"There are no meetings here. No email alerts from your mobile. You won’t stand still in tollway queues. In this space between real life and what is Real, you will find Wild."
So begins the spiel for Orbea's new e-MTB, the Wild. It's a 27.5+ alloy hardtail with a Bosch Performance Line CX motor, available in three builds. It's packing some interesting tech, so let's have a look at what Orbea has been doing...
Firstly, Orbea have shortened the cranks. Whereas you'd normally expect a 170-175mm crank, Orbea's Miranda crank is just 152mm long. Why's that?
Well, you get 20mm more ground clearance for the same bottom bracket height, for a start. And on a powered MTB the shorter cranks encourage you to spin at a higher cadence which is better for the motor. Orbea also claim that it gives a more balanced standing position for descents. The geometry has been tweaked to take into account the weight of the motor. It's fairly low at the front with a moderate reach; Orbea call it 'race-ready' although there's not many options for trying that out just yet.
If you're not keen on the short crank you have the option to change that, along with other things such as the handlebar width and stem length, when you buy the bike.
Orbea have also rotated the Bosch motor, which allows them to shorten the chainstays a bit and give a bit more clearance. There's an alloy cover over the bottom of the motor, with a gap between the cover and the drive unit. So if you smack your bottom bracket on a log or a rock, it's the metal that'll take the hit.
Plus-sized tyres (the Wild uses Maxxis Chronicle 3" tyres) can be run at a lower pressure and you get masses of traction from the bigger contact patch, which is a bonus if you're climbing under power. The rear wheel uses the Boost 148 standard, which moves the chainline out 3mm giving better tyre clearance.
Three builds are available. The Wild 30 (£2,599) has a Suntour 120mm fork, Deore/SLX shiftgear and a 400Wh battery.
Step up to the Wild 20 (£3,099) and you get the bigger 500Wh battery, along with an XT drivetrain and a Fox 32 120mm fork.
The top of the range Wild 10 (£3,599) gets a Fox 34 Float Factory 120mm fork, A Rockshox Reverb Stealth dropper 'post and full XT transmission.
For more on the Wild range, visit the Orbea website: https://www.orbea.com/gb-en/ebikes/mtb-fun/#/familia-wild
