New to EMTB: Trek Rail 5 or Giant Trance X E+3

[Larno]

Hi All,

I've decided I want to get an EMTB mostly for nice forest trails and some intermediate stuff, nothing to challenging really (at least not for a while ). Within my budget and area I can source the Trek or Giant for the same price currently. I haven't been riding for a long time and both bikes felt pretty good to me around the LBS carpark so I'm not really sure which to go for.

I really like love colour design on the Trek but it only has a 500w battery compared to the 625 on the Giant.

One other consideration is that the Giant also can handle up to 156KG compared to the treks 136kg. My weight is 103kg, so I am safe on both but would also like to take my toddler currently 15kg on a few flat forest rides on a shotgun seat. Our combined weight with bike would be about 145kg so 10 or so over the Treks limit but I've read that it shouldn't be an issue.

Any advice, input or experience with these 2 bikes would be of great help.

Thanks

 

[Rubinstein]

Hi All,

I've decided I want to get an EMTB mostly for nice forest trails and some intermediate stuff, nothing to challenging really (at least not for a while ). Within my budget and area I can source the Trek or Giant for the same price currently. I haven't been riding for a long time and both bikes felt pretty good to me around the LBS carpark so I'm not really sure which to go for.

I really like love colour design on the Trek but it only has a 500w battery compared to the 625 on the Giant.

One other consideration is that the Giant also can handle up to 156KG compared to the treks 136kg. My weight is 103kg, so I am safe on both but would also like to take my toddler currently 15kg on a few flat forest rides on a shotgun seat. Our combined weight with bike would be about 145kg so 10 or so over the Treks limit but I've read that it shouldn't be an issue.

Any advice, input or experience with these 2 bikes would be of great help.

Thanks

Hi, both bikes are great but also very similar if we’re talking 2022 models. The Trek in uk spec also has the 625wh battery??
Your biggest difference is going to be motors, Bosch or Yamaha, probably best advice is if both bikes are available is to go and test them to see which one rides best for you. Discussion is great but you can’t beat a demo. I have 2022 and 2021 Trance so I’m biased towards Giant, but as I say apart from motors there’s not much between the two

 

[Larno]

I am leaning towards the Giant, honestly, if I liked the paint job (it's Black Diamond) I would probably get it for sure.

Yeah unsure why but 2022 Trek Rail 5's in New Zealand are all 500w, you have to go to the Rail 7 to get 625w but that's a bit too pricey for what I want to spend.
Example: 2022 Trek Rail 5 Electric MTB (evocycles.co.nz)

 

[Rubinstein]

Mmm, that sucks, could you upgrade the battery at the dealer and pay the difference maybe if you decide on the Trek ?
If not id always take a bigger battery option especially considering the Kgs your pushing, more assist available for longer.
other components can be upgraded further down the line once you've worn them out , and there's more choice on that. With batteries your kinda locked in once you buy the model, also the giant should be range extender compatible to give the option of more Wh in the future.
Tough choice,

 

[Pdoz]

It might be worth checking if giant NZ warranty is still handled via giant Australia. Over here, we get great warranty support but I've read way too many stories from kiwis who were less impressed. It's hard to know if the time difference means shops use emails instead of phone calls.

Or perhaps it's a language thing?
"error sex, bro "
"yeah, mate, sounds like the giant is fucked, ewe been fleeced"

 

[ilostmypassword]

It might be worth checking if giant NZ warranty is still handled via giant Australia. Over here, we get great warranty support but I've read way too many stories from kiwis who were less impressed. It's hard to know if the time difference means shops use emails instead of phone calls.

Or perhaps it's a language thing?
"error sex, bro "
"yeah, mate, sounds like the giant is fucked, ewe been fleeced"

We get fucked over here as standard It's the kiwi way bro....

 

[A22]

What did you end up with? I’m looking at the same bike, was going for the trance 2 but interest rates have swallowed up a bit of the budget with extra on the mortgage.

 

[lee1112]

Just to add fuel to the conversion. Maybe try the giant reign. Similar price to the trance. Just Everyone loves a mullet

 

[Shane(NZ)]

What did you end up with? I’m looking at the same bike, was going for the trance 2 but interest rates have swallowed up a bit of the budget with extra on the mortgage.

