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e-Bikes

Cube Stereo Hybrid HPA 160 Action Team 500

A great package in need of damper tweaks


Words and Photos: Steve Jones


Shape and Purpose

Cube have been at the forefront of the e-mtb movement, it was they after all who turned our heads with the Cube Stereo Hybrid a few years ago.

They say this bike is at the forefront of “performance enduro riding” and it’s certainly pretty out there with a chainstay a touch shorter than many ebikes but most notably the bottom bracket being placed in a great position to aid the cornering character and they’ve kicked the head angle back to a shade over 66 degrees.

Cube have worked the numbers well on this flagship bike with four sizes, and this top end specification bike is loaded with purposeful components. At 160 mm travel front and rear we feel this is where the e-mtb is best placed to have the most fun uphill as well as downhill.

Suspension/Chassis/Detail

This is the first time a shock with a piggyback reservoir has been fitted into the Cube Hybrid frame set and it’s likely that it’ll need it given the hammering that the bike is likely to endure given its attacking geometry. The unstoppable Fox 36 Float takes care of matters head on up front with a Float X with Evol chamber out back both in Kashima. We’re interested to see how the standard width fork shapes up to other Boost built e-mtb’s and the performance of the rear damper.

 

Rolling on a 148x12mm Boost rear wheel, Super Gravity Hans Damf tyres from Schwalbe the Cube uses a DT CSW EM wheelset with 28 spokes which raised an eyebrow or two being on the lighter end of the scale. We’re big fans of the MT7 brakes by Magura and the bike comes with 200/180mm disc set up. Overall it’s all about lightweight, fast speed.

Gearing is 15T up front with 11-42T rear gearing (compared with 17T 11-36 on Scott/15T and EX1 on Trek). Cabling is a mix of internal and external and the overall build and look of the bike is very well presented. Anodized custom parts. Sensible chain strike protection, decent bar and stem combination, Reverb Stealth the bike is pretty much good to go.

Feeling

The super grippy Schwalbe tyres offer an instant advantage over the weak rubber fitted to some e-mtb’s. The Cube can be worked hard into tough terrain, the bike driving confidence up with every turn that you recognise the weight and grip combination giving bucket loads of traction and support.

The geometry makes for excellent handling and steering characteristics. It’s true we do prefer the Boost sizing on forks but the 36 was nevertheless hard to fault with its supportive damping.

Limitations

The bike carries a fair amount of rattle and the gearing needs to be lower because when you attempt steeper terrain the bike isn’t so happy with the forces working on the cranks. The rear damper was pitiful, something we have experienced with Cube bikes in the past and they really need to work on a more substantial tune here.

The bike had to be ridden in lock-out mode for much of the time. In fact it doesn’t get anywhere near locking out hence our ability to use this option. This has the added effect of pushing the rider rearwards on climbs which messes with technique. A cluttered cockpit of cables and displays needs tidying, the Bosch Purion system might be better.

Verdict

Cube have put together a great package overall in the wheelset/tyres and brakes in particular of note. We enjoyed the quite high bar position but not the width. With a few tweaks to gearing and damper tune the bike could easily make a move higher up our e-mtb ranking as the travel on offer and geometry here make for a great all-action bike.


Motor – Bosch Performance CX 75Nm 250W
Battery – Bosch Power Pack 500
Travel – Front 160mm/Rear 160mm
Weight – 51LB
Price – £4199


SIZE                            16S                 18M               20L                 21XL
Wheelbase                 1177               1198               1217                1231
Reach                         403                420               436                  441
Head Angle                66.3
Seat Angle                  74.3
Chain Stay                  468
BB Height                   340


https://www.cube.eu/en/cube-bikes/

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