Focus JAM2 7.0 review

Focus has totally redesigned its Jam2 electric mountain bike to produce a bike that will inject enormous amounts of fun into your riding.

The brand believes electric mountain bikes can help more people reach their happy place, whether that’s thrashing out downhill laps, hitting thrill-seeking jumps or heading off into the back of beyond, rather than producing the fastest bike out there.

To achieve this, Focus hasn’t just made a few minor tweaks to its Jam2, but has built a whole new bike.

Focus Jam2 7.0 frame and suspension details

Focus has retained the aluminium construction with 7005 hydroformed aluminium tubes and the 150mm suspension travel from the previous version of the Jam2. However, all models are now available only with 29in wheels across four sizes, from small to extra-large.

Power is delivered by Shimano’s 250W, 85Nm torque EP8 drive unit and Focus’s own integrated 720Wh battery.

Focus has completely redesigned the suspension layout and placed the shock horizontally under the top tube. That results in a lowering of the standover height and allows Focus to run longer dropper posts to help the bike's downhill performance.

The F.O.L.D (Focus Optimized Linkage Design) kinematics have been altered and no longer use a two-phase regressive then progressive ‘humped’ leverage curve.

Instead, we're told Focus now uses a linear-progressive suspension curve aimed at giving the bike a more active ride character.

There’s a custom tool bag between the top and down tube, with enough space to carry some ride essentials such as an inner tube, multi-tool and tyre levers.

It also uses Focus’s C.I.S (Cockpit Integration Solution) that threads the brake, gear (on non-AXS specced bikes) and electronic cables through the stem and into the frame's head tube.

Focus uses a bottle cage adaptor to maximise space inside the front triangle, meaning on medium and bigger frames you can carry a 750ml bottle.

A couple of extra details include double-sealed bearings, a SRAM universal derailleur hanger, a clear film sticker kit to help prevent scratches and a bolt-on hefty chainstay protector. There's also a USB-C charging port.

Focus Jam2 7.0 geometry

The geometry is modern without pushing the boundaries for a trail ebike. In the frame's low setting, it sports a 65-degree head tube angle and 76-degree effective seat tube angle.

Reach spans from 420mm in size small to 510mm on the extra-large. Our size medium test bike sports a 450mm reach. It has a 1,224mm wheelbase and a 448mm chainstay. The chainstay lengths are equal across all frame sizes.

The seat tube lengths are kept nice and short, with our medium bike measuring 420mm. The extra-large has a 450mm seat tube, so riders should be able to size up or choose between sizes depending on their reach and stability preference. The bottom-bracket drop is moderate at 25mm.

A flip chip in the shock yoke puts the bike in its high position, steepening the head tube angle from 65 degrees to 65.5 degrees and changing the seat tube angle from 76 to 76.5 degrees. It raises the bottom-bracket drop 5.5mm, shortens the chainstay lengths by 1.5mm, and lengthens the reach by 5mm across all sizes.

Focus Jam2 7.0 specifications

The Jam2 7.0 here is the top model in the range. There is a fork spec change between the production bikes and our test bike.

The production bike gets the RockShox ZEB 29 fork (our test bike had a RockShox ZEB Select+, which uses the more sophisticated Charger 2.1 damper) and Fox Float X Performance shock.

Keeping the bike electronic is SRAM’s GX Eagle AXS drivetrain, matched with e*thirteen e*spec Plus cranks. SRAM’s Code RSC brakes and 220mm rotors provide the stopping power.

DT Swiss HX1700 wheels and Schwalbe Magic Mary and Big Betty tyres keep it rolling.

Focus Jam2 7.0 ride impressions

I rode this bike around my local testing trails in the UK, including the Forest of Dean and various spots in South Wales. The trails contain a mix of natural off-piste tracks with steep tech and more flowing terrain. I also rode on some surfaced bike park trails. Conditions were mixed between dry and damp.

Setup was simple, and I adjusted the rear-shock sag to 30 per cent and a couple of psi over the manufacturer's recommended fork pressures. I cut the bars to my preferred 760mm width and ran tyre pressures of 22psi in the front and 25psi in the rear.

