Originally Posted by
MarcusT
Am I missing something?
Yes you are.
E-assist multiplies your own power so you don’t need such small chain rings.
I run 40/32/22 x 11-40 on my unassisted bike, and barely make it up the steepest hills in the lowest gear combo. On the same model bike with assist, 50/42 x 11-32 more than suffices and I zoom up the same hills over 12.8mph