DIRECT-SALES E-BIKES

In cash-strapped times, buying online straight from manufacturer can yield big savings; we select three e-bikes from Canyon, Vitus and YT and click 'add to basket'

- Alan Muldoon

More seems to be the name of the game when it comes to full-power e-bikes. More electronics, more power, more torque, more battery capacity, more range, more fun. Unfortunately, this also equates to more money, where brands seem to be competing to produce the most expensive e-bikes possible.

One way to beat what seems like the ever increasing price of e-bike tech, is to simply cut out the middleman and buy your new e-bike directly from the manufacturer. And while the direct-sales business model doesn’t offer the massive savings it once did, you can still slash about 25% off the bottom line compared to an equivalent high-street e-bike build, which is not to be sniffed at.

So this month we’ve got three direct-sales e-bikes from three of the most popular players: Canyon, Vitus and YT. And just to emphasise the savings to be had by shopping direct, if you compare the most expensive bike in this test, the YT Decoy Core 4 at £6,899 equipped with Fox Factory suspension, a Shimano EP8 motor and full carbon frame, to the Santa Cruz Bullit XT at £9,499, also with a full carbon frame, EP8 motor and slightly lower-tier suspension, that’s 2,600 in your pocket with just the click of a mouse.

The catch? Well, there isn’t one. In fact the only real downside of going the directsales route is that there are only a handful of brands to choose from. Canyon and YT are the biggest players in this space and both have UK offices for tech support. Then there are the smaller domestic bands like Vitus and Saracen. And while Brexit has increased prices from European-based brands like YT, Canyon and Commencal, the UK direct-sales brands like Vitus have actually benefited from the leave vote. But let’s keep politics out of the bike test.