EMTB Motor Comparison - Bosch Performance Line CX vs Shimano EP8

[@ckMTB]

A great video Darren, nice comparison. Sorry that I stood in the way so stupidly in parts😅. Take care and ride on🤙

[@JayRidesTrails]

Nice video 🙂 I'm not into eMTB (so far anyway) so quite surprised the motor can make such a difference! Also, nice team work with Chris 🙂

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Don’t knock it til you’ve tried it 😜 it’s always great to go out filming with Christoph!

[@JayRidesTrails]

@@TrailTrackerSwitzerland oh im sure i will try it at some point!

[@raftermanhoward1883]

I ordered a bike with the new Bosch Performance Line CX motor with the smart system, can't wait. That's why I'm watching all these videos I guess.

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

The motor on my bike has been solid throughout 2 years of heavy use, so I’m sure you’ll be very happy 😎

[@marcosturaro6691]

Thanks for the comparison, riding a Bosch powered bike and looking into a Shimano powered one ... I really love the way Bosch motor deliver power and the way I can use the different levels of assistance. Not that happy with the Eco level, looks a bit "empty" on climbs unless you keep high cadence for a prolonged interval, but both Tour and E-Mtb are top class. Hard choice

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

No worries. Glad you found it interesting. The one thing that would make me think twice about a Shimano motor are the reliability issues that I’ve heard about from various sources.

[@ElectricMountainBiker]

Such a hard topic to cover but you did it well mate, motors are such an important factor on these bikes. After trying a good few, it was the Dyname motor on my Rocky that won me over 👍🏻 Good video

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Thanks Christian. This one actually took quite a lot planning and some help from Christoph, so it's nice to hear that it worked out well. I have to say I definitely preferred the Bosch to the Shimano.

[@streetpigeonmtb]

Enjoyed that. Hopefully getting an eeb next year and it'll be coming with the Shimano motor. It's the only motor I've ever ridden with and I enjoyed it. It seems like it has plenty of competition!

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Cheers Jamie. The differences really aren’t huge any more, so I’m sure you’ll love the new eeb. You’ll find it opens up new possibilities for routes that you’d never thought of before.

[@gavindean]

Great comparison it’s good to know that there isn’t much in it I’m on the ep8 now it would be good if it had something like MTB mode as an option,for me the frame suspension and geometry and battery is the my main priority when choosing an E-bike

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Cheers Gav. I’m looking forward to seeing what you decide to get next.

[@piotrtt2801]

Drodzy moi jestem seniorem 65+ aktywnie kilkadziesiąt lat jazdy na rowerach analogowych. Zakupiłem niedawno pierwszy rower elektryczny po kilkunastu próbach różnych silników. Zaczynając od Brose Specialized, Yamaha x3, Bosch CX i shimano EP8. Jeśli ktoś preferuje spokojną, cichą z kulturalnym wspomaganiem to ustawiłbym silnik Bosch najniżej.Mój styl jazdy zaawansowany amator, który z racji wieku bez treningu chciałbym wjechać w miejsca w których kiedyś trenowałem. Budżet nie pozwolił mi na zakup Specialized, który góruje ceną. Bardzo poprawnym wyborem jest też Yamaha i jej sposób sterowania (oprogramowania) . Równorzędny do Yamahy jest Shimano EP8 (ważne aby to był EP8) sterownik manipulator jest trochę uboższy niż Yamaha (Display A) ale kultura pracy jest najlepsza i rower który zakupiłem miał w porównywalnej cenie o wiele lepsze wyposażenie Powietrzne RochShock Deore XT. Natomiast moi koledzy za kupili Bosch CX bo ma kolorowy wyświetlacz i aplikację w smartfonie :):). Tak się teraz kupuje klienta. Gadżetami. Wiadomo, że nie jeździ wyświetlacz tylko silnik rama i wyposażenie! Pozdrawiam. A tak wogóle to jak sami nie usiądziecie na rower to z internetu się niczego nie dowiecie. Ja wypożyczałem kilka rowerów w ciągu dnia i je testowałem. Wygrał rower z carbonową ramą powietrznymi RockShock i silnikiem Shimano EP8. Jak dla mnie i tak najlepszy jest Speialized w którym wogóle był brak wyświetlacza no niestety nie było mnie na niego stać!

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Thanks for providing some additional context and points of view 👍

[@chhadmi]

Good review. I had Bosch and then went to ep8. But im going back to Bosch i prefer the way it performs . Simple

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Right on. For the moment, I'm staying on the Bosch side of the fence as well.

[@diymasterTM]

I need to choose between Husqvarna/shimano vs Cube bosch... After every video or comment, I am more for bosch.

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

@@diymasterTM My personal experience and those of people I know clearly speak for Bosch over Shimano. How long that remain the case though is open. It’s hard to believe that a company like Shimano won’t be able to sort their act out and make the necessary improvements.

[@danieltosic6213]

​@@TrailTrackerSwitzerlandEhat you think syncdrive pro yamaha or bosh for power?

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

@@danieltosic6213 Unfortunately, I’ve never had the chance to ride either of those motors.

[@sergioelcoyote3586]

The bikes have differences, but st general i prefer the Shimano one, great vídeo my friend. Greetings from Argentina 😀😀😀👍🙋🏽‍♂️

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Hi Sergio. Thanks for watching. Thankfully there is a choice in terms of motor. It’s what keeps the manufacturers pushing to improve their products, which can only be good for riders.

