Over the past couple of years, Merida has been working through its range and updating each bike to fall in line with its rather excellent new concepts and design language. And now, the brand has turned its attention to its electric mountain bikes, announcing three new bikes as part of its eTrilogy and claiming that the age of the traditional e-MTB is over.

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As 'eTrilogy' suggests, Merida has brought three new e-bikes to the fray, recognising that now, e-MTB represents many things to people. Whether that's munching miles on a long-traveled enduro e-mountain bike, the dynamism of a lighter-weight e-bike or all-out versatility, the brand has aimed to offer a bike that fits each corner of the e-MTB landscape. But importantly, each bike rocks Shimano's EP8 drive unit while sharing many new features.

All three bikes benefit from an e-MTB-specific suspension kinematic that's borrowed from its human-powered machines, dubbed FAST. This gives each frame size its own specific progression and kinematics while utilising Merida's P-Flex flex stay technology. This ditches weighty and maintenance-heavy bearings at the chain or seat stay in favour of a seat stay that flexes. The brand stresses that even though this is included on heavy e-bikes, relying on flex has no impact on the longevity of the frame.

2024 merida eonesixty shock.jpg, by Liam Mercer

Moving on the bikes come sorted with a flip-chip and this has been included to retain the intended geometry between a 650b and 29-inch rear wheel. However, with a smaller wheel, the travel is 14mm longer than with a 29-inch hoop on all bikes. As for travel, the eOne-Sixty builds get 174mm at the rear with 170mm at the front (with a 650b rear wheel) and the new eOne-Forty gets 143mm of rear travel and 150mm at the front (with a 29-inch rear wheel).

The shocks on all of the bikes have been mounted sideways. We're told that this opens up room in the front triangle for a water bottle or the range extender. Both the eOne-Sixty and eOne-Forty frames can run a coil shock.

2024 merida eonesixty cf shock.jpg, by Liam Mercer

As expected with such a large update, Merida has tweaked the geometries to meet the standards set by its analogue bikes. So now, the bikes get longer reaches, slacker head angles and steeper seat tubes but it's not the same, as Merida has tailored all of these figures to suit an e-bike better, and to balance the handling with the weight of an e-MTB.

For the eOne-Sixtys, that means that they get 64.4-degree head angles, 78.4-degree seat tube angles and a Long frame comes with a 479mm reach. The eOne-Forty differs in that it's sorted with a 66.5-degree head angle, a 79.5-degree seat tube and a Long has a 491mm reach.

The new bikes conform to Merida's Agilometer sizing concept that utilises short seat tubes, short stacks, low standovers and a travel adjustable dropper post that allows potential customers to pick which size they would like according to their requirements. So riders who want stability could easily size up and still fit over the bike, for example.

2024 merida eonesixty hero.jpg, by Liam Mercer

Other features found on the analogue bikes that have made their way over to the e-bikes are the headset-integrated cable routing, the Trail Mount accessory mount and frame protection at the chainstay. The bikes can accommodate up to 2.6in rear tyres, whereas the eOne-Forty EQ model can fit a 2.4in tyre due to the standard fitment of a fender.

Even though it covers the eOne-Sixty and eOne-Forty, there are three bikes on offer and each of them has been crafted to offer a particular ride. The eOne-Sixty CF is the carbon-framed bike in the range that's been built to offer full power but at a weight figure that's often found on mid-support bikes. To hit that low weight, its 600Wh battery isn't removable which has allowed the brand to build in stiffness while reducing weight. With that low-weight figure and its low-slung mass, this bike is all about manoeuvrability. 

There's the eOne-Sixty Lite and, while it carries a similar name to its carbon counterpart, this is the alloy eOne-Sixty which has been put together to offer full power over a greater distance. The 750Wh battery is removable but Merida promises that stiffness and durability have been maintained, despite the hole cut into the downtube. The brand claims to have even improved the downtube battery cover for better battery protection.

2024 merida eoneforty hero.jpg, by Liam Mercer

Last but not least, the eOne-Forty gets a different spin. This one steps away from its longer travelled siblings as it gets a pivot at the rear end and it's been designed as more of an SUV bike that blends commuter appeal with trail capabilities. The eOne-Forty is equipped with a 750Wh battery but can fit mudguards, racks, fenders, and a kickstand with EQ models already sorted with the lot for commuting action.

Notably, all bikes can accept a 360Wh range extender.

As for prices, Merida is asking for £4,300 up to £10,500 for the eOne-Sixty CF 10k.

• www.merida-bikes.com

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