Bontrager XR3 Tyre
Trek’s in-house component brand, Bontrager, have certainly been stepping up their game lately with the aim of offering aftermarket components and accessories that appeal, not just to Trek owners, but to the broader MTB community (see our review of their Lithos Helmet on page 42 for another example). Over the last two years they’ve also completely redesigned their tyre range and we’ve been giving the second most aggressive trail-oriented tread, the all new XR3, a caning over the last few months. It’s available in a range of casings and sizes for both 26 and 29-inch wheels. We’ve ridden both the 2.35-inch wide Expert ($60) and the 2.2-inch Team Issue ($70) variants in the 26-inch format.
With their purpose built tubeless ready (TLR) casing and bead, the Team Issue tyres aired up easily with a track pump, sealed almost instantly and did not seep air at all. Their 120tpi casing has reinforced sidewalls to offer extra cut protection as well as better bead security and cornering support when run at low pressures (throughout our test we typically ran tubeless at around 25psi).
The Expert tyres, on the other hand, definitely needed a compressor to get them to seat, and for the first week they needed the air topping up before every ride (over time this has diminished to a weekly air pressure check). The slightly thicker 60tpi casing, whilst not reinforced like their Team Issue TLR stable mates, have also resisted burping and although the sidewalls are showing plenty of scuffs they’re still structurally sound.
Both versions of the XR3 run very true to size; for example our 2.35-inch version measured 58mm across both the casing and the tread at 30psi on a 21mm (internal) rim, which is exactly as claimed. Given the size and generous tread design, the actual weight of 643g is all the more impressive; it’s very much at the lighter end of the spectrum for this type of tyre.
All-Round Rubber
The XR3 is pegged as a ‘great all-around tire for people who ride in varied conditions’ and our experience pretty much backs that up. We’ve used them front and rear on both a 130mm trail bike and a 160mm all-mountain rig. They’ve been used through the dust and heat of summer and into the mud of autumn, on rocks and loam and in sand and just about everything in between. In this time there’s one adjective which keeps coming to mind; predictable. Predictable grip, predictable cornering, predictable braking.
It doesn’t seem to matter what mix of surfaces you ride on, the XR3s find traction without feeling like you’re dragging a tractor tread around when the trail is buff and smooth, and they do it uphill, downhill and around the bends. Yes, there are tyres on the market with more outright grip but they mostly carry a weight or speed (and often price) penalty—as a fast, do-it-all tyre the XR3s have certainly impressed. In the car tuning game there’s a saying that ‘there’s no substitute for cubes’; we’ll echo that sentiment and say that when it comes to tyres there’s no substitute for a big contact patch. Given that there’s only about 50g weight difference between the 2.2 and 2.35 versions, we’d recommend going for the fatter option on all but hardpacked trails; the greater volume will let you run less pressure without the risk of rim dings.
The XR3s are most at home on dry to damp trails, but even in a bit of mud they do surprisingly well for their relatively low tread height. They do take on a bit of the sludgy stuff and you’ll need to get up a reasonable amount of speed before they’ll spin themselves clean, but despite this they continue to bite better than they should. Climbing traction is probably one of their strongest points; they hold on tenaciously well past the point where you’d expect them to throw in the towel and break free. There’s no dead spot when you lay your bike over from centre to edge blocks, and there’s enough support for the tread to prevent any sense of squirming when pushed into corners. It’s also easy to feel when the XR3s are about to break free and drift, and it’s easy to control the slide once initiated. That being said, if you ride at the aggressive side of the all-mountain spectrum and your trails tend more towards soft than hardpacked, we’d probably go for something more aggressive as a front tyre and save the XR3 for the back.
Acceleration is definitely helped by the low weight but the shortish, moderately spaced and slightly ramped tread blocks also play a part here, striking an excellent balance between traction and rolling resistance. Tread wear on the XR3s has been a little better than expected, and given that they do without a fancy multi-density rubber compound we think that Bontrager have struck an excellent balance between grip and durability. The side knobs of our 2.35 rear tyre are showing some signs of feathering, but there’re no chunks missing or tears and the centre tread is holding up well.
Suitable front and rear use on a trail bike (or on the rear for a more aggressive rig), the XR3 is one of those tyres which goes about its job of keeping you rubber side down with an absolute minimum of fuss in a wide range of situations. The reasonable price, especially for the ‘Team’ version, makes these a proposition very much worth considering when you want to forget about your tyre choice and just concentrate on riding.
Trek Bicycle Corporation www.bontrager.com
