2024 eMTB LITE GROUP REVIEW

PIVOT SHUTTLE SL RIDE SLX/XT REVIEW

“IS THIS ACTUALLY AN EBIKE?!”

Words by Staff  |  Photos by Dusten Ryen

We were excited to have a slightly modified Pivot Shuttle SL to review in our 2nd annual lightweight eMTB Shootout. Pivot’s answer to the lightweight eBike category is certainly more XC focused and ideal for trail riders wanting to have a light, fun and playful eMTB experience. For this year’s test Pivot sent us a Shuttle SL with a 160mm fork, apparently they know we like going downhill. Normally customers can choose between a 140mm of 150mm fork to compliment the 132mm of DW-Link rear wheel travel. With a more wallet-conscious build than the five-figure machine that we tested last year, we were excited to see what the Shuttle SL Ride SLX/XT could do this time around.

We’d like to offer a huge thank you to our sponsors: Outdoor Research, Schwalbe Tires, Ride Concepts and the Running Y Resort. Without their gracious support, these types of content series would not be possible. Give them a thanks down below!

ABOUT THE PIVOT SHUTTLE SL RIDE SLX/XT

Pivot’s Shuttle SL sits firmly in the trail bike space, with a 132mm rear end paired with a 150mm fork and 29” wheels as standard. Driven by the Fazua Ride 60 system, the Shuttle SL is a bike that delivers healthy assistance to take the sting off of the climbs, while still offering plentiful agility for enjoying the way back down.

DRIVE UNIT AND ELECTRONICS | One of four Fazua-equipped bikes, the Fazua system produces 60Nm Torque and up to 450W Peak Power using the Boost mode, with a 1.96kg (4.3lbs) drive unit. The Pivot Shuttle SL has a 430Wh internal battery that tips the scales at 2.3kg (5.1lbs), and can’t be removed easily. Fazua continues to promise a range extender coming soon, but we’re yet to see it hit the market at the time of writing.

Within the Shuttle SL’s top tube is the Fazua LED display, using five LEDs to indicate the mode selected and battery life remaining. You can pop the display out of the top tube slightly to access a USB-C charging port, letting you power accessories with the Pivot’s internal battery. On the handlebar Fazua’s Ring Controller lets you control the system, changing through the ride modes and activating BOOST (max power for 12 seconds) and WALK functions.

Using the Fazua app, you’re able to connect to the bike via Bluetooth and customize the power modes; check the battery life accurately and download different riding profiles.

FRAME AND FEATURES | In typical Pivot fashion, the Shuttle SL features a full Hollow Core carbon fiber frame built around the DW-Link suspension platform. With this Hollow Core technology, Pivot is able to achieve impressive stiffness and strength-to-weight ratios in their frame constructions, letting them get build weights down to just 36.25lbs (16.4kg), for the World Cup spec.

The frame details are covered exceptionally well, in typical Pivot Cycles fashion. The frame shape allows for the use of a full-size water bottle within the front triangle on all sizes. A flip chip in the seatstay pivot lets the rider choose between a High and Low geometry setting to tweak the handling to their preferences. Cables are fully guided within the frame with Pivot’s Cable Port system, which minimizes rattle by clamping the cables.

On the downtube there’s a custom rubber protector to fend off damage and reduce noise. The chainstay is given a generous protector to keep chain slap to a minimum. On the underside of the top tube you’ll find a set of bosses for a tool such as Pivot’s Tool Dock.

SUSPENSION | Pivot continues to use the DW-Link suspension system for the majority of their bikes, and the Shuttle SL is no exception. With 132mm rear travel and a trunnion mounted Fox Float X, they hope to provide a good blend of capability and agility on the trail. Up front, most builds are equipped with a 150mm Fox 36 fork, aside from the 140mm Fox 34 of the World Cup XTR build.

GEOMETRY | Pivot gave the Shuttle SL a well-rounded geometry package that strikes a neat balance of stability for faster sections of trail with a playful and agile nature for tighter sections of climb and descent. With size-specific rear centers, Pivot hopes to maintain the weight balance of the bike for riders of all of the Small to XL size range. These begin from 432mm on Small and Medium, and increase to 434mm on Large and 438mm on XL.

The Flip Chip offers a 0.5° change to the Head Angle and Effective Seat Tube Angle, with a 5mm change in BB height. In the “Low” setting, there’s a 65° Head Angle and 76° Effective Seat Tube. Reach numbers are tightly spaced, from the 435mm of the Small to 505mm on the XL.

BUILD SPECS | Pivot offers a range of Shuttle SL builds from the Ride SLX/XT spec at $7,999 that we tested, to the new Team XTR Neo with Fox’s latest Live Valve Neo suspension at $13,299.

Our Ride SLX/XT Shuttle SL featured a Fox Performance level 36 with the GRIP damper, paired to a Float X Performance Trunnion rear shock. We received a 160mm fork on this test bike as opposed to the standard 150mm fork. We don’t think we’d choose to spec a 160mm fork on this bike, but we were glad for the opportunity to try it out.

As the name suggests, there’s a mixture of Shimano SLX and XT level Shimano components for the drivetrain and brakes. SLX four-pot brakes stop on Galfer rotors. Pivot supplies an alloy cockpit and their Pro e-Bike saddle, which sits atop an e*thirteen Vario dropper post. Rounding out the specs is a DT Swiss M1900 wheelset which is wrapped in a Maxxis Minion DHR2 EXO+ and Dissector EXO tire combo as standard.

