Long travel, long range – the 2025 Trek Slash+ is here

Motor
TQ HPR50
Battery
580 Wh
Fork Travel
170 mm
Rear Travel
170 mm
Price
£7.500-11.000 (€7.999-11.999)
The new electric Trek Slash+ has 170 mm suspension travel, a 29er wheel up front and a 27.5 at the back. It’s designed as a mullet bike strictly, there is no room for a 29” rear wheel. The exception is the size small frame, it has 27.5” wheels at both ends. The Slash+ looks very much like the non-assist Trek Slash. It’s difficult to tell the two bikes apart, and that’s mostly thanks to the TQ HPR50 motor system.

The Trek Slash non-assist bike
Trek Slash+ emtb

TQ HPR50 and a 580 Wh battery​


Trek already know how to make a stealth ebike, they did so with the Fuel EX-e. The new Trek Slash+ gets the same compact and silent TQ motor. See my review of the motor for all the details.


But the Slash+ doesn’t get the same 360 Wh battery, this bike ships with a new 580 Wh battery. Using an adapter, the Slash+ is backwards compatible with the smaller battery. And they’re both detachable. The 580 Wh battery was introduced just a few weeks ago, and it’s an interesting one.

What’s so special about it, you say? It weighs 2,65 kg according to TQ. Just three quarters of a kilo more than the old, smaller battery. That’s about the same as an external mount 500 Wh Shimano battery used to weigh back in the days. I’m excited to see new battery tech making its way to ebikes!

The new and old TQ batteries


We haven’t tested the bike, nor the battery. But a bigger battery is also more powerful. The 580 Wh version won’t be pushed as hard as the smaller one when riding with high assistance. Consequently, less energy will be lost to heat. I won’t be surprised if, in some scenarios, the new battery has close to twice the range of the smaller one.

2025 Trek Slash+​

Trek starts off with the Slash+ 9.9 and the Slash+ 9.7, both with carbon frames. 9.7 usually means a half-way reasonable price tag. But the Slash+ seems to be about 10% more expensive than the Fuel EX-e, putting the Slash+ 9.7 at £7.500 (€7.999). The Trek Slash+ 9.9 easily beats that with its £11.000 (€11.999) price tag.

The Slash+ 9.7 is nicely specced, apart from the flimsy Bontrager XR5 tyres. The Shimano Deore M6120 brakes and Fox 38 Rhythm fork perform surprisingly well, although one might expect more for £7.500 RRP. Hopefully, Trek will find room for a decently specced and noticeably cheaper 9.5 version too. And I expect alloy versions will be out at some point.

Trek Slash+ specs
Trek Slash+ 9.7
Trek Slash+ 9.9


High pivot!​

It’s impossible to miss the rear triangle on the new Trek Slash+! This “high pivot” design looks so interesting and it’s not a new idea. We’ve seen high-pivot bikes before. Attaching the chainstays higher on the frame allows the back wheel to travel slightly rearwards as the suspension is compressed. That way, the wheel won’t hook up as hard when going into obstacles. The disadvantage was decreased pedaling efficiency.

One might argue pedaling efficiency is of less importance on an emtb. But this is a mild and lightweight emtb that needs to pedal well. Trek says the size and placement of the upper idler has allowed them to create a high-pivot bike that pedals well. And the anti-squat graph they provide sure looks promising. The non-assist Slash has got a similar design, so chances are we’ll have a comparable result on the + model.

The high-pivot design
Flat leverage ratio
Adjustable leverage ratio

Frame geometry​

I think the geometry of the Rail and Fuel EX-e has been great. And unsurprisingly, the Slash+ has slightly burlier looking geometry data. Trek has ditched their “Mino-link” adjustable frame geometry and replaced it with an adjustable headset cup. The headset can be set to “slack”, “nominal” and “steep”.

In the normal, I mean nominal setting, we get a nice and slack 63.5* head angle. The effective seat tube angle is about 77*, depending on frame size. According to this geometry table, the chainstay length is all over the place. Thankfully, Trek tells us it’s 434 mm for size S, 440 mm for M & L and 445 mm for the XL.

2025 Trek Slash+ geometry
2025 Trek Slash+

The longest wheelbase is achieved with the headset cup in the slack position, that gives us a nice 1.276 mm for size L. It’s not super long considering the long suspension travel, that’s because of the quite short chainstays. The Slash+ has the looks of a burly and capable descender that leans more towards playfulness rather than stability.

