2023 Giant Trance X E+ / E+ Elite

[Bigtuna00]

the extender are the new panasonics as well? hopefully not a carryover from last year if they're not available yet.

How long did you have to wait for your bike?

It's 200wh, exactly half of the main battery, so likely the same cells.

 

[Rubinstein]

I’ve been playing around with the motor tune on my 22 advanced and even with the motor set at 20nm in eco it still seems really powerful, and that’s on a 22kg bike. So I assume you guy’s lucky enough to get your hands on the elite will be able to down tune the motor significantly to eek out the range. Very interested to see your results.

 

[Drewf]

Question for anyone who has the Elite. The stock rear wheel spec says 27.5x2.4" but I was wondering if you can fit a 27.5x2.8" plus size on the rear? From the pictures it looks pretty tight for the rear wheel? Thanks!

 

[bglidin]

the extender are the new panasonics as well? hopefully not a carryover from last year if they're not available yet.

How long did you have to wait for your bike?

Bike is in stock in So Cal

 

[bglidin]

Bike is in stock in So Cal

Yes the extender is the new 22700 Panasonic battery.

 

[Oscar74]

WDYM? Do you mean less flexy? Suspension is as stiff as you set the damping and spring so I'm not sure what you're asking.

At a given sag, some bikes feel plush, some other stiff or even harsh. How the two bikes compare?

 

[bglidin]

I’ve been playing around with the motor tune on my 22 advanced and even with the motor set at 20nm in eco it still seems really powerful, and that’s on a 22kg bike. So I assume you guy’s lucky enough to get your hands on the elite will be able to down tune the motor significantly to eek out the range. Very interested to see your results.

Thanks for the tip !!

 

[bglidin]

Question for anyone who has the Elite. The stock rear wheel spec says 27.5x2.4" but I was wondering if you can fit a 27.5x2.8" plus size on the rear? From the pictures it looks pretty tight for the rear wheel? Thanks!

It looks like it just might accept a 2.8 it would require a fit test.

 

[Montana St Alum]

I just got back from looking at the Medium Trance X Advanced E+ Elite 3. $6000, alloy rear triangle. Just for clarity since Giant is insane on their naming!
I was kind of blown away.

Yes, it looked like you could get a wider tire on the back. The 27.5x2.4" Maxxis (which runs a little narrow, I think) Dissector had enough room that I'd say there's no question that a 2.6" of any brand would fit. 2.8 might be worth a look, but it's hard to say.

I was looking at the Pivot Shuttle SL at $9k and 40-ish without pedals.

This came in at 46 pounds even WITH alloy pedals that were maybe .8lb (20.9-ish Kg), but damn, it's $3k less! I'm guessing the Elite 2 with the carbon rear triangle, no pedals and somewhat lighter components must be closing in on 43 pounds / 19.6 Kg.
For me, it only has to be light enough for my 70 year old shoulders to get onto the bike rack and it's already there, but I have so much light componentry that I could swap out laying around my basement, that dropping weigh would be easy. I just don't think it's necessary.

Anyway, nice bike, and I even dug the color!
The programmability looked top notch as well.

​

 

[Rubinstein]

I just got back from looking at the Medium Trance X Advanced E+ Elite 3. $6000, alloy rear triangle. Just for clarity since Giant is insane on their naming!
I was kind of blown away.

Yes, it looked like you could get a wider tire on the back. The 27.5x2.4" Maxxis (which runs a little narrow, I think) Dissector had enough room that I'd say there's no question that a 2.6" of any brand would fit. 2.8 might be worth a look, but it's hard to say.

I was looking at the Pivot Shuttle SL at $9k and 40-ish without pedals.

This came in at 46 pounds even WITH alloy pedals that were maybe .8lb (20.9-ish Kg), but damn, it's $3k less! I'm guessing the Elite 2 with the carbon rear triangle, no pedals and somewhat lighter components must be closing in on 43 pounds / 19.6 Kg.
For me, it only has to be light enough for my 70 year old shoulders to get onto the bike rack and it's already there, but I have so much light componentry that I could swap out laying around my basement, that dropping weigh would be easy. I just don't think it's necessary.

