Greg's Weekly eMTB Briefing - 29 June 2026Eurobike week, and the industry has delivered the full spectrum: a genuinely exciting new motor concept that nobody can actually buy yet, a rival trade show that sounds like it was named by committee, and Amflow owners discovering their frames have been busy developing stress fractures. Business as usual, then.
Avinox Reveals the MG: A Motor-Gearbox That Does Everything Except, Currently, RegenThe big mechanical news out of Eurobike is the Avinox MG — a combined motor and stepless virtual gearbox in a single unit, replacing the derailleur entirely. DJI's Avinox division is pitching this as a fundamentally different approach to eMTB drivetrain architecture: one unit handles both propulsion and gear selection, with no chain-and-cassette setup in the traditional sense. Whether that lands as genuinely revolutionary or as a very expensive prototype that arrives at scale sometime around 2031 remains to be seen.
There's a wrinkle, and it's a fairly significant one. The forum thread running 224 replies deep has confirmed that current MG prototype bikes do not support battery regeneration — which, given that "regen" has been one of the more interesting theoretical advantages of an electronically-controlled drivetrain unit, is a notable absence. The E-Mountainbike piece on the MG concept frames this carefully: buyers at Eurobike who'd been excited about the Avinox M2S were apparently left wondering whether to wait for MG or proceed — which is exactly the kind of paralysis that concept bikes are engineered to produce, intentionally or otherwise.
Specs for the MG are not yet confirmed to the level we'd quote them here — the motor database entry is live but the torque and power figures are unverified pending proper release data, so treat any numbers you see floating around as manufacturer ambition rather than established fact. What is clear is that Avinox is trying to do to the drivetrain what they did to motor output with the M2S — push the envelope hard enough that everyone else has to respond. The M2S, for context, sits at 150Nm and 1500W manufacturer-claimed peak (independently measured at approximately 1450W), so the bar they're jumping from is already fairly high.
Whether the MG becomes the future or an interesting Eurobike footnote depends entirely on whether DJI can move it from prototype to reliable, serviceable product at a price that doesn't require a second mortgage. History suggests the timeline between "concept at a trade show" and "bike in a shop" is generous, to put it charitably.
Full story on E-Mountainbike
Amflow PL Carbon Owners: Go and Check Your Seat Tube. Now.Not the Eurobike headline DJI were hoping to share the week with. A thread on the forum — 135 replies and climbing — has flagged reports of seat tube cracking on the Amflow PL Carbon, which is the bike that launched the Avinox M1 motor to the world. Cracked frames are never a good look, but they're particularly awkward when your parent company is simultaneously unveiling next-generation drivetrain technology at a major trade show. If you own one, the advice from the thread is straightforward: inspect it, and don't wait until your next service.
Discussion thread
SRAM T-Type: A Reliability Thread That Spans the Entire Drivetrain EcosystemSRAM's T-Type transmission is, by any measure, a genuinely good piece of engineering — when it works. The forum thread that's gathered 50 replies this week suggests "when it works" is doing some heavy lifting in that sentence. Failures are being reported across multiple e-bike types and platforms, which means this isn't a single-brand problem or a single-motor compatibility issue. The SRAM Eagle Powertrain motor integration was supposed to make the whole ecosystem seamless. Seamless is one word for it.
Join the discussion
Eurobike Moves to September 2027 — and Gets a RivalEurobike has confirmed it will shift its 2027 edition to September, abandoning the early summer slot it occupied this year. The stated rationale involves giving the industry more development time between show and product launch, which is corporate speak for "brands kept showing bikes that weren't ready in June." In the same breath, ZIV has announced a rival show — "Towards Tomorrow – European Bike Show" — also targeting September 2027. Two competing European trade shows in the same month. Nothing says "healthy industry consolidation" quite like scheduling two major events to clash directly. Popcorn, anyone.
Full story on Bicycle Retailer
Gobao X1P: Another eCVT Motor That Wants to Reinvent the Wheel (Literally)Hot on the heels of the Avinox MG comes the Gobao X1P, which made its Eurobike 2026 appearance promising 150Nm and 1500W manufacturer-claimed peak through an electronically-controlled continuously variable transmission. It weighs 3.85kg, which is the price you pay for integrating a CVT — compare that to the M2S at 2.59kg for the same headline torque figure, and you're carrying a meaningful penalty. The forum thread on it has 142 replies and the tone suggests cautious interest rather than pandemonium. Gobao's existing P100 has earned reasonable respect at 100Nm and 750W claimed, so they're not unknown quantities — but a stepless CVT eMTB motor is a different proposition entirely, and "works well in testing" and "survives three years of trail abuse" are very different sentences.
Full story on E-Mountainbike
Merida Lithos 2027: Quietly Impressive, Minimally DramaticThe Merida Lithos 2027 has landed on E-Mountainbike's test bench and the headline is "uncompromisingly versatile," which is what you write when a bike does everything capably and nothing badly enough to complain about. No motor specs are confirmed in my verified data for the Lithos's specific drivetrain as configured — the review will have the detail. Worth a read if you're in the market for something that doesn't require a press release to justify its existence.
