Deviate's Kurgan eMTB mates a carbon frame with a Bosch E-drive and InTube battery, but breaks the mould with its Virtual Pivot Point-style suspension system, which features an aggressively angled swing link and a high-pivot with an idler wheel.
Born from six years of development, Deviate says the Kurgan is “the eMTB we always wanted” and is engineered for big terrain, brutal descents, and all-day epics.
Many big-hitting enduro and downhill bikes use a suspension system similar to the Kurgan's, but it’s unusual to see it employed on an electric bike.
This is all the more impressive given that global mega-brand Santa Cruz was unable to make this arrangement work with their Vala eMTB.
This bike discarded the brand's famous VPP suspension system with its dual swing-links, instead replacing it with a more traditional Horst-Link design.
Aggressive suspension
The Kurgan is based around Deviate's non-assisted enduro bike, the Claymore, but ditches the Claymore's single-pivot suspension for a dual-link design.
This delivers a generous 165mm of coil-sprung rear travel through the Kurgan's carbon rear triangle, and is paired with an even longer 180mm fork up front.
The high pivot enables the Kurgan’s axle path to be entirely rearward throughout the 165mm of travel.
At 30 per cent sag, the rear wheel moves 15mm rearward (relative to the bottom bracket), peaking at 29mm further back from the static chainstay length.
The power comes from the Bosch Performance Line CX motor, delivering 100Nm of torque. The 800Wh Bosch In-Tube battery is removable from the bottom of the downtube.
The top tube is humped to create space for two water bottle cages, one of which can house a 250Wh Bosch range extender.
A Bosch Kiox 400C display provides heads-up information options integrated into the bike's carbon top tube.
Progressive geometry
The Kurgan uses a mixed-wheel setup, and Deviate says the geometry is enduro-focused.
Geometry is proportional, with longer chainstays on the larger sizes, starting at 441mm on the medium, 445mm on the large and 450mm on the XL.
Although this is not as pronounced as on other high-pivot bikes like the Forbidden Dreadnought, which grows about 14mm between each size.
The Kurgan features reach-adjust headset cups to fine-tune the reach of each bike +/- 5mm. The suspension moves on fully sealed bearings, with external grease ports (great for quick maintenance).
The location of the shock pickup on the aluminium shock shuttle was finalised during development, and there are no out-of-the-box options for different geometry or progression at this stage.
Build options
There are two models available at launch:
- Elite: £7,999 / €9,749
- Factory: £9,999 / €11,999
They're available in UK & EU, with North American availability due in 2026.
