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A couple of weeks in the past, we lined the explosion of manufacturers adopting the Avinox motor on their eMTBs. And, guess what? Fairly just a few of them have been at Sea Otter.
However there are different eMTBs on the market that weren’t lined in that preliminary roundup, some with the Avinox, some with out. So, with out additional ado, right here’s a fast look into Sea Otter’s eMTB scene for 2026.
Some Avinox Additions Seen at Sea Otter…
The Commencal Meta Energy SX isn’t essentially new, however the drive unit is. Clearly, it options the brand new Avinox MS2 drive unit with 150Nm of torque and an 800Wh battery.
Not solely does the brand new Meta Energy SX function the brand new drive unit, however Commencal made just a few tweaks to the body. It’s a bit longer, a bit slacker, and has a barely steeper seat tube angle. The Meta Energy SX options 160mm of journey paired with a 170mm fork and rolls on blended wheels.
Ari was additionally teasing a brand new Avinox-equipped e-bike at Sea Otter, the Wire Peak. They’re staying pretty tight-lipped with all the main points, however here’s what they have been capable of share:
Alloy body, 150mm of journey
160 (inventory) or 170mm fork
29er or MX wheels
64° HTA / 78° STA
4 sizes (S–XL)
4-way geo regulate
800Wh or 600Wh battery choices
Maybe better of all is the worth. Ari says there might be three or 4 construct choices, with costs beginning beneath $5,000.
One thing New From Kona
Nicely, kind of new. The Kona Distant 160 isn’t a brand new identify to the model, however they’ve accomplished a whole revamp of the bike. And, it made its debut at Sea Otter, with extra particulars to return within the subsequent few days.
It’s nonetheless a 160/160mm bike, however there are just a few firsts for the Distant 160. Not like earlier iterations, and any Kona e-bike for that matter, the Distant 160 is their first carbon e-bike providing. Clearly, additionally they modified up the shock placement. Kona did this to simply match the vary extender within the entrance triangle throughout all sizes.
Talking of vary extenders, the Distant 160 comes with one. Out of the field. No extra buy essential. The bike contains a Bosch SX drive unit, SRAM Final-level suspension, Maven brakes, and a Di2 drivetrain.
New From Norco
Additionally in that new class is the Norco Sight VLT Bosch A. Whereas the Sight isn’t a brand new identify to Norco’s lineup, this bike definitely is. It options an aluminum body, 150/160mm of journey (rear/entrance), and a Bosch PX drive unit.
Yeah, you heard proper, Bosch PX. It has 700W of energy, 90Nm of torque, and a 600Wh battery. It’s supplied in 5 sizes, mixed-wheel choices, and, better of all, an inexpensive value vary. Costs for the Sight VLT Bosch A begin at $4,799 and prime out at $6,599.
Perhaps You’ve Heard of Them, I hadn’t…
It’s enjoyable to find manufacturers you both haven’t heard of or know little or no about. And, as you may think, Sea Otter is the place for it.
Bulls is an fascinating co-op-owned model in Germany. I chatted with their American distributors right here at Sea Otter concerning the new e-bike that they had on show. It contains a Bosch CX drive unit paired with a 600Wh battery, 150mm of journey (entrance and rear), and built-in lights. And it’s priced fairly competitively, with costs beginning round $4,500 for the total alloy body.
The carbon entrance/alloy rear bike on show is round $6,000. Bulls expects to launch the bike this summer time.
One other model I used to be comparatively unfamiliar with was HPC. Their Path Blazer enduro options 155mm of journey paired with a 160mm fork. And it definitely doesn’t lack energy, maybe blurring the traces between e-bike and moto, with a Bafang motor delivering 185Nm of torque.
Their bikes at Sea Otter have been paired with 1,050Wh batteries, which HPC stated are made in-house. Leaping onto their web site, it seems to be like HPC gives fairly just a few choices for battery dimension, energy output, and so forth, so you possibly can seemingly get it right down to class 1.
Shimano Motors Characterize
The Shimano EP8 motor was additionally noticed on a number of bikes right here at Sea Otter. The Jamis Defcon contains a 150mm alloy body with notably lengthy chainstays. They provide two builds, with the decrease listed at $6,000 and the upper at $7,500.
The Defcon E1 seems to be to be a fairly stable construct, with TRP DHR brakes, Fox Efficiency suspension, and an XT mechanical drive unit.
Canyon additionally makes use of the Shimano drive unit on just a few of its eMTBs, together with the Torque ON and Spectral ON. All of us seemingly keep in mind the problems Canyon had with its batteries, which led to an eventual recall. Now, all is sweet, and Canyon was pleased to share that each the electrified variations of the Torque and Spectral are being shipped.
Extra From Bosch…
The Avinox launch has definitely garnered a variety of consideration. The phrase is that Bosch has one thing within the works that we look ahead to listening to about. Regardless, there have been some fairly cool Bosch e-bikes at Sea Otter, with some fairly candy paint.
The Revel ReRun was current, wanting so candy with a customized paint job from Tec-Gnar. The massive squish enduro rig contains a Bosch SX drive unit.
Polygon had their emerald-green Collosus TE with a Bosch CX drive unit. Costs begin at $7,500 and, rattling, that coloration actually pops.
Cannondale was additionally exhibiting off its Bosch CX-equipped Moterras. This bike embodies “lengthy, low, and slack,” and, from private expertise, feels extremely planted. Nevertheless, you would possibly clank a pedal or two off the bottom.
A Drive Unit/Gearbox Mashup
Intradrive is a UK-based drive unit model that stated, “Why not put it altogether?!” They produced the GD8, a gearbox/motor mashup which, for my part, actually makes a variety of sense.
Intradrive’s GD8 drive unit options 700W of peak energy, 8 speeds, and weighs 4.5kg. The GD8 has digital shifting with a 0.1-second shift velocity. It’s presently suitable with e-bikes which have a Shimano EP8 motor, and may accommodate a belt or a sequence.
At Sea Otter, the Intradrive unit was displayed on two bikes made for the present. The fellows from Intradrive instructed me that the main focus is on business-to-business (I feel “B2B” is what they name it) reasonably than on manufacturing a body.
Is it an eMTB?
Lastly, I couldn’t stroll previous this Salsa Wanderosa with out asking: “eMTB or eGravel?” Regardless, it’s a rad bike and albeit simply seems to be good.
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