Trek rail 5 loves and hates

[Gazman233]

Hey guys ..... just bought myself my first e bike in the way of a trek rail 5 2020 model , about 200 miles in and only changed tyres to a tubless set up after about 6 flats in a week . Loving the bike so far , wanting to hear people’s love and hates for the bike , I love the way it looks and rides but hate the rattles when going over rough stuff , any other opinions ? Also why does everyone hate on The standard brakes , they’re pretty good from where I’m sitting
peace

 

[Djlcater]

The rotors I find have a “ting” sound to them And flex a bit. Not convinced on the tyres so swapping them out for some S5’s.Love the bike though and have swapped out the fork and brakes for yari & Slx.

Can’t say mines that noisy or I’m concentrating too hard to stay on ha!

 

[themonkster]

Love my Rail 5. Done 320 miles so far.

So far I've changed the shifter and derailleur to GX. Really didn't like the NX. Too plastic. The GX shifting is way crisper and got the GX chain too. The stock NX chain was nasty. Feels like a different bike.

Dropper lever to the One Up V2. Different ballgame to the stock one. So smooth. Sealed bearing.

Brakes were swapped before I collected the bike. Shimano MT520. The same as the Rail 7. I've put the Ice Tech rotors on as well. I didn't even try the stock brakes. I just instantly disliked the levers.

Tyres. I'm running Minion 2.5 tubeless on the front and an Aggressor 2.5 with Tannus on the rear.

I know what you mean with the rattles. I've tidied all the cables up with ties. Still a bit rattly.

Super happy. Love the colour. Probably the best out of all the models.

 

[Gazman233]

Awsome man sounds cool ! Don’t suppose you have links to the parts and suppliers you used at all ? Making a wish list for mine whilst on lockdown haha , about 250 miles in on mine so far and second battery , first one wanked out on me on the first day of ownership , just wouldn’t charge or turn on or anything , lbs swapped it for me with no hassle . Eeeeeeb

 

[Tony Bonanno]

I've had a 2020 Rail 5 since August, 2020. Have over 1000 miles on it. A little tech stuff, but mostly easy dirt trails and some road biking too. Changed rear derailleur to GX, changed handlebars, seat, Maxxis tubeless tires, and a few other things, but same brakes and fork, etc. No major changes. And the bike continues to be GREAT for my use. Hasn't let me down once. But I'm old (76) and not a very aggressive rider . Had the motor upgrade to 85 nm, etc. Battery life still excellent (500). Tires upgrade was a lot better than I had anticipated. Very glad I made that change. OEM tires too often lost grip in my terrain. Much more confidence with the Maxxis Minions. I did have once bad crash last December when sun temporarily blinded me and I hit a stump (which I thought was a clump of grass) at about 15mph. Flipped me and the bike about 15 feet. Right shoulder injured but no broken bones. NOT a scratch on the Rail. I think the bike is really strong and well made. So basically, I "love" the bike and the only "hate" for me is the weight of an E-MTB . but the trade off is worth it.

 

[Quinterly]

Had mine for about a year now. I love riding the bike and am generally happy, but in my gripes department:

1. Paint quality is atrocious. Chips way too easily (I know they wanted the matte look but no clear coat is an issue.
2. The Alex rims are so-so quality. Had multiple issues with them and finally they replaced the front one under warranty with a Line 30.
3. Don't like the Purion controller. Have retrofitted a Kiox.
4. The plastic dropper remote is asking for trouble (had mine snap). Replaced it with a Wolf Tooth.

Mostly minor issues overall.

 

[TriciaPug]

Had mine for about a year now. I love riding the bike and am generally happy, but in my gripes department:

1. Paint quality is atrocious. Chips way too easily (I know they wanted the matte look but no clear coat is an issue.
2. The Alex rims are so-so quality. Had multiple issues with them and finally they replaced the front one under warranty with a Line 30.
3. Don't like the Purion controller. Have retrofitted a Kiox.
4. The plastic dropper remote is asking for trouble (had mine snap). Replaced it with a Wolf Tooth.

Mostly minor issues overall.

I have the Trek E-Caliber 9.6 with the black matte finish and am not having any issues with scratches or chipping, but my friend that I ride with has the Rail 5 and has a horrendous scrape on the side from her husband leaning it up against a rock *doh*

My husband has the Cannondale habit Neo 2 from last year which is a glossy green finish. He got two paint chips on his so he bought nail polish to touch it up.
He also used the same nail polish to touch up my friends bike.

Olive for Green - Infinite Shine | Army Green Nail Polish | OPI

I pine for this deep evergreen long-wear nail polish.

www.opi.com

 

[TriciaPug]

I am on the Trek E-Caliber 9.6 in size small.
My girlfriend that I ride with frequently has the Rail 5 in the size small.
I find her bike to be a lot more compact and would probably get it in a medium if I were to switch.

