When it comes to extreme comfort for the road or extreme handling for the trail, it’s hard to beat the benefits of full-suspension electric bikes. I’ve tested a pile of them for Electrek and now I’m compiling the list of my top 5 full-suspension e-bikes for summer 2020!
This is part of a Top 5 e-bikes for summer 2020 series that we’re currently running to help introduce our readers to some great e-bikes for hitting the road or trail this summer. Check out the different installments of the series below:
- Top 5 electric mopeds
- Top 5 hybrid mountain/city e-bikes
- Top 5 fat tire e-bikes
- Top 5 cruiser e-bikes
- Top 5 folding e-bikes (coming later this week)
And be sure to check out our video below that showcases all of the awesome full-suspension electric bikes from this list in action.
FREY EX Pro electric mountain bike
First on the list is the FREY EX Pro, which is a dual battery, full suspension electric bike designed for serious off-road riding. I’m talking big jumps, downhill, uphill, everything!
I’m by no means a highly skilled trail or downhill rider, but the FREY EX has absolutely been helping me up my game.
It features super high-end suspension including a RockShox Lyrik fork and RockShox Deluxe rear shock.
Combined with the Magura MT5E 4-piston hydraulic disc brakes on 203mm rotors, which are my absolute favorite e-bike brakes, and the FREY EX has some seriously nice specs to brag about.
But the key to making this e-bike so awesome is its Bafang M620 Ultra motor, which puts out around 1.5 kW of power and an insane 160 Nm of torque.
This thing pulls like a tractor and can wheelie like a beast in low gear.
In fact, I’m doing all sorts of awesome riding that I never would have tried before, and that the high-end suspension and extreme power of the Frey EX has given me the confidence to try.
Sure, I probably could have done a lot of this on a lesser e-bike, but it is the high build-quality of the FREY EX that gave me the confidence to even attempt it and show myself what I could do.
When you’re on the street you can really open it up and see how fast this motor can take you. Thanks to the mid-drive setup, you get power through the bike gears and can keep it low geared for torque or high geared for speed. At the top end I can hit around 36 or 37 mph, which is around 60 km/h, and that’s flat ground speed, which is pretty nuts.
And before we move one, the last thing that I want to note about the FREY EX is that the Pro model here comes with the option for two batteries, with one hidden inside the downtube and the other piggybacking on top. Together that adds up to 1.5 kWh of capacity and equals an entire afternoon of riding trails without having to stop and charge.
This is just an incredible e-bike that you can ride just about anywhere, street or trails, and have an awesome time on while pushing it hard thanks to the high-spec components. Of course those high spec components, dual batteries, and gigantic motor don’t come cheap, ballooning the bike’s price up to around $4,000 for the top-end model. And while some people are understandably hesitant about sending that much money off to China to a company they’ve never seen in person, let me put your fears to rest. I actually went to visit the FREY factory in Jinhua, China and met the team. I can vouch for them being amazing, salt of the earth people. And the fact that they build amazing bikes is the cherry on top!
If you’re looking for a high-quality electric mountain bike that can hang with the best, the FREY EX should be on your list like it is on mine. This isn’t even a full review of this epic bike – that will be coming in the next few weeks. For now, suffice it to say that the FREY EX Pro is an absolute machine for trails and the street.
And don’t worry, the rest of the bikes on this list are more affordable, but we had to start with the best!.
E-Cells Super Monarch AWD 1000 e-bike
Next up we have the Super Monarch AWD 1000. This flamboyant orange beast of an e-bike rocks a pair of 500 W motors that combine to give 1,000 W of all-wheel-drive off-roading fun.
And whether you’re using the bike to hit the trails or sticking to the street, the full-suspension will make sure your ride is as good as it can be.
Upfront we have a GT Mark adjustable air suspension fork complemented by an adjustable DNM air shock in the rear. Neither of these are top end parts, but they’re both quite good and do everything I need for a recreational full-suspension e-bike.
