The struggle to decide between Kenevo and merida e160

[Jamsxr]

It’s clear the marketing hype does a good job, and to be fair that’s important. People rushing out to by the latest and greatest bike help keep the industry profitable.

 

[R120]

I wasn't saying they aren't good bikes, and in respect to the Merida I am a big fan of an external battery, and its a great bike for UK Riding.

My point is mainly referring to the specifications and integration of the motor systems and controls. A lot of us have made changes to our bikes that the latest bikes take into account feedback from this, and have changed specs accordingly.

For example a lot of the latest Shimano bikes have subtle improvements, such as using the E7000 controller to allow using a decent dropper lever, and correct placement. Now of course you can do this upgrade your self, but it involves buying a new controller and new dropper lever. The latest bikes also tend to come with various tweaks that take into account lessons learnt from earlier models, such as shorter cranks, and slightly narrower tyres rather than 2.8/3.0

If I look at my 2018 Vitus, which is a very similar design to the Merida in terms of motor, battery etc, but with longer geometry, pretty much all the changes that I made to the bike during my ownership are now standard features on the 2019 model.

Its these subtle differences that make a big difference out on the trail.

 

[OlaGB]

It’s clear the marketing hype does a good job, and to be fair that’s important. People rushing out to by the latest and greatest bike help keep the industry profitable.

It also scares alot of people from buying 6-7k euro bikes, if its «old news» within 3 months..

 

[OlaGB]

I wasn't saying they aren't good bikes, and in respect to the Merida I am a big fan of an external battery, and its a great bike for UK Riding.

My point is mainly referring to the specifications and integration of the motor systems and controls. A lot of us have made changes to our bikes that the latest bikes take into account feedback from this, and have changed specs accordingly.

For example a lot of the latest Shimano bikes have subtle improvements, such as using the E7000 controller to allow using a decent dropper lever, and correct placement. Now of course you can do this upgrade your self, but it involves buying a new controller and new dropper lever. The latest bikes also tend to come with various tweaks that take into account lessons learnt from earlier models, such as shorter cranks, and slightly narrower tyres rather than 2.8/3.0

If I look at my 2018 Vitus, which is a very similar design to the Merida in terms of motor, battery etc, but with longer geometry, pretty much all the changes that I made to the bike during my ownership are now standard features on the 2019 model.

Its these subtle differences that make a big difference out on the trail.

Agree to alot of what you mention, and for the record i wasnt after you spesificly..

But details like a 60eur switch, is like the price for changing out a tire.. If its a preferance, its a cheap fix. I still like my stock switch/lever.
Some people even buy expensive brand low-ish spec bikes, and throw 2k eur on them for upgrades the next day..

In my example, i ride every terrain in the book. Steep up/down, flatground fast/technical, and i love to wheelie and try to learn longer manuals etc..
I am also just 5`10, 72kg, so a slack long reach/chainstay 29`` bike will feel very big and heavy for me in everything but very steep and narly rough trails..
Best would be 2 bikes ofcourse, but we all got somekind of a budget, it being physical or psycological..

I know you get my point, i just think we need to remember when giving advice that the latest and most recent frame/kit, doesnt have to be better for our riding experience

Gary put it well in a post earlier; be honest about where and how you ride, and the choice will be obvious.

 

[Jamsxr]

It also scares alot of people from buying 6-7k euro bikes, if its «old news» within 3 months..

Yep, it’s the same with acoustic bikes, cars and motorcycles. The people rushing out the buy the latest and greatest (I’m guilty of this) will then moan about reliability and build quality

I look at some eBikes released in the last 24 months and they are no way out of date and easily comparable to brand new bikes. Sure, new bikes are slightly prettier, sleeker and more expensive, but you’re not getting much more. The Levo was more of a step change from Specialized/Brose but they had to make some compromises and did a great marketing job.

 

[Rob Rides EMTB]

On paper the Merida to me is not good.

460m reach in XL
67 degree head angle
170mm cranks

In reality it’s on of the best ebikes I’ve ridden for hooning about on local trails in the South U.K.

Lively geometry, fairly light (22ish KG) and 160mm travel. Bloody good fun.

 

[Rob Rides EMTB]

By the way, the Kenevo and this are chalk and cheese.

 

[OlaGB]

On paper the Merida to me is not good.

