Giant Trance E+1 or E+2

[bullet]

Performance Fox fork on the E+1 and Sram rather than Rhythm & Shimano on the E+2
I'm looking to buy one of these....
Prefer the look of the blue E+2, but if convinced the extra £300 is worth it will go for the orange E+1.
Comments / experience of these two e-bikes would be much appreciated.
Ta in advance....

 

[RobNevyn]

If you can afford the extra budget I believe it is better to go the spec of the E+1 but I may be a bit biased. I also prefer the blue colour but the spec was more important to me.
If you are someone who likes to upgrade parts, then maybe the E+2 is the way to go if you plan on swapping out the shock/fork/brakes.

 

[andykent]

Rhythm is a perfectly capable fork, what kind of trails are you riding?

 

[bullet]

thank you for responses to date. I am a novice really, quantocks in somerset but certainly the bumpy trails rather that high degree of jumps and black runs. So assume rhythm would be more than enough for me, just wondered if for an extra 300 quid, as well as the front fork difference, if there was much in the spec between the SRAM bits and the shimano bite. Would like to here more....

 

[MattyB]

When I seriously looked at buying one of these at the end of last year I came to the conclusion the +2 and £300 saving was the better bet - I prefer the (cheaper spares and less pernickety on setup) Shimano 11 speed vs GX 12 speed. Remember you will be going through more cassettes and chains on an ebike, so the cost of these items can make a difference in the long run. The supension on both is plenty good enough for a beginner/intermediate rider like me, but I much prefer the action and working on Shimano brakes because of their use of mineral oil, so that was a factor too. I also prefer the blue colour, but that's purely a matter of taste...

PS - In the end I bought... absolutely nothing! Yep that's right - after many vascillations I couldn't decide, so will continue to ride my clockwork MTBs and road bike until I can find the right ebike for me, hopefully later this year when the new Bosch motored bikes come out. As a result you probably shouldn't put too much weight behind my views given I don't currently own an ebike...!

 

[bullet]

All replies are much appreciated. Keep them coming please...

 

[seamarsh]

Get the color you want, don't worry to much about those spec differences.. you can live with either, color you cannot change... or not easily anyway.

 

[andykent]

Save the £300 and go away for a weekends riding on your bike

 

[bullet]

thank you guys, i was erring towards the e+2, one for the colour and two, even though i am only 6'0, i like the extra reach and E+2 do an XL whilst E+1 surprisingly doesnt (which is strange I thought) anyway, just need to find a decent deal on an E+2. Anybody know where I can get 50% discount?

 

[Kev Henson]

my bikes a levo with sram drive train and brakes, id go for the 2 as much prefer the shimano thats on my manual bike which is a 2018 trance and the rythm is a decent fork, more to the point have you found anywhere that has the bike in stock

 

[bullet]

Thanks for replies. yes, got one lined up. E+2 it is

 

[Terry]

I have just taken delivery of a 2. Looked long and hard at both and went for the 2 as the running costs are far cheaper. The 2 is a great bike and I doubt if the average guy can tell the dirrerence between the forks once you've got them set up to how you like them.

 

[bullet]

Glad to hear that u r happy with the 2. Looks like I'm picking up mine on Monday so looking forward to that. Thanks to those that contributed to this thread

 

[Fast Willy]

Love my Trance, hate the ride control switch. Someone at Giant needs to step up & help us with these junk switches.

 

[Fast Willy]

 

[Wernher]

Go for the E+2. The spec for the price is unbeatable. The difference lies on the shocks gears and brakes, all of which are plenty good on the +2. The issue with Giant is that they specced all their bikes with 27,5 max tyre size, which is no issue for me, but some people want to go for the mullet 29" in front and then you are going to be forced to upgrade to another front fork. The 11x XT is all you need on an eBike and the cheap 4 pot Shimano brakes perform really well on the +2. I've done 1200 kilos on mine and so far it's been a wonderful experience. The +2 is the best base to depart from and you can then upgrade specific parts if you really want to or like the bling. Two of my friends here have upgraded to 160mm travel Ohlins front forks because they want that plushness and one of them added an Ohlins Coils shock at the rear. Both of them also upgraded their brakes to Shimano Saint and next they are going to do the icetech rotors. These guys chase very hard downhill and personally I don't think they needed to do the upgrades. They can now fit 29" front wheels if they prefer. The point really is that by starting from the excellent base of the 2+, you are getting excellent value and if you upgrade you are still going to be close to the 1+ price but with a much better spec to your preference. If you are happy with the 27,5" front wheel (I am) you also have the option to convert your 150mm front shock to 160mm. You will then get a plusher shock for downhill if you run less compression and an extra token and it will cost you far less than a shock upgrade. Just for what it's worth, I've sampled bikes with the bigger front wheel and to be honest, I don't like the feeling. The steering becomes slower and I don't feel any improvement in rollover resistance. The fatter 27,5 actually makes the small bump absorptions better in my opinion. So this long story is just to say the 2+ is the best base of departure for the price and leaves you with more options and in the end you will probably have a bike more closely matched to your own preference if you want to go the customization route.

