Trek Powerfly FS 9 Plus first ride review

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The all-new Powerfly FS 9 shares a lot in common with the EX trail bike, but the addition of a Bosch pedal-assist motor turns it into quite a different proposition. It’s not quite perfect but the combination of a well thought out chassis and chubby rubber mean it’s capable of some quite amazing feats.

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Trek Powerfly FS 9 Plus highlights

• 130mm front and rear travel
• Adjustable geometry
• Boost axle spacing
• 250W Bosch pedal-assist motor
• SRAM EX e-MTB-specific groupset

The bike gets 130mm of travel at either end, using Trek’s ABP design, which uses a concentric pivot at the dropout to help isolate brake forces from bump forces. On an e-bike, where the extra weight means being able to stop in good order is even more critical than usual, this is a very welcome feature. The Mino Link geometry adjusting chips in the seatstays are also present and correct, allowing a 5mm bottom bracket drop and 0.5deg off the head angle from the ‘High’ position figures of 338mm and 67.4deg respectively.

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As you’d expect from the people that invented it, you get Boost axle spacing at either end to help stiffen up the 40mm wide 27.5 rims shod in 2.8in rubber. A new feature to the bike is the Knock Block, which uses a system of keyed stem spacers and a special headset cap to limit steering lock and prevent the bars from hitting the top tube.

Trek is keen to push the adventuring potential of this bike and the ride showed that – to attempt it unassisted would require a very long day out and a lot of fitness

The system also means that Trek could use a straighter and therefore lighter down tube without fear of the fork crown contacting it. The FS doesn’t get the clever RE:Aktiv shock technology that the 150mm travel Powerfly LT gets, but it still has a bang-up-to-date metric-sized RockShox Deluxe RT3 shock with a trunnion mount.

The pulsing heart of the bike is a Bosch Performance CX pedal-assist motor pumping out up to 250W of extra go paired to a 500Wh battery that’s mounted conventionally on the down tube. Trek has added a custom bash plate to help protect the motor from damage, a feature first seen on the old Powerfly FS. It retains the integrated bottle opener too, so whether you’re going for mid ride picnic or post ride beer, you’ll not be left wanting on that count.

Testing times

The bulk of the bike adds to its feeling of stability and the fat tyres really help too

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