Anyway, nice bike, and I even dug the color!
The programmability looked top notch as well.

​

So will you be taking one ?

 

[Bigtuna00]

I just got back from looking at the Medium Trance X Advanced E+ Elite 3. $6000, alloy rear triangle. Just for clarity since Giant is insane on their naming!
I was kind of blown away.

Yes, it looked like you could get a wider tire on the back. The 27.5x2.4" Maxxis (which runs a little narrow, I think) Dissector had enough room that I'd say there's no question that a 2.6" of any brand would fit. 2.8 might be worth a look, but it's hard to say.

I was looking at the Pivot Shuttle SL at $9k and 40-ish without pedals.

This came in at 46 pounds even WITH alloy pedals that were maybe .8lb (20.9-ish Kg), but damn, it's $3k less! I'm guessing the Elite 2 with the carbon rear triangle, no pedals and somewhat lighter components must be closing in on 43 pounds / 19.6 Kg.
For me, it only has to be light enough for my 70 year old shoulders to get onto the bike rack and it's already there, but I have so much light componentry that I could swap out laying around my basement, that dropping weigh would be easy. I just don't think it's necessary.

Anyway, nice bike, and I even dug the color!
The programmability looked top notch as well.

​

A Large elite 2 is 46.8 lbs WITHOUT pedals. Were you looking at a small or something? Did you actually weigh it or did the shop tell you the claimed weight? Maybe it was tubeless, the tubes are almost 1lb each.

These bikes are absurdly heavy considering the size of the battery. This is in part due to the motor, it's one of the heaviest out there (only bosch is heavier).

The range extender is claimed to be 2.9 lbs and the mount weights like half a pound so add that on if you plan to ride longer.

I'm not trying to be Debbie Downer, I was just hugely disappointed with the weight given giant's claimed weights.

By comparison my Mondraker Crafty Carbon with 625 battery and Bosch motor is 46.5 lbs. It's a much more expensive build of course.

If you like the bike, none of this matters! Just wanted to day your estimate of the elite 2 weight is way off.

 

[Oscar74]

I just got back from looking at the Medium Trance X Advanced E+ Elite 3. $6000, alloy rear triangle. Just for clarity since Giant is insane on their naming!
I was kind of blown away.

Yes, it looked like you could get a wider tire on the back. The 27.5x2.4" Maxxis (which runs a little narrow, I think) Dissector had enough room that I'd say there's no question that a 2.6" of any brand would fit. 2.8 might be worth a look, but it's hard to say.

I was looking at the Pivot Shuttle SL at $9k and 40-ish without pedals.

This came in at 46 pounds even WITH alloy pedals that were maybe .8lb (20.9-ish Kg), but damn, it's $3k less! I'm guessing the Elite 2 with the carbon rear triangle, no pedals and somewhat lighter components must be closing in on 43 pounds / 19.6 Kg.
For me, it only has to be light enough for my 70 year old shoulders to get onto the bike rack and it's already there, but I have so much light componentry that I could swap out laying around my basement, that dropping weigh would be easy. I just don't think it's necessary.

Anyway, nice bike, and I even dug the color!
The programmability looked top notch as well.

​

The 2 claimed weight is 20.4 kg (45 lbs): open the Giant website, set language to german and it will show the claimed weights. The 3 is not sold in Germany, so you won't see the model and its weight.
According to @Bigtuna00 measurements, it seems the claimed weight is in tubeless setup and not with tubes.

 

[Montana St Alum]

A Large elite 2 is 46.8 lbs WITHOUT pedals. Were you looking at a small or something? Did you actually weigh it or did the shop tell you the claimed weight? Maybe it was tubeless, the tubes are almost 1lb each.

