YT Decoy first ride review: A brilliant ebike with outstanding performance

[Ryder]

Mines showing July 10th.

Which model?

 

[Gutch]

I actually just cancelled my order and am going to keep my Focus and see how the Decoy shakes out.

 

[EMTBehave]

I read a post on another forum that summed up some of the disadvantages of the YT very well: New YT Decoy- Mtbr.com

For me points 1, 2, 3 and 5 are relevant:

The Decoy looks good at first glance, but I'm not a fan for several reasons:

1) Custom battery = huge pain in the ass. When that thing craps out, you have to send it to Germany. Sending a huge Lithium Ion battery pack overseas? I'm not even sure how you do that. Five years from now when it wears out, good luck finding one, since they will have moved on to a different design.

2) Since the battery is held in with allen bolts, you'd better have a nice warm place to keep the bike. You really don't want to store the bike in an unheated garage or shed because those batteries don't like being frozen and especially, you should never charge an ebike battery when it is below 40F. Taking the battery on and off is guaranteed to wear out the bolt threads, so you will end up with a rattling battery pack when they loosen.

3) Two different wheel sizes means you must carry two tubes. Of course you are going to run tubeless, but 10 miles from the trailhead when you burp the tire and can't get it to reseat? I always carry a tube just in case. Now you need two.

4) Personal preference here, but their component spec is backward. I want a SRAM Eagle drivetrain with a 50T low, and Shimano four-piston XT brakes. All of their specs are Shimano drivetrain with 46T low and SRAM brakes. Yes, you need just as low gears on an eMTB as you need on a regular MTB. It is about the cadence. Being overgeared on a eMTB is just as bad as being overgeared on a regular MTB.

5) You can't take the bike to a local dealer for firmware updates or electrical gremlins. Granted, Commencal, Fezzari, Bikes Direct, and the other web retailers have the same problem. From what I read, you would have to either ship the entire bike to a Shimano service center, or remove what you think is bad and send that.

It seems like a great value, and it may ride really well, but these are deal killers for me. YMMV.

Add to this the lack of any sign of faster charging and it seems that the price and spec are counterbalanced by potential support issues...

 

[Ryder]

Not all bikes are suitable for all people!

 

[MattyB]

I read a post on another forum that summed up some of the disadvantages of the YT very well: New YT Decoy- Mtbr.com

For me points 1, 2, 3 and 5 are relevant.

1 and 2 (to a lesser extent), yep, agree with both those (though 1 is offset to an extent by the reduced purchase price vs. an LBS supplied bike). 3 is a non-issue; for emergencies you can use a 27.5 tube in a 29 or even vice-versa if really needed. 4 is simply personal preference on componentry (50% of people probably have the opposite view), and 5 is something that just has to be accepted if you want the upfront cost savings that go with a direct sales model.

So in summary, yep...

Not all bikes are suitable for all people!

 

[Nasty Nick]

1. You have to hope YT is being sincere when they say they want to make a product with a future. It’ll be sad to see if they move on and leave us V1 owners in the lurch. I could see this being an issue in 10+ years but not sooner.
2. Isn’t this the nature of all integrated batteries designs?
3. Red herring argument by those whose OCD can’t handle mixing wheels sizes, like MattyB said either tube will work. Mixed wheels sizes should feel great too, with lots of steering stability, but with back wheel cuttie-ability.
4. Is this correct? I was told by several people you don’t need the big granny gear. I’m particularly interested in this as I’m going to swap to a wheelset with an xd driver and plan to swap the cassette to match (base model decoy). The only all steel 11 speed XD driven cassette I can find is the sram gx 10-42, it’s only $100 usd. AM I GOING TO STRUGGLE TO CLIMB? I also prefer Shimano brakes. But this is all personal preference.
5. Aside from striaght up mechanical failure, I don’t foresee the need to send anything back. This is also a big plus for the Decoy as it uses the tried and true e8000, which is said to be the most reliable system available. Maybe I’m naive about electric bikes, but I’ve never needed a bike shop for anything. Bikes are simple machines, even cracking open the dampers to play with the shin stack is not very complicated. With the help of this forum’s members and maybe a little software (eMax) we should be able to keep these bikes running perfectly.

 

[Doomanic]

@Rob Hancill did YT say how long the battery warranty is?

