For this season, the all-rounders have been technically and visually refreshed. The most striking new feature is the deep grey hard anodised brake track, which makes the wheels look like full carbon wheels. Another new feature is that the wheels are now sold including tyres. Our test wheelset completed almost 2,000 kilometres, including rain and mountain pass descents. As always, the high directional stability and good power transmission were impressive. The beguiling boller sound of the 52 millimetre high rims is always a show, although they react quite sensitively to crosswinds.
However, we cannot confirm the improvement in braking performance promised by the rim treatment. To prevent damage to the grey surface, Mavic prescribes special green brake pads - with the same compound that SRAM has recently started using on its Red and Force brakes. They produce a bright buzzing noise on the file-like roughened brake track, similar to that of some carbon rims. The braking effect is also reminiscent of carbon rims. It starts softly and is easy to modulate, but lacks the final bite during harder braking manoeuvres. To compensate for this, quite high manual force is required. The loud squeaking of the pads was irritating at first, but this soon subsided. One drawback is the high pad wear, while the rim flanks were completely unimpressed. The Yksion tyres supplied with the bike bear the Mavic logo and have different rubber compounds at the front and rear. In the practical test, they impressed with good grip and smooth running; we didn't have a puncture. Also available are the Cosmic Carbone SR wheels without anodised rims and tyres, which are largely identical in construction but significantly cheaper at € 1,490.
PLUS stiff; aerodynamically good; abrasion-resistant brake track; proven hub technology; tyres and brake pads included
MINUS expensive; moderate braking behaviour; high pad wear; relatively heavy; susceptible to crosswinds
Price 1,850 Euro
Weight 784/925 grams (front/rear including rim tape without quick release)
Stiffness values 59/47 N/mm (front/rear)
Reference/Info www.mavic.com/de