These bikes are absurdly heavy considering the size of the battery. This is in part due to the motor, it's one of the heaviest out there (only bosch is heavier).

The range extender is claimed to be 2.9 lbs and the mount weights like half a pound so add that on if you plan to ride longer.

I'm not trying to be Debbie Downer, I was just hugely disappointed with the weight given giant's claimed weights.

By comparison my Mondraker Crafty Carbon with 625 battery and Bosch motor is 46.5 lbs. It's a much more expensive build of course.

If you like the bike, none of this matters! Just wanted to day your estimate of the elite 2 weight is way off.

Legit questions!
I asked them to put the Elite 3 (medium) on the same hanging scale that they used to weigh the Shuttle SL (Medium).
I saw them step back from the scale, and I read the results. IDK if the battery was full (Okay, THAT was a dad joke!).
I also don't know if the tires had tubes or if they had mounted them tubeless and not yet gotten around to putting in sealant. I did jump on it for a few minutes, but they said it wasn't really ready to be put on the floor yet. I know that my other Giant rims, with new Maxxis tires, can hold air for weeks without sealant before they start dropping pressure significantly. The front was an Assegai EXO (not EXO+ or DD, if that matters), and the Dissector on the back was EXO. I think everything was stock.

When you weighed the Large elite 2, did it have tubes in it? Sure it wasn't an XL? I suppose that tubes/tubeless could be the difference.
I'll be going back. I'll make sure it was a medium, and not a small. If it turns out to be a small, it fits! They say it tough to get Elite 2's (Go Ride in Slat Lake City).
Yeah, my estimate on the medium elite 2 was a full on guess comparing to the 3.

I'll go to their Draper store and see if the weights are the same.

If it turns out that you are correct, I'm very comfortable telling my wife that a guy on emtbr said I needed the Elite 2!

Edit:
Just called Go-Ride in Draper Utah. Medium Giant Trance X Advanced E+ Elite 3. I didn't see the weight, but he read it out as 45 lbs, 11 oz. No pedals. 20.7 Kg.
Now I want the Elite 2 just because!

 

[Montana St Alum]

So will you be taking one ?

IDK. I will look at it again and also take a look at a small when they get one, thought the medium fits just like my medium Trance Advanced 29 1. I would like to look at the Elite 2 as well.
It'll be a month before the trails even start to dry out. I'm up in Park City Utah and we experience "snowmageddon" this season. Good for skiing, but bad for mud season. I'll be heading down to Moab, but that'll be on my "joe-powered" bike.

 

[Montana St Alum]

FWIW, I rechecked my weights on the medium Giant Trance X Advanced E+ Elite 3 (whew).
At the shop, with pedals, it was 46 pounds even. That was what I saw on the scale.
I called Go-Ride in Draper and asked them to weigh the same bike, which they had just built up. I didn't see the scale myself, but he reported 45 pounds, 11 ounces, no pedals.

I'll also say it was nice and quiet, but 40+ years of flying jets has toasted my eardrums.

 

[Rubinstein]

Same weight as the new kelleys Theos, ( claimed of course) with a 825wh removable battery. Wtf !!!
Another one on the wanted list

 

[bglidin]

A Large elite 2 is 46.8 lbs WITHOUT pedals. Were you looking at a small or something? Did you actually weigh it or did the shop tell you the claimed weight? Maybe it was tubeless, the tubes are almost 1lb each.

These bikes are absurdly heavy considering the size of the battery. This is in part due to the motor, it's one of the heaviest out there (only bosch is heavier).

The range extender is claimed to be 2.9 lbs and the mount weights like half a pound so add that on if you plan to ride longer.

I'm not trying to be Debbie Downer, I was just hugely disappointed with the weight given giant's claimed weights.

By comparison my Mondraker Crafty Carbon with 625 battery and Bosch motor is 46.5 lbs. It's a much more expensive build of course.

