What makes a good mountain bike? Of course you need a durable frame, good suspension, and capable wheels and tires. When you slap on an electric motor, things get a bit more complicated. Sure, you can have tons of power, but on a mountain bike, this just blurs the lines between e-bike and e-motorcycle. It’s precisely for this reason that e-bike brands are dialing down power and weight in the hopes of retaining a natural pedal feel and riding dynamics.
A good example of this comes to us from German bicycle brand Focus. The company has long been making non-electric bikes with a particular focus on performance, and so when it came time to develop the VAM2 SL, it pretty much already had the recipe in its pocket – a lightweight frame, premium suspension, and a compact, responsive, and capable motor.
