As the most successful bike in Mondraker’s substantial range of e-bikes, the new Crafty has big shoes to fill. ‘Don’t mess it up!’, or slightly stronger words to that effect, probably rang in the ears of the development team as they worked on updating this crucial model, then. But they had a pretty good starting point. Read our review of the Crafty Carbon R from the E-Bike of the Year test last summer and we pointed out some areas that could be improved. Such as the fully integrated battery that couldn’t be removed for charging. The lofty BB and lack of a flip-chip. And the high levels of anti-squat and mismatched suspension feel front to rear. Oh, and not forgetting the headset routed cables that made for sluggish shifting and a stiff lever action.

Plainly the team at Mondraker has been doing its homework, because all of these areas have been addressed with the new design. Let’s get stuck into those changes, starting with one area we didn’t complain about – the Bosch Performance CX motor.

Finale delivering the biblical light during the 2025 Mondraker Crafty launch. Believe it or not, the Crafty climbed back up this trail as well!

Mondraker Crafty Carbon RR need to know

• Mondraker’s top-selling e-bike boasts 160/150mm travel and 29in wheels
• Fitted with the new Bosch Performance CX motor – no more rattle, better response, and new, lighter 800Wh battery
• Carbon front triangle with alloy swingarm on the RR model, although there are also full carbon models with the smaller 600Wh battery
• Reconfigured Zero suspension layout and revised kinematics (higher initial leverage rate and less anti-squat)
• Room for water bottle and a range extender
• Cables enter the frame via port in the head tube, not the headset
• Six specs and a frameset option from £5,799
• XR build gets 170mm fork and coil shock
• Claimed complete bike weights from 21.1kg

That latest Bosch CX motor is an impressive bit of kit, and paired with the big 800Wh battery gives the Mondraker Crafty Carbon RR massive potential.

Motor and battery

Bosch has been producing its flagship MTB motor – the Performance CX – for 10 years now, slowly improving its weight, power and response with every iteration. It even coined a new phrase to capture the terrain that was unlocked as the calibration became ever more sophisticated. ‘Uphill flow’ might not have the slick ring of an American marketing campaign, but it neatly encapsulates Bosch’s search for the ultimate control, rather than just chasing raw power. And this gen 5 Bosch Performance CX found in the new Crafty takes that to a new level

The new Purion 400 display might not be a new concept, but it’s one that works, and is the best Bosch display for proper mountain biking.

Two new inertia sensors in the motor provide info on gradient and trail surface, which feeds into data about cadence, pedal pressure, and speed, to help meter out the 85Nm of torque and 600W peak power exactly when you want it. So while hot new systems like the DJI Avinox in the Amflow PL Carbon are grabbing the headlines on power and torque, Bosch has been knuckling down to the details, making sure you can deploy that power with fingertip (should that be toe-tip?) control.

There have also been changes to the size, weight, and mounting pattern to make it easier for bike brands to package the motor around their suspension designs. Bosch has also got rid of the slight rattle from the internals when coasting, and made the new CX quieter when providing power.

There’s room for the 250Wh range extender and a water bottle inside the frame using a Fidlock mount.

Two new batteries bring better range with less weight. Packed with the latest cells, the 600Wh unit weighs 3kg, while the 800Wh option is 400g lighter than the older 750Wh unit, despite offering a decent increase in range. Both can be supplemented by the 250Wh range extender for all-day epics.

So the new Bosch CX is an impressive system, that I’ve written about here, and if you cast your mind back to the launch of the Gen 4 system, there was a power boost after a year. So maybe this motor is not firing on all cylinders yet.

That blocky down tube accepts either the 800Wh (standard fit) or the 600Wh option, and the battery is easily removable via a cutout on the underside.

Mondraker has chosen to use both the 600Wh and 800Wh batteries in its new Crafty. The full carbon models use the smaller 600Wh battery to save weight, while the carbon bikes with alloy swingarms get the bigger 800Wh unit. All models are compatible with both the range extender and water bottle, so you can run both at the same time. Although the Zero suspension design does intrude on the front triangle and push the range extender further up the down tube than is optimal for weight distribution.

Tucked behind the handlebars is the new Purion 400 colour display. Yes, it’s a rip-off of Shimano’s original design, but it works, gives loads of information to the rider, and stays out of harm’s way in a crash, so I like it.

The new Zero suspension layout, first introduced on the mid-power Neat, has been transferred to the Crafty.

