Kona has announced another tranche of new mountain bikes, e-MTBs and road-going ebikes for 2021.
The latest new bikes include a £10k money-no-object build of the Process 135 trail MTB and new electric bikes, with two 29er Remote e-MTBs, four commuter ebikes and the Libre EL electric gravel bike.
That’s in addition to the updates to the Process X, Process 153, Honzo ESD, Splice-E and El Kahuna that we covered last month – details of which we’ve included below.
2021 Kona Process 134 CR Supreme
The Process 134 CR Supreme is a new deluxe spec for Kona’s shorter travel carbon Process 134 trail bike.
Priced at £9,999, it comes with 140mm front travel and, as its name suggests, 134mm rear travel in place of the 153mm on the Process 153 and 162mm on the Process X.
As you’d demand at this price, the spec is top drawer, with a Zipp 3Zero Moto enduro/trail carbon wheelset, which comes with built in TyreWiz wireless air pressure monitoring down to 0.1psi. The wheels cost the best part of £2,000 on their own.
Shifting is supplied by SRAM’s X-01 Eagle eTap AXS wireless groupset with 32-tooth chainring and extra-wide range 10-52 cassette, and there’s a RockShox Reverb AXS wirelessly controlled dropper post and G2 Ultimate brake calipers, matching the no-expense-spared spec of the wheels.
More flashy kit comes courtesy of a RockShox Pike Ultimate fork and RockShox Super Deluxe Ultimate shock. There’s a gloss purple paint job to finish the deal.
2021 Kona Remote e-MTB
Also just released are the new Kona Remote 130 and Remote 160DL full susser e-mountain bikes, bringing Kona’s range of e-MTBs up to five.
The Remote 160DL uses Shimano’s just-launched EP800 motor, limited at 20mph, with a 504Wh battery and 29in wheelset in place of the standard Remote 160’s 27.5s.
At 64 degrees, the head tube is one degree slacker than that on the Remote 160 and Kona has lowered the bottom bracket to suit the larger diameter wheelset.
As usual, the number at the end of the name denotes the travel, and the 160mm is supplied by a RockShox Zeb Select fork and a Super Deluxe Select shock.
Also new is the Remote 130. Based on the geometry of the Process 134, it’s another 29er e-MTB, with an alloy frame, and its power comes from a Shimano Steps E7000 motor with 60Nm torque.
There’s a 140mm travel Fox Rhythm 34 Float fork and Fox Performance Float rear shock, while the drivetrain is 12-speed Shimano Deore.
Price for the Remote 160DL is £6,299 and for the Remote 130 £5,199.
Kona Dew-E and Ecoco commuter ebikes
Moving on to Kona’s electric commuter bike range, the new Dew-E and Ecoco both use a Shimano Steps E6100 motor that weighs a claimed 2.9kg and has a 250W maximum power and 60Nm max torque.
Both bikes are available in DL versions with an integrated 504Wh battery and as standard models with a surface-mounted battery with the same capacity. The Dew-E DL gets three cage bosses on its all-carbon fork for extra load lugging capacity, while the other bikes’ forks are alloy.
Whereas the Dew-E has a crossbar frame, the Ecoco is a step-through model. All the Dew-E and Ecoco models come with tubeless-ready WTB Horizon 650b 47mm tyres and there are mudguards, a kickstand and Busch & Müller lights too.
Prices are £3,299 for the Dew-E DL, £3,199 for the Ecoco DL, £2,599 for the Dew-E and £2,299 for the Ecoco.
Kona Libre EL
Finally, in this tranche of new releases, is an electric version of the Libre gravel bike.
Priced at £3,799, it’s powered by a beefy Shimano Steps E7000 motor and comes with clearance for the fitted 47mm WTB Venture TCS 650b tyres or 45mm 700c tyres.
Up front, the Kona Verso carbon fork has cage mounts for gear carrying and there are mudguard and rack mounts at the back.
Shifting come courtesy of a Shimano GRX 810 single-ring gravel groupset with 11-42 cassette and 38-tooth chainwheel.
There’s a TransX dropper post with internal cable routing and 160mm brake rotors provide the stopping power.
Original update continues below (05/08/2020)
Five new models from the 2021 Kona Range
Updates to the Process X, Process 153, Honzo ESD, Splice-E and El Kahuna for 2021
Kona's started to unveil its 2021 range of bikes, kicking off with updates to the Process X carbon enduro-focused bike and its aluminium counterpart the Process 153.
The Canadian brand is also launching the new Honzo ESD, which should be on par with the Norco Torrent HT in defining the hardcore hardtail category thanks to radical geometry and no-nonsense lines.
There's a new El Kahuna electric mountain bike and a new Splice-E electric commuter bike, too.
2021 Kona Process X DL and Process X
Designed to be gravity-focused bikes that can be pedalled to the top of the hill on long days out, the 2021 29in-wheeled Process range of bikes have 162mm of rear wheel travel and 170mm of fork travel.
