Eurobike was full of electric mountain bikes. Hereafter we'll just call them e-MTBs to save our fingers. Most of the manufacturers we talked to said that it's the biggest growing sector of their e-bike business, and it's a new demographic for e-bikes: younger riders who are more likely to already be into their bikes. While city e-bikes are often a transport choice, with e-MTBs it's more about the leisure market. And the signs are that riders who start out with an e-MTB are also moving into urban e-bikes, with many manufacturers now offering more sporty models with more aggressive geometry.
There's far too many e-bikes at Eurobike to show you every one. Instead, let's look at some of the trends we've noticed at this year's show. Starting with...
System integration
Making e-MTBs look less, well, electric has been a big theme over the last year or so and some of the new bikes we saw at Eurobike are managing to integrate the motor and battery very convincingly.
Part of that is down to the increasing prevalence of Brose and Shimano MTB drive systems, both of which offer an integrated battery option and a motor that's smaller than the Bosch Performance Line CX, still the market leader in mountain bikes.
Shimano's E8000 STEPS transmission is brand new. We tried it for the first time at Eurobike and it's a proper contender in the market; as you'd expect from Shimano, they've not gone far wrong with the move into mountain bikes and some of the system – especially the excellent paddle shifter for mode changes – is easily the best out there.
The availability of a 500Wh internal battery is one that many manufacturers have taken advantage of to create some very clean looking bikes.
One of the nicest is the new KTM Ventura Vamos. It's a 140mm trail bike with a hydroformed alloy frame, and it uses 27.5+ wheels and tyres.
The motor is well integrated into the frame shape, and the battery is removable for charging indoors. You can also charge it in situ. KTM reckon that the better integrated the motor and battery, the less chance there is of them getting damaged; there's probably some truth in that.
The Scott E-Spark 700 Plus Tuned (€6,999) is another very tidy full-suspension implementation. Apologies for the poor quality pics; Scott were so proud of it that they put it in a box, that everyone put their grubby fingers on.
This top-end model runs Fox front and rear suspension, and Scott's excellent TwinLoc system that allows you access to three different modes of suspension from one handlebar lever. You can have both ends fully open, set the rear to traction mode or lock both fork and shock.
The E-Spark uses the new Trunnion mount shock; You get a shorter shock with less leverage, and you can run the shock at lower pressure which improves performance.
Kettler's e-Scorpion 29er is more of a race hardtail take on the e-MTB, with a carbon frame, Rockshox RS1 fork, XT Di2 drivetrain and a carbon wheelset. Kettler weren't showing a claimed weight for the bike and it was bolted to the stand (for obvious reasons, we'd certainly have nicked it) but it's going to be in the “light for an e-MTB” category, for sure.
It's in the “expensive for an e-MTB” category too, at €6,999. Still, you're getting a top-quality build.
Simplon's Steamer was another STEPS bike to catch the eye. It's a carbon full suspension 150mm trail bike, and again the motor and battery are well integrated into the big-section frame.
Simplon are one of a few companies that were using the paint scheme of the bike to hide the fact that the sections were bigger: they're using a black inner shape with a bright green around the outside to try and trick your eye into just seeing the black bit. BMC were doing it the other way round with a bright inner section (orange in their case) and a grey outer, and that worked a bit better. Still, the Steamer isn't a bad-looking bike, anyway.
Shimano don't have the monopoly on system integration by any means. The Brose motor can also be used with an integrated battery, and BH have been doing that on their Easymotion range of bikes for a while now.
This is the Lynx 6. BH call their systsem Revo Drive but in reality the Brose motor is hidden in the frame. The Lynx 6 is a 160mm trail bike that uses Fox suspension front and rear, and a Shimano XT 11-speed drivetrain. It'll cost you €4,399.
The motor integration maybe isn't quite as neat as some of the Shimano bikes above but the Lynx 6 is still a clean-looking beast, and inside that downtube there's a big-capacity 600Wh battery for all-day range.
We've already been out to Austria to test the Giant Full E 0+ SX (http://ebiketips.co.uk/content/reviews/electric-bikes/giant-full-e-0-sx-376) and Giant have made a good job of integrating the Yamaha PW motor and a 500W EnergyPak battery into the bike.
The Full E also gets Giant's well-proven Maestro suspension platform which has remained more or less unchanged for the last decade because Giant reckon it works really well. That's out experience of it too.
Rose were showing the Elec-Tec hardtail (€3,999) which will be available in either a 27.5+ or a 29” wheel build. It's the only e-MTB we saw that was using the Continental drive; Conti have been gaining some followers in urban bikes but this is new ground for them.
Again the battery is integrated into the down tube, although the shape of the frame and the position of the battery and motor mean it's much more obviously an e-MTB at first sight.
