The Bike
At the beginning of 2023, I decided to buy a new e-bike. My old Canyon Neuron:ON was to remain at my parents home as a second bike. My requirements for the bike were relatively simple. A trail bike with an upright, relaxed riding position, modern geometry and enough potential to be able to take on the occasional rough trail. In terms of equipment, it should therefore have decent components, without claiming to be a performance bike or for posing at the ice cream parlor 😄
After some research, I ended up buying the Scott Strike ERide 930 with its 625 Wh battery and Bosch Performance CX drive. Actually this bike shares the same frame with the Scott Genius, but with a more upright riding position and 140mm instead of 150mm travel. If you get bored of the bike at some point, there should be enough potential in the frame to make a significant upgrade. Whether this makes (financially) sense is another matter.
Last but not least I find the look of the bike very appealing. I think Scott has integrated the Bosch motor very harmoniously into the frame and the flip-flop paintwork is a real hit.
Components
- Comfortable Strike eRIDE aluminum frame
- Marzocchi Z2 Air 140mm air suspension fork
- X-Fusion Nude, 140mm, TwinLoc
- Wide gear range with Sram NX Eagle 12-speed
- Powerful Bosch Performance Line CX motor 4.Gen with 85 Nm torque
- SRAM DB8 4-piston hydraulic disc brake for maximum braking performance
- Fast rolling Maxxis Rekon tires
- Pre-assembled cables for front and rear light in the frame
- Speed: Up to 25 km/h
The upright driving position is achieved using spacers:
The charging port is water-protected:
Suspension
I don’t think you need to say much about the Marzocchi Z2 Air, a rock-solid, robust and relatively sensitive fork without a lot of adjustment options. I simply adjusted the fork exactly according to the manufacturer’s instructions, which is completely sufficient for me. As Marzocchi is now part of Fox, half of the parts used probably come from the Fox warehouse or at least from Fox suppliers. If you search the internet for a fork with the best price/performance ratio for a trail bike, 90% of the time you will be recommended the Z2.
The shock is an X-Fusion Nude, which is also said not to be the top performer, but is very robust with sufficient performance. I don’t know if the anecdote is true, but one reads again and again that the founders of X-Fusion were annoyed by the many plastic parts other manufacturers use and therefore try to use as much metal as possible in their own products. I actually had to experiment a little with the pressure of the shock until I reached a comfortable damping behavior for me.
Brakes
The bike is delivered ex works with the SRAM DB8 brake. You can read quite a few mixed reviews of this brake online, which I can personally confirm. I didn’t really have much fun with the brakes at the beginning, the reason being the discs were far too thin. Moderate braking power combined with annoying grinding noises has really upset me.
My conversion to Shimano SM-RT800 ICE TEC 203mm front and rear discs provided a remedy. In combination with AVID CODE pads from SRAM, the brakes are unrecognizable. This upgrade is an absolute recommendation.
A big advantage for forest and meadow riders like me is certainly the use of mineral oil, which significantly extends the maintenance intervals.
Dropper Post
The retractable seatpost is one of the things I don’t like at all. I could operate the seatpost on my old Canyon Neuron in absolutely every situation and it retracted and extended without any problems. However, the Syncros Duncan dropper must be completely relieved of pressure before retracting, otherwise it just hangs in the top postition. One of the parts I might upgrade in the future.
Twinloc
The so called TwinLoc is a lever developed by Scott that is mounted on the handlebars and controls three suspension travel settings as well as the fork lockout. Personally, I use to drive fully open no matter what’s the underground, but occasionally set the Twinloc to lockout on steep ramps and longer rides on asphalt. For me… it’s just a nice to have…
Mode | Function |
|---|---|
| Descent | Suspension is fully open |
| Traction Control | In traction control mode, one chamber is closed, which reduces the air volume of the shock absorber. This reduces the effective spring travel and results in a more progressive spring characteristic. |
| Lockout | Suspesion is completely locked, perfect for sections of road or gravel path. |
What i like about the 2023 Twinloc is, that the dropper post trigger is integrated as well:
Caution: Be extremely careful when working on the Twinloc and adhere exactly to the manufacturer’s torque specifications. The threads are made of aluminum and are extremely delicate. A little too much force and you have destroyed the screw thread.
Driving
After adapting a few components to my requirements, the bike is now really great. New grips, Fidlock mount, Crankbrothers flat pedals and the brake upgrades. Especially on longer tours, I have far fewer problems with my back than with āsportierā bikes thanks to the upright riding position. Nevertheless, you come down every trail with a grin on your face. All from the perspective of an absolutely mediocre rider, of course 😄
The battery is absolutely sufficient for my tours (30-50km with 500-1500hm) and has always been enough. However, it must also be said that I usually ride in Eco and Trail mode.
Verdict
It’s a rock-solid bike with decent components and an optimal riding position for me. Of course, you can get more bang for your buck from other suppliers, especially mail order companies. But in this case, it was important to me to buy the bike from a local dealer where I could rely on maintenance and support after the purchase. I’ve had too many negative experiences with workshops that didn’t want to service mail-order bikes.