Element A30 Shimano

For MTB speed, tire choice and rolling resistance matter a lot, and that's baked into the score. It ends up here thanks to a heavier build, wheel momentum that helps it carry speed between pedal strokes, typical trail-width tires, and mid-size wheels that balance agility and momentum. Add it all up and you get a clear tilt toward speed or toward utility.

Climb score: 9.1/10. Within Mountain bikes, it lands near the top. When it gets steep, the gearing feels very easy. In numbers, the low gear is roughly 17.3 gear inches. Compared with similar bikes, this low gear is easier than about ~64% of them. “Gear inches” sounds nerdy, but it’s just a quick way to describe how easy your lowest gear is to turn uphill. Lower usually means easier. At roughly 14.8 kg, the bike’s heft shows up most on sustained climbs. Good for keeping cadence steady on climbs without overcooking it. Real-world feel depends on setup and size, and some details aren’t always listed, so this is best seen as a well-informed estimate.

Suspension: 6/10, classed as “Confident trail control”. It’s built for clear bump absorption and more reliable wheel control on mixed surfaces. Full suspension helps the bike stay calmer under braking and cornering on rough sections. On roots and rocks, it should keep the bike calmer through repeated impacts. It should keep the bike more controlled on mixed surfaces, especially through repeated small-to-medium impacts.

Balanced fit - a versatile position for long rides and faster efforts. This is mainly because you get a very small drop: roughly 26 mm from saddle to bar, plus about 623 mm of stretch forward (very long). Estimated lean is about 25 degrees.

That is why we tag it Moderately Adjustable. What drives the fit flexibility here: A modular front-end gives more freedom to change stem length or bar width, Internal routing looks tidy but can make cockpit changes a bit more fiddly - Seatpost info looks fairly neutral, so most fit change comes from cockpit choices. This mainly reflects how easy it is to adjust or swap key fit parts over time.

Ride comfort is 7.7/10 — on a real ride it feels plush. Within Trail, Balanced basically means 'less plush than the softest builds' even though the ride still feels plush. The posture is neutral (posture 6/10), which gives a steady, predictable feel without pushing you too far forward.

In simple terms, it comes out as ‘about right’ for the category. The value score is 1–10. Higher means better value for money; lower means the price is high for what you get. Uses MSRP as a baseline; real-world prices can be lower (discounts can change the value). On the spec estimate, the price is close to what we’d expect for a comparable build. Among comparable bikes, it sits around the middle on price (cheaper than about 61% of listings). Quick reference: €3.299 listed versus about €3.329 for a comparable build. Put simply: you’re paying roughly what similar bikes tend to cost.

This setup suits typical singletrack and varied natural terrain. It has about 120 mm of suspension travel (how much it absorbs bumps), which works well for everyday trails. Overall, the setup matches this surface range well.