 

[R120]

The only remotely accurate point in that post is 1, which I agree with.

Point 2 - s a load of crap as plenty of other EMTB's use this system, and haven't had problems.
Point 3 - you only need a 29'r inner tube as this will work fine in a 27.5 in an emergnecy
Point 4 - Depends on your preference, I would take a Shimano drivetrain all day long.
Point 5 - The Shimano system is the only one the user themselves can update via an app, so doesn't need dealer support to do, and you can take the bike to any Shimano dealer with the diagnostic software to check for any issues. Doesn't matter if you by a bike in a shop or online, if you have a serious motor issue the motor will have to go back to Shimano.

 

[Rob Rides EMTB]

@Rob Hancill did YT say how long the battery warranty is?

I can't remember specifically.

 

[Nasty Nick]

From YT FAQ:
The warranty of the battery is governed by German law, it is valid for six months after receipt of your bike.

 

[Nasty Nick]

They also state the battery can be repaired

 

[Doomanic]

That's the warranty in the US, in the EU it should be longer.

 

[Jamsxr]

Can’t say I really agree with many of the points, having said that, I’m happy to wait a year or two until the second gen with a newer Shimano motor...

1. Custom battery. Having dealt with YT for 4 years I’m more than happy with their service compared to any LBS (I still value and use my LBS)
2. Battery storage. Just unscrew and store inside.....
3. You’re riding an eBike, I don’t think one extra tube will effect your Strava times
4. Debatable but surely not a deal breaker
5. Personally my local Shimano service center is not too far away, and this is a price you pay for saving thousands

 

[eia]

Unfortunately YT has delay. Postponed my order from 01 May (cw18) to cw 21. Reason: one purchase part not available.

 

[R120]

I have spoken to two people in the last couple of days whose orders have been put back to August.

 

[Gutch]

Ouch, that blows.

 

[Gutch]

What did you order?

 

[Dirtnvert]

Guessing there is none out in the wild yet but would anyone know what the standout er for a medium would be? It's not listed on their site. Kenevo is back in play for me if the blowout price is going to be a fair bit lower than the decoy. Sky high toptube on the kenevo is the drawback for my short inseam.

 

[Nasty Nick]

I have spoken to two people in the last couple of days whose orders have been put back to August.

Do we know what model is being delayed?

 

[R120]

No, I was just talking to some guys in the carpark at Peaslake.

 

[R120]

Guessing there is none out in the wild yet but would anyone know what the standout er for a medium would be? It's not listed on their site. Kenevo is back in play for me if the blowout price is going to be a fair bit lower than the decoy. Sky high toptube on the kenevo is the drawback for my short inseam.

Why dont you look at an E-Somett - I still dont think there's a better long travel bike out there at the mo

 

[Dirtnvert]

Why dont you look at an E-Somett - I still dont think there's a better long travel bike out there at the mo

Ya I'd be all over that. I still don't think they're shipping to Canada though. They were hinting at getting that sorted in the future. I should check on that before I commit to something. Couple weeks to decide

 

[Gary]

Guessing there is none out in the wild yet but would anyone know what the standout er for a medium would be? It's not listed on their site. Kenevo is back in play for me if the blowout price is going to be a fair bit lower than the decoy. Sky high toptube on the kenevo is the drawback for my short inseam.

If you have a short inseam make sure any frame you go for has adequate seatpost insertion depth for you to actually run a usefull length dropper.
Other than getting on and off or doing leg over top tube tricks in the air massive standover clearance isn't really all that important

Adolf silva is tiny

 

[Eckythump]

Unfortunately YT has delay. Postponed my order from 01 May (cw18) to cw 21. Reason: one purchase part not available.

Is there a particular place on the website to get a delivery week date? My order just shows available from 5th June in the 'comments to order' in my order.

 

[Dirtnvert]

If you have a short inseam make sure any frame you go for has adequate seatpost insertion depth for you to actually run a usefull length dropper.
Other than getting on and off or doing leg over top tube tricks in the air massive standover clearance isn't really all that important

Adolf silva is tiny

Just trying to work out compromises. No tricks but the most comfortable bikes I've had have had lots of SO. Current transition scout is my bench mark for my fit. Short cs, long tt, slack ha, steep sa and lots of SO. Bit hard to find a of that with an emtb so weighing the compromises . Curious that a large meta power has more SO than a med kenevo or a med powerplay. From the pics it looks like the decoy has lots of SO . Wish they'd list the numbers . Sommet hits all the marks(I'd probably slacken the ha but that's ez)

 

[Craig]

My biggest issue was picking a size when you’re in between, usually I go up, not down.

