Thanks to advancements in motor tech, e-MTBs are becoming lighter and as agile as regular pedal-powered mountain bikes. And with the new VAM2 SL, that's exactly what Focus has tried to create.

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Built around a carbon frame, Focus has paid a lot of attention to the VAM2 SL's rear triangle to design a carbon rear end that balances what the brand reckons is the ideal flex behaviour for an e-MTB while keeping it as light as possible. This meant looking at a range of suspension layouts to finally decide on building the bike with a flex stay, making the VAM2 SL one of the first e-mountain bikes to run such a suspension layout.

2024 focus vam2 hero.jpg, by Liam Mercer

By choosing the flex pivot design, Focus says that it was able to reduce the amount of frame material and fastenings, creating a frame that's claimed to weigh 2,172 grams in its MAX Carbon 9 Series guise, whereas the slightly more cost-effective model, the 8., is set to weight 2,545g in the medium frame size. Of course, as the frame uses fewer bearings as a result of the flex stay, the VAM2 SL requires less maintenance.

Also to keep the bike's weight as low as possible, there's a fully integrated battery and the headtube gets an integrated headset cover to give the bike a sleek look. As usual for Focus, the C.I.S (cockpit integration solution) system is present and it runs the cables internally, entering just under the bike's stem. Then the VAM2SL 9.0 and 9.9 models run a new-to-Focus One Piece SL full carbon cockpit.

2024 focus vam2 cockp.jpg, by Liam Mercer

Although weight savings were a priority for Focus, the brand didn't want to sacrifice its ability to meet and exceed industry standards and Focus has managed to have the VAM2 SL meet Bike Classification 4. And rather than using multiple frames for each test, Focus used the same one throughout while adding higher weights than required by EN ISO 4210 so the customer can be sure that it's built to last.

On the subject of frame features, the VAM2 SL has been graced with extensive protective equipment, such as a pad on the downtube and plenty of chainstay protection. There's also a mudflap on top of the chainstay yoke to keep dirt from finding its way in between the chainstay yoke and the bottom bracket. Focus wants the bike to be well protected when ridden hard, and that's evident in the brand's inclusion of a sticker set in the box. These stickers provide additional protection to the chainstay, seat stay, seat tube and down tube.

2024 focus vam2 dt.jpg, by Liam Mercer

As for suspension travel, this bike dons 125mm at the rear with 130mm at the front, however, Focus says that if you would like to get extra rowdy, this bike can accommodate a 140mm fork. This slackens the geometry by half a degree, making it more capable.

Moving onto the geometry the VAM2 SL sits properly in its trail categorisation with a 65.5-degree head angle, a 440mm chainstay, and a 75.5-degree head tube angle. A large frame gets a 475mm reach and a 1,230mm wheelbase. A cool feature is that the head angle is adjustable, providing the option to steepen it by a full degree.

2024 focus vam2 link.jpg, by Liam Mercer

The VAM2 SL's 60Nm of torque is delivered by Fazua's Ride 60 drive system which puts out a maximum power of 450W. The bike's then equipped with a 430Wh battery that can be boosted by 210Wh with an additional range extender.

There are four models available all of which are sorted with Fox suspension, and Shimano drivetrains apart from the base-level SL 8.7 bike which benefits from RockShox suspension.

Prices start at £5,099 and go up to £9,699 and each bike comes in four sizes from S up to XL.

• www.focus-bikes.com

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