The Continental drive is similar in size and shape to the Brose unit. It'll be interesting to see how it fares off-road; we haven't had the chance to try the Rose yet.
You might be thinking at this point, “it's a shame you can't integrate the Bosch system a bit better”. And you'd be wrong, because you can. Not many people were doing it, but French brand Moustache certainly were.
The first time we saw the Samedi 27 we assumed it was a new Shimano STEPS bike. But no, that's a standard Bosch motor and battery nicely hidden in the Moustache's frame.
That battery cover is just that: a sprung plastic cover. Inside there's a battery compartment ans a standard 500Wh Bosch pack. The motor is a standard Bosch Performance Line CX one as well, but Moustache have used the two-colour trick to make the motor look smaller. It works, too. This is the nicest implementation of Bosch on an e-MTB that we saw.
This Samedi 27 Race 6 is a 160mm alloy frame with a Suntour fork and SRAM NX gears. We also managed to get a test ride on the carbon Samedi 27 Trail 9, look out for that soon!
http://www.moustachebikes.com/
Final integration shout goes to the Focus Project Y. Focus weren't even at the show but they'd managed to get their sub-13kg hardtail e-MTB into the Eurobike awards somehow.
We've reported on it before but this is the first time we've seen it in the flesh. It's pretty, and you'd have to lok twice – or more – to realise it had a motor.
How so light? Well, partly by using exotic finishing kit from the likes of Tune. And starting with a superlight Raven hardtail frameset doesn't hurt either. And neither does speccing a SRAM XX1 groupset. If you could buy this, it'd be eye-wateringly expensive. You can't though. Yet.
One of the reasons you can't is that the drive system is uses – the Fazua Evation drive – won't be rolling off the production line until January. And that drive system is the other reason it's so light, with the whole thing weighing in at under 5kg. You only get a 250Wh battery but Focus reckon that's good for 800m of climbing in a ride.
Mid motors take over
No two ways about it: everyone's decided that a mid motor is best for your premium e-MTB. They don't agree on which one to use, but almost every mountain bike at the show with a motor had it in the bottom bracket.
Almost every mountain bike: there were still some rear-hub-motor bikes out there, like this e-Falcon from Wheeler. It's using the Bionx D-series motor with a semi-integrated battery. It very much felt like they were a dying breed, though. The trend towards mid motors is one that's happening right across the industry, but it's most noticeable on e-MTBS where the advantages of a mid motor over a hub motor (better weight distribution, better suspension performance) are much clearer.
http://www.wheelerworldwide.com
Battery placement
As a rule the place for the battery on an e-MTB is on the down tube, or in it. The need to keep the chainstays short for good trail handling means you can't put it behind the seat tube, and there's no rack to stick it in; anyway, that would be a bad place to put it in terms of handling.
It's a lot of weight, and the lower you can get it the better: a lower centre of gravity makes the bike more stable. That's prompted a few manufacturers to play around with the placement to try and get the battery to sit a bit further down.
First up Lapierre. We've already covered the bike's launch and the standout feature of the new Overvolt is that it places the battery more or less longitudinally above the Bosch motor, instead of along the down tube.
It's a unique design, and while it certainly moves the centre of the bike mass down it's not without its potential issues: the battery mount creates a sort of shelf where we can imagine UK mud and grime building up before very long. There's a drain hole to let water through but you'll still end up with clods of earth in there, we reckon.
The carbon frame saves 600g over the previous alloy Overvolt, so the bike as a whole is a bit lighter too. There's three models: this is the cheapest, the 700, with an 11-speed SRAM NX drivetrain and a Rockshox Yari fork. The 800 and 900 models get more exotic running gear and suspension, on the same frame platform.
http://www.lapierre-bikes.co.uk/
Cannondale have also been thinking about their battery placement. Their solution is to hang it below the down tube, instead of bolting it on the top: that way the battery can sit much lower, with part of it on the same level as the motor. It also puts it in the path of rocks and other detritus thrown up by the front wheel, so Cannondale have added a rubberised bashguard over the battery to keep it from getting damaged.
Cannondale will be offering the Moterra with both standard and plus-sized tyres, and in 130mm and 160mm travel variants. This is the Moterra 2 (€4,999) which gets a Shimano SLX drivetrain and a Rockshox Yari fork.
Gearing
Most manufacturers seem to be of the opinion that a single-ring system is plenty when you've got a motor backing you up. If you're running a Bosch motor then that's the only option anyway, because of the way the motor works.
Brose, Shimano, Yamaha and Continental motors can be used with a front mech though for a wider gear range, and some manufacturers take advantage of that. This Hercules NOS Pro, for example, is running a 2x11 Shimano XT drivetrain with a Brose Motor. It also gets a whopping 650Wh battery.
