2024 eMTB LITE GROUP REVIEW

TREK SLASH+ 9.9 X0 AXS REVIEW

Words by Staff  |  Photos by Dusten Ryen

We first received our Trek Slash+ review bike during Crankworx Whistler a few months back. Our crew met with some of the Trek Bicycles representatives who helped design and develop this long-travel SL eMTB, and got to spend some time riding this high pivot eBike on some of the best trails in the world. Since then, we’ve passed the Trek Slash+ around to a number of testers, and finally brought it along for our 2nd Annual eBike Lite group test where we set out to find the best lightweight eMTBs.

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 TREK SLASH+ 9.9 X0 AXS

Trek took their Slash high-pivot enduro machine and electrified it with the TQ HPR50 system to offer assistance for the climbs. The Trek Slash+ has 170mm travel on both ends, uses a mixed-wheel setup (Small gets dual 27.5”) with burly spec, and has 50Nm of torque. This is an aggressive self-shuttle machine.

DRIVE UNIT AND ELECTRONICS | The Trek Slash+ is the only TQ HPR50-equipped machine we received for this year’s SL eMTB Shootout. TQ’s system provides 300W of Peak Power and 50Nm Torque, with a compact 2.2lb (1.85kg) drive unit that is impressively quiet in operation thanks to the Harmonic Pin Ring (HPR) technology.

The Slash+ launched with TQ’s new larger 580Wh battery, extending rides further and allowing for more liberal use of the full power of the system. This battery weighs in at 5.84lb (2.65kg), offering high energy density, and can be removed out of the bottom of the down tube for easier charging and transport. The system capacity can be boosted further with the 950g (2.1lbs) and 160Wh Range Extender for the bigger days out.

TQ’s integrated 2” Top Tube Display allows the user to view the power mode, battery life and a range of other data on-the-move. On the handlebar, a minimalistic 2-button remote allows the rider to toggle between the system power modes (Eco, Mid and High), and use the Walk mode.

With the TQ app, riders are able to connect to the HPR50 system via Bluetooth. The App can allow for a smartphone to be used as a color display, and allows for mode customization and update the software over-the-air.

FRAME AND FEATURES | The Trek Slash+ is built with Trek’s OCLV Mountain Carbon frame material on both the front triangle and swingarm, with a magnesium rocker link helping to minimize the weight of an already heavy bike. With the high pivot suspension design comes the need for two idler pulleys: an upper idler to control the pedaling characteristics and reduce pedal kickback; and a lower idler to minimize lower chain growth to ensure T-Type compatibility. Both pulleys feature guides to keep the chain in place.

Frame protection comes in the form of a generous downtube guard and an upper shuttle guide, and a chunky chainstay guard. Adjustability is built in with a lower shock mount progression flip chip, and adjustable headset cup. Cables are routed internally though guided ports in the headtube.

SUSPENSION | Trek used the same High Pivot suspension design with ABP (Active Braking Pivot, a concentric rear axle pivot) as their Slash. This delivers 170mm of rear wheel travel and is paired with a 170mm fork. The High Pivot design gives a more rearward axle path to improve square edge bump absorption. To mitigate the negative impact of chain forces and to tune the pedaling characteristics, the upper idler pulley is added concentric to the main pivot. The concentric rear axle pivot allows Trek to reduce the anti rise of the rear end and avoid excessive firming of the suspension under braking. The flip chip on the lower shock mount allows for a more or less progressive setting to be selected, letting riders dial in the feeling.

GEOMETRY | Trek offers the Slash in four sizes from Small to XL to suit riders from 5’1” (155cm) to 6’5” (195cm). Size Small receives two 27.5” wheels, whereas the rest use a mixed wheel setup with a 29” wheel up front. The 63.4° Head Tube Angle signifies the rowdy intentions of this bike. The chainstays appear short on paper at 434mm on sizes S-L (growing to 439mm on XL), but the High Pivot suspension produces an effective growth in the chainstay that makes the feeling less pronounced.

BUILD SPECS | Trek offers the Slash+ eMTB in two build specs: the 9.7 SLX/XT at $7,999 or the 9.9 X0 AXS T-Type reviewed here, which retails for $11,999. Both share the same eBike system and carbon frame, but differ in componentry.

The X0 AXS T-Type build we tested features Ultimate level RockShox suspension, with the Zeb Ultimate Charger 3.1 170mm fork and Vivid Air Ultimate rear shock. A Reverb AXS seatpost adds to the RockShox family components. The brakes and drivetrain are SRAM, with the Maven Silver stoppers with 200mm rotors, and a X0 AXS T-Type transmission with 160mm cranks.

