Merida started down electric avenue early, it developed sweet riding e-bikes before many other brands even got switched on to the concept. This helped the Taiwanese behemoth tie in with Shimano and get details like geometry, sizing and suspension performance dialled early.

The original eOne-Sixty is testament to this, launched in 2016 it became a shredder’s bike of choice before there really was much choice in the slacker, rowdier end of the market. A fixture in the Dirt 100, the downhiller’s bible bike list, the e-160 became one of the best electric mountain bikes of its generation.

Merida and Shimano’s successful partnership has lasted the best part of a decade with every mid-motor eeb sporting Japanese-designed power, right up to the latest EP801. Think Merida, think Shimano… until now.

The new Merida eOne-Eighty 900 is a monster of a bike, ideal for gravity riding, bike park pinners and winch and plummet riders

Merida eOne-Eighty 900 need to know

• Merida’s longest ever travel e-bike gets the latest Bosch CX motor
• Part of a new Merida electric line up that sees the brand add Bosch drive bikes to its Shimano-powered range
• New range uses a new shock layout and suspension platform to differentiate from older e-bikes
• Aluminium-only frame comes with 800Wh removable battery that’s expandable to over 1000Wh with Bosch’s range extender
• Mixed mullet wheels as standard and five size options, each with size-specific kinematics
• Prices range from £4,900 to £7,500

Merida’s been a loyal Shimano customer for over a decade, but the latest CX motor from Bosch has lured it over to the German brand

Bosch in, Shimano out

This brand-new Merida eOne-Eighty, and separately a carbon fibre eOneSixty SL model you can read about here, both plug into the latest Bosch motor. The big eOne-Eighty uses the recently launched and much hyped CX drive unit; and the shorter travel SL gets the lighter, less powerful, SX.

With this pair and the Shimano-powered e-160 launched earlier in the year, the brand now has all electric bases covered. Want a lighter, carbon-framed (fixed-battery) frame? Check out the carbon e-160 or new e-160 SL. Need a chunkier alloy-framed removable-battery model? Go for the Merida eOne-Sixty or now the new eOne-Eighty. Across the Merida electric range, travel options and intentions stretch from trail to enduro to full-on gravity machines.

Merida eOne-Eighty 900 design and geometry

The heart of the eOne-Eighty is its new Bosch CX gen 5 motor. It might not claim any bold new statistics over its predecessor’s 600W peak power or 85Nm, but it has clearly had plenty more work done than just a nip and tuck to save 100g. New CX immediately feels way more refined, rides much quieter and delivers its power much more cleverly. And because it now mounts with the same two bolts as the Bosch SX motor, brands like Merida have had to build all-new frames to accommodate it.

Canyon’s Torque:ON is one of the only real rivals for e-bikes at this end of the travel spectrum, besides Whyte’s E-180

The ironically named eOne-Eighty LITE frame is aluminium only and, like Canyon’s Torque:On and the Whyte E-180 Worx MX one of the few e-bikes with full Cat 5 DH rating. That means a five year warranty and a bombproof build. I chucked it down plenty of rocks in Spain, it’s designed to tackle bike parks, DH tracks and being ridden by massive riders in all weathers with little finesse.

The eOne-Eighty geometry is moderate, rather than extreme. Interestingly, there’s a steepened head angle and decreased reach compared to Merida’s analogue bikes to emphasise manoeuvrability. This means a 64.5° head angle, and all sizes retain the brand’s steeper modern seat angles (used on all its newer MTBs) of around 78.5°. The overall vibe is a high stack and low BB to keep the rider stable, and Agilometer sizing where you choose frame by length rather than height.

The Mid size I rode has 460mm reach but feels bigger with the 12mm BB drop, while the frames get longer but not taller through the sizes. Merida specs its own brand adjustable 230mm dropper post to mop up the inseam for long-legged riders.

