Mid-weight electric mountain bike gets punchy Shimano motor to keep the good times rolling
The new Cannondale Moterra SL is a mid-weight electric mountain bike, featuring 150mm travel, mullet wheels, a Shimano EP801 motor and a 600Wh battery.
The Moterra SL sits alongside the full-power, big-battery Moterra and long-travel Moterra LT, offering a lower weight thanks to slightly pared-down componentry, a unique carbon frame construction and a smaller battery. The result is a sub-20kg weight for two of the three models.
The geometry blends numbers typical of trail, enduro and downhill bikes, while the rear triangle is reminiscent of Cannondale’s XC-focused Scalpel race bike.
Three models will be launched, with the pricey Lab71 version sitting at the top of the tree.
We have a bike coming to BikeRadar for a full review soon, but head to the end of this article to read our brief ride impressions from the launch event.
Cannondale Moterra SL frame and suspension details
There’s no alloy option here, with carbon being used front and back to keep the weight of this new electric mountain bike lower.
Cannondale’s Series 1 carbon is used, with the large down tube containing the 601Wh custom-built battery.
The shock sits in line with the top tube, while the chainstays continue a parallel path to the rear axle, keeping the aesthetics as smooth as possible. A kinked seat tube helps Canondale put the pivots where it wants them, while still allowing for a deep-drop dropper.
Frame protection and a bottle mount are present, while cables run through the frame. Blanking plates enable you to choose whether you run cables and hoses through the headset or through ports in the head tube – a nice touch for those who like an easier life mechanically, or value cleaner lines.
Lab71 customers will just get a headset-routed rear brake hose – electronic drivetrains mean there’s not going to be a cable, and the brand has thus built the top-spec frame without the cable entry ports in the frame.
Friendly Flex
As hinted at, the suspension takes cues from the Scalpel XC bike. Despite the plentiful travel and the weight of the motor, Cannondale’s engineers have designed the rear triangle around a flex-stay system.
There’s a thinned section of the chainstay, towards the rear axle, that’s designed to flex in a manner that replicates a rear pivot. Cannondale calls this the FlexPivot.
With 150mm of travel, it’s pushed through a larger degree of flex than the Scalpel, however the engineering enables this.
By removing the pivot, weight and necessary maintenance are reduced, while Cannondale claims stiffness is improved.
The location of the FlexPivot mimics that of one in a four-bar Horst-link suspension system, down on the chainstay, so Cannondale says the bike behaves as a Horst-link suspension bike would.
Power pack
At the heart of the Moterro SL is the Shimano EP801 electric bike motor.
This pumps out around 600W peak power and 85Nm of torque.
These figures are on-par with other ‘full power’ motors from competitor brands. Cannondale hasn’t used a de-tuned or less powerful (but potentially lighter) motor with its SL-monikered bike.
However, the motor is paired with a 601Wh battery, custom built for Cannondale by Bafang, which comes in at 3.1kg including the wiring harness.
Cannondale claims this gives it one of the best capacity-to-weight ratios from a battery on the market.
The motor has been custom-tuned by Cannondale, giving it four ride modes, including two trail-focused settings, running alongside a full-gas Turbo mode and an Eco mode.
The lowest of these trail modes is designed for riders whose mates are on more traditional lightweight electric mountain bikes, while the more powerful of the two is built to give you the same ride experience as others on ‘full-fat’ eMTBs (although you’ll get slightly less range).
An on-bar display and a controller by the grips help you toggle modes, though these could be removed, leaving you with just the top-tube mounted on-off button and simple display unit.
If the modes aren’t to your taste, Shimano’s E-Tube app enables rider customisation, including up to 15 ride modes.
Scintillating shape
Cannondale has given the Moterra SL a really intriguing geometry.
The adjustable headset cups provide a 1.2-degree range of adjustment and a geometry chip enables the use of a 29in rear wheel, if you wish.
The brand’s Proportional Response philosophy means each size of bike is designed individually, with rear triangles that grow across the sizes and suspension kinematics that become more progressive on larger bikes.
However, the headline figure has to be the head angle.
In the slack setting (the one Cannondale seems to recommend), it sits at a frankly ridiculous 62.5 degrees – this is one of the slackest mid-travel bikes from any mainstream brand.
If you really don’t want it that slack, the headset cups enable it to be steepened to a still-very-slack 63.7 degrees.
This head angle is paired with moderate reach figures, ranging from 420m to 505mm across the four sizes. The Medium and Large sizes have 455mm and 470mm reaches respectively.
Combining the two is interesting – there’s plenty of wheelbase length and a slack head angle for stability, but the front end shouldn’t feel ridiculously long when stood on the bike.
Further back, the chainstays sit between 449mm and 458mm across the sizes – these are pretty long.
The bottom bracket is low at 335mm, while stack heights range between 630 and 657mm.
