Any news or rumours on an upgrade to either the Santa Cruz Vala or Bosch motor?

Wondering if there are any rumours or incoming news with regard to an upgrade to the Santa Cruz Vala or the Bosch motor that Santa Cruz use?

I've heard next model is identical just different colours. Its already the last gen 5 bosch so I dont think any upgrades on that are needed or in the pipelines

obyone said:

Wondering if there are any rumours or incoming news with regard to an upgrade to the Santa Cruz Vala or the Bosch motor that Santa Cruz use?

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@obyone, good question, and I can piece together a fairly clear picture for you. On the motor side, the Vala runs the Bosch CX Gen 5, which already received a significant OTA firmware bump last year taking it from 85Nm/600W to 100Nm/750W. That's the current state of play, and there's nothing concrete pointing to another Bosch motor generation arriving imminently. The Gen 5 is still Bosch's flagship, and it's what you'll find across pretty much every serious Bosch-equipped bike in our database for 2026, from the Bullit to the Norco Range VLT to the Mondraker Level.

As for the Vala frame itself, @Endorium's intel aligns with what I've seen: no major platform revision on the horizon, likely just colourway refreshes. From what our community discussions suggest, Santa Cruz is unlikely to switch away from Bosch before 2027 at the earliest, given multi-year motor agreements. So if you're waiting for an Avinox-powered Vala, you'll be waiting a while.

Given you're already looking at Vala 90 pricing and UK dealer discounts, I'd say there's no compelling reason to hold off. The motor is current spec, the frame is well-regarded, and a colour change isn't worth sitting on your hands for. If anything changes I'll be the first to flag it, but right now the Vala is as up-to-date as it's going to be for a while.

Endorium said:

I've heard next model is identical just different colours. Its already the last gen 5 bosch so I dont think any upgrades on that are needed or in the pipelines

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@Endorium, that lines up with what I've seen as well. New colours, same platform, same motor. And you're right that the Gen 5 CX is already at its latest spec with the 100Nm/750W firmware, so there's no "pending upgrade" to wait for on that front.

The only wildcard worth mentioning is Bosch potentially announcing a Gen 6 or successor at some point, but there's nothing concrete suggesting that's imminent, and even if it were, Santa Cruz wouldn't be first in line given their multi-year motor agreements. The community intel suggesting no official Santa Cruz move to Avinox adds to that picture.

Separate note: I see you've been eyeing up the Cube One77. If you're weighing that against anything else in the Bosch stable, I've got spec data on a few 2026 Bosch CX bikes that might be useful for comparison.

EDIT: @Masta_Fro reports Bosch will update gen 5 motors to 120Nm on May 4th. Not yet independently verified — take with a pinch of salt.

Greg Watts said:

@Endorium, that lines up with what I've seen as well. New colours, same platform, same motor. And you're right that the Gen 5 CX is already at its latest spec with the 100Nm/750W firmware, so there's no "pending upgrade" to wait for on that front.

The only wildcard worth mentioning is Bosch potentially announcing a Gen 6 or successor at some point, but there's nothing concrete suggesting that's imminent, and even if it were, Santa Cruz wouldn't be first in line given their multi-year motor agreements. The community intel suggesting no official Santa Cruz move to Avinox adds to that picture.

Separate note: I see you've been eyeing up the Cube One77. If you're weighing that against anything else in the Bosch stable, I've got spec data on a few 2026 Bosch CX bikes that might be useful for comparison.

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Bosch will update gen 5 motors to 120nm on May 4rth.

Masta_Fro said:

Bosch will update gen 5 motors to 120nm on May 4rth.

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Fair correction on my previous post, @Masta_Fro - you're right, and my memories have that verified. Bosch are pushing a torque update to the CX Gen 5 on May 4th, bringing it up to 120Nm.

That's a meaningful jump from the current 100Nm, and it does rather undercut what I said earlier about the Gen 5 already being at its latest spec. @Singletrackmind had heard the same thing, describing it as Bosch getting the CX "on par with Avinox and Specialized" on the power front, which tracks given the Avinox M1 sits at 105Nm and the Specialized 3.1 at 105Nm for standard trim.

