Santa Cruz Bicycles is one of several brands that don’t attend Sea Otter. But Santa Cruz has been hosting a pre-Sea Otter industry gathering, which it calls “bike night,” for the past several years. It’s less of a “check out all of our cool new stuff” event, and more of a “let’s hang out and catch up” kinda vibe. Santa Cruz had the recently updated Nomad on display, but anything else was overshadowed by free beer, hot pizza, and good conversations.
But after the hustle and bustle of the Sea Otter expo last weekend, Santa Cruz dropped into our inboxes with some product update info. The popular and highly regarded Vala CC and Bullit CC eMTBs are both getting frame color updates, new builds, and some new integrated features. For the Vala CC, Santa Cruz is also introducing “Lite” builds with slightly lighter weights than the standard options.
Bullit CC: Updates
We covered the Santa Cruz Bullit eMTB when it launched last year, so if you’re interested in the details, you can find all the pertinent info here. Santa Cruz hasn’t made any major design changes to the bike. It still gets 170mm of rear wheel travel using a four-bar suspension design, runs a 170mm travel fork, and rolls on mixed wheel sizes. It’s powered by a Bosch CX drive system, with a 600 Wh battery.
New Bullit Colors
Santa Cruz is offering the Bullit CC in two new frame colors this year. The new Matte Carbon/Purple Sunset Chameleon colorway has color-shifting graphics/decals. The other is Gloss Purple Smoke/Spring Green, which looks pretty classic Santa Cruz.
New Bullit Builds
The Bullit CC is being offered in two new top-of-the-line builds, with the XT Di2 version also adding some integrated features.
Bullit XT Di2 Podium RSV: $13,499 (22.6 kg or 50 lbs.)
The top-tier Bullit CC build comes with a 170mm Fox Podium Factory inverted fork, a Fox DHX2 coil shock, SRAM Maven Silver brakes, Reserve 30|DH Carbon wheels w/ DT 350 DF hubs, and Maxxis Double Down Tires. It also features a Shimano XT Di2 drivetrain that’s hardwired to the bike’s battery for charging. Additionally, the wired derailleur connection supports manual, manual plus, and auto-shifting modes, which can reportedly be configured through the Bosch app.
Bullit XO AXS RSV: $12,599 (21.7 kg or 47.9 lbs.)
The XO build comes with the brand-new Fox 38 Factory Grip X2 fork, Float X2 Factory shock, and SRAM Maven Silver brakes. It rolls on Reserve 30|DH Carbon wheels with DT 350 DF anti-kickback bubs wrapped in Maxxis Double Down tires. The SRAM XO AXS Transmission drivetrain is hardwired to the bike’s battery, so you’ll never forget to charge it.
Vala CC: Updates
The Vala really broke the typical Santa Cruz mold when it launched a couple of years ago. The four-bar suspension design was a major departure from the brand’s signature VPP suspension, and it has been very well-received by testers and consumers alike. So, Santa Cruz isn’t messing with this winning formula, which you can learn more about in our launch article here.
Long story short, the Vala gets 150mm of rear travel using a four-bar suspension design, paired with a 160mm fork, and mixed wheel sizes. The Bosch CX drive unit provides the pedal assistance, with a 600Wh battery powering the system.
New Vala Colors
The Vala CC is offered in two new colorways. Gloss Slate Blue/Coral brings some classic Santa Cruz style, while the Matte Carbon/Gold Sparkle has a much stealthier appearance.
New Vala Builds
The Vala CC comes in a new XT Di2 RSV build with a wired and integrated derailleur. Santa Cruz is also introducing “Lite” builds to the Vala CC platform to save a little weight for those who are interested in doing so.
Vala CC XT Di2 RSV: $11,999 (21.3 kg or 47.1 lbs.)
The XT Di2 RSV build comes with the brand-new Fox Factory 38 Grip X2 fork, a Fox Float X Factory shock, and SRAM Maven Silver brakes. It rolls on Reserve 30|HD Carbon wheels with DT 350 DF anti-kickback hubs wrapped in Maxxis EXO+/Double Down tires. The Shimano XT Di2 derailleur is hardwired to the Bosch CX drive unit for charging. This integration also allows for manual-plus and auto-shifting modes to be set up through the Bosch Flow app.
New Vala “Lite” Builds
Santa Cruz says the new Lite builds “bridge the gap between full-power bikes and lightweight bikes by maintaining the same Bosch Performance CX Line motor and 600Wh battery, but making smart spec decisions that save lbs (or kgs).”
They’ve given the Lite treatment to two of the Vala CC builds: the XT Di2 RSV described above, and the XX AXS RSV. The claimed weights of both options weigh 1.1 lbs less than their standard counterparts, which is lighter, but not exactly earth-shattering.
Vala CC XX AXS Lite RSV: $13,999 (20.6 kg or 45.5 lbs.)
The XX Lite build closely mirrors the standard XX version, but drops weight by moving to a Fox Factory 36 Grip X2 fork, EXO+ tires front and rear, and a Chris King dropset headset.
Vala CC XT Di2 Lite RSV: $11,999 (20.8 kg or 46 lbs.)
The Lite version moves to the Fox Factory 26 Grip X2 fork, EXO+ tires front and rear, and XT brakes.
Availability
The new colors and builds of the Bullit CC and Vala CC eMTBs are available now. Head to the Santa Cruz website or your local Santa Cruz dealer to check them out.