The Orbea Rise is a trail-focussed e-mountain bike that's received tonnes of praise from the media and its owners. For 2025, the updated Rise looks set to redefine what's expected of a lightweight or mid-powered e-MTB. Not only has the new model ushered in a boost in stiffness but it also makes use of Shimano's very latest battery technologies that pack more power per gram offering up to an 840Wh battery range.

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A lot is going on in Orbea's latest update of the Rise but it's much more than skin-deep this time around. The latest edition benefits from an asymmetric brace that gives the Rise a look that's not dissimilar to the Occam. It hasn't been added for aesthetics though as it reduces front-end deflection from -17.80mm to -14.50mm. To put that into a percentage, the brand claims that the front triangle is eight per cent stiffer than before.

2024 orbea rise riding.jpg, by Liam Mercer

Speaking of stiffness, each size gets its own stiffness tuning to suit the size and weight of a rider who's likely to pick a given frame size.

The rear end has seen a bit of love, too, as Orbea has refined its shape to include higher volume and square cross-sections. Such tweaks have seen the rear end get 14 per cent stiffer, according to Orbea. However, weight is still low with the medium frame tipping the scale at two and a half kilos.

2024 orbea rise hero 2.jpg, by Liam Mercer

Of course, the geometry has seen a small shake-up but, importantly, the new Rise can accommodate long dropper posts thanks to an uninterrupted but low seat tube. The seat tube measures from 405mm up to 460mm from small to extra large and maximum insertion lengths start at 295mm and go up to 350mm.

The Rise benefits from the very latest motor technologies that Shimano has to offer as the range comes with an EP8RS Gen 2 motor. Rise LT H20, SL H3, and SL H20 builds use the EP600 RS motor. However, where this gets seriously interesting is in the batteries. The bike uses modular batteries that use 21700 5.8Ah cells that promise 16 per cent more range with each gram.

2024 orbea rise shimano ep8rs.jpg, by Liam Mercer

And as the bike is modular when it comes to batteries, there are two options available to the consumer. There's a 420Wh battery for the rider who prioritises lightweight, which is said to weigh 1,960g but there's also a 630Wh battery on offer with a claimed weight of 2,880g. If that's not enough, there's a range extender available that'll add another 210Wh and 1,037g. 

With the new Rise, Orbea is technically bringing two bikes to the market; the heavier-hitting Rise LT is equipped with 150mm of travel at the rear and 160mm at the front. This bike gets its own geometry with a 64-degree head tube angle, a 480mm reach (on a large), a 77-degree seat tube angle and a 440mm chainstay. That can all be steepened by half a degree thanks to a flip-chip that also raises the bottom bracket by eight millimetres. 

2024 orbea rise shock yoke.jpg, by Liam Mercer

The Rise is also coming in a smaller travel trail 'SL' package that gets 140mm of suspension at both ends. Its geometry changes too with a 65.5-degree head tube angle, a 78-degree seat tube angle, a 440mm chainstay, and a 490mm reach. Both bikes utilise the same frame but a change in shock stroke and linkage results in these changes. Both bikes also roll on 29-inch hoops.

We don't have UK prices just yet so we'll keep you updated but prices start at £7,199 for the M10 SL and go up to £11,00 for the top-end Fox Factory and SRAM XX T-Type equipped SL M-LTD. Rise LT models start at £7,600 and go up to £10,000.

• www.orbea.com

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