Issues I've had on my bike.
1. Controller failure that caused the bike to remain on and you can only switch off by removing the battery. Switches on again when you pop the battery back in an starts running as the walk assist engages directly. Controller replaced under warranty by Giant with a new unit with improved water protection.
2. Free hub replaced with a new improved freehub after other bikes were found to get freehub failures. (Same freehub on all the models). Mine was replaced before it failed under warranty by Giant.
3. Bent my rear (XT) cassette. Replaced by Giant under warranty.
4. Broke a tooth on the new cassette and Giant refused to replace. I am convinced it was due to the faulty freehub as it clicked very badly which is an indication that the pawls didn't catch properly and potentially put extra force on the cassette. I still have the cassette with the broken tooth on and have not broken any more teeth whilst riding the same. The only fifference is that my freehub is now working correctly.

Advice:

When you buy the bike, makes ure it has the improved freehub and the new improved controller. You will notice where the wire goes into the controller that it is sealed with something that looks like silicon. The previous controller had no sealant there.

Review and feedback:

I love my Giant Trance E+2 SX and I am very happy with the support I get from Giant. When I listen to the bunch of guys with their Levos (old and new) that ride in our group, I have to say, Giant all the way. One of those guys have had three motors replaced on his Levo, but you will never hear them complain because they are fanboys.

My brother has two Merida e160's, an 800 and an e900 with Di2. These bikes are excellent, but offers a different kind of ride experience. More agile but lifts the front very easy. The Giant is awesome in climbing with a very planted front-end doing very well going downhill.

I hope this gives you some clarity and if you decide to go for this bike that you will thoroughly enjoy it.

 

[bullet]

Guys, thank you for all your advice and comments, I ended up buying the E+2, one for me (XL) and one for the Mrs (L). I believe they both have the new ride control 'waterproof' connection, but not sure about the newer hub, is there any way of telling...?

 

[Wernher]

Guys, thank you for all your advice and comments, I ended up buying the E+2, one for me (XL) and one for the Mrs (L). I believe they both have the new ride control 'waterproof' connection, but not sure about the newer hub, is there any way of telling...?

View attachment 14344

What most of us experienced with the old hub, is a clicking noise when you get on the power. Almost a metallic click. If you hear that you have the old freehub. That is when it still works. If it fails the bike will do funny things and become basically unrideable. I had mine replaced immediately when my friend's hub failed. Giant had no issues as it is a known issue.

 

[StevenM]

What most of us experienced with the old hub, is a clicking noise when you get on the power. Almost a metallic click. If you hear that you have the old freehub. That is when it still works. If it fails the bike will do funny things and become basically unrideable. I had mine replaced immediately when my friend's hub failed. Giant had no issues as it is a known issue.

Not really unridable

If you have zip ties with you you could vip the cassette to the wheel to get home

 

[Labrador29]

When I seriously looked at buying one of these at the end of last year I came to the conclusion the +2 and £300 saving was the better bet - I prefer the (cheaper spares and less pernickety on setup) Shimano 11 speed vs GX 12 speed. Remember you will be going through more cassettes and chains on an ebike, so the cost of these items can make a difference in the long run. The supension on both is plenty good enough for a beginner/intermediate rider like me, but I much prefer the action and working on Shimano brakes because of their use of mineral oil, so that was a factor too. I also prefer the blue colour, but that's purely a matter of taste...

PS - In the end I bought... absolutely nothing! Yep that's right - after many vascillations I couldn't decide, so will continue to ride my clockwork MTBs and road bike until I can find the right ebike for me, hopefully later this year when the new Bosch motored bikes come out. As a result you probably shouldn't put too much weight behind my views given I don't currently own an ebike...!

You fence sitter you!!! Lol