[@TrailTales]

Do you know what's better than BOTH those motors?!? My legs.... They don't call me "Legs of Fury" for nothing!! Hahaha Nice review/comparison Darren. More bro-science that actual science, but that's exactly what we need to know. How numbers on bits of paper translate to real world trails...

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Sounds like an idea for a new pseudo scientific test. Legs of fury vs Bosch.

[@TrailTales]

@@TrailTrackerSwitzerland Pity the sound of me sobbing in pain is louder than the gentle Wirrrrrrrr of the Bosch. So if we exclude the "noise test" and replace it with a "which one can drink more beer" test... I'm in! :D

[@JayRidesTrails]

Haha this is gold. Sounds like you have a new video idea guys 😆

[@woudreus5861]

First of al: thanks for all the videos you upload...I really enjoy watching them! Regarding to this video....I was wondering which of the two motors has the most drag?

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Thanks for all the support. This was an aspect I unfortunately didn’t test, so I can’t really make a comparison.

[@AnotherMrLizard]

From my experience in a shop I would say Bosch’s warranty and after care is better but we get dramatically more gen4 Bosch motors dying at very low mileage compared to shimanos ep8.

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Interesting. Thanks for sharing. I can confirm that the Bosch after sales service is really good. I got a big discount on a new motor when mine died after over 3 years of heavy use.

[@topheavy7616]

Hi thanks for the video. Did you notice a difference in range?

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Thanks. I didn’t test the range because it wouldn’t have been a great comparison between a 3 year old battery and a brand new one.

[@topheavy7616]

@@TrailTrackerSwitzerland Fair enough. i’ve seen a YT video where a huge difference was reported by the tester between the EP8 and the Bosch gen4. Would love to see another test to confirm this. It would rule out an EP8 for me if this were the case.

[@btcdunks8476]

In my opinion the Bosch will help you when you are struggling to pedal but once you get momentum it feels like is holding you back. The contrary applies for shimano. I prefer the shimano if you are fitter specially climbing.

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

The only time I felt either motor was holding me back was when I hit the assistance speed limit. Did you feel this in all the modes? It'd be interesting to see if playing around with the assistance characteristics of the 2 motors makes this effect more or less pronounced.

[@freshseeker]

Is the battery range any less for the boche vs the ep8 since it has more power?

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Sorry I didn’t test the range.

[@IVANMTB]

Hello Friend! good video and thanks for sharing. greetings #ivan_mtb

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Thanks for visiting. I'm glad you liked it 👍

[@soundwave6769]

do not buy a bike with any shimano motor they have anti tamper sensors inside of them and if you open the motor up to service it then it will be software bricked as soon as the motor gets power again. these things are droping like flys after warranty ends shimano will not fix the motors so only option is a new one at £900 if you fit it yourself. like apple shimano are anti right to repair i have had my bosch bike now for 8 years and did 10s thousands of miles on it with a dongle and all it needs is a set of new bearings and be good as new. my m8 runs the ebike motor centere and fixes about 30 motors a week but shimano are black listed as non serviceable. out of all the motors the yamaha ones are the best as can get most parts and even the controllers as dont use fkn can bus encryption so the batts can be recelled but needs a programming chip as uses uart programming so can be cracked.

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Nice to get the inside line - thanks for sharing 👍

[@soundwave6769]

@@TrailTrackerSwitzerland if peter wont service it then no one can as he got stang for thousands as had to have all the bearings custom made min order is 1000 units x buy 10 and yeah you get the idea of costs involved.

[@megane230f1]

recently had an e8000 go just after 3000 miles, the bike hasnt been hammered and im not heavy at 72kg, I was told by an e bike motor specialist to throw it in the bin rather than get it looked at as i had said thee e010 error code was coming up, speed torque sensor cant be fixed 899 quid for a new motor ive been quoted, wouldnt advise anyone to get an ebike with a shimano motor as the reliability is rubbish clocking up 3000 miles whilst bosch are doing 20k and not missing a beat plus they can be fixed

[@Raumance]

Omg I've owned an ep8 for a year and I didn't know about pressing the button in walk mode.

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

😀 I know that feeling, I'm still finding new functions on my Kiox display!!!

[@AemJaY]

I like my EP8 😜

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

I couldn’t see any good reason to dislike either.

[@alfordmick]

Title Bosch ep8?etc

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Thanks for pointing that out. That’s what happens when you do things I a rush. All sorted now.

[@MTBScotland]

I wouldn't touch a shimano motor with a barge pole.

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Ha ha. It seems like motors divide opinion just like ebike vs non ebike.

[@MTBScotland]

@@TrailTrackerSwitzerland from experiences that I've seen online Shimano doesn't have the best reputation. When I get a bike it will be with a bosch motor. better reliability and customer support when things do go wrong.

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

I was speaking to a dealer about this other day and he was previously of the same opinion, but says that Shimano have been getting better. Only time will tell if the long term reliability is up to scratch though.

[@TheRemoro1]

J'ai le Cilo cxf'07 mais avec le moteur Bosch...

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

That is definitely the way I would go!!!

[@mountaincruiser817]

Bottom line, Bosch if your old and weak, Shimano when you want to feel how cycling once felt.

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

Or you could just go fully rigid and forgo a motor all together for the full experience.

[@MarioGoatse]

That's some grade a copium lmao. "It's not underpowered, it's just historically accurate"

[@jeremybonhomme8896]

J' ai le Bosch , prenez le Shimano,Bosch traite ses clients comme de la merde

[@TrailTrackerSwitzerland]

That sucks when you receive bad customer service. I had bad service with a Brose motor problem a few years back, and it really put me off the brand.