I’m on a large Transition Smuggler at the moment, 475 reach. 5’10ish and normal proportions - and I love it. I was going to go XL on the Decoy to match the reach but ordered a large in the end, thinking that the Smuggler takes some effort to manual compared to a bike with shorter reach, compounded by the low bottom bracket.

Add in an extra 20lbs of weight, and I think a long, low heavy bike will most likely make the front too hard to lift for me, especially with the longer chainstays on the Decoy.

Suspect I’ll have a large Base for sale not long after (if) the bike arrives - hopefully week 21 as above.

As for standover on a medium, I don’t think you’d be far away at all from adding bottom bracket height and seat tube length (if you imagine a horizontal line across from the top of the seat tube), so about 760mm.

 

[MarkH]

I ii

My biggest issue was picking a size when you’re in between, usually I go up, not down.

I’m on a large Transition Smuggler at the moment, 475 reach. 5’10ish and normal proportions - and I love it. I was going to go XL on the Decoy to match the reach but ordered a large in the end, thinking that the Smuggler takes some effort to manual compared to a bike with shorter reach, compounded by the low bottom bracket.

Add in an extra 20lbs of weight, and I think a long, low heavy bike will most likely make the front too hard to lift for me, especially with the longer chainstays on the Decoy.

Suspect I’ll have a large Base for sale not long after (if) the bike arrives - hopefully week 21 as above.

As for standover on a medium, I don’t think you’d be far away at all from adding bottom bracket height and seat tube length (if you imagine a horizontal line across from the top of the seat tube), so about 760mm.

I'm always between sizes, either med or sml. Went small on my Levo after demo on a med as it felt like a barge. Sizing down brings a bit of agility back whilst the weight of all ebikes provide stability so don't see the need to size up. Ordered a small Decoy as reach and wheelbase are both longer than my small Levo 18.

 

[Dirtnvert]

Makes sense to opt for a little less reach, within reason, to keep some agility. Should help counteract the longer CS on emtb's as well.
I was ready to jump in on the large meta power on sale(last years). Reach is pretty much the same as a lot of medium bikes. Then I looked at seat tube length. Medium is 440(reasonable) then the large jumps up to 490(crazy) so that ended that. I'd like to have a 150mm dropper so that's not going to work.
Decoy is back in play. It does tick a lot of boxes. Still going to check the blowout prices on the kenevo stock first. Only think on the kenevo I'll have to change straight away is tires and add inserts

 

[Nasty Nick]

My biggest issue was picking a size when you’re in between, usually I go up, not down.

I’m on a large Transition Smuggler at the moment, 475 reach. 5’10ish and normal proportions - and I love it. I was going to go XL on the Decoy to match the reach but ordered a large in the end, thinking that the Smuggler takes some effort to manual compared to a bike with shorter reach, compounded by the low bottom bracket.

Add in an extra 20lbs of weight, and I think a long, low heavy bike will most likely make the front too hard to lift for me, especially with the longer chainstays on the Decoy.

Suspect I’ll have a large Base for sale not long after (if) the bike arrives - hopefully week 21 as above.

As for standover on a medium, I don’t think you’d be far away at all from adding bottom bracket height and seat tube length (if you imagine a horizontal line across from the top of the seat tube), so about 760mm.

Same. I’m 5’10” I just sold my large smuggler. I wanted an XL decoy, for a roomy cockpit, but my mates and a yt sales guy talked me into a large. They use your same logic. I was worried cause I was planning to also buy a really long enduro frame like a large pole machine or raaw Madonna. I thought the reach difference would hurt my consistency on both bikes. So needing a bike in the meantime I build my large wreckoning back up. Now I’m falling back in love with this bike! And it’s genius cause the all of the geo is very similar to the large decoy. I really like how much less work I have to do to load the front wheel for cornering. I don’t get as tired cause it requires less weight on my arms. So I’m going to rock the large wreck and decoy for now.