Bikes come with 165mm cranks.
| Size | Small | Medium | Large | X Large |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reach (mm) | 420 | 445 | 470 | 505 |
| Stack (mm) | 630 | 639 | 648 | 657 |
| Head tube angle (degrees) | 62.5 | 62.5 | 62.5 | 62.5 |
| Seat tube angle (degrees) | 77 | 77 | 77 | 77 |
| Seat tube length (mm) | 380 | 400 | 445 | 490 |
| BB height (mm) | 335 | 335 | 335 | 335 |
| Wheelbase (mm) | 1,219 | 1,248 | 1,283 | 1,327 |
| Chainstay (mm) | 449 | 449 | 453 | 438 |
| Top tube (mm) | 565 | 592 | 619 | 656 |
| Standover (mm) | 738 | 737 | 737 | 742 |
Cannondale Moterra SL model specifications
The Moterra SL comes with 150mm travel at the rear and a 160mm fork. As you’d expect, four-piston brakes and large rotors ensure punchy performance.
All bikes receive the same 601Wh battery and EP801 motor system from Shimano.
There may be some variation in international builds, but the key specifications for the UK models are presented below. Weights are for a Medium-sized bike with 180ml of sealant.
Cannondale Moterra SL Lab71 specifications and price
- Fork: Fox Factory 36, 160mm
- Shock: Fox Float X Factory
- Drivetrain: SRAM XX AXS T-Type, ethirteen espec Plus 165mm 34t cranks
- Brakes: SRAM Code Ultimate Stealth, 200mm/200mm
- Wheels: DT Swiss XMC 1501
- Tyres: Maxxis Minion DHF 3C MaxxTerra EXO 29×2.5in, Maxxis Dissector 3C MaxxTerra EXO 27.5×2.4in
- Cockpit: OneUp Ebar and OneUp stem
- Dropper post: RockShox Reverb AXS
- Claimed weight: 19.5kg
- Price: £12,500 / $14,000 / €13,999
Cannondale Moterra SL 1 specifications and price
- Fork: Fox Factory 36, 160mm
- Shock: Fox Float X Factory
- Drivetrain: SRAM XO AXS T-Type, ethirteen espec Plus 165mm 34t cranks
- Brakes: SRAM Code Silver, 200mm/200mm
- Wheels: DT Swiss XM1700
- Tyres: Maxxis Minion DHF 3C MaxxTerra EXO 29×2.5in, Maxxis Dissector 3C MaxxTerra EXO 27.5×2.4in
- Cockpit: Cannondale HollowGram SAVE, Cannondale stem
- Dropper post: Cannondale DownLow (150mm S, 170mm M-XL)
- Claimed weight: 19.7kg
- Price: £8,550 / $8,750 / €9,999
Cannondale Moterra SL 2 specifications and price
- Fork: Fox Performance 36, 160mm
- Shock: Fox Float X Performance Elite
- Drivetrain: Shimano XT/Deore, ethirteen espec Plus 165mm 34t cranks
- Brakes: Shimano Deore 6120, 180mm/180mm
- Wheels: Stans Arch MK4 rims, Formula hubs
- Tyres: Maxxis Minion DHF 2C EXO 29×2.5in, Maxxis Dissector 2C EXO 27.5×2.4in
- Cockpit: Cannondale 3 alloy, Cannondale stem
- Dropper post: Cannondale DownLow (150mm S, 170mm M-XL)
- Claimed weight: 20.6kg
- Price: £6,550 / $7,000 / €7,999
Cannondale Moterra SL 2 ride impressions
The lighter-weight battery of the Moterra SL contributes to this effectively full-power ebike feeling more sprightly and agile than you’d expect from one that still packs a proper punch on the climbs.
The custom modes from Cannondale range from barely taking the edge off the extra weight of the bike, through to the full ebike experience, with the 85Nm of torque giving you ample additional muscle to get the bike up anything.
The geometry is noticeably aggressive, with the super-slack front end placing the front wheel well ahead of the bar – you need to shift your weight forward to keep the front wheel from getting away from you on steeper or flatter corners, but when you do, the Moterra SL seems able to handle anything in your path.
The longer rear end and moderate reach leave you feeling nicely centred in the bike, too.
With the front tyre engaged in the dirt, the low bottom bracket helps you carve corners, but the 165mm cranks are susceptible to the odd rock strike on techy climbs as a result.
The rear suspension, though relatively rare on a bike of this ilk, threw up no surprises.
It tracks the ground well, copes ably with high-frequency chatter/ and doesn’t lose its cool on bigger hits.
The rear Dissector tyre adds to the zippy feeling of this lighter-weight ebike, but isn’t as sure-footed as chunkier rubber over loose surfaces. When the rear blocks give up their grip, they do so with little warning.