Article All new 2020 Merida eONE-SIXTY

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Rob Rides EMTB

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Merida have just announced their all new 2020 eONE-SIXTY. With a new carbon frame, mixed 29er and 27.5 wheels and an integrated battery, its quite a departure from the original, highly regarded trail whippet. The bike uses the all new Shimano BT-8035 internal battery, but the capacity remains the same at 504Wh.









The eONE-SIXTY has new, revised geometry and a slackened head angle at 65.5 degrees, changed the crank length to 165mm (from 175mm) and follows the on trend offering of many new Shimano powered bikes by providing a 29er on the front, with a 2.5″ Maxxis Assegai and a 27.5″ on the rear wrapped in a 2.6″ DHR2. The new



2020-Merida-eONE-SIXTY-Geometry-1024x545.png
2020 Merida eONE-SIXTY Geometry



Merida claim that helps keep the chain stay as short as possible whilst offering as much grip as possible in the rear, whilst the 29er on the front helps with the rolling abilities for rocks, roots and...
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All New 2020 Merida E-ONE SIXTY - FIRST LOOK
 
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Looks awesome! Addresses most of the concerns/upgrades made by the eONE-SIXTY guys on here. Agree re the battery. Shame it isn't a bit higher capacity. Maybe Shimano will come up with a bigger capacity with same form factor. Looks really expensive though compared to the original. Waiting for prices in our part of the world. I want one! But maybe wait for a few more iterations. EMTB's are just getting better and better. Awesome!
 
I guess the days of Merida being a value option are over. Looks like they have taken a leaf out of Specialized’s book - problem is they don’t have the premium brand reputation to go with the £££. At those prices and with little to differentiate it from the premium completion it is now up against I’m not sure who will be buying this one tbh...
 
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Any word on the weight? With this, the Decoy, and bikes like the Propaine Ecano all I am really seeing is aesthetic improvements, I am still not convinced by internal batteries, especially when you need a tool to remove them.

In real world situations the external battery system in use at the moment only takes 10 seconds to swap out, and keeps the weight low, and more importantly low in the frame and near the BB.

Really its only the potential 700wh battery on the Decoy that would currently tempt me away from my Vitus with the current crop of new Shimano bikes being announced, especially as most of them dont seem to be any lighter either unless you are willing to pay near 10k.

@Rob Hancill is right in that battery range will be the biggest deciding factor for me when looking at my next bike, provided of course the rest of the specs stack up
 
I think companies are sinking a huge amount into R&D in their frame design etc, probably to maintain integrity in their carbon frame when a battery is moved to an internal design. That cost, as well as an increased cost from OEM’s is pushing up the bike prices.
 
Rob Hancill said:
I think companies are sinking a huge amount into R&D in their frame design etc, probably to maintain integrity in their carbon frame when a battery is moved to an internal design. That cost, as well as an increased cost from OEM’s is pushing up the bike prices.
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All that, plus they can see Specialized have almost made it “normal” for buyers to believe they need to spend £7k to get a decently specced ebike.
 
I also think that there is a market for these top end bikes - I see a lot of people round me on Experts and S-Works for example, who are not riding them aggressively but just doing North downs way etc, but want the top end kit.

I think the issue for many brands may be that whilst Specialised have a brand recognition that means that many who are not that into MTB, or are not the kind of people to follow MTB media will be happy to pay top dollar for one, I can't see that being the same with brands that are only really know amongst the "core community".

The only other brands I have seen that people must have spent ££££££ on are BMC, seen a couple of their EMTB's locally too.

The only Pivot Shuttles, tope end Scott's etc I have seen out in the wild in Surrey Hills have been those riden by sponsored riders.
 
Merida were marketing this as a game changer, not sure I’m seeing that here, looks like they’re just bringing their range up to current trends, like YT Decoy. Except the Decoy isn’t £10k...ouch. TBH still using tried and tested motor battery combos, disappointing that the larger battery isn’t included. This means more built in obsolescence from the start. I think a lot of people may upgrade the battery later is or when it’s released. Bit more revenue generation. It’s a sexy bike, what they all seem to be doing is moving from sram to Shimano again, this has XTR brakes and mech. Not convinced by the charger port, that will fill with water and mud. I like the lil Allen key do-dad in the quick release, but Scott have been doing that for years. And spesh put a multi tool in the fork top cap. All that have done is play catch-up to the latest bikes like YT and Spesh. No real game changer. I’m also a bit sceptical of them lowering the BB, this just causes big pedal strikes. Still sticking with YT me thinks. But like I said...sexy bike though, nut not £10k sexy.
 
dont merida and specialized come out the same factory?
 
