|   Jeep AWD bike - gimmick or revolution? | lavamantis
Jan 5, 2004 9:55 AM | | This two-wheel-drive bike from Jeep looks very interesting. Has anyone ridden one and have comments to post? I guess it can either go the way of Shimano "Bio Pace" or the way of disk brakes.
http://www.cyclesourcegroup.com/rubiconawd.html
The website blows but you can kind of make out some engineering details. |
| Like a Jeep with a V8 | JimC.
Jan 5, 2004 10:00 AM | | YOU are the engine and it takes more power to drive 2 wheels than one.
so you might get better traction, but at a cost of more weight and more pedal resistance. That makes for a cr@ppier ride.
In other words, pass. Jim |
| It's a rebadged Christini | Drewdane
Jan 5, 2004 10:00 AM | | They introduced an "AWD" bike last Spring. MTBAction did a review - they liked it - it worked - but didn't seem particularly enthused.
Me, I think front-wheel drive is overkill & a gimmick. |
| I don't know.... | Kpicha
Jan 5, 2004 10:45 AM | | I've been following the reviews b/c I felt the same way, too and everyone really seems to like it. I definitely didn't get the impression that it was a gimmick. Check them out and see what everyone thinks: http://www.mtbreview.com/reviews/2003_full_suspension/product_121954.shtml
And there are a few people ride the same kind of terrain we do (you're from VA, right?)
Cheers,
Kristina |
| What I got from the review was... | Damion
Jan 5, 2004 11:01 AM | | The design works well in loose sand, and does add some traction in climbing conditions. It is HEAVY, though. It may stick around, but I doubt it is an earth shaking new product. Later. |
| Yeah, I agree | Kpicha
Jan 5, 2004 11:12 AM | | I don't think I would go with a Jeep though for that. I would probably stick with Christini. |
| It's not that heavy | pimpbot
Jan 6, 2004 1:41 AM | | I believe that it came in at like 28 lbs. My fully XC bike is in around 27 without the 2wd. They also do little tricks like gearing the front wheel slighly lower, so it only kicks in when the rear slips, and it's on it's own freewheel. You can also disengage the front drive at the rear hub on the fly with a bar mounted lever, so there is no extra drag unless you engage it. You can aslo field strop the drive system if you have problems in the trail.
It looks like they really did their homework on this one and made a well designed system. If I had that kind of disposable income, I would seriously consider one. |
| Oh yeah, they seemed to like it | Drewdane
Jan 5, 2004 11:29 AM | | I haven't been following the reviews, I just read the MBA one last Spring. It's not that they explicitly said they weren't enthused, that's just the impression I got from my reading of that one article (kind of a "so what?" vibe). I could be wrong, or misremembering.
Myself, I can see the attraction (I'm a TERRIBLE climber), but would rather work on my strength/endurance/skills with a plain 'ol rear-wheel setup. I just don't see it developing into an industry standard. |
| Jeep puts money in MTBActions pockets! | Hanus
Jan 5, 2004 4:08 PM | | Of course MTBAction will say they like it. Jeep (as well as others) gives them cash! If you see a positive review in MTBA, its because they were given a little extra under the table. Richard C. is a crook. |
| Cash huh... (nm) | pimpbot
Jan 6, 2004 1:45 AM | | |
| re: Christini hardtail... | itsdoable
Jan 5, 2004 3:40 PM | | I have not had this one long, so I haven't posted a review yet - it's the hardtail version of the Jeep. The front drive is driven at slightly less that 1:1, so it is not powered until the rear wheel starts slips a bit.
 
Weight wise, it adds about a pound. Not bad. On smooth trails, you notice the gear-train noise when AWD is engaged, otherwise it runs quiet just like any bike. There is a slight but noticable change in efficiency when switching to AWD.
On smooth trails, there is no difference climbing or decending.
In rock gardens, you can tractor over just about anything as long as you can stay upright - no more momentum & body english to roll over multiple obstacles & holes. It kind of feels like cheating. Even when you start to loose your balance, you can turn your handlebars, and drive the wheel to pull you back up. In muddy climbs, it just keeps going as long as your legs hold up.
Quirks:
Torque steer - when the front drive engages, there is noticable torque steering as the drive is transmitted down the steerer tube. In rock gardens, it hard to notice since you're being knocked around, but you can tell in smooth mud.
Because there is no differential, the front wheel gets driven anytime it rolls slower than the back, like cresting a ledge, or going over a large log. In these cases you feel the drag in the pedals, and one of the tires will slip to compensate.
The geared drive-train makes itself heard when the front wheel delivers torque, not loud, but noticable.
The biggest detraction is it doesn't compensate for lack of skill or fittness! Bummer ;)
In general, I think most riders will not benifit much from the AWD, it only really becomes an advantage when you get into some nasty conditions, which the majority of mtb uses don't do. And for those that do, it's often a challange to clean certain technical sections, so the AWD feels like cheating. That being said, there is a certain local climb that has a crux that I had yet to clean, and the Christini rolled right up & over it. Also, there is a certain trail that is 5km of pretty continuous rock gardens - a dab-city type trail for hardcore riders, and the only reason that I dabbed with the Christini is that I ran out of legs. (actually, sometimes I just suck when I'm riding...)
Many of the locals have tried it out in the rock gardens and the response is very similar - "keeps going if you keep pedaling" and "feels like cheating..."
Cheers,
Tom |
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