The all-new 2021 Marin Alpine Trail E is the Californian brand’s first foray into the world of eMTBs. This new e-mountainbike boasts 160/150 mm travel and is powered by Shimano’s EP8 motor. Designed with fun in mind, the Alpine Trail E should deliver exceptional riding characteristics and leave a massive grin plastered across your face. Does Marin’s first eMTB perform? Find out here!

Californian brand Marin is all about the good times – all their bikes are designed around the company’s ‘Made for Fun’ slogan. With the 2021 Alpine Trail E, Marin are aiming to enter the eMTB sector with a bang! We spent a day testing the brand-new Alpine Trail E2 on our steep and rough home trails in the Tweed Valley, Scotland, to find out if the new eMTB can perform!

Marin Alpine Trail E | Shimano EP8/630 Wh | 160/150 mm (f/r)
Weight: n/a | € 6,199 | manfacturer’s website

The Marin Alpine Trail E in detail

The Marin Alpine Trail E is the electrified version of the popular Alpine Trail enduro platform. That means the Alpine Trail E gets 160 mm travel up front, and 150 mm at the rear, like its analogue stablemate. Things start to differ at the wheel size – instead of a regular 29” setup, the Alpine Trail E gets a mixed wheel size with 29” up front and 27.5” in the back. The aluminium Marin Alpine Trail E is available in two builds: the € 4,899 E1 build and the € 6,199 E2 model tested here, each available in four sizes (S-XL). Both models rely on Shimano motors, with the entry-level E1 model running a Shimano STEPS E7000 motor and 504 Wh battery and the flagship E2 model boasting Shimano’s latest EP8 motor and 630 Wh battery, benefitting from the lighter, smaller and more powerful motor as well as increased battery capacity. Unfortunately, we forgot our scales on the test day, so we have no weight for the bike. Shit happens!

Both the E1 and E2 Alpine Trail models are powered by Shimano motors
The € 6,199 E2 model we tested features the new Shimano EP8 motor and 630 Wh battery.
Both models get a 160 mm travel fork and boast 150 mm out back, controlled by a coil shock.
Fun and eMTBs… Two things that go hand-in-hand!
The silhouette of the Alpine Trail E bears a very strong resemblance to its analogue stablemate

Marin’s ‘Made for Fun’ concept

Marin are proud of their ‘Made for Fun’ design – a concept based around the intentions, spec and geometry of each of their bikes, which they claim allows them to eek as much riding fun as possible out of each model. While Marin claim the Alpine Trail E range is built to go up as well as down, the emphasis here is definitely on the descents – something made obvious by the coil shock and 203 mm brake rotors specced across the board. The Marin’s low-slung seat tube, roomy front centre and stubby chainstays shout at you to ride it hard and a glance into the geometry table confirms its intentions, but more on that later!

Marin claim their ‘Made for Fun’ concept envelopes the bike as a whole, including specs and geometry
It’s hard to have fun if your bike sounds like a bag of loose change! While the Marin’s rubber chainstay protector isn’t the longest we’ve seen, it does do a good job of keeping chain slap at bay.
There’s space for a bottle cage too, although a side-loading cage is recommended
The full-size mudguard is not standard spec, however, the E2 model will come with an integrated FOX fender
Cable routing is solved quite elegantly, with rubber guides at the head tube entry-points. The rest of the routing is neat but lacks the rubber guides – we never heard any cables rattling, though.

The spec of the new Alpine Trail E

The Alpine Trail E range is clearly specced for fun on the descents – both models feature a coil shock and 203 mm brake rotors front and back! The E2 model we tested relies on FOX Performance Elite suspension, bringing flagship performance at a lower price. The new FOX 38 fork is already a proven contender and the 2021 DHX2 coil shock offers plenty of adjustment as well as a climb switch. Shimano take care of the braking and transmission with their SLX 4-pot stoppers and XT/SLX 12-speed groupset. Deity supply the short and wide cockpit and the aluminium Marin wheelset is laced with MAXXIS EXO+ rubber, with a 29×2.5” Assegai at the front and a 27.5×2.8” Minion DHRII at the rear. Given the potential and purpose of the bike, we’d love to see a more puncture resistant tire in the back.

The FOX 38 Performance Elite is an amazing choice and perfectly suits the Alpine Trail E, blending top performance with a more affordable price tag.
The fork has the same great performance of FOX’s flagship Factory line at a lower price
The new 38 features an updated GRIP2 damper and low and high-speed compression and rebound adjustment. Do not fear – the setup guide makes it easy to dial in!
The DHX2 Performance Elite coil shock is a great performer and features a climb switch – though we never felt the need to use it
Both the Shimano SLX 4-piston brakes (with 203 mm rotors)…
… and the Shimano SLX/XT drivetrain offer great performance at a fair price.

