Kona is Back With Updated Bikes

Kona has had one heck of a summer. First, a tumultuous Sea Otter prompted concerns about their future and resulted in this heart-felt compilation of reader experiences. Then, there was the excellent news that the brand’s original founders had bought back Kona and had big plans for the future. And now, Kona has two new-ish bikes ready for the masses just as summer gets into full stride. We’re planning on swinging a leg over a new Process soon and following up with a full review, but for now, here are the details.

Kona Process 153 in a Nutshell

• Travel: 153 mm (rear) 160 mm (front)
• Wheel Size: 29” or 29/27.5” with a built-in flip chip
• Frame Material: Carbon or aluminum
• Frame Sizes: S-XL
• Head Tube Angle: 64.5°

Kona Process 134 in a Nutshell

• Travel: 134 mm (rear) 140 mm (front)
• Wheel Size: 29” or 29/27.5” with a built-in flip chip
• Frame Material: Carbon or aluminum
• Frame Sizes: S-XL
• Head Tube Angle: 65.5°

What’s new?

There are three primary bullet points for these revised bikes. First, they get a new rear triangle (styled very similarly to the Process X ) that includes SRAM’s UDH for Transmission compatibility, along with a flip chip to compensate for either 29” or 27.5” rear wheels without affecting geometry.

Second, said geometry gets some subtle tweaks and updates across the board. Reaches get longer, stacks get taller, and the bikes get just a touch more “modern.” There’s also a new Small size for the Process 153 so it will fit a broader range of riders. There’s more space in front triangles for water bottles, an accessory mount under the top tube, better hose routing (integrated internal with the option to run brakes moto style on carbon frames, and fully external on aluminum frames!) along with shorter seat tubes and deeper seat post insertion for longer droppers.

Finally, both bikes get an updated suspension kinematic that allows them to be run with either air or coil shocks.

Geometry

The last-gen Process 134 came out five years ago and while it was longer, lower, slacker, and had a steeper seat tube than the old Process 111, typical geometry numbers in this class have continued to evolve. Looking at the size Large, the new 134 has a 5 mm longer reach (480 mm), 10 mm taller stack (625 mm), half a degree slacker head tube (65.5°) 30 mm shorter seat tube (420 mm), a 2° steeper seat tube angle (76.7°), and 8 mm longer chainstays across all sizes (435 mm). Lots of small changes that make for a more current-fitting bike.

The Process 153 has even fewer substantial changes: it keeps the same 480 mm reach in the size Large, and the same 64.5° head tube angle. The biggest difference is in seat tube length, with the Large cutting 30 mm off the old version to be 420 mm.

The net result: Pretty modern geometry that’s not really pushing the envelope in any direction. By the numbers both bikes look like solid all-rounders that don’t put an outsized priority on descending capability.

Frame Details

The story here is pretty similar to the new geometry: Small updates to modernize these bikes. UDH compatibility is a no-brainer, and I’m stoked to see the mullet flip chip on all models. Small rear wheels are fun, even on short travel bikes.

Similarly, it’s great to see more refined internal cable routing on the carbon models, and moto and European riders will appreciate the considerations made for left hand-rear braking. On the alloy models, external routing is a great choice. More affordable, easy to work on bikes, please!

I appreciate the improved water bottle clearance and it’s nice to see top tube accessory mounts, although I think there’s still a lot of unrealized potential there—it doesn’t feel like the mountain bike industry has fully decided what to do with those yet. Finally, all Process models now share bearings and pivots, which should make it easier on dealers and customers looking to keep their linkages running smoothly.

Build Options

Each new Process will be available in four builds: the $5,499 CR DL is the top-level carbon model, with GX Transmission, Rockshox Ultimate level suspension, and G2 RSC brakes. The $4,499 CR is the more affordable carbon model with mechanical NX/GX Eagle drivetrains, SRAM G2 R brakes, and Fox Performance level suspension.

The $2,999 DL is the nicer aluminum model with a SX/GX/NX mix drivetrain, Rockshox Select level suspension, and G2 RS brakes. Finally, the base aluminum models come with Rockshox Yari/Recon forks, SRAM DB8 or Level brakes, and Microshift Advent X drivetrains. The base 153 retails for $2,499, while the 134 costs $1,899

For Now

No, these aren’t groundbreaking game changing bikes decked in breathless superlatives. Instead, these are reasonable, logical updates to these existing models. It’s great to see Kona releasing new bikes and we can’t wait to see what they’ve got coming down the pipe.