled with a toolkit, while AMYET recommends professional installation for the S8 — a real added cost. The S8 also carries a second motor, a larger pack and full suspension, so it is clearly the heavier bike, though AMYET publishes no weight for either. Both are rated for 330 lb of payload and both come with a one-year warranty and a 30-day trial.
How do these compare with VTUVIA and EUNORAU on paper?+
On energy per dollar, favourably: $0.72 and $0.87 per watt-hour against $2.08 to $4.46 for the seventeen non-AMYET bikes we cover. On documentation, badly. Neither of these bikes has a published torque figure, assist sensor type or weight, where sixteen of those seventeen publish torque of 40 to 220 Nm, eleven publish a weight and thirteen state a sensor type. That is the trade in one line: AMYET sells watt-hours, the others sell specifications.
