Review: Devinci E-Troy Bosch GX LTD - An Aggro All-Mountain eMTB

Frame Details

Devinci has been making aluminum frames in-house for decades and although there was demand for carbon frames in other model lines, the E-Troy returns to its roots. This aluminum frame is made in their Chicoutimi factory and is all about simplicity.

You won't find pesky cables routed through the headset, the battery is easily removable, and the proven split pivot suspension returns to a traditional rocker link-look.

All sizes of the E-Troy frames roll on mixed wheels with clearance for up to 2.6 tires. There are no geometry adjustments per se, but the E-Troy can comfortably run a 160 or in the case of the LTD model, a 170mm fork.

All of Devinci's current eMTBs use the accepted widely accepted 148mm Boost hub spacing, versus the 157mm Super Boost on their unassisted trail and enduro bikes. The E-Troy is built around a 55mm chain line and includes a thoughtful upper guide, although I'd still like to see skid plates on all E-bikes.


Visually the new E-Troy is an improvement upon the previous iteration with much cleaner lines and part of that is due to the re-positioning of the motor, which is now tucked further under the cranks.

It’s no secret that Bosch makes excellent e-bike motors and the Performance CX Line motor provides up to 85Nm of torque with four assist modes. The E-bike Flow app also allows you to tune each power assist level, by torque, pedal sensitivity, max speed, and the assistance level.

One of the coolest features about this motor is that a lock and an alarm are possible to activate with the premium service subscription. The lock mechanism works by expanding a cam and can be engaged when the bike shuts off, activating the alarm at the same time. Additionally, if the bike is moved without authorization, a tracking device can determine the location.

These two services are free for the first year when you register an account with the E-bike pass, but will require an additional module to be installed by a Bosch dealer.

When I first rode the Bosch motor on a fancy Trek Rail, it used a very bulky and vulnerable remote. Thankfully, Bosch has simplified and drastically reduced the size of the buttons. Best of all, it connects to the motor wirelessly using a Bluetooth relay. All visual signals are now moved to the integrated battery percentage light bar, only found on the E-Troy GX LTD. You can also control the power and assist level from there should the battery in the Bluetooth remote run out unexpectedly.

In terms of the juice available, the main battery stores 625Wh and locks into the underside of the down tube with a key. The charge port is located on the non-drive side, below the shock. Additionally, the Power More range extender can be plugged into that port and bolted to the water bottle bosses, providing an extra 250Wh.

Suspension Design

Devinci uses a split pivot suspension design for the E-Troy. The layout is claimed to allow for more active suspension under braking due to the co-rotating pivot around the rear axle.

A 185x55mm shock provides 150mm of rear wheel travel, utilizing a trunnion mount. Devinci says that their dual-row bearings and seatstay bridge leads to a stiffer design than the than previous E-Troy.

Geometry & Sizing

One of the first things you’ll notice when you swing a leg over the E-Troy is how slack the head angle is. At 63° it overshadows some of the most aggressive enduro bikes and with a 170mm Fox 38 at the helm, it’s capable of handling some seriously steep trails.

The only concern with the slack head angle is that it's paired with a steep 78.5-degree seat tube angle. Those angles can converge quickly should you decide to raise the handlebar height or post insertion depth, therefore shortening the effective top tube length. Depending on your cockpit setup, this can make the seated position feel cramped, which could be a reason why Devinci specified such a low-rise bar.

The stack height numbers are on the lower side, at 615mm for the medium, with the reach measuring 465mm. At 178 cm tall I’m at the upper limit of Devinci’s medium-size E-Troy, but I focused on keeping the wheelbase in check. Considering how much mass I would need to muscle around, I’m glad I steered in that direction and chose to deal with the constraints of the effective top tube versus a gargantuan wheelbase.

There are four frame sizes to choose from in the E-Troy with reaches that fit riders from 160 cm up to 198 cm. All of the chainstay lengths remain the same at 438mm.

I started with 205 PSI in the rear shock (34% sag) which provided a lot of traction, but frequent pedal strikes, plus some hard bottom outs, so I bumped up the pressure to 215 (30% sag) and swapped the 0.4 stock volume spacer for a 0.6 in.³ I kept moving up in pressure by 10 PSI increments as each change seemed to be less noticeable on the trail than I hoped. Eventually, the sweet spot registered at 230 PSI giving roughly 27% sag.