If you like the bike, none of this matters! Just wanted to day your estimate of the elite 2 weight is way off.

My Elite 2 size large was 45.67 with tubes and plastic shop demo pedals during a test ride.
I will have to weigh it now without tubes and my pedals.

 

[bglidin]

Question for anyone who has the Elite. The stock rear wheel spec says 27.5x2.4" but I was wondering if you can fit a 27.5x2.8" plus size on the rear? From the pictures it looks pretty tight for the rear wheel? Thanks!

I just put 2.5 DD aggressor on after pinching a sidewall 2 miles out. I will say that a 2.8 may just fit and here are a couple of pics of the 2.5.

 

[bglidin]

I just did 15.1 miles mostly on active and used 62% of the battery. I wasn’t able to capture the ride on the app after my bike disconnected. Will make sure to save the ride or screenshot in the future before disconnecting. Or maybe I will learn how the use the app properly.
The bike climbs technical single tracks in active mode quite well. I took it easy on the downhill section (rattlers are out ) but it was very nimble and the maestro suspension does maintain tire contact during braking even on chatter.
I mentioned in another post I pinched a sidewall on the rear tire. I would say don’t go tubeless with the stock rear get a DD tire first. Just my opinion.

 

[Bigtuna00]

My bad I looked back at my notes and the 46.9 weight was with 384g pedals (so 46.1 without pedals).

My Elite 2 size large was 45.67 with tubes and plastic shop demo pedals during a test ride.
I will have to weigh it now without tubes and my pedals.

I'm willing to bet this bike was tubeless as that's almost exactly what the savings is, depending on how much sealant is added of course.

 

[bglidin]

My bad I looked back at my notes and the 46.9 weight was with 384g pedals (so 46.1 without pedals).

I'm willing to bet this bike was tubeless as that's almost exactly what the savings is, depending on how much sealant is added of course.

I bought the bike and watched them remove the tubes so that was with tubes weighed with a Park Tools scale.

 

[Montana St Alum]

I just did 15.1 miles mostly on active and used 62% of the battery. I wasn’t able to capture the ride on the app after my bike disconnected. Will make sure to save the ride or screenshot in the future before disconnecting. Or maybe I will learn how the use the app properly.
The bike climbs technical single tracks in active mode quite well. I took it easy on the downhill section (rattlers are out ) but it was very nimble and the maestro suspension does maintain tire contact during braking even on chatter.
I mentioned in another post I pinched a sidewall on the rear tire. I would say don’t go tubeless with the stock rear get a DD tire first. Just my opinion.

I'll be very interested to see how the range works out on this bike. I don't want to go faster, I just want to go on my rides and hold a lower HR. I'm guessing that approach could get more range. My focus is generally on the climb rather than cycling up for the descent so that could change the dynamic on range. If my output power = X and I can get an additional 25%-30% of X from the bike, that's my goal. I can't tell if that's realistic, though. It seems most people want to get circuits for the downhill.

 

[bglidin]

I'll be very interested to see how the range works out on this bike. I don't want to go faster, I just want to go on my rides and hold a lower HR. I'm guessing that approach could get more range. My focus is generally on the climb rather than cycling up for the descent so that could change the dynamic on range. If my output power = X and I can get an additional 25%-30% of X from the bike, that's my goal. I can't tell if that's realistic, though. It seems most people want to get circuits for the downhill.

I am still adjusting to the bike myself
It will take sometime to learn what works. But you thought process is correct. The more you do the less the bike does which would extend the range.

 

[Oscar74]

I just did 15.1 miles mostly on active and used 62% of the battery. I wasn’t able to capture the ride on the app after my bike disconnected. Will make sure to save the ride or screenshot in the future before disconnecting. Or maybe I will learn how the use the app properly.
The bike climbs technical single tracks in active mode quite well. I took it easy on the downhill section (rattlers are out ) but it was very nimble and the maestro suspension does maintain tire contact during braking even on chatter.
I mentioned in another post I pinched a sidewall on the rear tire. I would say don’t go tubeless with the stock rear get a DD tire first. Just my opinion.

