Stance E+ 1 or Trance X E+ 3?

[Virginian]

Both are on sale right now and I'm new to ebikes but have mtnbiked for decades. This would be my first dual suspension as I've always run hardtails (cost purposes). I figured if ima spend couple thousand might try dual suspension. I am leaning a lot toward the stance due to price. Any reason to shell out the extra cash and get the trance instead?

 

[tammin]

I have a 2022 Stance E+2 that I got on sale last year for about the same money as the sale price on the E+1. I decided not to pay the premium for the E+1 at the time and just added a dropper post and I was all set. That makes the current deal on the E+1 pretty appealing. I also have a Roam which is more of a roadie with a fork, no fenders, flat bars - and it will do some very light trail work.

I didn't even bother looking at the Trances because the MTB riding I do is all pretty tame (at least the way I ride it). Hilly, rolling single track and fireroads, mostly. With maybe a bit of flowtrail thrown in. Being an older guy, I do not like my bike leaving the ground much, except when I bunny hop it over an obstacle. I will ride fairly fast on the flowy parts of the trail, though, and I love the FS on this bike for that - waay better than the HT I used to ride, even though it's almost twice the weight.

With the motor you don't notice the weight so much, and the thing will go up anything. I pretty much don't use level 5 at all, and mostly keep it in 1 or 2. 1 just offsets the weight of the bike, whereas 2 gives you a bit more oomph than you'd manage on your own.

So it really depends on what you're going to ride; and how important the higher spec'd Trance is to you and that type of riding. I'd suggest downloading the PDF spec sheets on both of them and do a side by side comparison; and see what's different and whether you think you're going to miss not having it.
I will say that the battery in these things is pretty huge for my needs. My usual single track loop is about 10-12 miles, which barely moves the needle on the battery fuel gauge. I would say that conservatively I could ride 10 miles to another favorite park, do a 10 mile ride including a 2400' climb and ride back home without worrying even a little bit about running out of juice. Probably still have 40-50% left.

I say this because I've noticed a trend on some higher-spec brands toward a less-is-more philosophy. Sacrificing range for weight by putting in smaller batteries, on the assumption that MTBers aren't riding more than 20 or maybe 30 miles at a crack. So why put a monster battery in them?

Anyway, food for thought. Let us know what you decide!

 

[Virginian]

I have a 2022 Stance E+2 that I got on sale last year for about the same money as the sale price on the E+1. I decided not to pay the premium for the E+1 at the time and just added a dropper post and I was all set. That makes the current deal on the E+1 pretty appealing. I also have a Roam which is more of a roadie with a fork, no fenders, flat bars - and it will do some very light trail work.

I didn't even bother looking at the Trances because the MTB riding I do is all pretty tame (at least the way I ride it). Hilly, rolling single track and fireroads, mostly. With maybe a bit of flowtrail thrown in. Being an older guy, I do not like my bike leaving the ground much, except when I bunny hop it over an obstacle. I will ride fairly fast on the flowy parts of the trail, though, and I love the FS on this bike for that - waay better than the HT I used to ride, even though it's almost twice the weight.

With the motor you don't notice the weight so much, and the thing will go up anything. I pretty much don't use level 5 at all, and mostly keep it in 1 or 2. 1 just offsets the weight of the bike, whereas 2 gives you a bit more oomph than you'd manage on your own.

So it really depends on what you're going to ride; and how important the higher spec'd Trance is to you and that type of riding. I'd suggest downloading the PDF spec sheets on both of them and do a side by side comparison; and see what's different and whether you think you're going to miss not having it.
I will say that the battery in these things is pretty huge for my needs. My usual single track loop is about 10-12 miles, which barely moves the needle on the battery fuel gauge. I would say that conservatively I could ride 10 miles to another favorite park, do a 10 mile ride including a 2400' climb and ride back home without worrying even a little bit about running out of juice. Probably still have 40-50% left.

I say this because I've noticed a trend on some higher-spec brands toward a less-is-more philosophy. Sacrificing range for weight by putting in smaller batteries, on the assumption that MTBers aren't riding more than 20 or maybe 30 miles at a crack. So why put a monster battery in them?

Anyway, food for thought. Let us know what you decide!

Thanks!!

So my primary reason for an ebike is that Im newly diagnosed as a type one diabetic. I used to commute to work (15 miles) by bike and ride some milder mountain bike trials. I also backcountry hunt and would bike the fire roads.

One thing that sucks about being type one is the planning involved to do any strenous activity as it will drop my blood sugar a lot and can kill me if Im not careful. I still do all the stuff just have to plan. This makes commuting to work suck as I can’t just hop on and go most of the time.

So, hoping the stance would help me climb hills with less exertion so it is easier to keep my blood sugar stable. I’d also like to ride trails and do some longer fire roads, again with assistance when needed. Im not expecting a moped but something to ease the amount of effort.

Sounds like the stance would do fine as it my riding environment seems comparable to your riding environment. My commute to work i can take the pretty level biking dirt trials for 80% of it!

