Scott showed us its new Patron eRIDE a few months back a 160mm e-bike with the shock hidden somewhere inside the frame. Now it’s released a clear plastic mock up of the real bike so we can all peer inside and see what’s actually going on inside one of the best electric mountain bikes out there.

Most importantly, Scott says, it wanted to show just how hard it was to develop an e-bike with big travel and with the big new 750Wh battery Bosch motors can take. Put a big long battery inside a bike’s down tube and that tube surely has to grow? A real problem on smaller sized bikes where a rider’s body just isn’t long enough to accommodate the extra space a long top tube demands.

New 750Wh removable battery is positioned super low in the frame, thanks to the flipped motor position

Well, there’s a way round that, Scott found. Scott has rotated the Patron’s motor, and this means the battery can drop down lower. The brand says this means there’s no impact on the overall handling of the bike, even though the battery is 20% larger than the 625Wh Powertube battery.

What’s that got to do with handling? Scott recons weight distribution is the most important element and a low center of gravity will improve handling by counteracting the effects of riding a heavier bike. The battery and the motor, as the heaviest components, should be as low as possible, it says.

Fettle the shock settings by opening the trap door

The Spark was the first Scott to hide the shock inside the frame. The insider technology has been pioneered by Bold Cycles, another Swiss brand that Scott bought back in 2019 so none of us should be too surprised to see this kind of application two years later.

Not just a design statement

Why on earth has it bothered though? It’s the best place for the shock, Scott says. It’s one of the lightest components so makes little impact on the centre of gravity. Besides, the space it would normally take up is now used by the new motor position, the battery and the suspension design. It’s not just a design statement, Scott says. There’s also a way to get to the shock so you can remove it for servicing or set the rebound, thanks to a little trapdoor.

Hidden cables run the length of the bike

Scott has always been a fan of its cabling, anyone riding a bike with its Twinloc Suspension System will agree to that. Now it’s gone internal, entering the bike at the top of the head tube rather than through a port in the side.

We’ve all got used to e-bikes costing as much as small cars, and of course with all the clever tech and attention to detail the Patron is no exception, with the Patron eRIDE 900 Ultimate costing €11,999.

The real thing. The big question, where will Scott go next with its game of hide-the-components?

However, the Patron eRIDE comes in seven different versions and starts at €5,099 for the Contessa Patron eRIDE 910 – that’s not nothing, but it’s less gasp-worthy. There’s another women’s version too, the 900 Contessa at €7,999.

Then there are 5 models starting with the Patron eRIDE 920 (€6,299), 910 (€6,999), 900 (€7,999), 900 Tuned (€8,999).

Any good? Dunno yet. We’ll have a review of the new bike for you in a few weeks, after attending the launch.