2023 YT Industries

Decoy CORE 3 MX

The Decoy's frame may have been around for a while now, but there's still lots to love about this lively MX e-MTB

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The YT Industries Decoy 29 Core 3 is touted as the brand’s do-it-all e-MTB and several months of testing have proven the company has hit the nail on the head. Despite its comparably short reach and overall length for a modern trail-orientated e-MTB, the Decoy is fun on almost any trail thanks to a welcoming but impressively well-rounded ride. It’s great value for money, too, employing an array of very well-picked components with a reasonable asking price to boot. This is without a doubt one of the very best e-mountain bikes currently available.

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Say hello to the 2023 YT Decoy Core 4 MK 1.35. Okay, so the MK1.35 tag isn’t part of its official title, we added that ourselves. But seeing as YT has managed to increase the potential battery capacity from 540Wh to 720Wh (which is a 35% increase) without having to make wholesale changes to the frame, we think it’s a rather fitting addition. Need to know: A flip-chip in the rearward shock mount offers high and low geometry settings Tested here with the new 720Wh battery, but the bike ships with the old 540Wh battery Mixed wheelsize Full carbon frame comes in five sizes – S to XXL Fox Factory suspension has all the adjustability you need and then some How did YT squeeze in the extra juice without messing up the handing of our e-bike of the Year winner in 2021? It completely redesigned the battery, while maintaining the same fittings and mounting architecture. So yes, the new 720Wh battery is backwards compatible with all Decoy models, bar the size S. It’s currently only available as a standalone product for £899, which, as e-bike batteries go, is competitively priced. Best of all, the potbelly profile of the 720Wh battery allows YT up the cell count while keeping the extra weight as low and central in the bike as possible. On our scales the 720Wh battery weighed 4.57kg, which is 860g heavier than the stock 540Wh battery, and increased the weight of the stock Decoy Core 4 from 23.32kg to 24.18kg. Still pretty competitive, but not as light as you might expect for a full carbon frame and high-end build kit that wants for nothing. Still it’s a moot point as all current Decoys ship with 540Wh batteries as standard, but we’re confident that YT will roll out the bikes with the new battery in the not too distant future. Other than the bigger battery option then, it’s business as usual since we last tested the Decoy. It’s still available in MX (170/165mm travel) and full 29in (150/145mm travel) options and it’s designed around the Shimano Steps EP8 motor, with the smaller, monochrome SE E7000 display. The frame is available in five sizes XS to XXL and while the sizing on the Decoy isn’t the most generous, the size L sporting a rather demure 451mm reach, the Decoy feels all the more manageable and manoeuvrable for it. Also the 50mm stem ensures that the fit never feels cramped, and even slows the steering response down a hair to make it easier to correct course mid turn. Suspension As the flagship bike in the Decoy range, the Core 4 get’s Fox Factory level suspension components, bling Kashima coating and all. The 170mm Fox 38 fork and X2 shock both offer 4-way adjustable damping, so if you want a flatter, more stable ride to the Decoy it is relatively easy to achieve by simply cranking up the compression damping. However, we think the Decoy feels best with a lighter more active approach …Continue reading »

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YT Industries has developed a 720Wh battery for its Decoy 29 and Decoy MX eMTBs, allowing current owners of the M, L XL & XXL…

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If you like to stay planted to the trail, stable at high speed and want to plow through rough singletrack, the YT Decoy MX is a whole lot of good times.

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