Frame, geometry, and suspension

The most obvious change to the new Crafty frame is that the shock now sweeps back more-or-less inline with the top tube. On the previous design it stood vertically, and was clamped at both ends by the suspension links. Now the lower shock mount is anchored to the swingarm, while the upper trunnion is attached to the rocker link. Making these changes has allowed Mondraker to improve the standover clearance and tinker with the kinematics, although the large hole in the seat tube does nothing for dropper post insertion – a problem I will come back to later.

Rewind to the first paragraph and you may remember we criticised the suspension on the last Crafty for being too preoccupied with pedalling performance, and less on grip and sensitivity. Well, the new bike has less anti-squat and a higher leverage rate initially (and overall owing to the shorter stroke shock), to reduce the tensioning effect of pedal inputs, and make the suspension more sensitive initially. Pretty much exactly what we asked for!

The signature ‘window’ makes the Crafty unmistakably Mondraker. And I’m delighted to see the Spanish brand has reverted to cable entry ports at the head tube rather than headset-routed cables.

Another suggestion we posted in the feedback box was a removable battery. Well, tick – Mondraker has added this too, with a cut-out on the underside of the boxy down tube. Yes, in order to accommodate that big 800Wh battery, the down tube is a little, well, Minecrafty.

That leaves just two further complaints – the high BB and lack of flip-chip, and the headset-routed cables that are a nightmare to maintain. Kudos to Mondraker, because the new Crafty comes with a flip-chip that lowers the BB by 5mm, and the headset cabling has been sent to room 101, replaced by entry ports at the head tube. Bingo!

New flip chip gives 5mm of BB height adjust and actually tweaks the suspension feel (for the better). Suffice to say, run it in the low setting, as I had no issues with pedal strikes.

Two frame versions are sold; one full carbon, and one with an alloy swingarm (used on this RR model) that adds 500-550g to the 3.1kg claimed frame weight of the full carbon frame. According to Mondraker, this is the same weight as the old frame, despite adding the removable battery and all the reinforcement that requires.

Both frame options are full 29in, and come in five frame sizes – does that leave room for a specific MX-wheel model in the Mondraker range? The frame sizes are S, M, M/L, L, and XL, with reach starting at 445mm and extending to 520mm. For reference I rode the M/L with 480mm reach, and it feels compact when seated due to the steep seat angle (just under 78º). Mondraker has also added two chainstay lengths, with 455mm on the smaller sizes, and 465mm on the L and XL. Unlike most brands, it has done this with two completely unique swingarms rather than shifting the main pivot point around.

It’s fair to say seat tube insertion is sub-optimal. This is as low as I could get the stock Onoff 180mm dropper post on the M/L frame.

Seat tube lengths are compact on paper (my M/L claims a 435mm seat tube) but the stock dropper post wouldn’t go all the way into the frame. So effectively the bottom of the seat post collar won’t go any lower than 480mm above the BB. That’s a big issue for me, as the saddle is really in the way even when fully dropped. It might be possible to find a more compact dropper post that will sit deeper into the frame, but I think Mondraker should have done that job for me rather than leaving me to do the research, buy a new post, and end up with a perfectly good dropper I can’t use.

SRAM’s Maven brakes gave assured stopping power.

Components

The Crafty’s cockpit comes from Mondraker’s in-house Onoff label, and it’s decent stuff, if not anything special. I’d rather have some thicker grips than the Onoff Forests, even if the rubber was nice and soft, and I found the handlebar jarring.

I’ve talked about the dropper post, which is adjustable by 30mm, but needs to be shorter in overall length. It’s topped with an Ergon SM-10 saddle that we rate highly here at MBR.

Chunky 2.6in Maxxis tyres are fitted to the Mavic wheels, but I think the Crafty needs a softer compound up front and a burlier casing on the back.

Mavic supplies the E-Deemax wheels. Mondraker is one of the few big brands to spec Mavic wheels, and having tested the E-Deemax over a year I like them for their fast rolling speed and durability. They’re not the lightest, and the bladed spokes do twang a bit under hard side-loads, but they’re tough and reliable.

But Mondraker has wrapped them in unsuitable tyres. Up front there’s a Maxxis Minion DHF and out back a Minion DHR II, both of which are decent tread patterns. However, the EXO+ casings are too light for a chunky full-fat e-bike like the Crafty, the Max Terra compound up front lacks grip, and the fat 2.6in carcasses are a bit too floaty and vague. Mondraker says it plans to make a running change to the tyre specs which should improve things, but early bikes will have to make do with this set-up.

