2012 Trek Fuel EX 9.8

Quick Review: 2012 Trek EX 9.8 and Remedy 9.8 Mountain Bikes

This past weekend, I was able to throw a leg over the new 2012 Trek Fuel EX 9.8 and Remedy 9.8 carbon mountain bikes. Here is a quick review of what I thought about the bikes that was backed up by a local test riding fanatic.

2012 Trek Fuel EX 9.8

2012 Trek Fuel EX 9.8

For 2012, the Trek Fuel EX (120mm of travel front and rear) gets several notable changes. The head tube angle is brought out slacker an additional 1 degree and you get the addition of the new Fox 32 Float with the new Trek DCRV air spring bringing their rear suspension valving technology to the front of the bike. The idea is to give the rider of the Fuel EX a more stable descender while not taking away from the pedaling and climbing ability that the buyers of the Fuel EX lineup love. The 9.8 is a full carbon version of the EX that is kitted out with Shimano’s latest 3×10 XT component group and XTR rear derailleur.

Thoughts on the 2012 Trek Fuel EX 9.8

The first thing you really notice about the Fuel EX 9.8 is its small bump compliance. While you ride, the smaller roots and rocks seem to disappear under the bike as the ABP (Active Braking Pivot) and DCRV rear shock go to work. Even over longer rock gardens at medium speed, the bike stays completely level while the suspension does its job. Trek has done a great job of dialing in this bike for that kind of riding.

While this year’s Trek Fuel EX is slightly plusher than the previous model, you still do ramp up some in the suspension curve as you use the bike’s 120mm of rear travel. The DCRV rear shock helps to keep it linear given the XC travel spec, but when you hit bigger drops and obstacles, you will prevent hard bottom out due to this slight ramping at the end of the stroke.

The DCRV Fox 32 Float is an improvement over the stock Fox. Fox front forks have been known to have a ramping curve and the DCRV valving does a great job at flattening that out and creating a more linear, plush fork. On some DCRV rear shocks, the bike actually feels like it has more usable travel than spec’ed. I was hoping this would translate to the front fork, but all it really did was make it as plush as the RockShox forks we have been testing as of late. While it doesn’t give us that “added travel” feel, it is an upgrade over the stock setup.

Overall the Fuel EX 9.8 from Trek fro 2012 is a solid trail bike for riders looking to keep a fast climber that is still trail riding capable. The slightly slacker head tube angle helped on steeper descents, but it also made the bike turn a little bit slower over last year’s model. This is a reasonable tradeoff in my opinion, but it will take some adjustment if you are used to the other setup. Where the Fuel EX 9.8 really shines is with its small bump compliance. Everything just seems to disappear under the bike when you are just pedaling along.

2012 Trek Remedy 9.8

2012 Trek Remedy 9.8

Next, we threw a leg over the new 2012 Trek Remedy 9.8. Just like the Fuel EX 9.8, the new Remedy gets a 1 degree slacker head tube angle over last year and gets the new DCRV valving in its 150mm travel Fox 32 Float. Also like the Fuel EX 9.8, this all carbon Remedy is spec’ed out with the latest 3×10 Shimano XT lineup with the XTR rear derailleur. Overall weight was around 28 pounds from what we could see on the test rig and that is pretty light for a 150mm travel frame and fork.

Thoughts on the 2012 Trek Remedy 9.8

When you throw a leg over the Trek Remedy 9.8, it really feels like a bigger version of the Fuel. Although, some of that is probably mental as you can barely even tell a difference between the two when they are sitting side by side with the same component spec and color scheme. That is where most of the similarities end…

That same great small bump compliance that graced the Fuel EX is gone in the Remedy. With multiple runs over rock and root sections of trail, the Remedy didn’t keep that same flat bike, working suspension feeling…you get more feedback from the trail and the suspension setup is not as plush. After multiple air pressure changes in the tires and suspension, we still weren’t able to duplicate the plush Fuel EX feeling. The ride was harsh for a 150mm travel mountain bike.

The degree slacker head tube angle did help a little bit with downhill stability, but I felt it could have been let out even just a little bit more. This 150mm travel mountain bike is supposed to be the marriage between 140mm travel trail bikes and 160mm travel AM rigs…and it really just feels like a taller Fuel EX without the plushness. By slackening the HT out just a little bit more and bringing that small bump compliance back into the curve, the rider would feel like they were sitting in the bike instead of on top of it and it would be a more capable trail/AM setup. Maybe…if you throw a new Fox Talas 36 on the front…you could coerce this bike into that stance.

The build quality and overall looks of the bike are outstanding with well thought out cable routing for the seat post and components and I love the new black carbon/green color scheme. With the Remedy, I really just feel like Trek built a bike they knew they could sell instead of building this bike the way it really needs to be setup. This is an XC 150mm frame that I wouldn’t feel as comfortable on with big mountain runs. My guess is that most of the purchasers of this bike are riding more XC oriented type trails instead of ones that actually require 150mm of usable suspension travel.

(Note: From what I could tell on the Remedy test bike, it was in the 67.5 degree head tube angle setting. According to reports, the link is adjustable to lower the BB height 10mm and slacken the HT to 67 degrees)

Overall: The 2012 Trek Trail Bikes

Black is the new black for 2012. The new bikes from Trek are showing progression by continuing the trend of slacker geometry while keeping climbing abilities. The bike that really shines out of the lineup is the Fuel EX. That small bump absorption is fantastic and it creates a fast a flowy riding experience that translates very well onto more XC and trail type mountain bike trails.

The Remedy is supposed to be the bigger brother to the Fuel that is more capable for technical riding, but I just didn’t get that feeling out of the bike. The degree slacker head tube angle is a step in the right direction (67.5 degrees in the bikes current setting)…but I felt like 66.5 degres or even 66 degrees like the Stumpjumper EVO from Specialized (145mm of rear travel) would have really set this bike loose given a plusher suspension platform at 150mm of travel. If it was a 140mm travel mountain bike, the 67 degrees (adjustable to via link) would have probably fit in perfectly.

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