While the overall spec is great, the 150 mm dropper post on the size Large is just too short! With such a low, straight seat tube a 170 mm or 200 mm dropper would have been much more appropriate!

The left-hand controls are not easy to get right – those with smaller hands will have to choose between easy access to the dropper lever or the motor remote.
The MAXXIS tire combination performed flawlessly, hooking up on the wet trails
Unlike our test bike, the production bikes will come specced with EXO+ casings front and rear
The battery and cover are removable with a 4 mm Allen key

The Marin Alpine Trail E spec at a glance

Marin Alpine Trail E2 € 6,199

Marin Alpine Trail E2

€ 6,199

Specifications

Motor Shimano EP8 85 Nm
Battery Shimano 630 Wh
Fork FOX 38 Performance Elite 160 mm
Rear Shock FOX DHX2 Performance Elite 150 mm
Seatpost X-Fusion Manic 125/150/170 mm
Brakes Shimano SLX 203/203 mm
Drivetrain Shimano SLX/XT 1x12
Stem Deity Copperhead 35 mm
Handlebar Deity Ridgeline 800 mm
Wheelset Marin Aluminium Double Wall 29/27.5
Tires MAXXIS Assegai/Minion DHRII EXO+ 2.5/2.8

Technical Data

Size S M L XL
Weight n/a
Perm. total weight n/a
Max. payload (rider/equipment) 136 kg
Trailer approval yes
Kickstand mount no


Marin Alpine Trail E1 € 4,899

The Marin Alpine Trail E1 is the cheaper of the two models and is specced with entry-level RockShox suspension, Shimano brakes and a 10-speed Deore groupset. We are happy to see big brake rotors specced on the budget model too, as this is often an area where brands take shortcuts to save money. The Shimano STEPS E7000 motor may be bigger, heavier, slightly less powerful and not as easy to control compared to the newer EP8 specced on the E2 build, but benefits from a natural ride feel. While the spec of the Alpine Trail E1 is quite well thought out overall, the E2 build offers much better value for money in our opinion.

Marin Alpine Trail E1

€ 4,899

Specifications

Motor Shimano STEPS E7000 60 Nm
Battery Shimano 504 Wh
Fork RockShox 35 Gold RL 160 mm
Rear Shock RockShox Super Deluxe Coil R 150 mm
Seatpost TranzX 125/150/170 mm
Brakes Shimano MT420/MT4100 203/203 mm
Drivetrain Shimano SLX/XT 1x12
Stem Marin 3D 35 mm
Handlebar Marin Mini Riser 800 mm
Wheelset Marin Aluminium Double Wall 29/27.5
Tires MAXXIS Assegai/Minion DHRII EXO+ 2.5/2.8

Technical Data

Size S M L XL
Weight n/a
Perm. total weight n/a
Max. payload (rider/equipment) 136 kg
Trailer approval yes
Kickstand mount no

‘Look at that seat tube!’ – the Marin’s geometry

If at this point you are still wondering about the Marin’s intended use, one look at the geometry sheet will confirm the bike’s intentions. A very slack 63° head angle should give bucketloads of confidence in the steeps, especially when paired with the long reach (485 mm in size Large). The seat tube angle is steep, sitting at 78° across the four sizes (S-XL). The chainstays are short at 435 mm, which Marin claim will ensure agile and playful handling. Then we get to the seat tube… Marin have gone for a crazy short, straight seat tube for maximum standover clearance and good dropper insertion. At 425 mm long in size Large, the Marin has one of the shortest seat tubes we’ve ever come across. What does a short seat tube mean? Loads of room to move and confidence on the trail! A short seat tube also opens up the possibility of sizing up to a bigger frame if you want more reach. It’s a shame that Marin have invested so much effort into the low-slung geometry, just to make it obsolete by speccing short dropper posts.

The super-short seat tube should give the rider loads of standover clearance and room to move but is limited by the short dropper post.
At 435 mm, the chainstays are pretty short
The 63° head angle is very slack

The geometry at a glance

Size S M L XL
Seat tube 390 mm 400 mm 425 mm 430 mm
Top tube 575 mm 597 mm 619 mm 641 mm
Head tube 100 mm 110 mm 120 mm 130 mm
Head angle 63° 63° 63° 63°
Seat angle 78° 78° 78° 78°
Chainstay 435 mm 435 mm 435 mm 435 mm
BB Height 340 mm 340 mm 340 mm 340 mm
Wheelbase 1215 mm 1239 mm 1264 mm 1288 mm
Reach 445 mm 465 mm 485 mm 505 mm
Stack 613 mm 622 mm 631 mm 640 mm
How does the Alpine Trail E perform on the trail? Read on to find out!

