Merida’s revamped One Sixty enduro bike is perhaps the most radical yet, with a new suspension design and geometry that scream progressiveness.
The 29er bike has 162mm of rear travel, with a 170mm fork. However, if you run the One Sixty with a 27.5-inch rear wheel (the three smallest sizes come with this setup), the travel increases to 171mm and the geometry chip retains the same geometry.
Merida’s new One Sixty enduro bike. Paul Box / Merida
The 8000 model is second in the range, with the 10K model featuring RockShox’s Flight Assist suspension, while a set of alloy frames offer more pocket-friendly options.
Merida is so confident in the construction of their bike that their 5-year warranty covers bike park use and enduro racing.
The bike shares a frameset with the shorter-travel One Forty, and can be raced as a mullet bike if desired.
This first ride review focuses on the bike being ridden as a 29er, but the embedded video includes some ride impressions of the bike with a smaller 27.5-inch wheel, as well as my experience with the One Forty .
I tested the bike on relatively unknown trails at its launch. As always, there will be a full review once I’ve spent some time with the bike on the local tracks.
Merida One Sixty 8000 frame details
The carbon frame has room for a large Fidlock bottle. Paul Box / Merida
Merida says the frame has been designed from the ground up with the enduro racer in mind, claiming it’s the most uncompromising, adjustable and flattest long-travel bike they’ve made.
The frame is constructed from carbon fiber, with a flexstay rear suspension system. Flex is integrated into the symmetrical rear triangle, replacing a rear pivot, which Merida claims is more reliable and requires less maintenance than a pivot-based system.
The rods then drive a rocker, where the 29-inch/27.5-inch chip sits.
The smaller size bikes (XShort, Short, Mid) come as a mullet, while the long and XLongs ship as 29ers. I primarily rode the Long as a 29er for the purpose of this test.
Features of the Merida One Sixty 8000 frame
Merida has incorporated many features into the new frame.
Cargo capacity seems to be the current “big thing” when it comes to enduro bikes and Merida doesn’t let the side down here.
The carbon frame’s down tube features a well-integrated Fidlock bottle holder, with room for a large bottle of all sizes, while on top of the shock mount, there’s a pair of heads for a caddy of tools or tubes.
It’s 2022, so there’s internal frame storage, with a tool roll ready for your emergency essentials. Paul Box / Merida
Below the BB is the ‘Port of Service’ of Merida. This port, which is accessed via a 4mm hex head bolt (a 4/6/T30 combination wrench is on the rear axle lever), gives access to the internal cable routing, but also a long sleeve, designed to hold emergency equipment such as a pump, repair kit and spare universal gear hanger.
Unlike the doors found on Specialized and Trek bikes, it’s not really intended for everyday food and jacket storage, but rather as a way to carry the essentials to get you out of a solution
Outside, there’s plenty of rubber protection for the rear triangle and a short integrated fender to keep mud and debris from reaching the main pivot.
A longer aftermarket fender will be offered to protect riders from the mud. It will be attached to pre-drilled holes in the seat bridge and seats, to prevent rattles and the use of braces.
Bolt holes are included for a longer aftermarket fender. Paul Box / Merida
Internally, cables are routed to the frame via the headset. This gives the bike a cleaner look, but can compromise ease of maintenance. Cables and hoses pass through dedicated internal sleeves, however, for easy routing.
Cables and hoses also run through the center of the main pivot. This reduces the amount that is stretched when the suspension is compressed.
Running the rear brake hose (and gear cable if needed) through the main pivot reduces drag, which in turn keeps everything running smoothly and more reliably.
Paul Box / Merida
Internal routing of sleeved cables is noise-free.
Paul Box / Merida
Want to run the One Sixty like a mullet? No problem.
Paul Box / Merida
Merida One Sixty 8000 suspension details
Flexstays ensure that the suspension works reliably. Paul Box / Merida
Merida turns to flexstays for its rear suspension. Through the stroke, the chain and seatstays flex, mimicking the function of a rear pivot.
Merida says it has tested the stays rigorously to ensure fatigue doesn’t take its toll and that the degree of flex is less than that found on the XC-focused Ninety-Six race bikes.
The swingarm flip chip allows riders to switch between wheel sizes.
