Superior eXF 9019 B Electric Dual Suspension Mountain Bike Review

Superior Bikes are a well-known brand in some parts of the world, but they’re brand new in Australia. In April 2024 BikesOnline revealed that they would now be stocking Superior Bikes via their popular web shop. With a range of bikes that covers road, gravel, XC hardtails, dual suspension bikes, and eMTBs, this seems like a great addition for BikesOnline, to join their extensive range of Polygon and Marin bikes that are sold direct to consumers.

Riding Experience: Racing, repairing, riding, and braking bikes since forever
Generally Rides: Forbidden Druid V2 overbuild, Trek e-Cargo
Height: 178cm
Weight: 74kg
Bike Test Track: Greater Canberra’s greater trails

Superior hail from the Czech Republic, specifically from the Beskidy. This area is very close to the border with Poland and Slovakia, with a strong history in both cycling and cross-country skiing. The hills are steep, littered with trails that are themselves littered with rocks and roots. What better place to base a bike brand?

The Superior eXF 9019 B sells for $7999 at BikesOnline.com.au, as a Bosch-equipped 160/140mm travel 29er. Getting a trail-ready eMTB into the sub $8,000 point without cutting back on important features has become quite competitive in recent years. So have Superior nailed it? At this price, the Superior is in a similar market to the Merida eOne-Sixty 675 ($8699) which has more travel and a mullet setup, and the Trek Rail 5 ($7499) which is also a 29” bike. So who will the Superior eXF 9019 B suit?

INITIAL IMPRESSIONS

As with all BikesOnline bikes we have received, they arrive very well packaged and mostly assembled with easy-to-follow instructions and links to online reference videos. The Bosch 625Wh PowerTube battery was already fully charged and is housed in a 750Wh battery compartment within the 6 series Alloy frame. The Bosch Performance Line CX motor, delivering 85Nm of torque and 340% support, is at the heart of the eXF 9019 eMTB. It is a favourite of mine for its intuitive assistance and power, making steep tech climbs a heap of fun as the power is sustained when giving it the beans rather than fizzling out when you need it most.

The eXF has 29-inch wheels and 140mm rear and 160mm front travel, and some modern but still conservative geometry figures. Our size large 19 inch has a generous reach of 485mm and when combined with the 64-degree head angle takes the wheelbase out to 1271mm long. Taking care of the suspension is the RockShox Deluxe Select R, it is an incredibly supple and robust unit however the RockShox 35 Silver TK fork does not compliment the bike’s very smooth rear suspension as well as it could. It is stiff enough under brakes but lacks the smooth and supple performance of the finer RockShox offerings like say a Yari or Psylo.

The Superior rolls on Stars J30D tubeless rims and 29 x 2.6” Schwalbe Nobby Nic Performance line tyres, which unfortunately are not tubeless compatible. This is a bit of a miss but something that can be rectified pretty easily after purchase. We would always recommend tubeless tyres with a thicker sidewall and casing on a capable trail-ready E-bike such as the eXF 9019.

Human power delivery is taken care of by the large range Shimano 12 speed Deore system, which shifts very nicely under load and enables the rider to keep cranking, maintain assistance and forward momentum. Superior have also built the wheels onto a solid and E-bike approved Shimano rear hub with reinforced flanges, steel freehub with sealed bearings and much larger and stronger pawls than we would normally see in a hub – this is a smart move, creating a hub that will last years of service.

Lastly, Superior have chosen one of the most reliable brakes Shimano makes, the hydraulic 4 piston MT420. It has sadly been paired with an inadequate 180mm rotor on the front and rear which give it as much stopping power as a headwind on an eMTB. Swapping these out for a 220mm and 200mm rotor would be an immediate purchase for me. I wonder if a slightly cheaper 10 or 11 speed Shimano Linkglide system would have enabled the upgrade to bigger rotors, food for thought.

