De-restricting an Avinox motor with a VPN — does it actually work?

[Smashysmash]

How do you de-restrict an Avinox motor using a VPN?

@Greg Watts

 

[Greg Watts]

Right, the VPN derestriction trick for the DJI Avinox motor. Here's the deal, with a fairly important caveat at the end.

The method (as it worked):

• Install a VPN on your phone — NordVPN has been the reliable one. @nowayfra confirmed the USA/Kansas City and Hong Kong servers both worked. PrivadoVPN reportedly did not work across USA/NZ/HK servers.
• Connect the VPN before opening the DJI Avinox/Ride app.
• In the app, re-pair the bike or change the region. New Zealand has historically been the popular choice — no statutory speed limit, so the motor will assist well beyond 25 km/h. Hong Kong gives you 28 mph (~45 km/h); UK gives the standard 15.5 mph; US sets 20 mph and the Class 3 option to bump to 28 mph reportedly doesn't appear, suggesting US bikes ship with different firmware (per @Chips → view post).
• Once the region is set and the bike has accepted it, you can disconnect the VPN. @Astro66 confirmed this on a 2025 Amflow with no errors → view post.

The catch — and it's a big one:

DJI has been actively patching this. @Nomadic Dad reported the June 2025 app update killed the VPN trick → view post, and @nrgbod noted a firmware update removed the region-change backdoor entirely → view post. The app also auto-updates (1.3.22 → 1.3.23 happened mid-session for one rider), so whether it still works today depends entirely on which app/firmware version your bike happens to be sitting on.

Practical advice:

• Don't update the app or firmware if you've got a working derestricted setup. Turn off auto-updates.
• If you're already on the latest firmware, the VPN method may simply not work anymore — at which point your remaining options are a physical machined speed ring (@Suns_PSD mentioned these → view post) or wait for the next workaround.
• Warranty: derestriction voids it. Full stop. No motor manufacturer covers a derestricted motor, though as @Alexbn921 points out → view post, software changes can usually be reverted before a warranty claim.
• Legality: on UK public roads/trails, a derestricted eMTB is no longer an EAPC — it's an unregistered motor vehicle. Private land only.

Which bike are you running, and what app version are you on? That'll determine whether you've still got a window.

 

[Frankyspec]

Are there already Orbea Wild owners , in Europe,who have actually changed the geo/ location to another location by using vpn to support 45km/h, so if it’s still possible to adapt with the latest firmware? If not possible, I’ll probably will buy something else if this will be the case for all new avinox users?

 

[Greg Watts]

Are there already Orbea Wild owners , in Europe,who have actually changed the geo/ location to another location by using vpn to support 45km/h, so if it’s still possible to adapt with the latest firmware? If not possible, I’ll probably will buy something else if this will be the case for all new avi...

The honest answer for the Avinox: that VPN trick has been a UI mirage, not a real derestriction - and that's the bit that matters for your buying decision.

What people actually see when they spoof location is the menu changing - set the region to the US and you get mph speed options shown that you don't get on the EU default.

But the speed cap is baked into the motor's firmware, not the app menu.

The app is just the menu; the firmware is the bouncer that decides whether you actually get past 25km/h.

Changing where the app thinks you are doesn't rewrite the firmware's regional limit, so the motor still holds you to your homologated EU cut-off.

So to your direct question: I'm not aware of any Wild (or other Avinox) owner in Europe who's used a VPN to genuinely lock in a working 45km/h - what gets reported is the menu showing options, not the motor sustaining the speed on EU firmware.

If anyone's claiming a sustained derestrict, I'd want to see it on a dyno or GPS before believing it, not just a screenshot of the menu.

Worth flagging the parallel from the Bosch world - even there it's never been "just an app toggle".

@HappyCamperIan ran into the same wall: even with the US firmware/wheel-size mod, the app still threw a compatibility message.

Different system, but the same lesson - these caps live in firmware, and the legit 45km/h answer is an S-Pedelec homologation, not a spoof.

Now - the buying call.

If you genuinely want a 45km/h-capable bike, derestriction-by-VPN shouldn't be on your list of reasons to pick or reject any Avinox bike, because it isn't a reliable thing on the current firmware.

That applies across the board, not just to the Orbea Wild LT - same M2S motor, same firmware behaviour, on the Megamo Reason, Rotwild R.XX and the rest.

If a true 45km/h is a hard requirement, you're really looking at an S-Pedelec class bike (type-approved, plated, insured) - a different category from any of these EU trail/enduro eMTBs.

Want me to dig into what's actually homologated at 45 in Belgium?

That's a more solid path than chasing a menu glitch.

 

[Frankyspec]

Is it possible to go to an older firmware on the M2S, so you can have a higher speed support, because on the M1 motor I know it’s possible to have 45km/h support, I rode it myself.

 

[HappyCamperIan]

The honest answer for the Avinox: that VPN trick has been a UI mirage, not a real derestriction - and that's the bit that matters for your buying decision.

What people actually see when they spoof location is the menu changing - set the region to the US and you get mph speed options shown that you don't get on the EU default.

But the speed cap is baked into the motor's firmware, not the app menu.

The app is just the menu; the firmware is the bouncer that decides whether you actually get past 25km/h.

Changing where the app thinks you are doesn't rewrite the firmware's regional limit, so the motor still holds you to your homologated EU cut-off.

So to your direct question: I'm not aware of any Wild (or other Avinox) owner in Europe who's used a VPN to genuinely lock in a working 45km/h - what gets reported is the menu showing options, not the motor sustaining the speed on EU firmware.

If anyone's claiming a sustained derestrict, I'd want to see it on a dyno or GPS before believing it, not just a screenshot of the menu.

Worth flagging the parallel from the Bosch world - even there it's never been "just an app toggle".

@HappyCamperIan ran into the same wall: even with the US firmware/wheel-size mod, the app still threw a compatibility message.

Different system, but the same lesson - these caps live in firmware, and the legit 45km/h answer is an S-Pedelec homologation, not a spoof.

Now - the buying call.

If you genuinely want a 45km/h-capable bike, derestriction-by-VPN shouldn't be on your list of reasons to pick or reject any Avinox bike, because it isn't a reliable thing on the current firmware.

That applies across the board, not just to the Orbea Wild LT - same M2S motor, same firmware behaviour, on the Megamo Reason, Rotwild R.XX and the rest.

If a true 45km/h is a hard requirement, you're really looking at an S-Pedelec class bike (type-approved, plated, insured) - a different category from any of these EU trail/enduro eMTBs.

Want me to dig into what's actually homologated at 45 in Belgium?

That's a more solid path than chasing a menu glitch.

Not sure that is correct Greg...my issue is that when my motor was derestricted by the Polish chap he didn't have a config file for Santa Cruz...so used an Orbea file instead. All still works fine, I just can't get the 120Nm update to work. But ebikedoctor can address that if I need to sort it. 100Nm is more than enough TBH.

 

[Powerslider]

Orbea decided to implement a worldwide 20mph limit for their RS M2S. There’s nowhere to vpn to get 28 mph.