Merida alters the suspension leverage ratios between each size, with larger bikes having more progressive travel (from 6% on the smaller bike to 14% on the larger sizes). My long bike has just under 13 percent progression.
The reason is that larger bikes will generally be ridden by heavier riders, who benefit from a more progressive stroke. Or, they are ridden by more aggressive riders who may be sized up to get a longer reach bike. Again, these riders benefit from more progression.
Merida has built the bike to work with both air and coil shocks. My test bike came with a RockShox Super Deluxe Ultimate air shock.
The Merida One Sixty, in 29er form. Paul Box / Merida
Other changes to the suspension include tweaking the anti-squat to deliver reasonable pedaling performance in the early to mid-stroke, before dropping below 100 percent in the mid-to-late stroke, improving comfort and reducing pedal feedback.
The anti-climb has also been tweaked to keep the bike stable under braking during the early part of the run (such as on fast, smooth trails or in steep sections), while lowering deeper into the run, to help braking traction on rougher terrain.
Merida One Sixty 8000 geometry
Despite offering two wheel size options, Merida has managed to keep geometries relatively static between the mullet and 29er bikes, except for reach and stacking.
Reaches are generous, ranging from 415mm to a monstrous 525mm. Stack heights don’t grow at the same rate, as riders who size up may find that front height becomes an issue. As such, Merida suggests that taller riders use more stem spacers, and the two larger size bikes come with a 30mm bar, rather than 18mm.
In general, the geometry reflects the latest trends in long, low and flowing shapes.
Merida One Sixty 8000 specification details
RockShox’s ZEB is a rugged enduro race fork. Paul Box / Merida
The 8000 level bike is on the second rung of the Merida range. Consequently, all components also come from the higher reaches of their respective ranges, although not entirely.
Suspension is supplied by RockShox, with top-level ZEB forks and Super Deluxe shocks. These offer plenty of usable damping adjustments, which I explored quite a bit while testing the bike.
Drivetrain comes from SRAM’s stable GX AXS wireless, while Shimano provides XT brakes, with 4-piston calipers. Race Face’s Turbine R30 wheels have a wide rim that gives plenty of volume to the Maxxis tires. Both ends have a triple-compound rubber, with a DoubleDown casing: an Assegai in the front and a Minion DHRII in the back.
The Maxxis Assegai front tire, with its robust DoubleDown MaxxGrip construction. Paul Box / Merida
The finishing kit comes largely from Merida.
This includes the Team TR dropper post. Its drop is adjustable by means of a hexagonal screw and a cable adjustment system, between 30 mm and 230 mm. The length of the post means that most riders should be able to fully insert the non-moving outer portion of the post into the frame.
I didn’t have the leg length to run the 230mm drop, but I appreciated the ability to get the saddle as low as I could.
Merida travel adjustment dropper mechanism. Paul Box / Merida
However, the stack height is a touch taller than some droppers, and the travel adjustment mechanism isn’t as sleek as that found on Canyon’s latest bikes.
Merida One Sixty 8000 travel first impressions
Cornering grip buckets increase speed. Paul Box / Merida
I rode the 29er version of the bike for a couple of days, including during the first day of The Ex Enduro. That said, on race day I was more focused on not crashing than how the bike felt. So stay tuned for a more comprehensive review in the coming months.
Setting up the bike was pretty easy, with the latest RockShox shocks simple and intuitive to feel right.
I ended up running the damper compression damping to 1 click from closed (4 from open). Merida engineers say they tuned the bike’s suspension to the middle position. Given the “pedaling” nature of The Ex’s tracks, I was more than happy to add that extra click to give a bit more pedaling support.
On rougher tracks, or where there was less pedaling, it would have opened the shock with a click.
I ran the shock with 29 percent sag and 20 to 25 percent sag in the fork.
Merida One Sixty 8000 climbing impressions
Medium and large rocks are easily dealt with. Paul Box / Merida
With a steep seat tube angle (79 degrees) and a moderately generous top tube length, the One Sixty proved comfortable on long pedals. It doesn’t feel cramped when seated, and the position of the hips on the BB is comfortable.
The anti-squat does a good job of keeping the suspension static when pedaling normally. It’s not as tall as you’d find on a trail bike, for example, but on off-road climbs sitting I didn’t feel the need to…