Because I have the Fazua drive system instead of Bosch, my bike is a lot more nimble than hers with a weight savings of around 11 lbs.

 

[philuk]

Just nicely got my rail 5 within the past 2 weeks.

Done almost 90 miles on it and changed my front tyre out because mine came with 2.4 Maxxis Rekon - which IMO were good on hard dry terrain - fire roads etc but once on the trails the front just wanted to wash out constantly, I've replaced it with a2.6 Eddy Current and its so much better now. The rear wants to step out quite alot if you hit roots and rocks but that's more controllable than a front doing it. Chances are i will replace the rear with a different tyre but this will do for now

Fitted a rear mudguard aswell which looks turd but works really well!

 

[Quinterly]

I have the Trek E-Caliber 9.6 with the black matte finish and am not having any issues with scratches or chipping, but my friend that I ride with has the Rail 5 and has a horrendous scrape on the side from her husband leaning it up against a rock *doh*

My husband has the Cannondale habit Neo 2 from last year which is a glossy green finish. He got two paint chips on his so he bought nail polish to touch it up.
He also used the same nail polish to touch up my friends bike.

Olive for Green - Infinite Shine | Army Green Nail Polish | OPI

I pine for this deep evergreen long-wear nail polish.

www.opi.com

I've used Testor's model paint to touch up mine. Pretty good job, but the ease at which it chips is annoying.

 

[Doomanic]

2500 miles and it looks like this;

Paint quality is atrocious. Chips way too easily

The gloss finish on my 7 is no better. The worst part though, is if you respray the frame you void the warranty. There's a sticker on the downtube that cannot be removed.

Don't like the Purion controller. Have retrofitted a Kiox.

It does look a bit Nokia 3310, but it's functional. I just wish it showed battery percentage instead of the bars.

The plastic dropper remote is asking for trouble (had mine snap). Replaced it with a Wolf Tooth.

Same.

 

[Doug Stampfer]

2500 miles and it looks like this;
View attachment 68636

Thats interesting, my Rail has started doing the same thing more often now than when I bought it.

 

[Doug Stampfer]

Thats interesting, my Rail has started doing the same thing more often now than when I bought it.

 

[Doomanic]

It's contagious!

If we were Levo owners we'd have started a class action suit by now.

 

[Doug Stampfer]

It's contagious!

If we were Levo owners we'd have started a class action suit by now.

Conversation before this:
Me: "We're going this way"
Bike: "No we're not"
Me: "Yes we are"
Bike "Do you really think you're in control?"
Me: "Yes, pay attention"
Bike: "OK lets see what's over here aye?"
Me: "Noooooooo"

 

[TriciaPug]

Conversation before this:
Me: "We're going this way"
Bike: "No we're not"
Me: "Yes we are"
Bike "Do you really think you're in control?"
Me: "Yes, pay attention"
Bike: "OK lets see what's over here aye?"
Me: "Noooooooo"

You: Wellllll $h!t. That's gonna leave a mark.

 

[UVRail]

Done just over 3000 miles on my Rail 5... as with the others, I've made quite a few upgrades:

- Entire drivetrain to GX after the derailleur disintegrated following a log strike and my chain snapped on an upward climb. GX significantly better. Crisper changes, significantly more durable
- Wheelset to Raceface Turbine R rims and the Vault fast engagement hub. Smoother ride, quick pickup. Cool noise when freewheeling!
- Brakes to Shimano XT, calipers to Shimano Saints and the XT Ice Rotors. Much better braking, especially in the wet after I scared myself on the stock brakes
- Tyres to Maxxis DHRII DD rear and DHF on the front. The stock tyres were crap and continuously puncturing. DD on the rear made a big difference

Dislikes
- As others have said, paint is flaky. I've had to put some black decals in strategic places to cover dinks and protect vulnerable areas
- Difficult to upgrade brakes, dropper as you cannot get into the headtube without completely dismantling the battery compartment
- Creaking crank arms. The whole bike was creaking after about 1500 miles, so I did a regrease of the forks/stem/crank etc. and checked the torque of all major areas. Torque was WAY OUT in some cases - make sure to check every so often with a torque wrench of torque meter. Cranks are now creaking again, so I might need another solution.. see the thread I'm about to post on this forum!

Toptip
- Use Squirt e-bike wax to lube your chain. It's excellent and far preferable in my view than other chain lubes, even the "dry" versions.

Cheers,

UV

 

[aviserated]

I like everything about the Rail5 and have had no problems...except the Bosch emblem on side of motor fell off, but found. I must glue it back on.

Recently purchased the wireless Sram AXS shifter and Rock Shox Zeb Ultimate 160mm fork as upgrades. Lucked up and got 20 percent off both.