Thanks! What's your body weight ?
Do you think the handlebar rise of 20 mm is ok on this bike while descending?
The head angle and stack height of the Elite are the same as the regular Trance X. Some reviews of the regular Trance X say the front feels heavy when going down and suggest the use of a higher rise handlebar.

Are the wheels spokes butted?

 

[bglidin]

Thanks! What's your body weight ?
Do you think the handlebar rise of 20 mm is ok on this bike while descending?
The head angle and stack height of the Elite are the same as the regular Trance X. Some reviews of the regular Trance X say the front feels heavy when going down and suggest the use of a higher rise handlebar.

Are the wheels spokes butted?

I am not sure about it feeling front heavy when descending but I really haven’t been down any chutes yet or steep downhills . I have one ride in. But my back feels better with a rise bar normally.
The spokes are saprim which are butted spokes.

 

[Montana St Alum]

I am not sure about it feeling front heavy when descending but I really haven’t been down any chutes yet or steep downhills . I have one ride in. But my back feels better with a rise bar normally.
The spokes are saprim which are butted spokes.

Yeah, my bars are 4" higher than my saddle on my medium Trance 29 mountain bike. On short sections of very steep climbs there is no front end wandering as long as I compensate with body position. I reach my horsepower limit before I hit my geometry limit. That bike has about 75 degrees on the STA and the medium Elite is 76 in low and 76.7 in high. Reach values are about equal. I think you could go high on the riser and have no problems climbing. Descending would be improved, I would think.

 

[Rubinstein]

Yeah, my bars are 4" higher than my saddle on my medium Trance 29 mountain bike. On short sections of very steep climbs there is no front end wandering as long as I compensate with body position. I reach my horsepower limit before I hit my geometry limit. That bike has about 75 degrees on the STA and the medium Elite is 76 in low and 76.7 in high. Reach values are about equal. I think you could go high on the riser and have no problems climbing. Descending would be improved, I would think.

Good info

 

[Montana St Alum]

Another data point. Not very scientific, but in the shop, with the bike geometry in low, no sag and I think 165 cranks, the bottom of the pedal is 7" above the ground. On my Trance 29 Advanced, with a 140 fork (Vs. stock 130) no sag low profile flat pedals and 175 cranks, the bottom of the pedal is 6" above the floor. Unfortunately, the Giant site shows a BB drop (10mm) but not a BB height. With a mullet I'm not sure how well that compares with a BB drop of 32mm on the Exe and a BB height of 34cm. But the Trek BB figures are mighty close to my 29er. It's pretty rocky in Utah, so these figures would seem to be good for out here.

 

[Oscar74]

Another data point. Not very scientific, but in the shop, with the bike geometry in low, no sag and I think 165 cranks, the bottom of the pedal is 7" above the ground. On my Trance 29 Advanced, with a 140 fork (Vs. stock 130) no sag low profile flat pedals and 175 cranks, the bottom of the pedal is 6" above the floor. Unfortunately, the Giant site shows a BB drop (10mm) but not a BB height. With a mullet I'm not sure how well that compares with a BB drop of 32mm on the Exe and a BB height of 34cm. But the Trek BB figures are mighty close to my 29er. It's pretty rocky in Utah, so these figures would seem to be good for out here.

A 27.5 wheel should have a diameter of 705 mm with tyre on, so 0 bb drop should be about 353 mm and 343 at 10 mm bb drop.

 

[Montana St Alum]

A 27.5 wheel should have a diameter of 705 mm with tyre on, so 0 bb drop should be about 353 mm and 343 at 10 mm bb drop.

Yep, I suppose you could figure the drop on a 29 (up front) and a 27.5 (on the back) and split the difference for a BB height half way between?
Or, I could just grab a tape measure the next time I'm at the store! That's probably the easy answer.