Kona CoilAir Review.
Added by Ian 2 June 2009

These days everyone’s going on about do-it-all bikes, where the flip of a switch will somehow transform your bike from a XC hardtail up the hills into an 8’ DH bike for the descents. We all know this is impossible. But Kona get closer than most others with the CoilAir. Kona markets this bike as an Enduro/ Freeride bike, but don’t let this put you off. It’s a trail bike, with 6 inches of travel front and rear. It’s a little heavy, but it can be ridden long distances in comfort.

The frame is 7005 Aluminium, with a curved top tube for stand-over clearance and the down tube is also curved to accommodate the Magic Link. Kona’s trusty 4-bar linkage is in place, but the difference is in the Magic Link. This link allows for an automatic slackening of the geometry, and increase in the rear travel. The main pivot is located in front of the BB, giving an upward axle path. The pivot is also floating on the linkage that activates the Magic Link, as is the shock.

The suspension works like normal while riding, efficient and solid with good acceleration. But as the trail goes downward, the shift in body weight compresses the Magic Link. This change in shock position is what allows for the changes in the bike. As the link compresses the lower shock mount moves back and down, slackening the angles of the bike for better downhill control. This also moves the main pivot back, lengthening the wheelbase as well. This gives the bike so much control on the downs, it is almost like a DH bike.

The CoilAir runs Deore/LX, with FSA cranks and Hayes Stroker Trail brakes. The fork is a Marzocchi 55TST, with 160mm travel and TST which allows four compression settings. Unfortunately the fork takes a long time to bed in which makes it feel sticky at first. The fork actually leaked oil into the lowers, limiting the travel. Luckily we at Maverick know all about suspension, so a quick service got it running smoother and better than ever. The Sun Equaliser rims are strong and light, and survived a few hard knocks over roots and rocks. The bar and stem are Kona branded, the bar is nice and wide, and the stem short for quick responsive steering, but long enough to keep the front end in control on the climbs.

Going up, the weight of the bike is noticeable, but not so bad that you want to stop. The bike works best when spinning up the hills, as the forces from a big gear may compress the Magic Link, which will make the bike harder to climb with. The front end does wander a bit on really steep climbs, but that’s down to the slack angles. On flatter trails the bike rolls well; once it’s up to speed it stays there. It flows really well in singletrack, the bike is almost built for it. It is easy to flick side to side in singletrack and swithbacks, and gives lots of confidence over rocks and roots. The extra travel soaks up the trail so you almost float over obstacles. On the downs the bike is in its element. The Downhill pedigree of Kona shines through on the slopes. Rocks and roots mean nothing, it corners like its on rails, and it’s even stable in the air, if you’re into that sort of thing. I did notice that the bike doesn’t like braking and cornering at the same time, it tries to stand up under you under braking. But it is still super stable and if you can lay off the brakes in corners you’ll be fine.

The bike I rode is a 2008 model, and there were a few changes I wanted to make, which Kona made in the 2009 range. Firstly the fork now gets a tapered steerer tube, using 1,5’ bearing at the bottom and a 1 1/8th on top of stiffness and steering precision. They also dropped the triple ring crankset in favour of a 22, 36 tooth and bash ring setup. It may seem like a down side, but it works out better as climbing is best in the small ring, and a 36 tooth is a favourite amongst DHers, and it still has a full 11-32 cassette.