With two motors providing all-wheel-drive at 1,000 W, riders can burn through a battery pretty quickly. That’s why the Super Monarch comes with two batteries to make sure you can keep putting on the miles.
It’s also got extra-wide fat tires which are just as good at rolling over curbs on the street as they at hitting obstacles on the trail.
And in case you’re wondering, yes it comes in other color options, so if you don’t like the screaming orange then you can go with red or black. But come on, when you have an e-bike as ridiculous as this, you have to lean into it!
The only major downside to the Super Monarch AWD 1000 is its weight, at just over 90 lb (41 kg). That’s a seriously heavy bike and it means you might want to have a friend help you lift it onto your car rack… if you can find one rated for it.
Instead, I skip the rack all together and use the large battery capacity to ride the bike straight to my favorite trails. I can hit around 33 mph (53 km/h) on the street without burning up too much battery, then slow it down and enjoy my trail rides with more than enough capacity to make it all the way back home.
To summarize, this thing is crazy in a good way, and worth the $3,495 price for the sheer power and utility of this AWD full-suspension dual battery e-bike.
If you want to learn more about the E-Cells Super Monarch in detail, check out my full-length Super Monarch review or watch my review video below.
M2S M600 FS AT electric mountain bike
Next on the list is the M2S M600 FS AT, a full-suspension all-terrain electric mountain bike with a powerful mid-drive motor.
Remember that crazy 1.5 kW Bafang ultra motor from the FREY EX above? Well, this motor isn’t quite as powerful, but it’s just one step below the Ultra motor in Bafang’s lineup. This is the Bafang M600 and it is still a powerhouse that puts out 120 Nm of torque.
In fact, some people actually prefer this motor since it is plenty powerful but a bit easier on bike parts. With 120 Nm of torque, you can still tackle just about any obstacle that comes your way.
On the bike side of things we’re rocking DNM suspension, Tektro Auriga hydraulic disc brakes on 180 mm rotors, and Shimano Alivio transmission.
You also get a built-in headlight, something you don’t find on all electric mountain bikes.
The M2S M600 FS AT is also more affordable than a lot of high-power, full-suspension electric mountain bikes at $2,999. It’s not quite as fast as the other two bikes we’ve seen so far, topping out at around 25 mph (40 km/h), but that’s plenty for most trail riders, and works just fine for bike lane riding.
If you’ve been looking for a full-suspension electric mountain bike with a powerful mid-drive motor, but don’t want something quite as excessive as the FREY EX or Super Monarch, then the M2S M600 FS AT could be right up your alley.
If you want to learn more about the M2S M600 FS AT in detail, check out my full-length M2S M600 FS AT review or watch my review video below.
FREY CC full-suspension commuter e-bike
FREY is on the list a second time with a completely different type of full-suspension electric bike.
The FREY CC is a full-suspension commuter bike, words you don’t often hear together. But boy does the suspension on this bike turn it into a great ride.
Upfront the Frey CC sports a RockShox Recon fork complimented by a Monarch shock hidden in the frame in the rear. Not the craziest downhill e-bike suspension by any means, but more than enough for a commuter bike that you can definitely take shortcuts through the air on.
I absolutely love using full-suspension e-bikes as commuter bikes. You don’t find full-suspension on commuters often partly for the cost and partly for the added weight. But with e-bikes, the added weight doesn’t really cause much of a penalty while riding since the motor can overcome any additional pounds.
And speaking of the motor, this FREY bike is also rocking the 1.5 kW Bafang Ultra motor with its 160 stump-pulling newton-meters of torque. Oh man, I love this motor!
If you’ve got a hilly commute or just want to get up to speed quickly, this is the motor that will get you there. I have yet to see a hill it can’t climb, and when matched with the commuter oriented FREY CC frame and that Rockshox suspension, it turns this into the ultimate urban assault e-bike.
