Yeti ASR 5 Carbon - Ride Impressions
Yeti ASR 5 C
Yeti ASR 5 C
The ASR 5 (5 inch suspension) is a brand new bike for Yeti, and this was the first time I had seen this model. The ASR 5 comes in an aluminum version, and a full carbon version, which is what I tested. The moment I started pedaling this bike, I felt its instant acceleration and laser like steering and handling. Its suspension was very compliant, and the directional rigidity of the carbon material was paramount in the feel of the bike.
Yeti Carbon!
I found myself sitting in almost all the terrain the XC loops of Boulder City had to offer, and was amazed at how well the suspension just sort of floated along the undulations and rocky sections of the trail. This did not feel like a 5 inch travel bike. On one of the very steep and very loose climbs the bike went up it effortlessly, and needed very little pedaling to get to the top. This is an excellent bike, that has a carefully thought out suspension system, with an incredible amount of compliancy. It is very neutral, climbs like a demon and makes the most of the carbon material’s directional rigidity and vibration damping qualities.
Yeti - Very nicely done cable layout
http://www.yeticycles.com/#/bikes/ASR5Carbon/
Specs:
Travel - 5 inch
Weight - 4.75lbs
Sizes - small. medium, large
Colors - black/turquoise or white/black
Rear shock - RP23 (7.875 x 2)
Bottom Bracket - 73mm
Rear wheel - 135mm with QR or 142mm with 12mm
Front Derailleur - 34.9mm with traditional mount
Seatpost - 30.9mm
Kits Enduro, Race, Pro
Features:
- High Modulus, hand laid-up carbon front and rear triangles
- Tapered headtube 1 1/8 to 1 1/5
- Gravity dropper cable guide
- Interchange dropouts
- Titanium hardware
- Internal cable routing on swingarm
September 22nd, 2009 at 7:41 am
Three questions:
1. Can a 2.4 rear tire fit without rubbing on the frame ?
2. Is the headtube a flared 1 1/8 to 1 1/2 headtube ?
3. Is the geometry the same as the current Yeti 575 ?
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:30 pm
What has better suspension performance - the DW bikes(Ibis, Turner, etc) or this new Yeti ?
September 22nd, 2009 at 9:29 pm
to mike,
1. maybe, depends on the tire.
2. yes
3. NO!
September 22nd, 2009 at 10:31 pm
It depends on what you mean by suspension performance, that is a big can of worms. The Yeti has a pretty sweet suspension system, it climbs loose terrain better than the Mojo, while the Mojo does better climbing embedded rocky terrain. I did not get enough time for anything more than a ride impression, so I will be doing a long term review of the Yeti in the Fall. Every interpretation of the DW Link is very different, so I cannot make a broad statement on all those bikes that are designed with it. The Yeti optimized Active Suspension (A.S.) is a very nice design, it is not better nor worse than the DW Link, it is just a different, and it has a whole set of its own characteristics and attributes.
September 22nd, 2009 at 10:36 pm
Did you get to see the Alloy version of the ASR5? Did they talk about any of the build packages? I hear the Carbon is frame only where as they have different build options on the ASR5 (alloy). Doesn’t mean they won’t have build packages. Sounds like this thing would be a great race bike that you can train on and do longer rides on as well with the added travel. One bike that can do all your XC needs.
September 23rd, 2009 at 12:42 am
Is that a Fox F100 or F120 fork? I was just wondering if you can set up the AS 5C with a 4″ fork.
September 23rd, 2009 at 8:37 am
It came with a 120. I would prefer a Fox Talas myself, and use it in the 130 mode for most riding and slap it into 150 for downhilling.
September 23rd, 2009 at 10:14 am
How much does the bike and or frame weight?
September 23rd, 2009 at 3:03 pm
@Brain,
Thx for the response !
What is the geometry on the bike ? Is it going to have a 69 degree head angle ?
Any hints from Yeti when the frameset is going to go on sale ?
October 1st, 2009 at 11:55 pm
Refer to http://www.yeticycles.com/#/bikes/ASR5Carbon/ they just revamped their website since the show!
The head angle is 67 degrees for a 140mm fork and 68 for a 120mm fork.
They should be on sale late Fall to early Winter? Suggest you contact your LBS or Yeti themselves for a better date?
October 13th, 2009 at 11:39 am
I have a Yeti 575 and bought it after a test ride. The new ASR 5 sounds so good I’m afraid to test ride it, but I will the first chance I get. The carbon sounds awsome and if you go that route I would go with light wheels like XTR. Glad to hear MTBR got to test it at Interbike and it got such a good review. Thanks.
November 5th, 2009 at 9:48 am
Brian,
excellent review! I was sooo hoping someone was going to have the chance to ride and review this bike when i heard it was going to be at interbike. I will anxiously be waiting for the full review! I had the same question as PeeWeeisonLeno; how did it compare to the Mojo SL? I will try and fight off the itch to buy anything before i hear more, as its near impossible i will ever i have the chance to test ride either of these bikes (grrrr!).