Marin has added an “Electrical Mild” choice to their Rift Zone e-mountain bike lineup, providing a modern alloy body and mid-powered Bosch motor for a motorcycle that looks like a mountain bike ought to – Enjoyable.
The Rift Zone EL has a brand new, extremely fashioned Collection 4 aluminum entrance triangle sandwiching a Bosch Efficiency Line SX motor with 55Nm torque.
The downtube hides a 400Ah CompactTube battery, good for 15-55 miles of using relying in your enthusiasm. It’s appropriate with their exterior 250Wh booster battery for those who’re feeling further, however you’ll have to surrender the one water bottle location to carry it.
There’s room to make use of a Wolf Tooth B-RAD bottle relocation package to maneuver the bottle cage somewhat decrease and match a taller bottle…at the very least on this XL body, anyway.
The wi-fi controller helps hold the cockpit somewhat cleaner, and prime fashions include SRAM AXS for even much less litter.
The bike makes use of their well-balanced Multi-Trac suspension, has 140mm rear journey, 150mm forks, and rolls on 29″ wheels entrance and rear.
Formed forgings and full inside routing hold the body in form and searching good, as does a customized composite bash plate beneath the motor block. Rubberized chainstay and seatstay protectors hold the chain from scratching issues up.
The pinnacle angle is adjustable with an included +/- 0.75º higher bearing cup for a little bit of fine-tuning. Their housebrand cockpit and grips are effectively designed and have good little touches like these alignment guides to make preliminary setup straightforward.
The bikes ship with 29×2.5″ tires. Three fashions can be out there this fall, costs and specs at backside of put up, however first, right here’s my…
Journey Assessment & Precise Weight
I introduced the Rifty on my highway journey from NC to Portland for the MADE Bike Present and hit Mt. Nebo (Monument Trails) in Arkansas and Oakridge in OR. Between the 2, I hit dry rocky hardpack and loamy, rooty PNW goodness, giving the bike loads to consider.
I’ve at all times appreciated Marin’s tackle the four-bar linkage, and this bike’s no completely different. It pedals effectively and descends with grace, and it’s straightforward to dial in with the out there changes. Word that decrease trim ranges lose a few of these exterior shock and fork changes, although.
Dealing with is strong. We dove in blind on some very steep trails, the place the brakes did all of the might to maintain speeds in test with out browsing throughout the bottom.
I saved the pinnacle angle set within the inventory place and had no drawback getting again far sufficient, nevertheless it’s good to have the choice to push it out a bit extra if descending is your go-to exercise. However our using in AR was principally flowing singletrack with chunky rock gardens, gentle uphills, and people choose (however very steep and technical) descents. And the Rift Zone dealt with all of it simply tremendous.
As soon as within the PNW, the climbs bought longer and steeper. We needed to earn the turns, and that is the place the “low energy” motor undoubtedly retains the bike feeling extra like a daily mountain bike.
Should you’ve ridden a full-power (~80Nm) eMTB and rocketed up the mountain, then you definitely’re in for a unique expertise. Mid-powered bikes (~50-55Nm) take extra work. Sure, the Bosch motor has a lift mode that’ll make brief rips extra tolerable, however the smaller batteries require even handed use of it. On a 2.5 hour trip, I virtually drained the whole battery spending most of my time within the center “Path” mode and turning help off on the descents.
For something larger than 2.5 hours, I’d completely need the auxiliary battery provide.
One upside to the decrease output is that it’s much less more likely to spin out on delicate maneuvers, like tremendous steep and tight switchbacks. That is additionally the place Marin’s geometry shines, making it straightforward to deal with the techy uphills in addition to the downhills.
One other upside (for the e-curious purists, anyway) is {that a} decrease output makes you’re employed extra. I’ll be sincere, there are some epic trails that I simply don’t need to trip on an analog bike anymore, however I nonetheless need to put the work in to earn the descents. Fashionable light-weight/mid-power eMTBs are simply the ticket for that, and this Marin is a strong choice due to its sturdy alloy body and sensible element choice.
When it’s time to get rowdy, the motor doesn’t matter. I’d argue that the additional weight helps hold an eMTB planted, however my using accomplice was on a full-size, full-power bike that weighed 15lbs extra and would argue that it’s a bit a lot. That different bike wore him out to the purpose the place he was making errors towards the tip that price him his telephone (it smashed between his hip and a rock).
So, for those who’re the kind of rider that prefers one thing extra nimble however nonetheless needs the help, I’d argue that the Rift Zone EL is an effective center floor. We ripped down 30+ minutes of epic forest singletrack, some steep, some techy, and a few extensive open and full gasoline, and I by no means felt uncontrolled. That’s extra spectacular contemplating I’d by no means ridden any of those trails earlier than, so I used to be trusting the bike as a lot as I used to be my abilities.
I examined the highest mannequin in dimension XL. It weighed in at 46lb 11oz (21.0kg) with a tubeless setup. Spec record beneath, and it had alloy wheels. There are some straightforward methods to chop weight on this (carbon bar and wheels, then carbon cranks), nevertheless it’s an excellent start line that doesn’t want any instant upgrades to take pleasure in
Should you’re a fan of alloy and need a strong, upgrade-worthy platform for long-term use, the brand new Marin Rift Zone EL is price a glance.
Fashions & Pricing
Rift Zone EL XR
• Fox 36 Efficiency Elite 150mm fork, Float X Efficiency Elite shock w/ customized tune
• SRAM GX Eagle AXS T-Kind 12-speed drivetrain
• Magura MT-7 4-piston brakes w/ 203mm rotors
• MSRP $6999 (US), 7699€ (EU), £6699(UK), $9399(CAN)
Rift Zone EL 2
• Fox 36 Efficiency 150mm fork, Float X Efficiency Elite shock w/ customized tune
• SRAM GX Eagle Lunar 12-speed drivetrain
• SRAM Code Bronze 4-piston brakes w/ 200mm HS2 rotors
• MSRP $5999 (US), 6499€ (EU), £5699 (UK), $7999 (CAN)
Rift Zone EL 1
• Marzocchi Bomber Z1 150mm fork/Bomber Air Inline shock w/ customized tune
• Shimano CUES 10-speed drivetrain
• TRP Slate EVO hydraulic disc brakes w/ 203mm rotors
• MSRP $4799 (US), 5399€ (EU), £4699 (UK), $6499 (CAN)