The eOne-Eighty chainstay isn’t size-specific and remains relatively short at 435mm in every size, from XS to XL. The bike gets a sealed bearing pivot just above the rear axle, rather than the typical flex stay found on modern Meridas. This is because longer travel equals a longer shock, and the 250x75mm stroke piggy-back Vivid air shock’s extra rotation can’t be handled by a ‘wibble’ in the stay without compromising performance.

Talking of RockShox’ Vivid, the whole bike revolves around a more linear damper (or a coil shock). The Merida engineers have designed the frame’s new link to match the ‘ideal’ leverage ratio for optimum shock performance. Throughout the bike’s sizes Merida also uses five different leverage ratios with less progression on smaller bikes for lighter riders who can struggle to achieve full travel, and more progression to resist bottom out for heavier pilots.

The linkage stuck out a few mill too far, catching my knees on really tight, switchback trails

The all-new link layout differentiates the eOne-Eighty from the Shimano motored bikes with a triangulated mount shaping coming off the seat tube. It also satisfies one of the main design goals, to get rid of the shock yoke and decrease side loads on the shock. The hardware and design all look sturdy and neat, but the linkage does protrude wider at the end of the seat stays (and sides of the seat tube) than many other e-bikes I’ve ridden. This wider part actually regularly tapped against the inside of my knee while riding, which was irritating. That said, no other journalists at the bike’s launch had the same issue, so maybe it’s just me?

Semi-integrated in the huge alloy downtube is a 600Wh Bosch PowerTube battery on the lowest level eOne-Eighty model, and 800Wh on all higher tier bikes. There’s also the option of Bosch’s 250Wh range extender if you want to take the juice over 1000Wh in total.

This top end 900 model comes with the latest 800Wh battery, it’s actually lighter than the old 750Wh unit but you wouldn’t know it on this heavyweight bike

The German brand’s new CX batteries now have one of the best energy densities on the market, at 205Wh/kg and that gives Merida the upper hand over brands using the older batteries: check out the new Pivot Shuttle LT 2025 and Orbea’s new Wild e-bike. New technology means you’re saving weight on the bike, which in turn means the motor has less work to do, all carrying you higher, further and faster.

Because Merida’s frames grow mainly in reach and wheelbase up the sizes, stand-over clearance is good and seat and head tubes lengths remain relatively close. One thing some potential customers might not like though is the look of all the cables porting through said headtube into an Acros headset and into the inside of the frame.

Cable routing via the headset is still anathema to me, but I’ve got used to it over time and at least it’s now reliable

Personally, faffing with hoses and cable routing is a hassle anyway on any e-bike, making this less of an issue than on a ‘normal’ bike that more riders are likely to fix themselves. The headset uses a Block-lock design so you can’t slam the fork legs into the downtube and the wire port routing is at least totally silent too.

It’s not my favourite look but I’m kind of over moaning about headset routing now, especially when newer generation Acros headsets with new plastic seals don’t munch through cables or let too much grit in and are way better than first generations.

The sliding charger port is pretty slick, but potentially easier than a hinged door to forget about and leave wide open

More frame details include Bosch’s controller module embedded in the top tube, a sliding door charging port and a battery lock keyhole to stop anyone nicking the expensive battery. Out back, the stays have textured rubberised protection and a metal plate to prevent chain rub inside the rear triangle. There are also mounts for a tube stash, a longer rear fender than the one installed and a useful 4mm and 6mm allen key included in the rear pull-out QR axle.

The Vivid Ultimate is just a masterpiece in suspension, and suits this bike to a tee

Suspension

The eOne-Eighty has the most progressive leverage ratio in Merida’s entire bike range, with the longer frames getting increasing bottom out resistance for taller and likely heavier riders. There is around 13% progression in the smallest frame size, rising to 20.6% in XL (measured as covering the range from sag to around 95% of travel). This more progressive curve better suits the bigger air volume DH shocks like RockShox’s Vivid Air the eOne-Eighty uses, or even a coil shock.