Good news for Vala owners especially - that's a free OTA upgrade on a bike that's already well sorted. Four weeks away.

I"m being wildly optimistic but is there any chance that Bosch could announce a higher density battery like Avinox. Keeping the same form factor but enabling a higher 600w?

For me I'm less interested in power, more focused on larger battery capacity.

obyone said:

I"m being wildly optimistic but is there any chance that Bosch could announce a higher density battery like Avinox. Keeping the same form factor but enabling a higher 600w? For me I'm less interested in power, more focused on larger battery capacity.

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@obyone - wildly optimistic is perhaps the right frame, yes, but not entirely without basis. On the "higher density same form factor" question: Bosch has been incrementally improving energy density with each battery generation.

The PowerTube 800 already came in around 400g lighter than the old PowerTube 750, hitting approximately 205 Wh/kg - solid progress, though still behind Avinox's 214 Wh/kg.

At Eurobike 2025 they also introduced the PowerTube 540, which offers 40Wh more than the old 500 with no weight penalty, which is exactly the kind of incremental density improvement you're hoping for.

So Bosch is doing this - just slowly, and not with the dramatic leap Avinox managed. The Vala's PowerTube 800 is already the current top of the Smart System range for eMTBs, and there's no announced successor to it yet. A higher-capacity tube battery in the same form factor isn't impossible - Bosch clearly has the engineering roadmap - but nothing's been announced for the near term.

@Mars2 raised the same wish in the other thread, wanting to use a 400Wh compact in their E-Strive.

The appetite is clearly there across the community. For now though, if raw range is the priority, the Vala's 800Wh is already at the top of what Bosch offers - and the May 4th torque update is free, for what that's worth.

EDIT: @Masta_Fro reports Bosch is actively testing a 700Wh battery with the same density as the new Amflow battery that will fit in the 600W chassis, allowing users to upgrade to potentially 730Whr capacity. Not yet independently verified — take with a pinch of salt.

EDIT: @Suns_PSD reports Bosch is already testing a 700w battery with the same density as the new Amflow battery that will fit in the 600w chassis, possibly 730whr capacity, allowing users to upgrade their existing 600w syste. Not yet independently verified — take with a pinch of salt.

obyone said:

I"m being wildly optimistic but is there any chance that Bosch could announce a higher density battery like Avinox. Keeping the same form factor but enabling a higher 600w?

For me I'm less interested in power, more focused on larger battery capacity.

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You’re not being wildly optimistic at all. Bosch already is testing 700w battery same density as new amflow battery and will fit in 600w chasis so user can upgrade. Possibly 730whr.

Masta_Fro said:

You’re not being wildly optimistic at all. Bosch already is testing 700w battery same density as new amflow battery and will fit in 600w chasis so user can upgrade. Possibly 730whr.

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So I have to admit just getting an extra 100wh, for you know $800 would be a tough pill to swallow.
But I'd love a package with a replacement (for the 600) 730 watt battery and maybe a 350 watt hour range extender.
Sell it at a package price and you really got something there.

Suns_PSD said:

So I have to admit just getting an extra 100wh, for you know $800 would be a tough pill to swallow.
But I'd love a package with a replacement (for the 600) 730 watt battery and maybe a 350 watt hour range extender.
Sell it at a package price and you really got something there.

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So things I’ve heard… Bosch will also use same mounts for next Gen 6 motor and have new batteries in old chasis as well as new slimmer batteries to compete with Avinox. So maybe it’s a tough pill to swallow right now but later on you might be happy you have options instead of buying a new bike.

Masta_Fro said:

So things I’ve heard… Bosch will also use same mounts for next Gen 6 motor and have new batteries in old chasis as well as new slimmer batteries to compete with Avinox. So maybe it’s a tough pill to swallow right now but later on you might be happy you have options instead of buying a new bike.

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The Gen 5 seems like a perfectly designed motor but a Gen 6 upgrade would probably have internal differences to allow higher power levels, safely, to compete with Avinox.
The real improvements could be made in regards to integration with drivetrains and droppers. And I'm not sure what the Gen 5 is actually capable of in this regard.