460m reach in XL
67 degree head angle
170mm cranks

In reality it’s on of the best ebikes I’ve ridden for hooning about on local trails in the South U.K.

Lively geometry, fairly light (22ish KG) and 160mm travel. Bloody good fun.

Actually, its 460 reach in Large, and 66,5dg HA.
It has a longer reach than i.e. Decoy in same frame size.

The crank arms are waaay to long, totally agree.

Will there be a individual youtube review of youre Merida Rob?

 

[Rob Rides EMTB]

Actually, its 460 reach in Large, and 66,5dg HA.
It has a longer reach than i.e. Decoy in same frame size.

The crank arms are waaay to long, totally agree.

Will there be a individual youtube review of youre Merida Rob?

My XL says Reach 460

 

[OlaGB]

My XL says Reach 460

Thats a bit strange!
All geo specs i can find says different?

 

[OlaGB]

I also thought it was only the M#erida that came in XL, and only S/M/L to get in 800/900/900E.

edit: Btw. My 900E frame sticker say M , reach 440, stack 626. So just as the geo specs claim..

 

[Rob Rides EMTB]

I also thought it was only the M#erida that came in XL, and only S/M/L to get in 800/900/900E.

edit: Btw. My 900E frame sticker say M , reach 440, stack 626. So just as the geo specs claim..

This is strange. Maybe mine is an incorrectly badged L!! It's no where near my Levo reach which is 480 if I recall.

 

[RoJo]

I'm not sure to go for 170mm or 180mm. On my previous normal bike I changed the fork from 170mm to 180mm and though it felt much plusher and smoother (which could have also been due to changing from a 2014 Fox 34 to a 2018 Lyric) I never used the 10mm extra of travel. I'm still undecided but I suppose the extra 10mm (180mm) will give just that little bit more slacker head angle...how are you finding it?

Sorry for slow reply. Wanted to give it some thorough testing before making any conclusions.


After many ride on 180mm debonair, I couldn't be happier. The front is really plush now. I get fewer pedal strikes due to +6mm BB height, but can't notice any adverse handling. Bear in mind the change is only +17mm in fork length after you take into account 15% sag.
I did, however, have to make a few setup changes: the bar height rises a little, so I had to drop the bar down 10mm and run with a little more sag to get the front end back a bit. Running more sag is no problem, as there is plenty of ramp up at the end of the fork stroke due to the extra travel. Since I was already running the bar with no spacers under the stem, I had to change from 20mm rise bars to 10mm rise to get this drop. I'm now really happy with the height of the front end.
The other handling difference I noticed is that the front felt too plush compared to the rear. To combat this, I put in a RockShox Gnar Dog 2.5x volume spacer (in the rear). The Super Deluxe already had 2 spacers in there which I removed (so overall increase of 0.5 spacers). This made the rear feel more plush like the front, and has the effect of dropping the BB height (as you can run with slightly lower shock pressure as the spacers provide more ramp up and bottom out resistance). This was a positive setup direction so I'll be going one step further with this, adding another spacer back in to run 3.5 spacers total (max allowed).
Overall the change is excellent. I didn't notice the slacker head angle. I did notice that the bike is much more capable on rough terrain. I didn't notice the handling getting worse anywhere, and I have fewer pedal strikes.
It does prevent you from running 29" up front, because it will be too hard to compensate for an extra 19mm of height at the front on top of 180mm fork. To me this is fine, I've tried 29x2.5WT up front, and while it does feel light and more maneuverable like a normal bike I actually prefer 27.5x2.8 because I think it has more grip, and given the rear end of the bike is heavy, I found it strange to have such a light front and heavy rear. Feels more balance in terms of weight running 27.5x2.8 front tyre.

 

[Stanczech]

I also thought it was only the M#erida that came in XL, and only S/M/L to get in 800/900/900E.

edit: Btw. My 900E frame sticker say M , reach 440, stack 626. So just as the geo specs claim..

So far I have not paid so much attention to it, but I can see that Merida's manufacturer really has some confusion and disparity in the label.
My wife has a M#rida frame M and the label on the bike matches the official geometry table.
I have eONE-SIXTY 900-E an XL frame and there is a difference between a label and a table.
...
Regardless of these numbers, I carefully tested the L and XL frame together before buying. At my height of 187 cm I finally chose the XL frame, which fit me better, also because of my longer legs.