Posh Factory Fox suspension and SRAM GX AXS wireless gears mean the Mondraker Crafty Carbon RR wants for little.

I had no complaints about the braking, though. With SRAM Maven Bronze and 200mm HS2 rotors, there’s ample power and control in equal measure. Likewise, the SRAM GX Eagle AXS may not be the fastest shifting in the west, but it’s smooth and accurate, particularly under power.

Hoiking the Mondraker Crafty Carbon RR onto a high line in Finale.

Performance

That higher leverage rate requires more air pressure in the shock, but Mondraker’s initial recommended settings were too soft on the launch, so it took longer than ideal to get set-up on the new Crafty. At 78kg, I went from 185psi to 210psi in the Fox Float X shock by the end of the day. The bikes had also been fitted with 4 volume spacers by mistake, so the first morning was wasted with the rear end too soft and the fork achieving only 60% travel. Once those settings had been fixed, switching to the low BB position on the second day unlocked the final nugget of suspension performance.

Smirking up a stupidly rocky climb aboard the Mondraker Crafty Carbon RR.

Climbing

In a word, extraordinary. I can’t remember a bike that has continually stunned me with its rock-crawling ability. As I went from one seemingly insurmountable ascent to the next, my mind was blown and my presumptions about what the Crafty could tackle. To the point that on several occasions I was literally giggling to myself with the ridiculousness of what I’d just surmounted.

Much of the basis for this prowess can be traced back to the Bosch motor. In eMTB mode, the way it processes all the data from the sensors and feeds in the power with precision control is staggering. One split second I could be trackstanding on a narrow, off-camber switchback, hopping the bike into position, and the next I could be powering up a steep, traction-limited bank with a slow, deliberate cadence that let me focus on balance, line choice, and grip. There was always the forward propulsion I was looking for, without having to rev the cranks or build up momentum. That controllable power really allowed me to find the best lines and power up rocky steps or over roots.

Whether steep, rough, technical, or a combination of all three, I didn’t come across a climb that the Mondraker Crafty Carbon RR baulked at.

The other part of the Crafty’s climbing equation is the bike itself. And this is where the longer chainstays, steeper seat angle, and supple suspension combine to underscore the talent of the motor. Given the harder compound Max Terra rear tyre, there’s even room for improvement in the traction stakes. Better yet, even with the flip chip in the low setting I only experienced one or two pedal strikes.

So if DJI’s Avinox flattens climbs with sheer power and grunt, the Bosch CX is like a skilled competition climber, nailing complex moves and technical holds with strength, power, and coordination.

The supple suspension chewed up and spat out lumpy sections like this, but it could be more progressive.

Descending

If the Crafty combined poise and grace with power and control on the climbs, it was slightly more one-dimensional on the descents. There was less agility and fluidity on show, and it felt more like a steamroller. For comparison, the (lighter weight) Mondraker Dune I tested recently has far more dynamic handling, despite having more travel and slacker geometry. Which leaves me thinking maybe there’s room in Mondraker’s range for a Bosch CX-equipped model with 150mm travel, MX wheels and a 600Wh battery? That could be the sweetspot of handling, travel, range, and power.

Partly that’s down to the weight, which while not excessive, is not at the lower end of the scale. But the longer chainstays and 29in rear wheel also feed into the sensation of stability trumping agility, while the supple, active suspension doesn’t have the progression to push against when making a big e-bike get airborne or change direction. Adding a larger volume spacer to the shock might be a shrewd move for anyone seeking extra pop.

It takes a bit of effort to get turning, at which point I was craving a stickier front tyre.

Those longer chainstays pushed my weight forward on the bike, which made the front end harder to lift, and the Crafty harder than average to manual. And while weighting the front end is important for flat turns, the weight of the bike and the harder compound front tyre meant the front wheel struggled for grip and wanted to push on in corners with low support.

At high speeds, nothing seems to knock the Crafty off-course.

That plush suspension makes the Crafty feel very comfortable and composed on spiky, rocky tracks, like it has more travel than the numbers suggest. As such, it just sits unflustered, devouring anything in its path like the slimer ghost from Ghostbusters.

This was even more pronounced in the low setting, where the Crafty felt more settled in its travel, my feet felt lower, and the overall centre of gravity more planted.