Made for fun? Riding the Marin Alpine Trail E

As soon as we laid eyes on the low-slung, coil-equipped Alpine Trail E we were itching to thrash it down some of our favourite local trails. So that’s what we did! We rode the Marin on our home trails of Innerleithen, Scotland. With an extensive range of trails to choose from, we picked a number of our test classics including some fast rooty downhill trails, hand-cut off-piste goodness and flowy trail centre tracks.

We tested the Marin on our home trails of Innerleithen, Scotland.

On the climbs, the Marin’s upright seating position immediately becomes apparent. The steep seat angle positions you comfortably over the bottom bracket, making for an efficient, comfortable and modern pedalling position. However, due to the very slack head angle and short chainstays, we found ourselves having to shift our weight forward on very steep climbs to keep the front from wandering and lifting. Nonetheless, we would be happy to pedal the Alpine Trail E all day long (well, until the battery runs out)!

Seated climbing is a treat on the Marin – the steep seat angle puts you in a great pedalling position

The Marin has a very comfortable, modern pedalling position. We would happily pedal this bike all day.

The first trail of the day was a smooth, flowy and undulating trail centre track. While the bike felt agile through tight sections of trail and smooth on the rocky drops, we could tell it was yearning for something more gnarly.

On smooth trail centre tracks, the Marin feels quite docile – this bike is made for gnar!

The Alpine Trail E really comes alive on fast, rough and steep tracks. Point it down a rough and fast DH track or a steep and slippery off-piste and the Marin will reward you with smiles! The coil-sprung rear suspension hugs the ground and feels very plush and pattery. It performs well under braking, holding its line and remaining active. While the coil shock brings next-level small bump compliance and good midstroke support, you have to make sure you are running the correct spring weight. Marin spec a 350 lbs spring on sizes S and M, and a 450 lbs spring on L and XL. Weighing in a 78 kg kitted up, our tester ran a 450lbs spring without experiencing any harsh bottom-outs. While our brief first ride wasn’t enough to fully dissect the Marin’s suspension performance, anyone looking for supple suspension and plenty of grip should be well served here.

Harsh bumps and landings are made buttery smooth by the Marin’s suspension

Where the Alpine Trail E really stands out is in the turns! The MX-wheelsize concept works really well with Marin’s super short seat tube (despite being limited by the short dropper) and high front end, giving you an in-the-bike feeling that’s hard to beat. Just point the 29″ front wheel and FOX 38 fork into a turn and the rest of the bike will follow, often sideways, as you snap it around even the tightest berms! While we felt confident behind the bars on rough straights, the Alpine Trail E is definitely aimed at active riders as it requires some strong rider input to keep it on line at high speeds.

Commit the front and let it slide! With the Alpine Trail E, trails become drift tracks!

The Marin really comes alive in the turns! The MX wheel size, low-slung frame and high front end make for a riotously fun cornering experience!

Helmet Smith Session MIPS | Jersey 50to01 Short Sleeve Bolt | Pants 50to01 All Day Pants | Shoes FiveTen Trailcross XT

Overall, the Alpine Trail E’s components performed well on the trail. The FOX Performance Elite suspension dealt well with all the hits, bumps and impacts we could throw at it. The MAXXIS tires hooked up well in the mud and the Shimano brakes and drivetrain didn’t skip a beat. However, we would swap out the 150 mm dropper for a longer travel option like the OneUp V2 dropper to make the most of the Marin’s short seat tube, as well as adding an I-Spec adapter to mount the dropper remote directly under the left brake lever to improve the ergonomics of the controls.

Conclusion

During our test ride it quickly became apparent that the Marin Alpine Trail E is indeed made for fun. It impressed us with its good climbing manners, mostly well-chosen spec and fun geometry. While it might not be the fastest or most balanced bike we have tested to date, the pure joy of thrashing it through steep turns is hard to beat. This is a capable eMTB for those looking to ride challenging trails, rail corners and shred with a massive grin on their face!

Tops

  • Incredibly fun on challenging descents
  • Well-chosen spec
  • An overall fun and well-executed package

Flops

  • Short dropper on size Large
  • Riders with small hands will have to choose between easy access to the dropper or the motor remote
  • Feels a little sluggish on flat trails

Tuning Tip

  • Dropper Post with 170-200 mm travel
  • Shimano I-Spec adapter for dropper post remote

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Words: Photos: Andy Lloyd