I also swapped out the 150mm dropper post for one with a 20mm longer extension. I’d like to see more manufacturers utilize all of the real estate in their frames, especially since the size medium E-Troy is capable of handling a 170mm seat post. It’s much easier to limit the amount of drop versus replacing the post. In case you missed it, that was a hot topic discussed in our latest field test.

Lastly, I installed sticky, more robust tires for the cooler autumn temperatures, an insert in the rear wheel, and softer grips that didn’t feature a tapered end.

Climbing

Just because you have a motor bolted to your bike doesn’t mean that it’ll be an effective climber. There’s much more at play here such as the e-bike’s handling and motor response.

It will be important for riders to look at the effective top tube length as mentioned in the setup. If you find yourself on the upper end of a size, the cockpit can become cramped feeling as those two angles converge - it’s likely taller riders will want to run a higher bar.

With a serious amount of front wheel ahead of you, the steep seat angle and scooped saddle shape keep your weight pushed forward without sliding off the back of the bike.


The only place I found the extreme head angle to be a slight hindrance was an extremely tight flat turns. I believe some of that can be attributed to the longer 51mm fork offset which can cause the front wheel to swap to the side particularly quickly when standing on the pedals. You’ll need to keep an eye on where the front wheel is when rounding tight switchbacks too. That’s all to be expected of a bike like this that sits close to the limit of aggressive trail geometry. It’s an exciting but brave move for Devinci to settle on these angles that reflect similarly to the chainsaw Enduro bike.

When it came to tuning the motor, I got along well with most of the stock settings. I did tone down the pedal sensitivity level in turbo to avoid spinning out up steep slippery climbs that required awkward moves where you might have to stop and start cranking suddenly.

Choosing the right assistance mode is critical in those situations and thankfully that’s much easier to reach with the slim and ergonomic remote. Each one of those four modes offers a noticeable difference in assistance.

Calculating which modes I spent the most time in on the trail is tough to say, but I bet they would be Tour Plus and Boost, the second and fourth highest levels of assist. Although I don’t think four modes are too many, it’s easy to see why something like SRAM‘s new Powertrain system only offers two levels of assistance. Both drive units allow for plenty of tuning, but only the Bosch can be turned off completely, which plenty of riders will select to avoid any accidental motor bursts on technical descents.

Why e-bikes don’t have a more robust skid plate is beyond me, granted the motor isn’t as vulnerable to impacts as the previous model that looked to protrude further forward.

Descending

Devinci has put together an appealing eMTB for riders who will focus on lapping steeper zones as the front end of the bike overshadows the rear in terms of travel, wheel size and the balance of the geometry. With that said, it isn’t held back on less intense trails are there because there are aspects that allow it to stay on its toes.

Since the weight of full-powered eMTBs helps to keep the center of mass grounded, it’s not necessary to make the chainstays overly long to get the same stability as an enduro bike would require I do wonder how this would carry over on the larger sizes since the chainstays are the same length on the large and extra-large frames.

Adding to that element of security when descending is the long front center drawn out by the slack 63° head tube angle and 170mm Fox 38 fork. Those two components allow you to challenge the steepest tracks and gnarly lines. If that seems like too much for you, then look to the E-Troy GX which comes with a 160mm fork, and steepens the head angle by half a degree.

Honestly, I’ve been waiting for an aggressive e-bike like this, and haven’t ridden one that can descend confidently and remain somewhat playful. The 27.5" rear wheel is without a doubt part of that equation and allows you to move around the bike without getting buzzed when hanging off the back.

I know that this is a modestly priced eMTB and genuinely think that the components all around are a great bang for your buck, but riders that push the limit will look for stickier, more supportive, tires, stronger, brakes, and rear shock that can take a harder punch.

Next to the all-around great value and aggro geometry, the best part of the E-Troy was the overall quiet ride. Common complaints like motor clutch and cable rattles were not a concern. The added rubber along the lower swingarm also kept the chain slap to a minimum

What's the Best Value?

Throughout the E-Troy lineup, there are three models which all use the same alloy frame and Bosch Performance CX Line motor. The entry-level build uses a full Shimano drivetrain and brake set, Fox Performance suspension with fewer damping adjustments than the Performance Elite gear. Devinci’s house-branded V2 components cover the cockpit and wheelset, plus there’s a TranzX dropper post.

