Cannondale Moterra Neo 2019

[MattyB]

Moterra NEO | Trail | eMTB | E-Bikes | Cannondale

130mm rear, 140mm forks, Bosch Powertube integrated battery and much nicer to look at than their previous ugly duckling. Not sure it is going to satisfy @Gary in the geometry stakes though with 457mm chain stays and a 68 degree head angle...

 

[Doomanic]

It’s not just Gary who won’t like that HA...

It is better looking than the outgoing model though.

 

[Gary]

Looks like someone fom Cannondale's Ebike design team watched a Canyon Spectral:ON promotional ad.
Shame they missed pretty much everything right with the spectral and just focused on the waterbottle cage mounts.

 

[knut7]

The old Moterra had pretty decent geometry that they never got enough credit for. I think they still have the shortest chainstays for a Bosch bike. And the battery position was very low. It seems they have made some sacrifices to the center-of-gravity, to make it look more bike-like. 68* HA wasn't that bad back then. They could have made it slacker this time, but I guess they've got their reasons for not doing so. The old model had a very quick steering that contributed to the nimble feeling. I guess they decided a short travel trail bike doesn't need to be that slack. I appreciate the extra fork travel, and the new one looks better IMO.

 

[SquireRides]

If you squint it looks like a Cube.

 

[R120]

I don't really get the Cannondale EMTB line up, where does the Moterra sit in relation to the Cujo? Very similar bikes.

 

[Wiltshire Warrior]

Beauty is the eye of the beholder! I like the chunky massive tubes on the old moterra- no mistaking what it is! It looks like it couldnt get over a speed hump, when in fact it is a uphill demon.

 

[Deleted member 1275]

@Wiltshire Warrior My wife has the older Moterra LT1. I like the chunk that it is too! ?
Damn them for using up all the top tube with shock attachments and wot not. Cant use my bike stand for it.

 

[MattyB]

Beauty is the eye of the beholder! I like the chunky massive tubes on the old moterra- no mistaking what it is! It looks like it couldnt get over a speed hump, when in fact it is a uphill demon.

Maybe, but the number of beholders who would agree with you is pretty minimal I suspect...

 

[Wiltshire Warrior]

@Wiltshire Warrior My wife has the older Moterra LT1. I like the chunk that it is too! ?
Damn them for using up all the top tube with shock attachments and wot not. Cant use my bike stand for it.

yeah - I can fit mine in as its an XL - but looking at the smaller frames I realised it wont fit - sometimes I use a spare seatpost - dead easy to pop the dropper out

 

[knut7]

I don't really get the Cannondale EMTB line up, where does the Moterra sit in relation to the Cujo? Very similar bikes.

I was wondering the same thing. The answer allegedly is Cannondale made a Shimano bike to put some pressure on Bosch, to make them more cooperative and make repairs/warranty less painful. That has been stated by someone close to the Cannondale EU office.

 

[Deleted member 1275]

yeah - I can fit mine in as its an XL - but looking at the smaller frames I realised it wont fit - sometimes I use a spare seatpost - dead easy to pop the dropper out

Nice idea to swap the seat post so I can use the bike stand for maintenance. Her current one (small frame) is too small for the clamp, as you correctly suspected.

 

[Gary]

The old Moterra had pretty decent geometry that they never got enough credit for

eh?
Cannondale bill it as an enduro bike in their line up. It had geometry about a decade out of date for Enduro style riding.

 

[knut7]

eh?
Cannondale bill it as an enduro bike in their line up. It had geometry about a decade out of date for Enduro style riding.

Are you sure you are talking about the Moterra and not the Moterra LT?

 

[Gary]

Beauty is the eye of the beholder! I like the chunky massive tubes

Agreed

There's someone out there for everyone

 

[Wiltshire Warrior]

Agreed

There's someone out there for everyone

and Vitus geometry explained :

 

[Gary]

Are you sure you are talking about the Moterra and not the Moterra LT?

They both have dated geometry

 

[knut7]

They both have dated geometry

The Moterra was designed in 2016, with 457mm CS, 19mm bb drop, 44cm ST, 67.5* HA and 74* SA. All this is good or even impressive considering it's a 130mm bike with a Performance CX motor. I'm not aware of any other Bosch emtbs with such short chainstays. Nothing wrong with the SA. 19mm BB drop isn't extreme, but it's very good for a Bosch bike, ST length of 44cm is still okay for a Medium, making it a fairly low frame. Sure some figures look a bit out of date, but for a Bosch bike, they're still very good, or even class leading today. The Reach is a bit short, and does look a bit dated, but considering the Bosch motor, geo is still pretty good.

 

[Gary]

That long ago ?

I get that it's difficult to design short chainstays with a Bosch motor equipped bike but don't see how it's limitting designing a bike with decent standover, H/A or reach. It's a short and steep bike with lacklustre geometry however you look at it, even through Dr Who's tardis windows set to 2016.

FWIW I haven't owned an FS bike with anything steeper than a 65deg H/A in well over a decade. Cannondale market the Motera as an Enduro bike. IMO its' geometry is well out of date for Gravity Enduro. Apparently it's spot on for Wiltshire Enduro once a week and selling onions from in London Mon-Sat though.

 

[knut7]

The Moterra is a 130mm trail bike, it's not a Gravity Enduro bike. The 67,5* HA isn't really that off for a short travel trail bike in 2018. Reach don't have to be that extreme in that category either.

It doesn't look that good for the Moterra LT though. Allthough 443mm chainstays is pretty spot on and impressive for a 2016 design with Bosch, the lack of BB-drop seems a bit too much of a sacrifice/compromise. -3mm bb drop makes the entire bike a bit tall. 118mm wheelbase is short on a Medium in this longer travel category. A 66* HA is okay for a 160mm travel bike, but the reach on the LT is even shorter than for the non-LT. Standover is taller on the LT. Hence my question about Moterra or Moterra LT. Moterra is still okay. Moterra LT is looking worse.

BTW, 2016 is really a very long time ago for emtbs. 2014 emtbs that looked like they were built for trails were far between.

 

[Wiltshire Warrior]

 

[crazymac680]

I can hear JC internally screaming at 30mph "ahhhhhh where is my 6mm of reach"
I don't understand how he can shred on that old geometry