Reading through the graphs, anti-squat sits at around just over 100% at sag, falling to around 70% at full travel for improved pedalling performance. Anti-rise is just over 100% in the sag position, which should help keep the bike level under braking on steep descents or smoother fast trails. Deeper in the travel, anti-rise decreases to eventually hit 80% at bottom out; this should help the back wheel track the ground better and let the suspension remain more active braking on rough and beaten-up terrain when deeper in the stroke.

Up front the Beb Ultimate is a great match for a bike of this weight and composure

Components

On this priciest 900 model, you’re getting RockShox’s best suspension, which in this category means a 180mm Zeb Ultimate and Vivid Ultimate. That’s the current cream of the crop in terms of damping and performance.

I’ve already rated the latest RockShox Zeb Ultimate with its Charger 3.1 damper full marks and nothing here made me doubt that verdict. It’s a cinch to set up and is more sensitive than previous models with all the grip and control, but the Vivid Air is arguably even better and simply one of the best shocks around. The key to its supreme suppleness and smoothness could be its TouchDown tech, which bypasses the compression damping altogether in the first 10% of the travel. On this eOne-Eighty, it simply floats through roughness and kisses the dirt landing from all heights with the same ‘mwah’ Gordon Ramsey might make saluting his best dish.

Shimano XT brakes proved powerful and reliable, albeit a little underwhelming on a bike this flash

For a £7,500 bike, a Shimano XT brake and drivetrain package isn’t the most glamorous, but the brakes worked just fine with a 220mm front and 200mm rear rotor.

Its 11-speed Shimano Link Glide drivetrain is a sensible spec choice that’s tougher and more e-bike optimised than Hyperglide equivalents. In much the same way SRAM’s T-Type Transmission employs a special cassette, Link Glide uses thicker teeth and simpler ramps between cogs to shift the chain up and down the cassette to better handle higher torques and resist drivetrain wear over time. It’s a robust and durable system, which (like SRAM’s) has a slightly less smooth and more snappy shift, but on an e-bike this wasn’t an issue for me, and neither was having one less gear. Merida has sneaked the (even cheaper) LG400 Cues cassette into the rest of the XT drivetrain and it’s presumably little decisions like this that help tip the eOne-Eighty over the 27kg mark.

Elsewhere, there’s a lot of own-branded Merida kit in the bars, stem, and seatpost. It all works fine, but is a bit bland looking, except for the cheese grater grips that don’t work fine either in terms of styling or performance. I can also live without the included Lezyne front headlight in a headtube area that’s already crowded with cables. Having a light makes me feel like a total square somehow, but I get that it’s useful for many and I might need to get over myself.

DT Swiss HFR 1700 rims are bombproof

Wheels are the excellent DT Swiss HF 1700 that are going to last the distance on a high-mileage, long travel, e-bike. Trusted Maxxis Assegai and Minion DHR tyres in sensible compounds and casings lay down plenty of sticky rubber.

In terms of the Bosch motor controls, the brand finally has a really nifty and neat bar-mounted display, in the Purion 400. It looks a lot like Shimano’s but has more useful data and a clearer display. You can cycle through the CX power modes using its wireless Mini Remote selector, which sits very cleanly by the left grip. The whole set up here means Bosch now has some of the cleanest and most ergonomic e-bike controls around, after years spent being too clunky and complicated.

Bosch has sorted its controls out, with this dinky wireless remote all that’s left of the massive bar-mounted screens of old… you can even remove this if you want it super clean

Perfomance

The first thing that struck me is just how quiet Bosch’s new CX is. In most normal trail scenarios, rustling along on a gritty surface or crossing over vegetation, you simply don’t notice the sound of the motor at all. No whine, no rattle, just a silent pleasant whirr that you can tune out really easily.