 

[tammin]

Sorry to hear about your T1 diagnosis - sucks (I recently got a pre T2 warning and was told to start watching my carb intake - I was already in very good shape and exercising a good bit and not carrying any extra weight, so it's def bad genes for me - sucks).
I love my Roam E for doing errands around town and grocery shopping - put a rack and saddlebag on it and the thing will haul a ton. I went to ebikes because of a knee issue a few years ago that kept me off the MTB completely. Got back on with the E and love it - so easy to modulate effort and control overstraining my knee on uphills. So I think your usecase makes sense. Just wonder about trying to make your eMTB do commuting work. While it certainly can, it's not really the best tool for the job imho, because the (expensive) tires should run at lower pressure than road tires, subjecting them to a higher wear rate, and you to less efficiency pedaling (although with the E I guess that becomes irrelevant). Also, adding rack and bags to a real F/S MTB is just wrong! I'm pretty sure my Stance doesn't even have mounting lugs on the dropouts for a rack. Racks without them do exist, but it's not what I want clunking around on my bike on the trail.

Get one for commuting and one for MTB?? (I did - no regrets).

 

[Virginian]

Sorry to hear about your T1 diagnosis - sucks (I recently got a pre T2 warning and was told to start watching my carb intake - I was already in very good shape and exercising a good bit and not carrying any extra weight, so it's def bad genes for me - sucks).
I love my Roam E for doing errands around town and grocery shopping - put a rack and saddlebag on it and the thing will haul a ton. I went to ebikes because of a knee issue a few years ago that kept me off the MTB completely. Got back on with the E and love it - so easy to modulate effort and control overstraining my knee on uphills. So I think your usecase makes sense. Just wonder about trying to make your eMTB do commuting work. While it certainly can, it's not really the best tool for the job imho, because the (expensive) tires should run at lower pressure than road tires, subjecting them to a higher wear rate, and you to less efficiency pedaling (although with the E I guess that becomes irrelevant). Also, adding rack and bags to a real F/S MTB is just wrong! I'm pretty sure my Stance doesn't even have mounting lugs on the dropouts for a rack. Racks without them do exist, but it's not what I want clunking around on my bike on the trail.

Get one for commuting and one for MTB?? (I did - no regrets).

“adding rack and bags to a real F/S MTB is just wrong!” Hahaha! Agree. I have never use panniers, just a back pack. My job has showers and is laid back dress wise so commuting on a mtbikd wasnt bad. Agree also on tire concerns. I usually run gravel/road hybrid tires and swap out. Unless i end up going tubeless. Again most of my ride is dirt.

Thanks again!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Virginian,

If you would like to find a reason for buying the Trance E+ 3, it is the motor. 70 (Stance) vs. 85 Nm (Trance) for the hills means a lot.

I understand you have ridden MTBs for years. Just let me tell you using an e-MTB for commuting is not the best of ideas. I used to own a Trance E+ 2 Pro and that e-bike just hated the pavement. I had to change tyres to all-rounders. I had to fit a rear rack (and there are very few of them good for an MTB). Giant trail e-bikes are Class 1 (you don't need some speed on your commute?) Why would you need Full Suspension for the commute in the first place? Additionally, riding the Trance E+ on the pavement made me very tired! An e-MTB does even not have a kickstand!

In my opinion, you better look for a proper commuter e-bike, equipped, with a strong motor (85 or 90 Nm) and a decent 11 or 12 speed cassette. On many mid-drive motor systems (except Bosch) you can fit a small MTB chainring for improved climbing steep hills...

If you must buy a FS e-MTB, the Trance E+ has not only a stronger motor. It is just visually gorgeous

 

[Virginian]

Virginian,

If you would like to find a reason for buying the Trance E+ 3, it is the motor. 70 (Stance) vs. 85 Nm (Trance) for the hills means a lot.

I understand you have ridden MTBs for years. Just let me tell you using an e-MTB for commuting is not the best of ideas. I used to own a Trance E+ 2 Pro and that e-bike just hated the pavement. I had to change tyres to all-rounders. I had to fit a rear rack (and there are very few of them good for an MTB). Giant trail e-bikes are Class 1 (you don't need some speed on your commute?) Why would you need Full Suspension for the commute in the first place? Additionally, riding the Trance E+ on the pavement made me very tired! An e-MTB does even not have a kickstand!

In my opinion, you better look for a proper commuter e-bike, equipped, with a strong motor (85 or 90 Nm) and a decent 11 or 12 speed cassette. On many mid-drive motor systems (except Bosch) you can fit a small MTB chainring for improved climbing steep hills...

If you must buy a FS e-MTB, the Trance E+ has not only a stronger motor. It is just visually gorgeous

Thanks for insights. However, rest assured I've commuted on a hardtail mtn bike for many years (specialized stumpjumper 29er). I never used a rack as I don't need one, I've been able to fit the extra anything in various sized backpacks just fine. My route to work is 80% dirt, 20% is using some pavement to get to it.

For the motor, I am not in need of speed or a moped, but definitely want a little extra assistance. I guess for someone who is in their mid-30's my question is do I need to shell out an extra grand for a little more motor?

However, I ended up grabbing the stance last night as I didn't want to miss the sale and didn't want to use the extra $1k for supplies as I'll need a new bike carrier for an ebike, pedals, getting a new MIPS helmet, etc.

Thanks everyone for the insights. I'll try to post my experience after a few months riding it. I'm excited!