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Electric Mountain Bikes (EMTB)

EMTBs come in 2 types: hardtail (front suspension only) and dual-suspension. 

Electric mountain bikes have the highest torque and (peak) power, biggest batteries, bigger brakes, bigger suspension and wider tyres.

Hardtail electric mountain bikes are the SUV's of the electric bike space. Dual-suspension EMTBs are more off-road capable.

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Hardtail EMTB (the SUV)

These electric mountain bicycles are front suspension only.

And are designed for those who are riding a combination of pavement, rail trails, dirt and gravel paths and entry-level off road trails.

So the SUV label fits perfectly.

Hardtail EMTBs usually have a battery capacity of 400Wh to 500Wh. And the motor torque hovers around 40Nm to 50Nm.

There are some remarkable exceptions though.

The Rocky Mountain Fusion Powerplay 10 electric mountain bike has a 480Wh with 108Nm of torque. It's the most powerful (and modern) EMTB in the SUV hardtail class.

The Shogun EBX5 is a close second at 100Nm torque but with a smaller battery at 374Wh. 

A good sweet spot between battery capacity, range and power is the Giant Talon E+ range:

The women's version is the Liv Tempt E+:

And the latest Liv Tempt E+ 2026 (430Wh, 75Nm).

And a special mention goes to the newly released unique Giant AnyTour E+ 3. It's a super low, easy to step through EMTB and hybrid e-bike with a massive 75Nm of torque.

Rocky Mountain Instinct Powerplay Bike

Dual-suspension EMTB (the 4WD)

Even though these electric mountain bikes can be ridden on rail trails and pavement, they are really designed and engineered for mountain biking trails.

So, it's kinda like driving a Rally car around Toorak.

Doable but not what the Rally car has been designed for.

You should consider a dual-suspension EMTB if you:

  • Already have a mountain bike or dual-suspension mountain bike and want to go electric.
  • Want to (or started to) ride at places like Lysterfield Park or Plenty Gorge and want to branch out to areas where there's more elevation (climbing) such as Silvan, Red Hill, Bright, Mount Beauty etc.
  • Have mates that are all on EMTBs and you're not.
  • Want to get better at descending. An EMTB will allow you to get more runs. More climbing = more descending.
  • Want to extend the distance you ride. After all, mountain biking is tough.
  • Are time poor. You don't have half a day to explore, you want to cover max distance in the shortest time.

Dual-suspension EMTB types.

There are 3 types of dual-suspension electric mountain bikes:

  • Lightweight (140mm to 150mm rear wheel travel)
  • Trail (140mm rear wheel travel)
  • Enduro (160mm rear wheel travel)

The option you pick depends on:

  • Where you ride
  • What sort of feel you want

Lightweight EMTB

Lightweight EMTBs have handling that is direct, agile and responsive.

It's the closest you will find to a non-EMTB for handling.

At the cutting edge of lightweight electric mountain bikes is the Orbea Rise.

The Rise comes in 2 versions:

  • Rise SL
  • Rise LT

The Rise SL (super Light) is the lighter, more agile of the two versions. It's designed with 140mm rear wheel travel that's paired to a 150mm travel fork.

However, the issue with lightweight EMTB's (in the past) was the use of lightweight parts such as suspension and brakes. 

This kinda restricted where you could use the bike.

We've seen a lot of riders convert their mid-travel lightweight EMTBs into long-travel lightweight EMTBs.

And thus the Rise LT (Long Travel) addresses this growing area of the market.

The second option is the Giant Trance X Advanced Elite E+ (mens) and the Liv Intrigue Advanced E+ (women's).

Another issue was torque.

Lightweight EMTB's range between 32Nm and 60Nm of torque.

These new breed of Lightweights deliver up to 85Nm.

The Orbea is available in both aluminium and carbon. The Giant and Liv are carbon only.

 

Trail EMTB

These EMTB's are designed around 140mm of rear wheel travel.

Examples include the:

  • Giant Trance X E+ (alloy)
  • Giant Trance X Advanced E+ (carbon)
  • Rocky Mountain Instinct Powerplay (both alloy and carbon)

For new and experienced riders, you'll fall in love with how the Instinct Powerplay delivers power.

It's so natural. The power delivery matches exactly how you'd ride your normal bike. 

You'd consider a Trail EMTB if you prefer a ride that's nimble and responsive.

You're also not going to be attacking big trail features (jumps, drops etc) and you prefer a wheels-on-the-ground approach.

Enduro EMTB

Enduro electric mountain bikes deliver 160mm of rear wheel travel.

Riders who prefer to ride on exposed raw, steep, technical trails will appreciate the extra suspension travel.

The slacker angles on Enduro EMTBs also deliver more stability.

Extra stability calms the bike down when riding fast over exposed trails.

Examples in our range include:

  • Rocky Mountain Altitude Powerplay 
  • Giant Reign E+
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