Who do you think will be first to produce an e-MTB? Is there a brand here that will never make an e-MTB?
With e-MTBs being the biggest growth element in the mountain bike market, the brands that haven’t got an e-MTB are now the exception. We’ve put our heads together in the office and had a think about who has yet to join the party, and what might be standing in their way. And then, to help out their marketing departments, we’ve had some fun thinking up some suitable names for their potential new bikes.
//1. Nukeproof// DQ’d! Now They Have!
It surprises us that Nukeproof hasn’t brought out an e-MTB, since they’ve otherwise got a broad range of bikes to suit most pockets and riders. And surely the branding sits well with powered transport? Could a REactor be in the offing? Or, ‘combining legs and battery into a climb slaying trail thrasher’, a Fusion?
They’ve had quite a strong race focus on their bike development and branding, so maybe we need the e-racing scene to really kick off before Nukeproof will jump on board?
Late to the party, but the finally did in June 2021 – the MegaWatt
//2. Santa Cruz// DQ’d! Now They Have!
It’s pretty surprising that Santa Cruz hasn’t got into the e-MTB market yet, but it has been pretty busy developing a slew of new models and updates, so maybe the engineers have had their hands full. Or maybe they have been working on one but the art department is arguing over which colour to paint them. Maybe they’ve run out of colours that haven’t already been used elsewhere and they’re having to invent a new one. Surely ‘electric blue’ is the obvious choice?
If or when they do eventually get into the e-MTB game, will it be an uplift replacement version of the Nomad or V10? Or a ride-all-the-trails-all-day Hightower or 5010? We heard rumours that the MegaTower was coming, but didn’t really believe it was going to be called that – and then it was. Which means naming a Santa Cruz e-bike could go just about anywhere. Here’s where our brains went:
- HighPower
- MegaPower
- Cham-E-leon
- PowerTower
Officially reducing this list by one, Santa Cruz introduced the Heckler in February 2020:
3. Turner
OK, it’s no surprise that David Turner hasn’t built an e-MTB. But we enjoy watching him talk at length about how e-MTBs are emblematic of all that is wrong with the human condition.
4. Salsa
Perhaps a brand best associated with riding a very long way, off into the wild, with little more than a bivvy bag and a spork. Bike packing has already gone electric, with the Kona Remote, so we don’t see why Salsa couldn’t join the club. May we suggest an addition to the fatbike range: Beard-E, an Off-grid, and a Prepper? All to come with racks, and maybe a solar panel for emergency battery top ups? If it happens, prepare for endless forum debate about what counts as a legal charging point on an unsupported long distance event!
5. Yeti //DQ’d, now they have!//
With its Switch Infinity suspension, it’s hard to see where you might put a battery and motor, so we’re not too surprised that Yeti hasn’t brought out anything electric. Although maybe there’s just about room in an SB100. If they ever do figure out a way to combine all those stanchions with a motor, with hope they call it a Yet-E and don’t just stick an E on the front of all the existing bike names.
Disappointingly not named as we hoped, Yeti launched the 160E in September 2021.
6. Evil //DQ’d, now they have!//
If ever there was an e-bike that would be likely to divide opinion on sight, it’s surely an E-Evil. Or an Evil-E. What do you think, will they soon be Following the market down e-assist, or has their development team been Forbidden from going electric?
The Epocalypse…it’s here:
What do you think? Are any of the above likely to enter the e-MTB market? Is there anyone else who you think will join the party? Feel free to contribute your own new e-bike names, or add your groans of pun despair below!
Here’s another top brand still to do an E-Bike, IBIS.
Sadly, Turner is closer to need an zap with a defibrilator than it is to build another bike, be it electric or not.
@gavalar I was thinking the same. Could they call it the e-Mojo or even the e-Moje? How about the Ripl-E?
@NewRetroTom @Gavalar TranE?
Maybe these brands really don’t want to make fekking motorbikes and think that cycling is human-powered only.
I guess, economics being the way they are, they’ll probably pump them out eventually – there’s money to be made.
I get the media outlets feel the economic need to pander to ebikes. But they’re motorbikes. Plain and simple. And whiners will whine about “no they’re not” , but they bloody well are.
Quite surprised Surly haven’t produced a e-bike yet.
Transition hasn’t or Banshee.
Maybe these are rider owned by bicycle riders rather than pedal assist electric moped riders.
cotic e-rocket
There is a huge difference between a motorbike and an e bike. I have 3 motorbikes as well as 1 e-bike and there is definitely something different between the them. The fact that the three motorbikes run on petrol and the ebike runs on pedal power and electricity is one example, how many different aspects would you like me to list.
Either get with the times or shut the **** up, as you clearly don’t know what your talking about.
Si’s no mug. If he sniffed a profit for cotic e-bikes he’d probably do it.
But for a small company the design overhead must be pretty large – and I bet he has his hands full with keeping his current line refreshed.
Or maybe he thinks that ebikes are just motorbikes. Wouldn’t like to speak for him 🙂
@NewRetro knowing Ibis it will be beautifully made / engineered but with woeful colour options.
@chevychase I imaging it’s pretty hard to make steel tubing look all lovely and steel tubey with a battery strapped to it. If you’re selling steel bikes and marketing on that aesthetic I’d guess you’d need to keep that even if it was electric?
@stwhannah not the best bike they ever produced
Cotic Steel-E-Span
@chevychase but, the only real growth area over the past 5 years has been e-bikes for many many brands and LBS.
@stwhannah Vitus and Fantic do it pretty well.
They have, but not available in Europe. https://surlybikes.com/bikes/big_easy
@captainclunkz – I’ve ridden them. They don’t “rely on pedal power” – you only have to spin the pedals and they whizz up pretty much anything.
They’re great fun, but stop lying to yourself – they’re motorbikes plain and simple – it’s just the motor is electric, not petrol. It’s still a fekking motor.
They enable my unfit (zero exercise and carrying long-term injuries) and obese sister to ride around the hills of the lake district at a rate a fit me I can’t remotely keep up with on my lightweight Ti hardtail.
They’re bikes with motors. Don’t really care if you’re horribly offended by that – but after riding them, and riding with “non-riders” using them it’s clear and obvious that it’s the “motor” part, not the “bike” part that’s the big feature.
@Gravalar – yep. Completely understand the *economic* reasons for ebike inclusion everywhere. Normal MTB users are absolutely the market manufacturers want to sell to and they’ve got a ready-made sales platform in MTB enthusiast forums, websites and pages etc.
The reason they’re the “growth” area is because people who would never bother trying MTB because it’s hard, physically hard, like the fact that the motor makes it easy for them.
Fair enough for them. But I dislike the lying about the fact that it’s not *all about the motor* – because the very fact that that’s where the “explosive” growth is, and the only thing different about them IS the motor puts paid to that lie.
Don’t think that it’ll be long before they manufacture a slimmer battery that can fit in the down tube. Especially if carbon nanotubule battery technology takes off (as it has to – or an alternative – just for car transport alone).
The stigma around ebikes makes that pretty much a certainty. Nobody likes other people looking down their nose at them, so ebikers have a desire to hide the fact they’re riding with a motor. The first manufacturer that can make them visually identical to non-motorised transport is going to make a killing.
“They enable my unfit (zero exercise and carrying long-term injuries) and obese sister to ride around the hills of the lake district at a rate a fit me I can’t remotely keep up with on my lightweight Ti hardtail.”
How does that make you feel?