Although both the Process X and Process X DL share the same carbon fibre frame, their parts differ slightly with the DL getting lighter, higher-performing kit.
The 2021 Process X boasts a 63.5-degree head-tube angle, adjustable chainstay lengths from either 435mm or 450mm and an impressively steep 78-degree seat-tube angle for the size large. Reach figures span from 440mm for the small up to a whopping 525mm for the extra-large bike.
Wheelbase figures are also fairly mammoth, starting at 1,213mm and extending to over 1,323mm on the extra-large bike in its long chainstay setting.
All sizes in the new Process X range have a short seat-tube length, which means the small and medium sizes get a 170mm travel dropper post, while the large and extra-large bikes get a 200mm travel post.
Although the frame is based around 29in wheels, a flip-chip on the seatstay to rocker pivot makes it possible to turn it into a mullet bike with a 29in front and 27.5in rear wheel. There are also water bottle cage bosses on the top of the down tube.
The 2021 Process X DL is kitted out with top-spec parts including the RockShox ZEB Ultimate fork and SuperDeluxe Ultimate rear shock, SRAM X01 Eagle 12-speed drivetrain, SRAM Code RSC brakes and DT Swiss 350 hubs laced to WTB KOM Trail i30 rims. The Process X DL retails for £7,200 / $6,999.
The Process X has a Fox 38 Performance GRIP fork and DPX2 Performance Elite shock, Shimano XT and Deore mix 12-speed drivetrain and Shimano Deore four-piston brakes. The 2021 Process X retails for £5,499 / $4,999.
2021 Kona Process 153
Being the Process X's slightly less extreme alloy counterpart, the 153 receives similar geometry updates to its bigger sibling plus comes in two wheel size options – two 29in bikes and one 27.5in model – across three models.
The 29in bikes are available in medium, large and extra-large sizes while the smaller 27.5in bike sizes range from small to extra-large.
Claimed to be 150g lighter than previous Process 153 models, the new 2021 bike has a 64.5-degree head-tube angle, 76.5-degree seat-tube angle (size large), 435mm chainstays and reach figures that range from 425mm on the small 27.5in model up to 515mm for the XL 29in-wheeled bike.
The 2021 Process 153 DL 29 tops the spec sheet with a RockShox Lyrik Select RC Charger fork and SuperDeluxe Select Plus rear shock, a SRAM SX, NX and GX 12-speed Eagle drivetrain mix and SRAM G2 RS brakes. The DL model costs £3,699 / $3,699.
The slightly more basic Process 153 29 is downgraded to a RockShox Yari RC Motion Control fork and Deluxe Select rear shock, SRAM SX and NX 12-speed Eagle drivetrain mix and basic SRAM Guide T brakes.
The 27.5in Process 153 shares its spec with the 29in model of the same name bar the 27.5in wheels and tyres.
Both the 29in and 27.5in Process 153 cost £2,99 / $2,999.
2021 Kona Honzo ESD
Headline news on the Honzo ESD is its geometry, which Kona says has been derived from the Process X enduro bike.
It's got a 63.5-degree head-tube angle when the frame's running the stock 150mm travel fork, 435mm chainstays and reach figures that start at 440mm for the size small and extend up to 525mm for the extra-large bike.
The seat-tube angle is 77.5 degrees across the sizes and the wheelbase figures range from 1,186mm up to 1,285mm.
Along with its progressive geometry, the Honzo ESD's kit helps define its hardcore hardtail credentials.
Up front there's a Marzocchi Bomber Z1 fork with GRIP damper and 150mm travel. It has a Shimano Deore/SLX/XT mix 12-speed drivetrain and Shimano Deore brakes. It's also specced with a Maxxis Assegai front tyre, Minion DHR II rear tyre combination.
The new 2021 Kona Honzo ESD retails for £2,699 / $2,699.
2021 Kona El Kahuna
Positioned as Kona's "utilitarian trekking bike" thanks to rack and mudguard mounts, 100mm of suspension travel and clearance for 29in tyres up to 2.35in wide, the El Kahuna electric mountain bike is based around Shimano's STEPS E6100 motor with a 504Wh battery.
It's specced with 10-speed Shimano Deore kit and a Suntour XCR34 fork. That means it should be happy tackling gentle trail centre loops or blasting fire roads, and the 504Wh battery means it will have plenty of juice for most adventures.
The 2021 Kona El Kahuna will retail for £2,599.
2021 Kona Splice-E
Best suited to tackling long days in the saddle exploring tarmac roads, whizzing to the shops or replacing the car for short journeys, the 2021 Splice-E uses Shimano's E6100 motor with a 504Wh battery.
It comes fitted with mudguards and lights as standard equipment and has mounts for rear pannier racks. It's also decked out in Shimano Alivio kit with 160mm hydraulic disc brakes and is available in four sizes from small to extra-large.
According to Kona, the 2021 Splice-E will cost £2,599.