My thoughts​

Who wants a burly, long travel, hard hitter with a mild motor? Quite a few people, probably. I get the impression some people will buy a ~150 mm travel superlight emtb and attempt to increase suspension travel and slacken the bike. For all of you, this might just be the bike you really wanted! And if you insist on increasing the fork travel, Trek says 190 mm will be fine.

The TQ display sits integrated in the toptube.
Trek Slash+ 9.9 and the TQ HPR50 motor.

I think the high pivot design looks very interesting. It seems there was an issue with chain drop when it was introduced on the non-assist Slash, but this is supposedly sorted. And the light 580 Wh battery is very welcome on a lightweight ebike. It should offer good range in combination with the mild TQ motor.

But is the Slash+ really a Superlight bike? I can’t see Trek claim it’s superlight, and I can’t see them stating the weight anywhere. Running 38 mm stanchion forks, it probably isn’t superlight. But I’m sure it’s light enough for me. Somewhere not too far above 20 kg perhaps?

Update: Bike weight is now out on the Trek website. 20.38 kg for the 9.7 and 20.88 kg for the 9.9.

Riding the Slash+ 9.9
The 9.9 model has a Rockshox Vivid shock handling the 170 mm rear travel.
The TQ HPR50 motor
About author
knut7
Main editor at emtbforums.com and owner of emtb.no.
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Comments

Yeah, found the bike weight eventually. Problem is it wasn't in the press kit, and it wasn't out on the website when writing the article.
 
Love what this bike brings to the table and will be curious how much run time the HP 50 can get as it appears to not be as efficient as a standard designed electric motor.
 
Too bad it’s not full power. 😢
I get that, but it's not a rail.
Is this bike trying to be the one bike garage, you can take it to the local trails and then still fit in at a bike park?
Honestly, it looks like it COULD replace my full fat & park bike seeing as the slash is compatible with a 190mm fork
 
I get that, but it's not a rail.
Is this bike trying to be the one bike garage, you can take it to the local trails and then still fit in at a bike park?
Honestly, it looks like it COULD replace my full fat & park bike seeing as the slash is compatible with a 190mm fork
Different strokes. I prefer my ebike to have long travel and full power. Anything less than full power makes no sense to me. If I feel like working harder, I can ride my Amish bike or put my full power ebike in eco mode, which I almost never do. I’ll take lighter weight, but I still want full power and long travel.
 
Different strokes. I prefer my ebike to have long travel and full power. Anything less than full power makes no sense to me. If I feel like working harder, I can ride my Amish bike or put my full power ebike in eco mode, which I almost never do. I’ll take lighter weight, but I still want full power and long travel.
Fair, I currently ride my FF at 50nm At 200%(active) setup in my giant app, I get huge range from that setup compared to default setting and only lose maybe 10% power feeling, the difference comes in the steep climbs that you wouldnt do unless in turbo/boost anyway.
but my FF also weighs 28kg haha
 
MId power's are the 'Biker's e-bike'.

Not knocking full power's, it's just a different thing. I've ridden both in the last week. On my Relay, I'm having a bike ride and the single track climbs are every bit a part of the 'ride'. I still have to lunge, use my skills, maneuver & end up breathing through my eyeballs.

On a full power, climbs and flat sections are just sections to get over as quickly as possible and aren't really part of the ride. Because of this I found the entire ride much less engaging. On the Bosch full power, I was climbing and maxing out the assistance at 20mph, and still not getting much of a workout (Bosch CX). Those trails allowed me to go that fast. On my home trails which are much tighter, the speeds would barely increase, however the workload would go way down.

If I lived in a place where I didn't have single track technical climbs, but instead boring ass Jeep roads, I would for sure get a full power e-bike.
 
Rode a Santa Cruz Heckler yesterday thinking I wanted a full power to complement the EXe. Did not enjoy it much and walked out with a bunch of money still in my pocket. Then did about 25 miles on the Trek and marveled at how quiet and natural the ride is. Still wish they offered a 60-65nm with a 500-600 wh battery though.
 
Cool to get confirmation that you can run the old smaller battery. Might be nice to have two batteries and one of them being smaller would be good for most of my short rides and knocks off about 2 lbs.

The chunkiest part of the frame is empty? Looks like they could have implemented bottom bracket storage haha.

Alas, I really think if this had a hypothetical HPR60(or thereabouts) it would be amazing, but I think it's probably below my personal threshold for minimum assist level. That said Ive only ridden a bike shop demo Fuel Exe and I understand the stock assist level isn't maxed out. How much more assist does true full boost give you over stock?
 
