Yeti 160E C-Series C1 Factory review | Electric Mountain Bike of the Year contender

Setup

Setting up the 160E didn’t take long.

For my 75kg kitted-up weight, I initially set the fork to 91psi and kept the three pre-installed volume spacers in there. During initial shakedown testing, I increased air pressure to 98psi to help prop the front end up.

A low stack height (625mm) leaves riders with plenty of adjustment using fork pressure and headset spacers – I added 25mm. I opened all the external rebound and compression adjustments.

I set the shock to 220psi and left the stock volume spacers installed. Giving me 32 per cent (21mm) of shaft sag, I kept this pressure for the duration of the test period. Like the fork, I opened all the external rebound and compression adjustments.

The bike came delivered in the middle 25 per cent progression setting, which I left unchanged throughout testing. Lighter or less experienced riders may want to use the less progressive 20 per cent setting, while heavier or harder ones – or those who want to fit a coil-sprung shock – may benefit from the more progressive 30 per cent position.

While the EXO+ and DoubleDown tyre combo meant my favourite 24-26psi (front) and 27-29psi (rear) tyre pressures could be run, the MaxxTerra compounds caused me to drop the front pressure to 22psi to eke out much-needed extra traction.

Yeti 160E C-Series C1 Factory climbing performance

The 78-degree seat tube angle boosts climbing performance and comfort with an over-the-bottom-bracket feel.

Creating balance, most of your weight is concentrated comfortably through your sit bones rather than the palms of your hands, reducing shoulder, wrist and arm fatigue. Long rides on the 160E fly by.

Keeping the front and rear wheels in check is easy. A naturally centralised position creates grip at the back wheel and reduces steering vagueness. Neither end of the bike is overly weighted, so purposeful weight shifts change its balance accurately.

Placing the front wheel by lifting the bar is fun and engaging; it’s spritely and lively to ride, and clearing deep-tech climbs is not only easy, but incredibly rewarding.

Combined with excellently supple and responsive suspension that increases grip, there’s little on the climbs the Yeti can’t handle.

Staying sat down over chunky terrain isn’t a bone- and back-crunching experience; a progressive and smooth ramp-up reduces unwanted dips into the shock’s deeper stroke.

Likewise, the progression preserves its geometry on steep inclines. Rearward weight shifts don’t sag the bike excessively.

Being picky, the seat tube angle could be fractionally steeper. This was only apparent when back-to-back testing the Yeti against Bike of the Year rivals with even steeper angles and it’s not a deal breaker.

Motor performance and battery life

When Shimano replaced the EP-800 with the EP-801 that’s fitted to the 160E it upped power to 600W from 500W.

That extra punch can be felt and helps you scale otherworldly inclines, but in true EP8 style, only if you stay within its power band.

Exceed its preferred cadence (around 100rpm) and power drops off.

And unlike the Bosch Performance Line CX, the harder you pedal the EP8, the less assistance it delivers.

While this makes it feel very natural, and helps keep wheelspin in control on techy terrain, it’s not the most rewarding when you really want to gun it.

It could also do with more overrun to help crest chunky uphill steps.

Battery life from the 630Wh Shimano unit is good, but not as impressive as Bosch-powered bikes.

From a single charge using only Boost, I managed to scrape 1,100m of ascent out of the battery. Lower assistance to Trail and you can expect to see 1,400m; dip it further to Eco and 2,000m is possible.

Yeti 160E C-Series C1 Factory descending performance

Every time I rode the Yeti, I was surprised at just how much grip the rear suspension created, regardless of how chunky, slimy or otherwise the trails were.

Its six-bar linkage tracks the ground almost perfectly, nigh-on mimicking each contour, bump, root or rock it encounters. The back wheel is almost permanently on the ground.

Sticking demanding, technical lines is a reality rather than an aspiration with the 160E beneath you; it works overtime to instil supreme confidence in the weaponry to confidently stretch your abilities.

It’ll track any straight, true line you set it down without wincing; it’s a predictable and stable workhorse for the toughest enduro trails.

Big hits are gobbled up insatiably and bottom-outs are virtually imperceptible, even in the mid-progression setting. The rear end pairs impeccably with the Fox 38’s air spring, each compressing an almost identical rate and amount.

Both the suspension and geometry contribute to its impeccable balance.

Pummel through successive high-load turns and the ramp-up maintains its dynamic geometry perfectly. The initial part of the travel is used up, squatting the bike into its corner-shredding stance time and time again.

Amazingly, once settled into its travel, there’s scope left to munch bumps, helping increase grip levels and keep it stuck to the floor.

Placing you evenly between pedals and bar are 446mm chainstays and an 816.1mm front centre. These are a launchpad for controlled descending, but also a natural-feeling ride.

The hand-to-feet balance is brilliantly judged. Unbiased, you can weight either the front or rear wheel easily, quickly and without having to move your body too much. You feel reassured regardless of the terrain’s technicality.

Placing the wheels between rocks and roots doesn’t necessitate an unnatural boost in proprioception. While you’re damped from unwanted inputs, you’re not isolated. Command the 160E to do something or go somewhere and you'll find it waiting obediently to respond.

However, there are several flies in the ointment.

First of these is the MaxxTerra front tyre. While conditions vary across the world, and you can’t please everyone, boosting even more grip, control and composure with a front MaxxGrip model seems like a no-brainer. You can bet your bottom dollar Yeti’s enduro race team would use the MaxxGrip version, so why not put it on their race-replica eMTB?

Without that grippy front tyre, some of the masterful control is lost. Matted, greasy roots and rocks need to be tiptoed across rather than attacked to avoid losing the front. This taints what is otherwise a near-perfect riding experience.

While the Code brakes are certainly the right model, they’re not the right variant. The Rs lack power and adjustment compared to the RSCs, and the CenterLine rotors don’t provide the same power levels as the HS2s.

Given the £9,000 asking price, it would also be brilliant to see higher-spec wheels. The DT H 1900s aren’t bad, but the lighter H 1700s are more befitting of the price.

I found the grips hard, and would look to replace them with a set of the best MTB grips.

Finally, the OneUp dropper lever, Code brakes and Shimano ebike mode remote don’t play nicely with each other. I found it tricky to get everything exactly where I wanted it, not helped by the lack of dropper lever MatchMaker adaptor, even though they exist.

If Yeti needed to ditch the Factory-level dampers for Performance Elite or Performance models to make these changes, that would sit well with me.