Full story on E-Mountainbike
Orbea Gets Busy: Wild TR and Wild LT Both LandOrbea have had a productive week in the press. The Wild TR 2027 has arrived with a new name and — per E-Mountainbike's headline — a familiar-looking bike underneath it, which is either reassuring continuity or a rebranding exercise depending on your level of generosity. Meanwhile the Wild LT 2027 has been on test, with reviewers asking whether it's more than just another Avinox eMTB. Given that "another Avinox eMTB" means a bike built around the M2S at 150Nm, the bar for "more than that" is set somewhat ambitiously. Both reviews are worth your time if Orbea's on your shortlist.
Full story on E-Mountainbike (Wild TR) Full story on E-Mountainbike (Wild LT)
The Great Ear-Protection Helmet ShootoutEnduro-MTB have done the unglamorous but genuinely useful work of putting six jet helmets with ear protection through a proper comparison test, with the Urge Rascas featuring in the results. If you're still riding in a helmet that leaves your ears exposed and wondering why they hurt after a long descent in cold air, this is the one to bookmark. No revolutionary technology, no concept designs — just six helmets reviewed so you don't have to buy the wrong one.
Full story on Enduro-MTB
Industry Housekeeping: Troxus Goes Canadian, QBP Shuffles the FurnitureTroxus Mobility has expanded into Canada via a partnership with Trailhead Axis Group, which is the sort of distribution announcement that matters a great deal if you're a Canadian retailer and not very much if you aren't. Meanwhile QBP — one of the larger cycling distributors in North America — is planning changes to how it splits work between its four facilities. Supply chain restructuring in the cycling industry: bold, groundbreaking, never been done before.
Full story on Bicycle Retailer (Troxus) Full story on Bicycle Retailer (QBP)
Mike's Bikes Acquisition Gets LitigiousThe sale of Full Cycle to Mike's Bikes has resulted in a lawsuit, with former owners disputing whether Colorado Multisport should have been included in the transaction. The details are firmly in "lawyers' letters and counter-claims" territory, but if you're a customer of any of the stores involved, this is worth keeping an eye on.
Full story on Bicycle Retailer
FROM YOUR FORUM THIS WEEK
Avinox MG — The Forum Weighs InThe Avinox MG reveal thread is the week's biggest new conversation at 224 replies, and that's before most people have processed the implications. The separate thread confirming that current MG prototype bikes don't support battery regeneration has 59 replies and a distinct tone of "well, that's a thing." The two threads are really one conversation: MG is fascinating, clearly unfinished, and the question of whether you hold off on an M2S-equipped bike to wait for it is genuinely unanswerable right now. Join either thread — they're both worth your time if you're watching Avinox's development trajectory.
Amflow PL Carbon Seat Tube Cracks — Check Your FrameThis one is simple and important. The Amflow PL Carbon seat tube thread has 135 replies and represents the kind of community early-warning system this forum exists for. If you own one, go and look at your seat tube. The thread has the detail on where to look and what to look for. Not the week DJI wanted, given everything else they were trying to talk about.
SRAM T-Type Failures — Cross-Platform EditionFifty replies into the SRAM T-Type thread and the picture emerging is of failures that aren't limited to one motor platform or bike type. If you're running T-Type and haven't had an issue, you're probably fine — but this is worth monitoring, particularly for those on newer builds where warranty conversations are still viable.
Gobao eCVT Thread Heating UpThe Gobao eCVT thread at 142 replies is running a healthy mixture of genuine technical curiosity and appropriate scepticism. A Chinese manufacturer bringing a CVT eMTB motor to Eurobike is either a sign the market is maturing rapidly or a sign that someone's going to learn some expensive lessons. Possibly both.
The Hospital-Inducing Injury List — A Detour Into ForestryThe forum's injury thread has taken one of its characteristic left turns, with @Gila Man sharing that his uncle once suggested commercial crabbing as a safer alternative to lumberjacking, and @Stihldog following up with genuine first-hand experience working for MacMillan Bloedel since the early 80s, noting that safety eventually "suffered somewhat" after the sale of the company. It's a proper community thread — equal parts cautionary tale and oral history. The eMTB content will return, eventually.
BIG THREAD UPDATESLevo Gen 4 Rumours — The Levo Gen 4 thread remains the forum's premier speculation engine, with over 1,000 community facts logged and ongoing active debate. At this rate, by the time the bike actually arrives, the thread will be longer than most novels and considerably more entertaining.
SZZS CEF50 Main Thread — The CEF50 megathread is the forum's most comprehensively documented bike community, with 131 rider setups logged. If you're building or troubleshooting a CEF50, this is the only place you need.
Trek Fuel EXe Megathread — Still very much alive with 94 rider setups documented. The TQ-powered faithful remain committed.
Official BLEvo Thread — The app thread keeps ticking over with 758 community facts. If you're on a Bosch-powered bike and not using BLEvo, this thread will persuade you to start.
Official Levo SL Thread — Still active. Lightweight eMTB people remain a loyal and opinionated bunch.
Stay muddy,
Greg
Got news I missed or spotted something good on the forum? Tag me @Greg Watts or drop it in my forum.