Still wish they offered a 60-65nm with a 500-600 wh battery though.
Agreed. I think that could be a real sweet spot for me. Really thought there would be some sort of bump when I saw the bigger battery come out. I think most of the time the power would be fine but I want the bike to bail me out occasionally. Usually on the first lap after work when Im feeling tired and depressed haha. Do you feel yourself constantly wanting more out of the HPR50?
 
The power has been fine for me. But I have ithe TQ on a trail bike. Scott Lumen. Rarely use the turbo mode, but it’s an ample amount of power when I do. I guess we will see. Put a down payment on the Slash+. Delivery is scheduled for August 18th to the shop. So maybe a couple of days after that. I’m excited. Ordered the 9.7 XT/SLX build. It looks like there is probably 500 grams to get out of it from there. I also have a Rail that is set up 29+. So that should cover it. Full ebike quiver. Trail bike, enduro bike, monster truck. Happy days. From my perspective, the experience of less power and a more natural feel is what I’m after in a SL bike. Others have different needs. Those bikes exist. More options is a good thing. Now if only I could ride it on Captain Ahab.
 
Do you feel yourself constantly wanting more out of the HPR50?
Not directed at me, I know.... I'm nearly 2yrs in using a beefed-up Fuel EXe as a "light enduro" bike.

Rider weight is a huge factor that often gets missed. At 180lbs I can consistently get over 3000' from the TQ motor with a 360wh battery, thats using mixed modes (mostly trail mode). I take a second battery for longer rides. My wattage is nearly always exceeding what the motor puts out, otherwise I'd be bored. 580wh would allow me to ignore Eco mode entirely and easily get 5500'+. A FF bike would be faster uphill, less work, louder and heavier- just not what I am after personally. I like the weight only where it makes the downhills more fun- DD/DH tire casings, suspension, brakes. A more powerful motor really doesn't help on technical DH and beyond 45lbs I don't find the weight to be an asset.

So the Slash+ looks like a winner to me. (not enough to make me flip my Fuel tho)

Now, if I was 40lbs heavier, I'd probably want a more powerful motor.
 
Cool to get confirmation that you can run the old smaller battery. Might be nice to have two batteries and one of them being smaller would be good for most of my short rides and knocks off about 2 lbs.

The chunkiest part of the frame is empty? Looks like they could have implemented bottom bracket storage haha.

Alas, I really think if this had a hypothetical HPR60(or thereabouts) it would be amazing, but I think it's probably below my personal threshold for minimum assist level. That said Ive only ridden a bike shop demo Fuel Exe and I understand the stock assist level isn't maxed out. How much more assist does true full boost give you over stock?

… if I remember correctly, stock is about 150%, max. available is 200% - so at 150W rider output you are already maxed out 🥴
 
Here’s how I look at it. During peak efforts, me and the motor combined are putting out 400-450 watts. How many watts do you need?

“During a normal stage of the Tour de France, pro riders can pump out around 230-250 watts on average, which equates to burning about 900 calories per hour. But on some of the harder stages they can average over 300 watts, or 1,100 calories per hour.”
 
Manufacturers try to build an ebike close/similar to a BIKE, but that is close to impossible.

These bikes (light/mid weight mid power bikes), are for those that think ebikes are bikes, and their not! It's a different category. Having pedals, doesn't make them a bike
Having motor, doesn't make them a motorcycle (please try a REAL bike & dirt bike to check these comments).

Ebikes, allows people to go beyond what they usual did.
Do you ride your bike hard, gain vertical meters to descend, and have blast doing it? Then ebikes will multiply that by 2 or 3.
Do you like to explore, go out and just have fun finding new trails? Then ebikes will multiply that for 4 or 5
Are you unfit, and wanted to try some trails? Don't be afraid, and just jump on and go out!

In the meantime, you'll try to climb those hard trails, that all these years had only 1 way: DH!
Hopping and doing hard/stupid stuff, that you wouldn't dare doing on a Motorcycle? No worries! Try it on an ebike!

Making ebikes lighter and less powerfull, will limit their users on full fat/power ebikes. Lighter bikes won't have any advantages on an ebike ride full of full power.

Trek should have released this as a Full Power, and not doing it, just limit the sales.
I won't buy a mid power ebike, if I can get a full power, even though is heavier (well... Orbea already shown that that's not quite true...).

Put some heavy duty tires, and bike will be closer to some ligh full power ebikes.
 
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