Test: At around 9.9 kg, the Focus Jam² 20,5 Drifter is one of the lightest bikes in our test. The reason for this lies not only in the main frame made of carbon or the noble equipment - but also in the unique battery concept of the 150mm all-rounder. There is only a small battery with 378Wh for the Shimano motor in the slim down tube. If you want to go on longer tours, you should therefore install the additional battery included in the price of just under 7.000 euros. This can be done without tools within a few seconds.
Focus Jam² 9.9 Drifter: The facts
Suspension travel: 150mm / 150mm
wheel size: Mullet mix 29/27,5 inch
Drive: Shimano E8000
Display / control unit: Shimano E8000
Battery capacity (test bike): 378Wh (+TEC Pack 378Wh)
Frame material: carbon / aluminium
Weight complete bike (size M without pedals): 20,32kg (without TEC Pack)
Permitted total weight: 120kg
Price: € 6.999
frame | Jam² carbon / aluminum rear end |
suspension fork | Fox36Factory |
Power Type | Shimano E8000 |
Battery | 378Wh (+TEC Pack 378Wh) |
Suspension shocks | Fox Float DPS Factory |
Wheels | DT Swiss H1900 drifters |
Tire VR | Maxxis Minion DHF Exo 2,6" |
Tire HR | Maxxis Rekon+ Exo 2,8" |
derailleur | Shimano XT M8100 |
Gear levers | Shimano XT M8100 |
Crank | Shimano XT |
Front derailleur | ohne |
Brake | Shimano XT M8120 |
Brake discs | Shimano XT 203/203mm |
Seat post | Fox Transfer Factory 150mm (L) |
Saddle | Proxim W450 |
Stem | Raceface Turbine R |
Links | Race Face Turbine R 35 |
Sometimes less is more: The basic idea when designing the Focus Jam² 9.9 Drifter must have sounded something like this. What is meant here is above all the battery capacity; While other bikes outdo each other in this respect and the 1.000Wh limit has long since fallen, the down tube of the Jam² 9.9 only houses a "small" 378Wh battery. It is also permanently installed. How come? A look at the silhouette of the carbon frame already provides an answer: probably no other E-MTB with an integrated battery is as slim. Another good reason can be seen in the scale, which stops at just over 20kg. The downside of this small battery is of course the limited range of the built-in Shimano E8000 drive. That's exactly why Focus includes the so-called TEC Pack: An external battery for the down tube, which also has 378Wh and thus increases the capacity to a more than competitive 756Wh. While the elegant look suffers as a result, the weight remains well below 23kg even with an additional battery.
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Lively, but a little nervous
This unique battery concept also has an effect on the handling of the Focus Jam² 9.9: the compact frame, the low weight for an E-MTB and the geared equipment give the carbon bike a lively character. The independent rear end is lively and is especially fun when the terrain is not too rough. The 150mm at the rear offered little counter pressure on rough root fields or with jumps or drops. However, the excellent Fox 36 Factory at the front may also contribute to this impression, as it relentlessly reveals the small weaknesses of the rear triangle.
The wheel mix of a large 29er at the front and the wide 27,5+ tire at the rear works well and contributes to the smooth running of the Jam². On the rear wheel, however, we think it should be the slightly more stable Exo+ carcass to prevent bottoming out. The carefree 4-piston XT brakes with large discs and the Fox Transfer dropper post are absolutely positive.
Easy to mount additional battery
With the additional battery installed, the bike loses some of its downhill performance, which is probably mainly due to the higher center of gravity. In addition, the external battery on our test bike rattled loudly. However, the handling of the TEC Pack is very simple: if the corresponding mount is attached to the down tube, the additional battery can be mounted in just a few simple steps and in 30 seconds.
The bike is fairly inconspicuous on climbs. The wide tires at the back offer a lot of grip, the 12-speed XT gears from Shimano offer a wide range and quick gear changes. The E8000 engine sometimes works up a sweat and didn't offer any major reserves on steep sections. But it can be dosed very sensitively and is very natural. Due to the high front end, we had a bit of trouble finding the right balance and getting enough pressure on the front wheel when driving uphill, for example.
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Our test candidates in the High-End category: BH AtomX Carbon Lynx 6 Pro-S | Bull's Sonic EVO EN 2 | Cannondale Moterra Neo 1 | Focus Jam² 9.9 Drifter | Giant Reign E+ 0 Pro | Greyp G6.2 | Haibike XDURO Nduro 10.0 | Husqvarna Mountain Cross 8 | KTM Macina Prowler Prestige | M1 Spitzing Evo Bobby Root | Norco Range VLT C2 | Nox Hybrid Enduro 7.1 | Orange Surge RS | Orbea Wild FS M10 | Santa Cruz Heckler CC X01 RSV | Scott Genius eRide 700 Tuned | Simplon Rapcon Pmax | Specialized Turbo Levo Expert Carbon | Storck e:drenalin GTS 500 | TrekRail 9.9 | YT Decoy Pro Race | YT Decoy Pro 29
You can also find this at the kiosk Velomotion E-MTB test yearbook 2020. There you will find all 57 individual tests of the bikes, exciting stories and advice on everything to do with e-mountain bikes on over 160 pages.
Here you can also order the E-MTB yearbook 2020 directly from us.
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