The 5000 only has the e7000 motor, and the suspension fork is bargain basement too - having a laugh at that price

Screenshot 2019-05-29 at 09.56.07.png
 
Interesting that they will be selling the current 900 along side. 900 and 7000 not too far away in price.
 
504 battery is total pants.

The bike looks good though.
 
R120 said:
I also think that there is a market for these top end bikes - I see a lot of people round me on Experts and S-Works for example, who are not riding them aggressively but just doing North downs way etc, but want the top end kit.

I think the issue for many brands may be that whilst Specialised have a brand recognition that means that many who are not that into MTB, or are not the kind of people to follow MTB media will be happy to pay top dollar for one, I can't see that being the same with brands that are only really know amongst the "core community".

The only other brands I have seen that people must have spent ££££££ on are BMC, seen a couple of their EMTB's locally too.

The only Pivot Shuttles, tope end Scott's etc I have seen out in the wild in Surrey Hills have been those riden by sponsored riders.
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Completely agree. I suspect "...people round me on Experts and S-Works for example, who are not riding them aggressively but just doing North downs way etc, but want the top end kit" are commonly known as...

hqdefault.jpg


;):ROFLMAO:
 
R120 said:
Any word on the weight? With this, the Decoy, and bikes like the Propaine Ecano all I am really seeing is aesthetic improvements, I am still not convinced by internal batteries, especially when you need a tool to remove them.

In real world situations the external battery system in use at the moment only takes 10 seconds to swap out, and keeps the weight low, and more importantly low in the frame and near the BB.

Really its only the potential 700wh battery on the Decoy that would currently tempt me away from my Vitus with the current crop of new Shimano bikes being announced, especially as most of them dont seem to be any lighter either unless you are willing to pay near 10k.

@Rob Hancill is right in that battery range will be the biggest deciding factor for me when looking at my next bike, provided of course the rest of the specs stack up
Click to expand...

Completely agree. No denying the new Merida looks like a great bike but if you’ve got an the older model it’s not really worth the upgrade (in my opinion), but the marketing and press hype suggests it’s a game changer.

These integrated batteries seem to be adding a fair bit of cost and potential reliability issues. They seem more of a marketing stop gap until we get the next generation of motors and batteries.

I just spent 4K on an eBike with Factory and XT components. Next time round it seems I’ll need another 2-3k...
 
MattyB said:
Completely agree. I suspect "...people round me on Experts and S-Works for example, who are not riding them aggressively but just doing North downs way etc, but want the top end kit" are commonly known as...

hqdefault.jpg


;):ROFLMAO:
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I was trying not to offend any resident professional who may be on the forum?
 
Obviously the new eOne-Sixty looks great, and as an owner of the original, I'm happy that they've only needed to tweak the secret recipe to update it. However that's quite a price to pay for an internal battery!
It's hardly lighter than the original, yet has a carbon front triangle?

Having an internal battery seems like quite a price to pay for aesthetics:
- Having to spend £1000s on Carbon to offset the weight and structural disadvantages of an integrated battery.
- Cooling headaches.
- Pain in the ass to remove the battery (as it'll be covered in crud).

I've long since wondered why the Kenevo is 2kg heavier than the Merida, given that the only significant weight difference in spec is a coil spring. I think it's caused by wrapping an internal battery in aluminium, and cutting a battery slot which compromises the structure.

This leads me to the conclusion that eBikes could be 1kg lighter if we weren't so vain!

Also, who the hell needs 12 speed on an eBike, and a range of 10-45 or 10-51? I think I'd manage just fine with 4 ratios on my eBike and save yet another 0.5kg! OK maybe I'm exaggerating a bit, but I copied Sam Pilgrim's setup upgrading to an 11-36T 10 speed XT cassette. Not only is it a huge weight saving, but I can use a short cage Zee Mech, so the chain isn't flapping around, plus the 36T ring is plenty to climb even the steepest of hills while towing my mate on his DH bike!

Shame that many of the changes are driven by fashion rather than common sense.

By the way, thanks for the video Rob!
 
MattyB said:
All that, plus they can see Specialized have almost made it “normal” for buyers to believe they need to spend £7k to get a decently specced ebike.
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This is a valid point and £7k with a 504Wh battery almost makes the Carbon Expert Levo look good VFM with it's 700Wh battery. Almost.
 
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