There’s so much CX power and usable torque you can crudely let it pull you about the place in the ‘wrong’ gear if you want, and I found a huge working range with the new 800Wh battery. At 85kg, I rode over 1,100m of elevation and over 33km almost exclusively in Turbo mode and still had 37% battery left.

It’s sensitive and reactive too, pick up is immediate and the motor is almost revving to go as soon as you apply pressure on the cranks. In contrast, Yamaha’s motor trembles when resting one foot on cranks when you’re chilling at the top of a track.

With so much power and grip at your feet the eOne-Eighty can muscle its way up just about anything

Climbing

At over 27kg, this bike weighs a proverbial ton and there’s no getting away from it. I definitely wouldn’t want to lug it over a UK gate, but you don’t really notice the bulk as such a drag when rolling along. There’s minimal bobbing or mush when climbing, and even sat down pedalling you can power up pretty much anything.

In eMTB mode, CX just seamlessly gets on with it and also offers the option of a new Extended Boost feature. This lets you punch in more overrun by stabbing the cranks or giving them a quick quarter turn. Bosch’s motor then provides some extra momentary chain drive to power over small ledges or steps while you keep the cranks safely level. This stops you clanging pedals heading upwards in very tight trail situations.

Steeper the better for the Merida eOne-Eighty, both up and downhill

Turbo is also a great option if you’re a winch and plummet rider because there’s just so much traction coming from the rear tyre. The steep seat angle puts your weight in the right place to head up all sorts of angles and it’s crazy how ridiculous an incline you can crest on Merida’s 180mm bike with all that travel, grip and power.

Descending

The less-dead-than-you’d-imagine ride is even more surprising on the descent, and the DT wheels are incredibly willing to launch and loft off things. The eOne-Eighty 900 was more than ready to just copy and paste other riders’ above-my-paygrade trail moves and still feel totally safe. It responds well to punching weight into the suspension, letting you lighten your tyres off the floor, get airborne, change direction, pop of rocks, or just randomly send it to landings (or to nothing).

Rocks, rocks and more rocks, testing the bike in northern Spain

The way it caresses the ground at both tyres on landings or hard square edge hits is something else too. I’d put it right up there with bikes like Whyte’s eOne-Sixty RSX I’ve really rated in terms of overall suspension sensitivity and control. This is a big travel rig of course and all the heft and absolutely tons of grip means you are still generally very planted and stable on the ground, so you obviously can’t quite dance about the trails.

That said, there’s not too much sense of bogging out or wallowing deeper in the stroke. The eOne-Eighty keeps its mid-stroke shape and rider support really well when slamming through deep holes or subjecting it to massive berm G-outs. It’s not even much effort to sling the frame from side-to-side on trails with tighter turns, but this is probably where I get my clonked knees.

The eOne-Eighty is surprisingly agile for such a heavyweight rig, which must be down to the suspension tune

I was really surprised how easy it was to get through steeper jumps and technical hips and landings without the suspension totally eating up the lips. The bike also resisted losing all its rolling speed by sucking up the acceleration offered by steeper landings needed for the next jump; especially considering all the travel.

We didn’t hit up any bike park jumps as such, but this aspect bodes well for the eOne-Eighty on massive jump lines. From memory, I’d even say it’s a bit more lively and ‘tight’ than Canyon’s Torque:ON, despite weighing 2kg more.

At first heft, I imagined this army green machine might smash through trails like some kind of military vehicle. But after a solid chunk of riding, I’d say the handling is more akin to some flashy Audi or BMW 4WD estate than any tank or anti-personnel vehicle. Merida’s new eOne-Eighty definitely doesn’t ride like a long travel vehicle on tracks where it’s completely stuck to the floor, and is a great new addition to the longer travel e-bike sector. It’s currently one of the most dialled options out there for a bombproof confidence booster that won’t kill your buzz.

As much as I love the eOne-Eighty, I reckon 95% of riders would actually be better suited to the eOne-Sixty, with less weight and travel