Cotic is developing an ebike
It’s very early days as the brand only received their first four prototypes about a month ago, so there’s still a long way from production, but… We are letting the cat out of the bag – Cotic is doing an ebike.
Cotic hasn’t released an emtb yet because they wanted to wait until the tech was a bit more mature, but mainly because the current supply issues combined with prototyping in Taiwan means that it takes a very, very long time. They have actually been looking at it for about 5 years, but things only really came together about 3 years ago when the possibility of using STEPS became clear through their OE connection with Shimano.
E-bikes are a huge market, and it’s a part of the sport now, and they’re fun! It massively increases the accessibility of mountain biking to people who maybe aren’t strong enough to get ‘out there’ on a regular bike. Cotic is 18 years old and has customers from its early years who might well be getting to an age where riding a regular bike isn’t fun or even possible anymore. For others it gives more bang for buck if you only have a limited time window for riding. As good examples, we’ve done big rides that would normally take 3.5 to 4 hours in just over 2. That alone makes it a reason to build one on a personal level.
Cotic has played around with a few ideas, but all variations on the theme of it being a droplink bike. The brand definitely had a few ideas of how they could use steel, but nobody likes the look of the external battery bolted to a skinny tube, and if you are going to go big on the down tube to put a battery in there, there is absolutely no benefit from using steel. Steel needs to be small diameter and thin wall to get those beautiful ride feel characteristics. Here, aluminium is definitely the way to go. That said, Cotic has an absolutely sick idea for a steel frame, but it would cost a huge amount of money and it is unlikely that any factory would even consider making it, so the brand is keeping it sensible (both price and technical risk) for their first product.
Cotic opted for Shimano because (if you have an OE account with them) they are the only ebike drive provider who doesn’t require you to commit to 100s or 1000s of units per year for them to be interested in supplying you. Plus, Shimano stuff is generally well thought out, Cotic has a great relationship with them and the warranty support should be pretty solid too, so it all points to good things for a smaller brand looking to get an ebike off the ground. The bikes use the top end EP8 drive unit.
Regarding spec, nothing is fully defined yet. Cotic’s emtb won’t be an exact replica of one of their current bikes, but it’s very much a variation on the theme. It will run Cotic’s proven droplink suspension and Longshot geometry, so you know it’s going to handle and feel great. The prototypes are certainly a solid start. Others may come after, but they’re focusing to doing this one right for the moment.
Cotic signed the drawings off in July 2019, they only just received prototypes, and Shimano tells even if the order was placed now, they won’t deliver drive units and batteries until the end of ’23 earliest. So, these are 2 years away from production as a minimum. Cotic will reveal more when they have the final spec nailed down and a firm delivery date.
