Moterra or Moterra SL? Two Very Different E-Bikes With the Same Name

Cannondale builds two full-power e-mountain bikes called Moterra. They share a name and almost nothing else — different motors, different frames, different batteries, different wheels.

We have 18 of them in stock right now, all marked down. Here's how to pick.

Side by side

Both have 150mm of rear travel and a 160mm fork. That's where it stops.

Moterra 4 — the most bike for the money

The alloy, Bosch-powered one. Cannondale has been bending aluminum for decades, and the SmartForm C1 frame carries a limited lifetime warranty.

Bosch's Performance Line CX is the most proven drive unit in e-MTB, and it's Bosch's most powerful. Reviewers keep landing on the same point about how it delivers: power builds progressively instead of surging, so you keep hunting for traction on technical climbs instead of spinning the rear tire. It's quiet, and the eBike Flow app lets you tune assist and power delivery per mode over Bluetooth.

Cannondale tunes the suspension kinematics by frame size — more progressive with more anti-squat on larger frames, the opposite on smaller ones. Everyone gets a bike set up for their weight.

Also worth knowing:

• Full 29" wheels across the range
• Schwalbe Magic Mary front and rear, 2.4"
• Integrated alloy skid plate protecting the motor and battery
• UDH hanger, threaded internals, DownLow dropper
• UL 2849 certified
• Bosch PowerMore 250 range extender compatible — takes the space of a water bottle and adds 250Wh

The 4+ adds an 800Wh battery and integrated rack and fender mounts, which turns it into a genuinely capable do-everything bike.

Moterra SL — the one that rides like a bike

Cannondale calls the SL the lightest full-power mountain bike ever built — meaning at least 85Nm of torque and at least 600Wh of battery. The record isn't the point. The point is that it's a full-power e-bike that still handles like a mountain bike.

• Series 1 carbon frame with FlexPivot chainstays that absorb impact without killing momentum
• Proportional Response Tuned Suspension — kinematics tuned per size
• Shimano EP801 with Eco / Trail 1 / Trail 2 / Boost, custom-tuned by Cannondale for instant response
• Custom 601Wh battery, direct-mounted rather than dropped into a downtube cavity
• Fox 36 and Float X — real suspension, not the budget version
• Mullet wheels — 29" front for rollover, 27.5" rear for clearance and quickness
• Acros adjustable-angle headset with 1.2° of head angle adjustment, plus a FlipChip if you want full 29"
• Maxxis Minion DHF front, Dissector rear, DownLow dropper, UDH

The SL 1 steps up again: SRAM XO Eagle AXS wireless, SRAM Code Silver Stealth brakes on 200mm HS2 rotors, DT Swiss XM 1700 wheels, Fox Factory suspension with Kashima, and a HollowGram SAVE carbon bar. We have one left, in Small, at $7,999 — down from $11,549.

Which one

If you want maximum capability per dollar and a frame you don't have to think twice about, the Moterra 4. It does the job, and it does it for two thousand dollars less.

If you're the rider who's going to feel a mullet rear end and use an adjustable head angle, the SL is worth the difference. It's the one that stays playful on tight, techy trails instead of just being fast on the climbs.

Come ride both. Twenty minutes on each answers this faster than any table.

Buying an e-bike from a real shop

Bosch and Shimano systems both need a dealer for firmware, diagnostics, and warranty. We service what we sell at Midway and Heber, and that matters more on an e-bike than on anything else in the shop.

Eighteen bikes at these prices. When they're gone, they're gone.

Shop the Moterra Neo →  ·  Shop the Moterra SL →

Specs sourced from Cannondale.com (Moterra 4 C65234U, Moterra 4+ C6551GU, Moterra SL). Ride impressions from Upway, Cycling Electric, Mountain Bike Action, The Loam Wolf, and 99 Spokes. Pricing and availability current as of publication.