The latest iteration of Pivot’s Shuttle LT is every bit as big and burly as before but has received several tweaks to help elevate its ride experience for gravity epics. While there are a few geometry changes thrown into the mix, the headline feature is the Bosch race-focussed powertrain.
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Apart from a fresh lick of paint, there’s not an awful lot that sets the latest Shuttle LT apart from its predecessor. That is until you look at the motor, however. This time round, the bike boasts a Bosch Performance Race CX motor – chosen for its extra output and is found on each model in the range.
That output comes in at 600 watts at peak, 250 watts of continuous output, and a 400% maximum support factor – while weighing a few grams less than Bosch’s latest motor. Of course, the Race version also comes as a super premium product and is only built in limited numbers, while donning the specific Race mode with extended overrun and ramped-up response.
Plugged onto a full carbon frame, it’s powered by a 750Wh battery that can be boosted to 1000Wh with Bosch’s PowerMore range extender.
The Shuttle LT’s 160mm of rear suspension is delivered by a DW-Link platform that’s said to provide optimal anti-squat that’s shaped to balance traction with the full power of the Bosch Race motor. There’s 170mm of squish at the front.
Out of the box, the bike is equipped with a mullet wheel setup with a sizey 2.8in tyre at the rear. But thanks to a flip-chip, the bike can run a full 29-inch wheel setup, too, if thats more your thing.
Of course, as a Pivot bike, the Shuttle LT benefits from the brand’s Proprietary Ride Tuning concept that graces each frame size with its own carbon layup. There are also size-specific seat tube angles. Speaking of geometry, this version gets a slacker 64-degree head angle and a 439mm chainstay. The seat tube angles start at 76.5-degrees on the small frame and go up to 77.5-degrees on the XL. The reach on the large frame pictured here comes in at 488mm which is shorter than the old bike by three millimetres.
As for weight, it tipped the office scale at 22.27kg, which is not shabby for a big travel e-MTB like this.
Pivot Shuttle LT Pro XO – Componentry
For the £11,400, you would expect no corner to be cut and that is the case for this build of the Shuttle LT. This model, however, is not the priciest bike in the range, with the Team XX Eagle build costing £13,400.
On this build, there’s a Fox 38 Factory fork with the latest Grip X2 damper paired with a Float X Factory shock. There’s SRAM’s XO drivetrain with a GX T-Type cassette and a pair of Shimano XT M8120 four-piston brakes.
DT Swiss provides a set of Hybrid HX1501 wheels with a Continental Kryptotal F up front with a Soft Compound and Enduro Casing. There’s a Kryptotal R at the rear that’s 2.6in wide with the same construction as the front.
Pivot handles the bulk of the finishing kit but there’s a Fox Transfer Factory dropper with 175mm of travel on this large bike – only XLs get 200mm of drop. I technically size up to a large frame and, even then, I think the 175mm of travel is a little too conservative.
Prices start at £9,000 for the Ride bike, a PowerMore range extender will set you back an extra £450 and Pivot is even offering a Fox Live Valve Neo Coil upgrade for an extra £1,500.
Pivot Shuttle LT Pro XO – Early impressions
Ahead of the bike’s launch, I squeezed in a couple of days riding mostly at my go-to spot with roots and compressions and the odd rock garden. That included trails of all gradients. it effortlessly glides uphill and is always ready for an extra hell for leather shot back down.
After my first few pedal strokes and a couple of descents, I didn’t initially gel with the bike. The culprit was the 55mm stem. For some reason, the build I was given has a mighty long stem, which threw almost everything out of whack. Fitting a shorter, 40mm, stem immediately changed the bike’s personality from weird and impalpable, to what I would expect of an enduro-focussed bike.
Despite being laden with suspension travel, Pivot has created a bike that’s well-centred, super comfortable and pretty handy up a climb. Frankly, the saddle position over the bike is nothing out of the ordinary, so it’s very familiar. The cockpit is spacious without being stretched out and weight is evenly distributed over both wheels, which is evident when climbing, especially over loose surfaces.
Both in part due to the distribution of the battery and motor’s weight, the bike is a very planted climber. Granted, there is some tendency for the front wheel to lift but that’s only when laying down its full 600W. Then the DW-delivered rear suspension is incredibly supple at the start of its stroke. So while active under pedalling loads, it works hard to eke out any ounce of traction available.
And traction is a huge aspect of the Shuttle LT. Only in areas where I wanted to slide the rear end out or lift the front wheel did traction wane. The bike feels telepathic in how the tyres track the ground. Thanks to the plush feel of the suspension as a whole and Fox’s latest technologies (which are sublime, might I add), the Shuttle LT does a lot of work for you in many ways. It confidently copes with extra lumpy lines without complaint. Firing the bike through serious webs of roots comes with little penalty as both wheels effectively hunt for grip without transferring harsh feedback to the rider.
Usually, an uber-plush ride would lead to a vague feeling rear end but that’s not the case here. In fact, it’s a very progressive kinematic that I struggled to bottom out. The result is heaps of support when needed and the opportunity to boost the suspension’s sensitivity by releasing a few psi. But the progression present is a real nod to the bike’s intentions – big descents over very technical terrain.
Although fairly light for a full-powered e-mountain bike, all-out liveliness isn’t incredibly present on the Shuttle LT as it certainly favours bulldozing its way through chunk-over jibs and acrobatics. That said, owing to the comparative lack of weight, the supportive suspension, and the mullet wheel setup, there’s a welcome level of manoeuvrability. While built to tame E-EDR level trails, it’s not an overencumbering machine.
It’s about speed and composure. When the immensely punchy motor combines with the active suspension, the Shuttle LT is monstrously fast. In the purple or e-MTB+ mode, it kicks out its 600W without hesitation, getting the bike up to speed quickly.
However, its brakes surprised me and not entirely for positive reasons. Shimano Deore XT brakes are excellent, regardless of previous wandering bite-point issues but I experience some serious brake fade well. In fact, I wouldn’t expect this from a bike of this weight and with such large rotors. I hypothesise that the Shimano metallic and finned pads don’t play particularly well with the Galfer rotors. I’ll report on this in detail once I get the bike in for some lengthy testing.
The only real thing to get your head around is the bike’s price. It’s far from cheap and you can get a similar build for less if you look away from Pivot but, as a package, the Shuttle LT is the most fun I’ve had on an e-MTB all year.
