Marin bikes, hailing from none other than Marin County, California, has been a popular name in the world of cycling for decades now. Like other industry-leading brands, Marin continues to innovate in terms of performance and technology, and this is clear to see with its newest electric mountain bike, the 2023 Alpine Trail E.
The Marin Alpine Trail E was first introduced in 2020, and is a full-suspension electric mountain bike designed for all-mountain applications. It sports 150 millimeters of rear suspension travel and runs a 160-millimeter suspension fork, all packaged in a durable, trail-focused aluminum frame. Now, for the 2023 model year, these specifications remain unchanged, however, the new bikes are now compatible with the new 630-watt-hour battery pack from Shimano.
The base model Marin Alpine Trail E, priced at $4,499 USD, flaunts a decent amount of tech that's more than enough for beginners and seasoned riders alike to have a blast on the trails. It sports a Shimano EP6 motor, and is sold stock with a 504 watt-hour battery pack, with the option to upgrade to the bigger 630-watt-hour unit. In terms of performance, the EP6 motor dishes out 250 watts of power, and tips the scales at three kilograms.
Folks who choose the Marin Alpine Trail E as their weapon of choice are treated to mid-market suspension from X-Fusion consisting of the Trace 36 fork and O2 Pro RXC rear shock. The bike also gets a Shimano Deore 10-speed drivetrain, Shimano MT420 four-piston hydraulic brakes, and a dropper seatpost as standard. Furthermore, the base model Alpine Trail E rolls on 29 x 2.5-inch front and 27.5 x 2.8-inch rear tires.
Up next, the Alpine Trail E1, which sits above the base model Trail E, sports the bigger 630-watt-hour battery pack as standard. It's also rocking the Shimano EP6 motor, but this time gets an 11-speed Shimano Deore groupset with a SunRace cassette. The suspension fork is still the same X-Fusion unit, but this time around, the rear shock has been upgraded to a RockShox Super Deluxe Coil R shock complete with rebound damping adjustability. Understandably, it's slightly more expensive at $4,899 USD.
Last but certainly not least, the Alpine Trail E2 impresses with the Shimano EP801 motor which is 300 grams lighter than the EP6 motor (it weighs in just 2.7 kilograms). Of course, the E2 also rocks the new 630 watt-hour battery pack, for extended hours blasting the trails. Suspension hardware is markedly improved, as well, with a Fox Performance Elite Fork and a Fox Float DHX2 Coil Shock handling suspension work at the front and rear respectively. On top of all that, it gets a 12-speed Shimano SLX/XT combo, and SLX four-piston hydraulic brakes. The price? A sweet $6,299 USD.
