Last year Merida rolled out its second generation eOne-Sixty electric mountain bike. To say this has been a highly anticipated e-MTB would be a gross understatement. Merida delivered on the hype though, with a new carbon fibre mainframe that tucked a Shimano battery cleanly into its downtube to provide a much cleaner look, with room for a water bottle inside the mainframe.
There’s a tonne of other improvements on the new 2020 eOne-Sixty, including fresh geometry, a mullet wheelsize combo, and changes to the rear suspension travel and kinematics. You’ll have likely read about those in our first ride review of the flagship 10K model (which confusingly costs $12K…), and we also published a comprehensive range overview of all seven models across the 2020 eOne-Sixty and the new eOne-Forty platforms.
More recently, Wil put the 2020 Merida eOne-Sixty 9000 to the test on home turf, and you can check out his in-depth review of this killer long travel e-MTB right here.
Merida clearly isn’t done yet though, with today’s announcement of a brand new alloy ‘Limited Edition’ option for both the eOne-Sixty and eOne-Forty.
Utilising the same integrated profile as the carbon models, the new alloy eOne-Sixty and eOne-Forty models simply swap the carbon fibre mainframe for a hydroformed alloy mainframe. The shape is very similar between the two, with the alloy frames also featuring an open downtube cavity that accepts Shimano’s clip-in battery pack. Both the eOne-Sixty and eOne-Forty Limited Edition bikes are built around the more powerful E8000 motor (rather than the E7000 motor used on the cheapest carbon models), and they feature a burly RockShox suspension package and 12-speed Shimano drivetrains.
Geometry is identical to the carbon models, and that means you’ve got the big 29in wheel up front with a 2.5in wide tyre, and a 27.5in wheel out back with a 2.6in wide tyre. The suspension design is the same, as is the travel. In fact, the back end of the frame is identical, since the carbon models use an alloy sub-frame anyway.
Pricing for the new eOne-Sixty Limited Edition is $6,699, which is actually the same as the cheapest carbon model (the eOne-Sixty 5000). So that begs the question; would you go for the carbon frame and the 10-speed drivetrain? Or the alloy frame with the more powerful motor and Shimano’s new 12-speed shifting? We’d love to hear what you folks think, so be sure to tell us your thoughts in the comments below!
As for the eOne-Forty Limited Edition, it’ll be selling for $6,499, which is over a grand cheaper than the carbon model (the eOne-Forty 8000).
Read on for the full specs below;
2020 Merida eOne-Sixty Limited Edition Specs
- Frame | Lite II Aluminum Alloy Mainframe & Alloy Swingarm, 150mm Travel
- Fork | RockShox 35 Gold RL, 51mm Offset, 160mm Travel
- Shock | RockShox Super Deluxe Select+, 205x65mm
- Drive Unit | Shimano STEPS E8000, 70Nm
- Battery | Shimano E8035, 504Wh
- Wheels | Shimano Deore Hubs & Merida Expert TR Alloy Rims, 29mm Inner Rim Width
- Tyres | Maxxis Assegai EXO+ 3C Maxx Grip 29×2.5in Front & Minion DHR II EXO+ 3C Maxx Terra 27.5×2.6in Rear
- Drivetrain | Shimano SLX M7100 1×12 w/FC-E8000 34T Crankset & 10-51T Cassette
- Brakes | Shimano M520 4-Piston Front & M500 2-Piston Rear
- Bar | Merida Expert eTR Alloy, 20mm Rise, 780mm Wide
- Seatpost | Merida Comp TR Dropper, Travel: 100mm (XS/S), 125mm (M/L/XL)
- Claimed Weight | TBC
- RRP | $6,699
2020 Merida eOne-Forty Limited Edition Specs
- Frame | Lite II Aluminum Alloy Mainframe & Alloy Swingarm, 133mm Travel
- Fork | RockShox 35 Gold RL, 51mm Offset, 140mm Travel
- Shock | RockShox Deluxe Select+, 205×57.5mm
- Drive Unit | Shimano STEPS E8000, 70Nm
- Battery | Shimano E8035, 504Wh
- Wheels | Shimano Deore Hubs & Merida Expert TR Alloy Rims, 29mm Inner Rim Width
- Tyres | Maxxis Minion DHF EXO+ 3C Maxx Terra 29×2.5in Front & Minion DHR II EXO+ 3C Maxx Terra 27.5×2.6in Rear
- Drivetrain | Shimano SLX M7100 1×12 w/FC-E8000 34T Crankset & 10-51T Cassette
- Brakes | Shimano M520 4-Piston Front & M500 2-Piston Rear
- Bar | Merida Expert eTR Alloy, 20mm Rise, 780mm Wide
- Seatpost | Merida Comp TR Dropper, Travel: 100mm (XS/S), 125mm (M/L/XL)
- Claimed Weight | TBC
- RRP | $6,499
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