A bonus with the giants, Trance or Reign all 2023 models on have a 800wh battery which is pretty decent at there price point.
Note: e+3 Trance has 750wh

 

[A22]

IJust to add fuel to the conversion. Maybe try the giant

A bonus with the giants, Trance or Reign all 2023 models on have a 800wh battery which is pretty decent at there price point.
Note: e+3 Trance has 750wh

Yeah that large battery is a good part of why I’m looking at Giants. The 50wh difference isn’t too much of a concern to me, if anything it helps convince myself I need the 2.
I tested both the e 1 and elite 2 to get sizing right at the LBS and thought the elite was awesome to ride around on, just the small battery combined with my local tracks 700m climb + it’s price made me think twice about it and focus on the regular x e series.
With the reigns mullet set up would it handle more similar to the elite? I found the elite made the regular trance feel more like a boat.
I’m in NZ so there some good prices on the 2023 reign now since the 2024 version has landed.

 

[Montana St Alum]

I'm on the Elite 3. I'm not as heavy as you, at 160lbs, but I'm 71 and ride above 7000' to just under 10,000' here in Utah, so the bike is doing its share of the work. I bought it thinking I might add a battery, but it hasn't been needed.
One recent ride was 20.5 miles (33 Km) and 3240 feet of climbing (975 meters) and I think I ended with about 15% battery left from a 100% start. The bike is 45.6 pounds with different bars and saddle. Pretty nice price point as well.

 

[A22]

I'm on the Elite 3. I'm not as heavy as you, at 160lbs, but I'm 71 and ride above 7000' to just under 10,000' here in Utah, so the bike is doing its share of the work. I bought it thinking I might add a battery, but it hasn't been needed.
One recent ride was 20.5 miles (33 Km) and 3240 feet of climbing (975 meters) and I think I ended with about 15% battery left from a 100% start. The bike is 45.6 pounds with different bars and saddle. Pretty nice price point as well.

That is pretty impressive for a 400 Wh battery and the the max I would be doing is about 42km.
How do you find the fork on the Elite 3 (35 RL)? I haven't seen many good reviews (the odd one saying its OK) of it but its hard to tell if it is a case of people who are used to top of the line gear riding something more budget friendly or its actually something that detracts from the ride.

 

[Montana St Alum]

That is pretty impressive for a 400 Wh battery and the the max I would be doing is about 42km.
How do you find the fork on the Elite 3 (35 RL)? I haven't seen many good reviews (the odd one saying its OK) of it but its hard to tell if it is a case of people who are used to top of the line gear riding something more budget friendly or its actually something that detracts from the ride.

I'm way too much of a gear snob. But I wasn't sure how I'd take to ebiking, so I got a bottom of the line bike, the Elite 3 just to protect against buyer's remorse. What it really taught me is that many of the low end components are pretty good these days!

After about 30 hours, I broke down the fork and extended the travel from 150 to 160 (very easy to do on the Gold RL - and really not needed, but what the hell). By then, the foam rings were dry, so relubed new ones that came with SKS fork seals which are marginally better than stock. I also took out a small spacer on the fork, run it wide open on compression and middle on rebound. My buddy on a high-end Shuttle SL is kind of upset that my suspension feels better than his Factory (in his defense, the Fox is a better fork, he just doesn't have it set up worth a damn).

I also broke down the shock and removed a spacer and re-lubed that. I'm only 160 pounds, so it works for me, but over 180 or 190 it likely wouldn't be a good call to remove spacers, I think.

I have a 29x2.6 Assegai up front that I can run low pressure due to its volume and a larger than stock (2.5) Dissector on the back. I replaced the stock bars with the One Up ovalized, so the chatter absorption is great. No tire inserts.
Stock brakes were M420. Really not bad out of the box. I had XT levers/masters for 2 piston XT's that I put on them and that dramatically improved the feel and effectiveness of the brakes. Like, amazingly so! Again, my buddy with XTR 4 piston brakes is not happy about that.

Other than upgraded fork and shock, the extra $1300 for the Elite 2 doesn't seem to get you much. Fox Grip (not Grip 2, which I love on my mountain bike) which is better, the DPS has a three-position switch which could be a deal breaker, but do you need to lock out a shock on an ebike? Better derailleur, better brakes and color choices could be worth it, but it wasn't for me. I did also upgrade the shifter so I could get multiple shifts (6100) and the derailleur (again 6100) to handle the multiple shifts. That was about it for changes. Oh, and my favorite saddle.

 

[A22]

Thanks for that write up, the price difference in NZ is $1k so going by your rite up if I play around with the fork and service it regularly I'll have a grand to spare for holidays/ treating the Mrs etc. Your bit about modern budget gear being pretty good is spot on too.