Used Sparta e-bike: ION, e-Motion or c-Grid? 2026 guide

Summary. Sparta sells nine models today, and every one of them is an e-bike with a Bosch mid motor. The used Spartas you will actually find carry older names: ION, e-Motion, B1, Pick-Up, Country Tour, Amazone. One family name can hide different motors and different battery positions, so check those two things before the model name. This guide shows you where each one sits.

Why is an older Sparta so hard to look up?

Sparta started in Apeldoorn in 1917 and is now part of Accell. Its current range lists nine models in four families, a-LANE, c-GRID, d-RULE and d-WIZ, and all nine are electric.

The used market looks nothing like that. People search for Sparta ION, e-Motion C2 and C3, Country Tour, Pick-Up, Amazone, Marathon, Entree, Mojo and B1. None of those names appear in the current range, so the manufacturer's site will not tell you what you are looking at.

The fix is simple. Place the name in a family, then check where the motor and the battery sit. Those two facts tell you more about a used Sparta than the badge on the frame.

Which Sparta families will you actually meet?

A few of the classic names also exist with a motor. Sparta sold a Country Tour Electric and a Pick-Up Electric alongside the regular versions, so a listing titled "Country Tour" can be either. Read the battery line in the listing before you assume.

Sparta is one of several Dutch brands worth knowing. Compare it with the others in our guide to the best Dutch bike brands →

Where is the motor, and why does that matter?

On a used Sparta the motor position is the single most useful thing to know, because the same family name can hide different drives.

So an ION RX and an ION GL+ share a name and sit on different motors. If a listing only says "Sparta ION", ask which version it is.

Ride it from standstill before you buy, ideally up a slope. It is the quickest way to feel how the assist behaves, and it takes two minutes.

Where is the battery, and how big is it?

Older Spartas carry the battery in one of two places. On the e-Motion C2 and C3, the ION RX and RX+, and the B1 and B2 it slides out of the rear rack. On the ION DT and GL+ it sits in the frame.

Capacity changed a lot over the years. When new, an e-Motion C2 came with 240 Wh, an e-Motion C3 and an ION RX with 400 Wh, and an ION RX+ and GL+ with 500 Wh. The current range starts at 400 Wh and goes up to 625 Wh.

A range figure from the original brochure describes a new battery, not the one on the bike in front of you. Ask three questions before you agree a price:

• How old is the battery, and has it ever been replaced?
• Does the original charger come with the bike?
• Has the bike been serviced by a dealer, and is there proof?

Our e-bike buying guide covers what else to check on any used e-bike.

Does an older Sparta have a throttle?

Some do. Sparta described a gashendel, a throttle, on the e-Motion C2 and C3, the Country Tour Electric, the Pick-Up Electric and the Entree RX. On the e-Motion C2 Sparta wrote that it gives extra power or automatic assistance up to 6 km/h.

If the throttle is the reason you want the bike, test it on the ride, separately from the pedal assist.

What about the non-electric classics?

Pick-Up is Sparta's transport bike, built around a sturdy front carrier. Sparta also made it in girls' sizes, so check the frame or wheel size in the listing. A Pick-Up can be a child's bike.

Country Tour is an omafiets in a country style, with a front carrier and a wicker basket, sold with three or five gears.

Amazone is often listed on BikeFair as a moederfiets, a mother bike set up to carry a child.

Marathon 3.0 was a steel city bike with three gears that Sparta aimed at the ride to school, the city or work.

Used Sparta transport and mother bikes are thin on the ground at any moment, so it pays to widen the search to the whole category rather than filter on one brand.

Which Sparta fits how you ride?

What should you check before you pay?

Six checks, in the order that saves you the most money.

• Battery. Age, charger and service history, in that order.
• Motor position. Make sure it matches the version in the listing. An ION or e-Motion described without its full name needs one extra question.
• Display and throttle. Switch everything on and try every assist level while riding, not on the stand.
• Hub gears. They should shift cleanly while you pedal gently. Test every gear in both directions.
• Rack and carrier. On models with the battery in the rear rack, check that the battery locks in place and does not rattle.
• Frame number. Check it is present, legible, and matches the papers. The Dutch police set out what to watch for on their bike theft page, in Dutch. Every bike listed on BikeFair is checked against stolen-bike registers before it goes live, which is the part you cannot do yourself from a photo.

Selling a Sparta instead?

Buyers search for Sparta by model name, so put the full name in your listing title: ION RX+, not just ION. Add the motor position, the battery capacity and a photo of the battery label, and your listing will answer the first three questions before anyone asks them.

Frequently asked questions

Does Sparta still make bikes without a motor? Not in its current range. All nine models Sparta lists today are e-bikes. Non-electric Spartas such as the Pick-Up, Country Tour and Marathon are only available second-hand.

Who owns Sparta? Sparta is part of Accell. Its 2026 brochure is published by Sparta as part of Accell Western Europe, with an address in Apeldoorn.

What is a Sparta ION? ION is an e-bike line from Sparta's earlier ranges. It covers several versions with different motors: the ION DT, RX and RX+ have a front hub motor, the ION GL+, GLS+ and RXS+ a rear hub motor.

Is a used e-Motion C3 worth buying? It depends almost entirely on the battery. When new it had a 400 Wh battery in the rear rack, a front hub motor, seven gears and a low step-through. Price it as though a replacement battery may be coming, and ask for the charger.

What do codes like M7Tb or F7e mean in a listing? They appear in listing titles, but we could not find a key to them in Sparta's 2024 to 2026 brochures. Do not decode them yourself. Ask the seller for the motor position, the number of gears and the battery capacity.

Which Sparta is best for a short person? Look for a model listed as lage instap and read the frame size in the listing. The e-Motion C3 was sold with a low step-through, and most of the current range comes in a low step frame, with the smallest size in the 2026 brochure at 46 cm.