Mondraker teases Podium Carbon XC racer, alloy Dune & Foxy trail rides & Plus bikes

Mondraker has let out a bunch of images and a few tech details on five new bikes for 2017. The biggest update is probably the new cross country racing Podium Carbon RR SL which gets a much lighter (both visually and physically) frame that at the same time is aimed at more aggressive race course and providing a more comfortable ride. But while the Podium may suit only the most serious racer-types, the four other aluminum bikes are aimed at pleasing the regular trail-riding mountain bikers amongst us. That gives us updated alloy versions of Mondraker’s enduro Dune and all-mountain Foxy, plus a wide tire version of their trail full-suspension bike in the Factor+ and a new wide trail hardtail the Prime+…

Podium Carbon RR

The all-new carbon XC race hardtail drops frame weight down to a claimed 920g with what Mondraker calls a Stealth Air carbon layup. That addition of Air is just a higher grade of carbon mixed in versus the current more bulky looking bike. The bike continues to use their IST (integrated stem tech) which is said to maximize handling stiffness, and the kinked toptube (we’ve seen a few of those recently), but the visual similarities stop there.

Mondraker has refined the stem and toptube integration, with a smoother transition when the bars are turned, and even added what looks to be a small foam filler to fill the gap for smoother airflow. The small aero advantage is definitely something that Mondraker says is worth looking at for XC racing, as was part of the driver for the redesign, even down to the new stem faceplate with a smoother clamp and rear facing bolts.

The bike gets updated modular-port, mostly internal cable routing with the rear derailleur still routed externally along the chainstay. Optimized for single ring setups, the frame also includes routing ports for a Di2 band-clamp front derailleur, or an under bottom bracket routed mechanical one.

The new Podium Carbon RR adds FlatStays and an almost completely flat toptube towards the rear to help deliver improved comfort at the saddle. Overall frame stiffness is said to be boosted by around 15%, while dropping substantial frame weight and greatly improving comfort with the new design.

The new bike keeps the same bent seattube for a short chainstay length, but switched to a more forgiving 27.2mm post. Chainstay length on the bike actually drops down to 432mm, likely helped by the move to Boost 148 rear spacing. Geometry-wise, the new frame also stretches its reach out 1cm across each of the four bike size range, with stems shrinking by that same 1cm for an overall consistent fit. In a move toward what you see on their trail bikes, the new Podium Carbon also slackens the head angle a bit to 70° for more technical trail capability.

The bike sticks with a PressFit bottom bracket and a built-in chainsuck frame protector plate, and adds a carbon chainstay protector. At the back of the bike the new frame moves the rear brake onto the chainstay with a new flat mount like we’ve been seeing on the road for both 140/160mm rotor compatibility. Up front the complete bikes are still pairing with 100mm forks, although the top end bikes have switched over to Fox’ Floats.

Mondraker’s new lightest build trims off almost a kilo to just 8.57kg for the lightest Podium Carbon RR SL complete with a XX1 11 speed drivetrain, with 3 other complete bike builds also to be made available.

Dune Alloy

A new aluminum version of the 160mm Dune enduro bike is expected to significantly lower the cost of entry into all the recently updated benefits of one of Mondrakers most popular 27.5″ mountain bikes.

The new alloy bikes here bring an improved Evo version of Mondraker’s Stealth Side Structure to the aluminum frames. What that actually means is that the new aluminum bikes get a design that uses more angular and faceted tubing shapes with thinner wall thickness and butting, and smaller side profiles. That is said to both improve frame rigidity and allow them to trim weight.

The new full suspension bikes all stick with Mondraker’s trusted Zero short-link four-bar suspension design, and get updated, more symmetrical rear triangles that use two struts to link the front of the stays. The trail riding bikes all use the Forward Geometry with long toptubes and short stems, although none resort to those 10mm long ones. The alloy Dunes get the geometry updates we saw on the carbon refresh last summer, with a 66° head angle when paired with the 160mm forks, although the XR spec of the Dune Alloy with get a 170mm travel Fox fork that slackens the headtube by 0.5°.

The Dune Alloy is a single chainring optimized bike, but will be adaptable to a double ring setup with a bolt on front derailleur hanger. That hanger shares the mount with an integrated mini fender to protect the rear shock. The alloy frame includes ISCG tabs around a standard threaded bottom bracket, and features modular clamp-on external routing along the downtube, along with stealth dropper compatibility.

The Dune Alloy will come in three complete bike specs on the same frame tailoring to a range of budgets, with one being an affordable SRAM NX 1x build.

The more expensive and lighter Dune Carbon will carry over in 2017 with new Fox DHX2 & Float X2 shocks with their updated dampers.

Foxy Alloy

The Foxy gets a new life in aluminum as well. Based on the 2015 carbon 140mm all-mountain bike, the new Foxy Alloy brings that same ride quality and improved geometry in a more attainable aluminum Stealth Evo frame, again with 3 build levels to be offered.

The Foxy Alloy pretty much gets all of the same tech as the new Dune Alloy, with addition of double chainring complete builds to better suit its all-around trail riding character.

With geometry here, the new alloy bike’s headtube is actually steepened a half a degree to 67° when paired with the 140mm forks that two of the completes get. But like the Dune Alloy a longer travel Foxy Alloy XR spec will take that back out out to a more descent-friendly 66° with its 160mm fork pairing. That move was aimed to give riders more of a travel choice without really negatively affecting handling either way.

The premium all-mountain Foxy Carbon also continues on with some new paint jobs and updated component spec for next season, including a XO1 Eagle option.

Factor+

The new Factor+ partially updates the Stealth frame tech and shaping from the alloy Dune & Foxy and ends up in a bit of a compromise in the look between those 2016 & 2017 bikes. The front triangle steps up from the current Factor to that of the current (2016) Dune & Foxy which means that is adds the stiffening window behind the headtube, but sticks with the less swoopy, less dramatically hydroformed tubing.

Out back though, with the bike’s key trait – the move to wide 27.5+ wheels – the new Factor+ gets the updated rear triangle to drive its 120mm of Plus-sized, trail eating Zero suspension travel. With Plus rubber and the same amount of travel as the regular alloy Factor, the new Factor+ wants to give the best combination of trail riding grip and suspension for all types of mountain bike riding, much like their mid-season Crafty+ introduction did for enduro.

One new feature not to overlook in the somewhat mixed generation bike vs. the other new alloy models, is that it retains the option to route an externally actuated dropper post, as well as adding new routing for a stealth one.

Prime+

The last new 2017 bike we’re shown is actually all-new, vs. the other iterative updates. Mondraker offers short travel XC hardtails and then all-mountain hardtails paired with 140mm forks, but really nothing in between for the regular trail rider. That is where the new Prime comes in, with a bit of a Plus-sized boost.

The new Prime+ hardtail combines the same fat 27.5+ wheel/tire combo of the Factor+ with a light aluminum hardtail frame for a more affordable entry into Plus-sized trail fun.

The new hardtail gets the same Forward geometry like the full-suspension alloy bikes, and also adds some of the same simple features like a threaded bottom bracket . The Prime+ gets mostly external routing, but with internal routing for the rear derailleur just through the downtube and what looks to be the provision for either an optional front derailleur or a stealth dropper seatpost.

We expect more details on the bikes including pricing, spec, and availability to be coming in the next few weeks.

Mondraker.com