I had one issue with the rear brake mount. The frame’s 203mm post-mount and 20mm brake adaptor stood proud of the 220mm rotor, so I had to custom space the brake caliper to get it to fit correctly.

This isn’t a lightweight bike, thanks to the large battery and robust frame construction. Designed for a system weight of 150kg regardless of use, my stocky test bike weighed in at 25.3kg. However, if Focus was aiming for fun, it hit the nail on the head.

Focus Jam2 7.0 climbing performance

While maximum climbing efficiency isn’t essential on an electric bike thanks to the additional power from the motor that negates power losses caused by suspension bob, the rider position still needs to put you in a comfortable position for pedalling.

While the 76-degree effective seat tube angle isn’t the steepest on the market, on the medium bike I still found I was sat over the bottom bracket in a position that provided me with a strong pedal stroke when needed.

With the top tube not overly long, I was sat upright, which made for a relaxed ride. On steep trails, I could shift my weight forwards when needed. However, I never noticed the front end feeling vague or wandering over the trail.

Negotiating technical climbs with hairpins and awkward sections to clean, the Focus was easy to steer and lean over, and its well-balanced weight between the wheels made the bike easy to control.

Rear-wheel grip was good thanks to the rear suspension, which remained active when pedalling over rough ground.

Still, I never chose to firm up the shock, and the rear end didn’t sink too far into its travel when turning the cranks.

The Shimano EP8 motor provides plenty of torque and power, and is a motor I get along with well. During testing, it worked as it should.

With the large 720Wh battery and using predominately eco and trail modes, I was able to climb over 1,500m and still had remaining capacity on the Shimano Steps EP800 display.

Focus Jam2 7.0 descending performance

There’s no denying this is a lot of bike to ride when it comes to weight, but the well thought-out geometry keeps it agile enough to throw into turns and manoeuvre without hesitation. Yes, it takes some effort, but it's still handy through the corners.

The playful geometry keeps the bike engaging on more flowing trails, unlike some very long, slack bikes.

On smoother terrain, while the weight means it’s not easy to hop or pop, the geometry makes the Focus reactive to rider input and I could pump into short, sharp berms to keep or generate momentum without feeling the bike was cumbersome.

Traction was good in corners, and the reactivity to rider input meant I could ride the Jam2 with precision and hold a line well.

Its weight makes executing quick corrections mid-turn harder, with rapid adjustments to line on the trail similarly difficult. This was only needed when I mis-timed my braking, hitting the anchors too late and entering turns too quickly, meaning I couldn’t get slowed down in time.

The rear suspension felt active and composed under braking, and with the Schwalbe Big Betty rear tyre, traction was good.

The suspension kinematics are an improvement. There is less mid-stroke wallow than the old design. The extra support gives the bike a more active ride character with a smooth progression through the travel, where it feels like more travel than 150mm.

One benefit of the bike's weight is the beginning stroke suspension performance. The greater sprung to un-sprung mass ratio means the suspension is very sensitive during its initial travel and tracks the ground well, helping maintain grip in corners and under braking.

It smooths out trail chatter well and keeps the rider isolated from small, high-frequency bumps. The progressive leverage curve allowed me to access full travel when needed, but it didn’t blow through the end-stroke easily and gave me the confidence to hit bigger features without worrying about a harsh impact.

The rear end's capabilities make the 150mm fork seem a little outgunned. It performed well, but is the limiting factor in what this bike is capable of. More front-end travel would help even up the fork's capabilities.

The Focus is an intuitive and capable bike to ride, but don’t expect to it to jump around the trail with finesse. The suspension keeps it tracking the ground and provides stability, while the geometry enables you to point it where you want and keeps it engaging to ride.

Focus Jam2 7.0 bottom line

If you’re not worried about weight, the Focus Jam2 delivers a lot of fun on the trail. The rear suspension is extremely capable, and its progressive design delivers plenty of initial suppleness for great traction and ramp-up for bigger hits.

Handling is direct and responsive for its heft. If you want to get more aggro, a longer-travel fork could easily be fitted.