If you have a full suspension bike with a motor then front mech placement can be tricky (although Giant have managed it with the new Full E) but the NOS PRO is a fairly standard hardtail design so it's not that tricky. The full-suspension Hercules NOS FS Sport, pictured above with the NOS PRO, also gets a front mech.
A front mech isn't the only way to get more gears. The KTM Macina Force E-30 (€2,699) has a Bosch motor but still manages 30 gears.
How so? KTM have fitted a 3-speed SRAM hub at the rear and mated it with a 10 speed SRAM GX drivetrain. So you get 30 speeds, all through the rear hub and no need for a front mech. KTM reckon it's the first 30-speed e-MTB out there. They're probably right.
Downhill bikes
Sticking a motor in your DH bike makes plenty of sense: it's a heavy bike anyway, so it's not going to be too compromised by extra stuff, and it gives you more freedom to do multiple runs where you don't have the luxury of an uplift.
Haibike were showing off their new DWNHLL 8.0, a €5,299 gravity machine with a 200mm alloy frame and a Rockshox BoXXer RC fork up front. For the uphills you get the Bosch Performance Line CX motor, a Purion display and a 500Wh battery pack.
The bike uses Haibike's Sprocket Equalising System (SES) which places a secondary sprocket at the rear suspension pivot point. This sprocket solves the issues with chain elongation that arise from the pivot point being so far from the bottom bracket axle.
Haibike describe the DWNHLL 8.0 as 'mid price'. If you want to pay 'full price' then what you need is the €7,999 DWNHLL 9.0, which gets some fairly serious spec upgrades including Fox factory shocks front and rear, Shimano Saint transmission and Mavic DeeMax wheels.
Rotwild were another company with a full-spec DH bike, the R.G+ FS. It uses a 200mm alloy frame with a Fox X2 shock, but the Rotwild Integrated Power Unit, which comprises the motor and battery plus their respective housings, uses a carbon shell. The Rotwild IPU differs from many designs in that the battery is a structural part of the bike.
The XLS rear suspension uses a virtual pivot point to minimise chain growth, and up front you get a factory-spec Fox 40 fork. The head tube angle is adjustable to fine-tune the riding characteristics. Again, you'll need to have deep pockets: the R.G+ FS comes in at €7,999 with a Saint groupset and DT Swiss wheels.
Kids' bikes
Kids don't know they're born these days. We remember trying to get down National DH courses on 50mm of elastomer travel when a motor in your bottom bracket was just a hopeless dream. Now you can go out for an e-bike ride on your 160mm trail monster. And bring your kids. On their own e-MTBs.
Admittedly there weren't many kids' e-MTBs, but there were some, 24”-wheeled trail machines with mid-motors just like mum and dad's. German brand S'Cool had this e-Trox on their stand priced at €1,699, with a TranzX motor, an integrated battery and a Suntour fork.
Gepida weren't to be outdone: their Gilpil 1000 (€2,099) features a Bosch Active Line motor, Shimano Alivio gearing and Suntour suspension fork, again built around a 24” wheel frame.
Odds and sods
We liked this ToroRider Fully TR-C 200. At €6,490 it's not cheap but it is easy on the eye. And the biceps, if you have to lift it over a stile. Okay, 19.2kg isn't exactly light but it's a fair few kilos lighter than your normal full-suspension sled.
The motor is by Fendt. We don't really know anything about it, other than it's a 250W, 36V mid drive with a 417Wh battery plugged into it.
We tried to get more information from the Fendt website but it appears they mostly make tractors, so that was a bit of a dead end. On the ToroRider website we learned that the 250W version puts out 60Nm of torque and that there's a speed pedelec version too.
We also learned that you can spec your ToroRider Fully with a carbon bar with integrated display, and carbon Xentis wheels, should you have pockets deep enough.
e-bikepacking is now a thing, or at least it is according to Ghost. They describe their Kato FS as a 'backcountry' bike, amongst other things, and they had one on the stand loaded up with your standard bikepacking fare of big saddlebag and bar roll. The battery kind of gets in the way of the frame bag.
The Kato FS in this build (Fox suspension, Shimano XT) will set you back €4,999. Bags are extra.
Corratec have taken their unique bow frame and added a Bosch motor. Can you guess what they called it? Yup, say hello to the eBow.
The bow design is a graceful curve and we're not sure the addition of a battery and mid motor really suits the design, but the motor is blue, so that's good at least.
Finally, Moustache's electric MTB tandem. It's SO niche. And we want one SO much.
This was one of a few bikes at the show to come with the new Bosch dual battery system. You'll need those 1000Wh to drag you and your stoker up whatever you decide to attempt on this beast.
