Suspension

With 170mm of rear-wheel travel (up from the previous model’s 160mm), the new Wild is claimed to balance grip with a supple initial feel and deep-stroke support for bigger hits.

To do this, its leverage ratio has a slightly higher starting point – which should make it feel more supple – and a lower finishing point, increasing the bike’s overall progression.

It uses the brand’s long-standing concentric rear pivot, where the rear axle and chainstay/seatstay pivot are located around the same point. This single-pivot design is claimed to separate braking and suspension forces.

Anti-rise (how much using the rear brake causes the suspension to compress or extend) is low, which should equate to more supple suspension when braking.

Anti-squat (how much the suspension resists pedal bob) is 130 per cent at full extension, and drops to around 60 per cent at bottom-out.

At sag, it’s more than 100 per cent, which should mean the bike’s suspension resists bob when you’re pedalling.

Motor and battery

Fitted with Bosch’s newest Performance Line CX motor, the Wild is available with either a 600Wh or 750Wh battery, but this test bike has the lighter – by 1.5kg according to Orbea – 600Wh unit fitted.

Bosch’s PowerMore 250Wh range extender can be used to boost battery capacity further, but this employs the bottle-mounting point.

The new motor has 85Nm of torque, a 600W peak power output and up to 340 per cent assistance.

Orbea Wild M-LTD ride impressions

I spent two days riding the Orbea Wild in a size medium around the valleys of Saint-Lary-Soulan, including the Ens, Fabian and Loudenvielle bike parks, along with natural trails surrounding the area.

Conditions ranged from dry and grippy in places to slick clay that produced a blend of calm and chaotic riding on the mix of flow and tech trails.

Orbea Wild M-LTD climbing performance

Even with the more supple initial leverage rate and 170mm rear-wheel travel, the Wild still exhibits similar levels of anti-squat and provides a good pedalling platform.

I never had to reach down for the shock’s climb switch to firm up the rear end on smooth or steep sections of trail.

Still, there was plenty of traction generated from the rear suspension and tyre when needed on trickier sections of climbs.

The 448mm chainstays helped balance the weight distribution, making the bike easy to control when uphill sections became technical.

The Wild also sports a good seated position. Its steep 77.5-degree effective seat tube angle perches you nicely over the bottom bracket for an efficient pedal stroke.

The blend of the Wild’s 455mm reach, 634mm stack, 77.5-degree effective seat tube and 63.5-degree head tube angle provides a comfortable 586mm effective top tube length.

With the 40mm stem, this gave me a seated position, enabling me to pedal all day without issue. I was able to easily shift around the bike when needed to help load or unweight a wheel.

Overall, the climbing behaviour of the new Wild is what you’d expect from a modern enduro ebike. It’s comfortable for long sustained climbs, but capable and manoeuvrable when the trails get tricky.

Orbea Wild M-LTD Bosch Performance Line CX motor performance

While Bosch’s new Performance Line CX motor is quieter when descending and lighter, there’s not much change to its performance and power delivery. If you liked the old Gen 4 model, you’ll like this.

However, you might be disappointed there’s no real on-trail power or torque change.

Despite that, it’s a punchy ebike motor and delivers plenty of oomph to get you up the steepest pitches.

Orbea Wild M-LTD descending performance

On the descents, the new Wild feels predictable and well-balanced. It made me feel confident from the get-go and I didn’t need to tweak the settings to feel I was getting the best from it.

I believe that’s the sign of a very good bike. Even on trails I didn’t know, in often challenging conditions, I had great trust in the Orbea.

The increase to 170mm of rear-wheel travel, and the more supple beginning stroke, shone through to help give the bike a more connected feel to the trail. It took the sting out of smaller bumps well and helped deliver the best of the limited traction.

The plushness also helped reduce the sharpness of square-edge hits. Bigger bumps are handled well, which stops the bike from becoming fatiguing to ride – the suspension and chassis don’t beat you up.

Mid-stroke support was ample when I needed to maintain speed by pumping sections of trail or when loading the bike through corners.

Orbea has done an impressive job of refining its Concentric Boost 2 Pivot, a single-pivot, linkage-driven shock, to balance plushness with support.

Deeper in the travel, the bike’s increased progression gives a good ramp-up for harder hits.

While I never hit the biggest jump lines or drops, bottom-out support felt good and there was never an abrupt, harsh feeling as the suspension moved deeper into its travel.

Obrea’s refinement of its suspension has elevated the Wild and produced an incredibly predictable and well-mannered bike.

This carries over to its handling as well. The subtle changes to the geometry are for the better and the bike allows for precise and sharp direction changes considering its weight, while still feeling stable and secure at speed.

The Orbea is easy to manoeuvre and leans into turns confidently. I found the geometry and balance a big help when sliding on steep, slick, trails – where it remained composed and delivered plenty of confidence.