The GX builds both receive a mechanical SRAM GX Eagle drivetrain that tops the Shimano cassette by one extra tooth (52 vs 51) and uses Code R brakes. Then there’s the jump up to Fox Performance Elite suspension, Race Face Aeffect wheels, and an SDG Tellis dropper post.

Although the motors are the same, the GX models use the trick wireless remote and feature the top tube display.

Between those two GX versions, the only difference is the fork. The “LTD” sees the small addition of an eMTB-tuned Fox 38 that is bumped up to 170mm of travel.

Separating the Deore and GX builds is more or less $1,300, which is still a good chunk of cash. If you’re a die-hard Shimano fan, then that could leave extra coin for upgrades such as larger rotors, and stickier, more robust tires.

How Does It Compare?


The Trek Rail 9.9 we tested featured all of the latest electronic gizmos with a full carbon frame and costs $14,000 USD. Targeting the same style of rider, the Rail runs on the same Performance CX Line motor but is equipped with a slightly larger 750Wh battery.

To be fair, Trek does have less expensive models in their lineup. A comparable model would be the Rail 7 Gen 2 with a RockShox Domain fork and 12-speed SRAM 10 to 52 tooth gear range, so the focus is aimed towards the frame features and geometry given the price discrepancy.

At the time, the sleek Bluetooth remote was not available for the Trek and still uses a top tube-mounted display. Devinci takes a discrete, but less readily available approach by displaying the detailed all motor stats, except assist level and battery percentage, to the Bosch app.

Trek’s sizing slides down the scale slightly in terms of rider height, offering four sizes that are spread further apart. The Rail’s reach numbers start 20mm shorter than the smallest E-Troy and stretch 25mm further than the largest Devinci. Those are significant distances for short and tall riders, however, that might force some riders in the middle to make a jump up or down from their ideal size.

In terms of angles, the Rail is a little more reserved and sticks with a 64.2° had tube angle but features a flip chip that can increase that to 64.6 this flip chip also allows for a 29, or 27.5" rear wheel in the highest setting. Devinci has held off with geometry adjustments and keeps the E-Troy rolling exclusively on mixed wheels, allowing the chainstays to be shortened by 10mm over the Rail.

Both bikes can accept a 160 or 170mm fork, so if you bumped the travel up on the Rail, it would nearly put that in touch with the slack 63-degree head angle of the E-Troy. The Rail also features a whopping 1.8” tapered steer tube for increased fork rigidity. The seat tube angle on the E-Troy is roughly 1 1/2° steeper than the rail, depending on the flip-chip setting.

On the trail, the E-Troy was undoubtedly more aggressive and confident charging down nasty terrain. The Rail’s slightly longer wheelbase and larger rear wheel offer more traction while climbing with a balanced feel regardless of the grade of the trail. No surprisingly, the suspension dynamics of both bikes were similar with a plush breakaway into the stroke and excellent tracking under braking.



Technical Report

Race Face Aeffect R eMTB Wheels: Wheels take a beating on full-powered e-bikes and while I used an insert for half the time in the rear tire, these hoops from Race Face held up impeccably. Enough mistakes were made during the course of the test that I expected to result in rim damage, but honestly, they're dead straight. Despite pushing the bike into tight berms, all of the spokes have held tension, hardly requiring a preliminary true. The internals on this hub are also steel, differing from the standard Aeffect wheels, and never skipped a beat.

Motor Controls: Wireless controls aren’t necessary, but they clean up the appearance of the cockpit and remove the chance of tearing out a cable in a crash. It does mean another battery to keep an eye on, however, you can toggle through the assist levels using the buttons on the built-in top tube display. Five light bars on this display change from blue to white before turning off as the battery drains, giving you a decent idea of the battery life you have left. I do appreciate the simplicity of this approach. For a more accurate representation, you can check the app where you can dive into all the extras and tuning parameters.

SDG Bel-Air V3 Max: We often joke about E-bike-specific components, but this saddle has legitimate claims with a raised scoop at the back. You can run the saddle at less of a negative angle without sliding off the back. It’s often more effective on e-bikes to lower the saddle height a touch to keep your weight forward and use the benefits of the motor to climb ridiculously steep hills.

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Pinkbike's Take

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