The Superior eXF has clean lines and a centralised seating position thanks to the steep 77-degree seat angle, the linkage and hardware appear to be well built and sealed and allow for a full-sized bottle and on-frame storage mount situated under the top tube. Interestingly across all 3 sizes the mainframe shares a common 120mm headtube which is ok for the smaller two sizes but may impact taller riders opting for the XL (505mm reach). Thankfully the steerer has been left pretty long and it’s nothing a set of riser bars couldn’t rectify as the stock 760mm bars have a mere 12mm rise, a similar amount to a broom handle.

Setup of the eXF 9019 was simple, the Bosch system is brilliant, wireless mini remote paired and easily positioned into a very ergonomic placement unlike some more bulbous Bosch controllers we’ve grown to deal with over the years, top points there. As the tyres are non-tubeless we slipped a pair of Tannus Armor in the tyres to give the rims a fighting chance against the sharp rim-destroying rocks of Stromlo and dampen the feedback of the higher-than-normal pressures down a bit, they are heavy but work.

ON THE TRAIL

At a whopping 178cm I normally float between a medium and a large or a preferred reach of 460-485mm. So I could really opt for either a medium (465mm reach) or the large (485mm reach) and given the middle of the length range rear centre of 446mm which is unchanged across sizes I decided on the large as the rest of the figures are erring on the side of conservative.

Superior have nailed the seating position, the riders’ weight is centralised nicely and with the help of a handful of volume spacers I had the at times struggling RockShox 35 TK Silver sitting higher in its travel and tracking nicely with even support at both ends.

The powerful Bosch Performance CX motor with its huge 625Wh battery really makes the eXF. This system is superb and highly intuitive on technical climbs and has minimal drag when coasting on descents. There is minimal delay when ratcheting over an obstacle and power delivery returning, some motors cut out and take way too long to come alive and you end up stalling, dabbing, and having to start again from the precarious position you were left stranded. As mentioned earlier the 625Wh battery is actually housed in a 750Wh downtube storage compartment which could be expanded if you liked. The higher spec model comes with a larger battery and uses the same frame.

Air time feels balanced and instills confidence, geometry is right in the sweet spot and feels familiar, proficient jumpers or riders wishing to attack rocky sections or off-piste jank will find the 35 TK Silver fork to be under gunned and more aimed at the blue trails. It does hamper how well the Superior’s rear suspension platform works.

These larger impacts did raise a concern with the down tube battery storage cover which was rattling and causing a hell of a racket on an otherwise very quiet bike. It ejected itself from our test rig twice, once doing a sweet jump with maybe slightly more than a Category 4 ebike rating of 3 feet or 120cm of air. The other instance was just pinging through some rocks. On closer inspection, the very small keyway-style latch that secures the cover has a very small and light spring which is not up to the task. I fitted a Velcro strap from my fanny pack and performed some race mods back at the shop.

I also packed out the small void between the battery and its cover with some bubble wrap which stopped the rattling and then packed out the latch assembly with rubberised mastic tape which preloaded the spring and kept the latch from popping out of its notch. Both have been holding place securely and silently for the remainder of the test but I would love to see a slight rework. This is a very simple mechanism that makes a hell of a lot of noise and much fuss trying to find the battery cover on the trail. It is worth noting that I OFTEN come across battery and motor housing covers on the trails, from many different manufacturers who too find it hard to make an easily accessible cover that doesn’t eject at the sight of a feature.

OUR TAKE

Superior have designed a strong full-suspension eMTB platform paired with a brilliant Bosch heart with the eXF. With a little refinement and perhaps a simple update to specs for the Australian market like larger rotors, tubeless tyres and a sturdier fork by means of pairing back spend on the wireless micro remote, the 12 speed Deore back to say a 10 or 11 speed Deore Link glide setup or the very nice Fizik saddle the eXF9019 could hold its head up with some big names

You can pick up your own Superior EXF 9019 B from www.bikesonline.com.au