The cockpit, wheelset and tires are provided by Bontrager – Trek’s in-house components brand. There’s a Line Pro OCLV carbon bar with the 35mm Line Pro stem. The wheels are the Line Pro 30 carbon with Rapid Drive 108 hubs, and are wrapped in a SE5 and SE6 Team Issue combo as standard. However, as with all of the bikes in this SL eMTB Shootout, they were replaced with a pair of Schwalbe Albert Radial Trail Ultra Soft tires.

With the Schwalbe control tires fitted, the size Large Slash+ tipped the scales at 46.1lbs (21.0kg).

TESTING THE TREK SLASH+

SETUP | We received this bike from Trek directly at Crankworx Whistler, so we did not need to assemble it, however we’ve built and unpackaged plenty of Trek bikes over the years, and trust that it would have been a pleasant experience.

Bike building aside, our testers found that getting the bike to feel comfortable and confident was a relatively quick task. While some bikes require lots of experimenting, suspension bracketing and other tuning to unlock its potential, the Trek Slash+ quickly felt like our own personal bike.

We found that there was a large window of optimal air pressure from the rear shock. With more sag the smooth ride was exemplified but in contrast running less sag did not transmit harshness through the pedals.

ELECTRONICS & INTEGRATION | The TQ system has a simple but nice user experience. The app is good enough; the bar-mounted mode selector is easy to reach and doesn’t take up much space, and navigating the display screen is intuitive and it displays the most needed information.

CLIMBING | We’ll take a look at the climbing performance from a couple different angles. First we’ll look at the elephant in the room, the 50Nm of torque and 300W of peak power. The only other bike in this group test with 50nm of torque is the Kenevo SL. What this meant on the trail is that the Trek Slash+ and Kenevo SL were both the last ones up. If you aren’t in a rush, or looking to race, then the TQ HPR 50 system is absolutely enough to get you up all but the steepest grunts, and helps riders looking to repeat their favorite downhills over and over. The large battery also meant that we could use the highest power mode more regularly and still get some big miles in.

Power aside, our crew next focused on climbing capabilities and comfort. The Trek Slash+ is one of, if not the, most comfortable climbing bikes in our test. The rear suspension, while not the most efficient, is incredibly supple, and offers a smooth feel over bumps of all sizes.

That same smooth suspension also gives the Slash+ incredible climbing traction. Even with less power than almost all the other bikes, the traction and ability to just tractor up the roughest climbs meant this bike actually got up some climbs that had other bikes struggling.

DESCENDING | Trek designed the Slash+ to descend, and descend it does! It’s the bike that our crew regularly references as we’re riding new areas when traveling. “Oh man, I wish I had the Slash+ today,” is a regularly spoken sentence by our testers and guest testers.

Standout traits of the Trek Slash+’s descending performance are the rear suspension’s ability to erase impacts; the overall geometry and feel in the bike, and its playfulness on the trail.

The platform was certainly complemented by the RockShox Vivid Ultimate, and it meant that we could all feel confident no matter what rolled beneath our tires.

FINISH AND VALUE | While the finish of the bike and it’s accoutrements are all nice and tidy, Trek is definitely not a brand that’s synonymous with value these days. It seems they have a premium price tag, which thankfully has a consolation of delivering a really nice riding bike. Nevertheless, in a day and age where deals are plentiful on bikes that ride well, we think Trek could use a little improvement in the value department.

COMPARISON AND RANKING?

Comparing the Trek Slash+ to other bikes in the group test could easily spin into an endless conversation. While it’s the heaviest “SL” eMTB in the test and tied for the weakeset motor with the Specialized Kenevo SL (another brand that sometimes struggles with the value ratio), it’s also one of the team’s favorite bikes to ride. Does that mean we’d buy one with our own money though? That’s another question. One we’d have to think long and hard about.

The Trek Slash+ is one of the best descending lightweight eMTBs on the market, running neck and neck and in some situations edging out the Kenevo SL. Of course, all trails and riders have their preferences, so we realize the high pivot rear end may have some attributes that hold it back. However, we’re not huge high pivot fan boys, and believe Trek have done a very good job of offering a versatile mid-high pivot.

The Wolf’s Last Word

For riders who are more interested in being the first one down the hill than up, the Trek Slash+ is a bike we’d highly recommend. It’s on the heavy side, doesn’t offer the best value on the market and has an underpowered drive unit, but even still, the large battery, incredible suspension performance and general raucous that this bike can handle on the way down the mountain make up for the pain on the way up.

Price: $11,999
Weight: 46.1 lbs (21 kg)
Website: Trekbikes.com

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

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