I should note that this motor is almost too awesome, as it can be tough on bike transmission components like chains and sprockets. It is absolutely critical that you ride in the proper gear (not the fastest gear all the time!) and exercise proper shifting when using this motor, which means laying off the throttle or pedal assist for a brief moment while shifting gears. I even occasionally lightly tap the brake lever while shifting – not enough to engage the brake pads – but enough to trigger the motor shutoff. That keeps my shifts smooth and my bike parts in one piece.
In talking with other FREY riders that do hard mountain biking, 400 miles (640 km) is a reasonable lifespan for their chains. But if you don’t shift properly or you ride around in highest gear all the time (a big no-no!) then you could be forking over cash for a new chain in under 100 miles (160 km).
I’m over 100 miles on my FREY EX and have almost no wear on my smallest three sprockets. My chain doesn’t look new, but it’s still in great shape. The point is: exercise caution and ride correctly, and your chain and sprockets will thank you.
The price for the FREY CC is more than fair at $2,980. And I didn’t even mention that you’re getting a large 840 Wh battery, high-end Magura MT5e 4-piston hydraulic disc brakes, a Shimano M6000 transmission, etc.
This is truly a high-end full-suspension electric commuter bike at a price that can put similar spec’d bikes from companies like Riese & Müller to shame for charging so much. I absolutely recommend the FREY CC anytime I hear someone is looking for a powerful, full-suspension commuter e-bike. It just ticks all of my boxes.
If you want to learn more about the FREY CC full-suspension electric commuter bike in detail, check out my full-length FREY CC review or watch my review video below.
Fiido L2 full-suspension electric… folding bike?
Lastly we’re going to feature something that is entirely different yet is still a really fun full-suspension e-bike.
The Fiido L2 e-bike actually spans a few categories. Sure, it’s a full-suspension e-bike, but it’s also a folding e-bike, and it’s also kind of a moped-style bike, and it is even something of a utility bike with that rear seat on it that doubles as a rack. The rear seat is small enough that you can really only carry a child back there, but it’s a nice little addition.
As far as suspension goes, the Fiido L2 has dual coilovers in the rear that are pretty good, and a front suspension fork that is, ehhh, alright. Together they work pretty well and combine with a suspension saddle to give a very nice ride.
The wheels are cast instead of spoked which means you never have to deal with broken spokes or adjust spoke tension over time.
The rear wheel houses a 350 W motor that is absolutely putting out more than 350 W. The first clue is that the bike is running on a 48 V electrical system which is definitely going to provide more power than typical 36 V 350 W units, and the second clue is that the Fiido L2 takes off like a bat out of hell and can climb hills that you wouldn’t have expected.
And speaking of that 48 V battery, it’s a 20 Ah pack, meaning you’ve got almost 1 kWh of capacity here, which is pretty nuts. That translates into around 50 miles or 80 km of range, meaning many people could probably get away with charging this bad boy just once a week or less, depending on their commute.
When it comes to commutes, this is obviously an urban e-bike. It’s got bike lane written all over it. The top speed is also pretty slow, at just 15 mph (25 km/h), meaning it is spec’d more like a European or Asian e-bike.
But if that’s fast enough for you and you just want a simple and affordable full-suspension e-bike for city riding, the Fiido L2 has you set at around $800 bucks.
At that price, this thing is a steal!
If you want to learn more about the Fiido L2 full-suspension electric folding e-bike in detail, check out my full-length Fiido L2 review or watch my review video below.
What else is out there?
I hope you enjoyed my list of my five favorite full-suspension e-bikes I’ve reviewed this year. It can be tough to choose just five, and there are other great bikes that I’d like to include, but I’ve put on other lists, such as the full-suspension Juiced Scorpion, which I included on my Top 5 electric moped list.
We’ve also tried other interesting full-suspension bikes such as the 350W UHVO on the ultra-low-price end of the spectrum and the Greyp G6 on the ultra-high-price end. There are a ton of great full-suspension e-bikes out there and we hope you’ll stick around to see many more here on Electrek in the future.
Don’t forget to come back tomorrow for another list of my top 5 e-bikes for summer 2020 in the next category!
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