Which e bike to buy?!!

[Aaron#99]

Hello, I am looking to buy my first e bike, my budget is £5500 but I would go to £6500 if it was going to get me something we'll worth the extra bit. I am looking for something very capable of handling any terrain. I also think that I want something with fox shocks and a bosch motor.
I am 6ft 2 80kg so I am thinking an XL is the frame size which I will need.
I have a couple of bikes which I do like the look of 'Orbea Wild FS M10 or 20 and Cube stereo hybrid 160 team 2022'
I am open to any advise on these and also anything else you think I should be looking at.
Appreciate any help, thank you
Aaron

 

[GMLS]

Good options. Both brands were on my shortlist and went for the Cube 140TM. Might be more a case of what is available or available locally.Depends on what you really mean by any terrain but I'd add the Canyon Spectral On, Focus Jam2 and the Whyte to your list. The Treks are also highly thought of (but then so are many others lol) so try and get a demo if you can to help decide

 

[Mikerb]

Although the boundaries are getting more and more blurred I think there are still 4 recognisable bike categories. XC, Trail, Enduro,Downhill.
The most all round capable group is probably the Trail bikes. So you say very capable on all terrains. That would in effect be an Enduro bike.....provided the main focus was gravity riding. If that is not the case then trail bikes are where you need to be and where virtually all the bikes mentioned fall.
If I was buying a new trail bike now it would probably be the Whyte E150 but I am sure you would find all of the bikes mentioned pretty capable and so much depends on what is available...and preferably available from your local bike shop.

 

[Tight Git]

I've been looking for a Jam2 XL and shop reckoned it would be November 2022 before one is available. Just found a Merida e160 700 which I collect tomorrow ?

 

[KSL]

Hello, I am looking to buy my first e bike, my budget is £5500 but I would go to £6500 if it was going to get me something we'll worth the extra bit. I am looking for something very capable of handling any terrain. I also think that I want something with fox shocks and a bosch motor.
I am 6ft 2 80kg so I am thinking an XL is the frame size which I will need.
I have a couple of bikes which I do like the look of 'Orbea Wild FS M10 or 20 and Cube stereo hybrid 160 team 2022'
I am open to any advise on these and also anything else you think I should be looking at.
Appreciate any help, thank you
Aaron

I wouldn't get overly focused on looks at this point.

To help narrow things down, you may want to ask yourself things like:

1. Is range important?...If you like longer rides, look at the larger powered and heavier bikes
2. If you ride more shorter duration trails, lighter and less powerful bikes will be good - Orbea, Specialized SL, etc
3. Budget...you have that narrowed down
4. New or used?
5. Will you ride it, or just wanting an eBike?
6. Above all, take your time, and hopefully get to test ride some. Also, make sure you get the right size. The last thing you want is something that isn't a good fit, only to find out on your early rides. It's an expensive mistake that I've made in the past.
7. Do you ride steep trails? Bigger will get you up faster if that's your goal or you may want to work for it more. SL fit more in this category for example.

 

[RJUK]

I was just about to start a thread the same as this one, and with a very similar budget also. However, I'm looking at the YT Decoy Shred and Trek Rail 9.

Both won the 2021 MBR e-bike shootouts, so I'd have thought would have been the ones mentioned here.

I was about to pull the trigger on the YT Decoy last night, but in going through the checkout an extra £500+ was added in taxes and shipping, which I thought were already included. That puts it much closer to the price of the Trek.

However, the YT has a part carbon frame for still less money, which sounded great, until I read the weights of the bikes, and it seems that a small Decoy Shred weighs more than a medium Rail 9 somehow (even though the Rail 9 is full aluminium). I'm not sure if that's because the Decoy is more gravity oriented, or because it has the older Shimano E8000 motor, or it's even a problem on an e-bike?

I'll mostly be riding UK trails and I'm 5'10 and pretty skinny.

Any suggestions on what else I should be looking at? Ideally I'd like something with a newer motor, though MBR didn't seem to think the E8000 held the Decoy back any. It does only have a 540wh battery though, so smaller than the 625 on the Bosch-equipped Trek.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

 

[StevoKickstart]

Hello, I am looking to buy my first e bike, my budget is £5500 but I would go to £6500 if it was going to get me something we'll worth the extra bit. I am looking for something very capable of handling any terrain. I also think that I want something with fox shocks and a bosch motor.
I am 6ft 2 80kg so I am thinking an XL is the frame size which I will need.
I have a couple of bikes which I do like the look of 'Orbea Wild FS M10 or 20 and Cube stereo hybrid 160 team 2022'
I am open to any advise on these and also anything else you think I should be looking at.
Appreciate any help, thank you
Aaron

I can recommend the Orbea FS Wild M10; my previous was a Levo Comp Carbon and I prefer the Wild on the whole if that helps you benchmark. In my opinion looks a lot nicer than Cubes and Whytes.
I had a Levo on order but couldn't be bothered to wait, so I researched other bikes and the Wild stood out; also I think that they seem to have availability quicker than other brands.

 

[Doomanic]

The main bonus the Orbea has is the ability to run two batteries so mega long rides are a possibility. However, it makes a heavy bike even heavier so it's no longer high on my list of priorities.
I'd avoid the Cube, there are some horror stories out there about them refusing warranty on the carbon frames.
I'd be looking at the Rail or a Whyte, assuming you're happy with 29er wheels. If you'd rather have 27.5 then the Whyte E160RS would be my pick.