Marin's new Rift Zone EL is its lightest electric mountain bike yet, but is it an SL eMTB?

Marin's first lightweight eMTB, the Rift Zone EL, uses Bosch's mid-powered Performance Line SX motor and 400Wh onboard battery.

The EL – which stands for Electric Light – is the latest addition to the trail-bike Rift Zone family, sporting a familiar 140mm of rear-wheel travel and a 150mm fork shared with the human-powered Rifty and full-power eMTB in the existing range.

At 21.39kg (size large), it's questionable whether it sits in the SL electric mountain bike category, but it is Marin's lightest ebike yet.

An adjustable head tube angle switches the figure between 64.5 and 65.5 degrees in 0.5-degree increments, while the four-size range has reach figures starting at 430mm and lifting to 520mm.

The new three-bike range starts at £4,699 / $4,799 / €5,399 for the Rift Zone EL 1 and rises to £6,599 / $6,999 / €7,699 for the range-topping Rift Zone EL XR.

Rift Zone family lineage

The Rift Zone EL shares its Series 4 aluminium frame and 140mm-travel MultiTrac suspension design with its full-power ebike and non-assisted counterparts.

Cables are routed internally via ports on the side of the down tube/head tube junction (rather than through the headset) using rubber membranes that seal around the cable to help prevent water ingress.

These are found on the brand's newest Alpine Trail and are an upgrade over the other Rift Zone design.

There's chunky chain-slap protection on the driveside chainstay and the rear dropout uses SRAM's Universal Derailleur Hanger.

An underslung motor and down-tube protector – made from a fibreglass-infused nylon – is fitted to the underside of the bike to help protect it from damage.

Marin has managed to lower the bike's weight by using Bosch's 55Nm torque 600W Performance Line SX motor and 400Wh internal battery, rather than a chunkier full-power motor and bigger battery.

As the lightest eMTB in Marin's range, it tips the scales at 21.39kg (size large) compared to the equivalently sized full-power Rift Zone E2's 24.23kg and the Alpine Trail E2 Bosch's monumental 27.55kg.

But whether it qualifies as an SL ebike is up for debate. Seemingly, its spec, price and weight matrix is impressive, but its 21kg weight would make it one of the heaviest SL ebikes on the market.

Up-front, an adjustable headset switches the head angle between 64.5 degrees, 65 degrees and 65.5 degrees. It does this using plus and minus 0.5-degree cups and a 0-degree neutral cup.

The seat tube hovers around 77 degrees (depending on which geometry setting the head angle is set to), which is plenty steep enough.

The four-size range spans small to extra-large and has reach figures from 430mm to 520mm.

Chainstays are 440mm across the size range, while stack heights range from a modest 618mm (small) to 645mm (extra-large).

2025 Marin Rift Zone EL models and pricing

The Rift Zone EL is available in three models, starting at £4,699 / $4,799 / €5,399 for the Rift Zone EL 1, rising to £5,699 / $5,999 / €6,499 for the Rift Zone EL 2 and topping out at £6,599 / $6,999 / €7,699 for the Rift Zone EL XR.

2025 Marin Rift Zone EL 1

• Frame: Series 4 aluminium, MultiTrac 140mm-travel suspension
• Shock: Marzocchi Bomber Air Inline
• Fork: Marzocchi Z1, 150mm travel
• Drivetrain: Shimano CUES
• Brakes: TRP Slate EVO
• Price: £4,699 / $4,799 / €5,399

2025 Marin Rift Zone EL 2

• Frame: Series 4 aluminium, MultiTrac 140mm-travel suspension
• Shock: Fox Float X Performance Elite
• Fork: Fox 36 Performance, 150mm travel
• Drivetrain: SRAM GX Eagle
• Brakes: SRAM Code Bronze
• Price: £5,699 / $5,999 / €6,499

2025 Marin Rift Zone EL XR

• Frame: Series 4 aluminium, MultiTrac 140mm travel suspension
• Shock: Fox Float X Performance Elite
• Fork: Fox 36 Performance Elite, 150mm travel
• Drivetrain: SRAM GX Eagle AXS Transmission
• Brakes: Magura MT-7
• Price: £5,699 / $5,999 / €6,499