As with all of the bikes in this SL eMTB Shootout, the tires were replaced with our Schwalbe Albert Radial Trail control tires with Ultra Soft rubber compound, providing an even playing field. With these tires, the Pivot Shuttle SL Ride SLX/XT in size Large weighed 43.5lbs (19.7kg).

TESTING THE PIVOT SHUTTLE SL

SETUP | The Pivot Shuttle SL was a dream to get set up, there is a handy travel indicator on the rear shock that is a foolproof method to nail your base sag set up. We cannot praise this simple feature enough. The Fox Performance 36 was aired up for riding weight, and compression was set to each rider’s known favorites. Like all other bikes there was a set of Radial Schwalbe Albert Trails inflated to our preferred pressures.

ELECTRONICS & INTEGRATION |

When it comes to integration, Pivot kept it clean and simple. The Fazua Ride 60 System blended into the frame’s construction incredibly well. The Shuttle SL hardly looked (or felt) like an eBike at all. The noise from the motor was minimal and a perfect match for this frame.

The Fazua Ring Controller is not a particularly high quality unit, but does a solid job for the most part. We’ve had two issues out of around 10 Fazua drive units that have crossed our testing desks, and have heard of numerous reports of issues with others. Anyone purchasing a Fazua-equipped bike should ensure they have a trustworthy local dealer to work with to resolve any issues. When it’s working, the performance of the Fazua system is stellar in the mid-power space.

CLIMBING | The Shuttle SL was made for technical climbing. The steeper head tube angle and agile 1,239mm wheelbase allowed us to push our skills and hop around stepped sections of trail like we were on a trials bike. The Fazua motor packaged on this bike offered a fine balance of power and weight.

While the Shuttle SL had the least amount of travel on test, this proved to be a benefit on the climbs. It presented a lively nature, ready to point up whatever you were brave enough to try. The DW-Link platform delivered the 132mm of rear travel very well when it comes to chattery climbs, giving a supportive feeling without being harsh.

One of the issues our more leggy climbers suffered with is the seat tube angle. At 76.5º, it was the slackest on test. For one of our testers with very long legs, the seat tube angle with the over-forked 160mm front end, meant he had to slide the seat very far forward and nose it down to keep the front end down on the steepest pitches.

DESCENDING | This is where the puzzling and deciding really starts. The Shuttle SL was incredible when ridden within its category, but quickly became outgunned when getting into fast and rough terrain. It was not the lightest bike on test, but on the trail it sure felt like it. On the flow trail we were lapping, the Shuttle SL was an absolute treat. The way it sped through corners and gained speed with very little effort was amazing, and sometimes even scary. Compared to the rest of the field of bikes on test, the nimbleness, spritely feel and action upon rider input, were above the rest. We were able to glide over some gaps that we didn’t even notice on other bikes!

Finding the limits – The 160mm fork gave us a bit of false confidence on the descents, and the 132mm rear quickly found its edge of control when riding on faster rough terrain. Pivot’s DW bikes are very capable and tuned nicely, this means they make light work of most terrain, which led us into some rather aggro terrain at speeds we probably shouldn’t have been charging with this bike.

At higher speeds, confidence fell off and we felt a bit disconnected from the bike at times. The standard 150mm fork spec would help top restore the initial confidence this bike produced and likely keep us reigned in a bit more.

The 434mm chainstays were the shortest on test and it showed at higher speeds. On the flip side, navigating tight switchbacks was really rewarding and done with ease. The Shuttle SL is a cross country to aggressive trail bike through and through, and when kept within that category of trail it really excelled. When it comes to playful riding, casual explorations or XC pinners who want to race, the Pivot Shuttle SL ranks extremely highly.

FINISH AND VALUE | Pivot does an incredible job when it comes to building a bike, the attention to detail is second to none. While some of their “value” based builds still may have a higher price point than mid or top spec’s from other brands, you are no doubt getting a quality frame that will last a very long time and will be worthy of upgrading.

At $7,999, performance spec Fox suspension and mid tier SLX brakes paired with a mechanical SLX/XT drivetrain don’t feel like a great value, but there’s no denying the performance and feel of the bike are a step above. Besides those parts – which are more or less wear items – the frame represents some of the highest quality found in the industry.

COMPARISON AND RANKING?

If your terrain has a flatter average grade and not a ton of big compressions, the Shuttle SL is a really solid contender. Even some faster, steeper trails will be easily handled so long as the hits aren’t big and successive in nature. You may expect that it would share a similar feeling to the Ari Nebo Peak, and in some ways you’re right. But there are also notable differences, especially in the finished product as mentioned above. Both bikes pump, accelerate and change direction effortlessly. The Ari also gets a bit twitchy at higher speeds, but with that extra little bit of travel, it can offer a bit more cushion when things get wild.

The shorter travel SL eBike category is difficult to narrow down, as the terrain you’re riding is so important. If you’ve got undulating terrain and not too much in the way of high speed chunky descents, then a bike like the Pivot Shuttle SL is a ton of fun. The ideal consumer for this bike could be anyone from a pinner XC rider to a casual rider who wants to explore trails on an eBike that isn’t bulky or cumbersome.

The Wolf’s Last Word

The Pivot Shuttle SL represents one of the least eBike feeling eBikes we have swung a leg over. So long as you keep this bike on the terrain and within the confines of its travel category, the Shuttle SL is an insanely fast bike. It is a wicked piece of engineering and a ton of fun to ride.

Price: $7,999
Weight: 43.5 lbs (as tested)
Website: Pivotcycles.com

Thanks again to our amazing sponsors who made this group test possible.

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