It has been long rumoured that the famous US bling-brand of Intense have had plans for all new models for their 2017 line-up. We got our hands on one of these bikes, that of the Intense ACV a couple of months ago and have been putting this big tyred beauty through its paces ever since. We were interested to see how the bike with the 2.8 wide tyres and a new JS-Tuned suspension design perform, but were we impressed?
Our test rider knows all too well about running an Intense, having ran the original MK1 2014 Carbine 29er for a season of hard riding and racing, where this bike was well and truly put through its paces. Whether you like them or not, plus-sized bikes now feature in the lineups of most of the big bike brands and they are here to stay. Now Intense have entered the plus-size game with this fantastic looking new bike, offering two build options, a Foundation build and (as we have here) a higher specification Pro build.
Specification of the Intense ACV (Pro build)
The ACV frame features Intense’s monocoque UD carbon front and rear with alloy top link, sporting fully internal cable routing, integrated frame protection, 148 mm x 12 mm rear axle and also comes with the options of 115 mm or 130 mm travel. Forks are the tried and tested Rockshox Pike RCT3 27.5+ with 150 mm of travel and a 110 mm x 12 mm axle. The shock is a matching Rockshox Monarch RT3 Debonair (200 mm x 51 mm). The Wheels are built with 28-hole DT Swiss 240 hubs and DT Swiss M1600 spline 27.5+ rims. Shifting is taken care of with use of the ever popular SRAM X1 11 speed. No expense has been spared on the cranks with the very sexy carbon Raceface Next SL. It’s great to see more and more manufacturers using the very comfortable Fabric Scoop Radius Elite saddle. Seat post dropping will be done by the most popular 125 mm Rockshox Reverb Stealth. Renthal bars are fitted (a popular racer’s choice) in the form of their Fatbar alloy 760 mm with 20 mm rise. Stopping is done via the fantastic SRAM Guide RS with 180 mm front rotor and 160 mm rear. The weight of the ACV comes in at a very respectable 12.7 kg (28 lbs)
Geometry of the Intense ACV
| Size | S | M | L | XL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wheelbase | 1146 mm | 1172 mm | 1199 mm | 1225 mm |
| Top Tube | 573 mm | 599 mm | 624 mm | 651 mm |
| Chainstay | 435 mm | 435 mm | 435 mm | 435 mm |
| Head Tube | 94 mm | 102 mm | 114 mm | 119 mm |
| Heat Tube Angle | 66.2° | 66.2° | 66.2° | 66.2° |
| Reach | 395 mm | 416 mm | 438 mm | 465 mm |
| Standover | 620 mm | 628 mm | 640 mm | 645 mm |
| BB Height | 334 mm | 334 mm | 334 mm | 334 mm |
| Seat Tube Angle | 71° | 71° | 71° | 71° |
| Seat tube Length | 433 mm | 458 mm | 484 mm | 509 mm |
Feel of the Intense ACV
Immediately we were taken back a bit by the general look and quality of this new ACV. Gone are any signs of excessive flex in the rear end, switching to 1×11 only has allowed the use of a new sturdy swingarm strut. Bearings too have improved massively, with through axle shafts in the linkages replacing the separate-sided ones of the past. Basically there is less to go wrong here with much more support offered from a one-piece tube on the linkage through one side of the frame to the other, thus offering a lot more stiffness in the rear end and better bearing life. The general ride out on flat trails matched the sleek look, with way more rolling speed achieved by the fat tyres than expected; we would say just slightly slower on flat ground than that of a decent short-travel 29er, but way quicker than standard 27.5. For a large frame the sizing felt good for our 178 cm tester, considering plus-sized bikes are sized around the category of fun bike and not an ‘out and out’ long wheel based enduro race weapon.
Climbing on the Intense ACV
As you all know, Rockshox Pikes and Rockshox Monarch come equipped with climb switches, but we found these to be virtually unnecessary, as the ease of climbing with the bigger tyres was phenomenal. After our first day’s testing the ACV we decided to ride with forks and shock in open setting all the time, never feeling the need to apply any climb switches. As suspected on climbs, grip was way better than standard 27.5 tyres on the big 2.8’s. The only time this was not the case, was when either stood up on loose shale or in slick slimey mud, where the back wheel would spin if pushed too hard. We have been informed that the Maxxis Ikons fitted to this pre-production model will not be the production tyre fitted, in it’s place will be the new, more aggressive Maxxis Rekon. Also as climbing moved towards the technical end of the scale where rocks or roots came into play, this was where the bigger tyres came into their own, as the 18 psi pressure aided the rubber to wrap around obstacles, rather than slip across the top. As things got steep we did find that the slacker 71° seat tube angle could make for a bit of involuntary wheelieing, where the rider needed to get those elbows down and bum perched right on the tip of the saddle to make the climb. In general the ACV climbs really well though and was really surprising considering the lack of tyre knobbles and 66.2° head angle and 150 mm of fork travel added to the taller tyres.
Descending on the Intense ACV
This bike was most surprising on the downhills. We wouldn’t say it was the fastest bike out there when pointed downwards, but definitely one of the most fun. The fat tyres and 130 mm rear/150 mm front of travel mixed with the 1199 mm wheelbase and quite short 438 mm reach makes for massive amounts of fun. This thing doesn’t just pop off jumps it leaps like a bike possessed with the soul of an antelope on speed! The fun/grin factor of this bike really is 10/10 as you fly down most terrains popping off every single mound and gripping to any un-bermed turns with the precision of an ice skater. Hit medium sized rock sections or big areas of roots and the large tyres just flatten them out, as if they don’t exist, only the usual rattle of the chain against the hard protectors giving any sign of the bike complaining. This bike turns and pops so well in the right conditions. But on the gnarlier more DH type of trail is where we found ourselves reach the limits of a plus bike. With our tester being a full-on racer he decided to try and take it out of its comfort zone onto slimy steep mud and rougher DH style courses. In the slimy mud these tyres can lose traction in a big way, where grip is lost completely without the use of ruts and berms. To improve matters we fitted the burly and much more DH-ready Surly Dirt Wizard 3.0 tyre, weighing in at 1200 g, this certainly sorted the mud problem out for the front end and offered tons more support, but we did fear running two of these beasts would be too much when it came to drag and rolling weight. When it comes to the proper rough stuff, this is where you can start to feel the larger tyres bounce, as their natural large air volume can counter the damping effects of the bikes suspension; although we have to remember here, we feel this is not sold as an out-and-out race bike!
Improvements we would make to the Intense ACV
This is one great looking and feeling plus-bike and we wouldn’t change much to be fair. We would maybe make it available with a grippier front tyre for the muckier of terrain and have the built-in chainstay protector cover all of the chainstay right up to the front, where we suffered a bit of frame rub (Intense have informed us they are already looking into this)
Should I buy the Intense ACV
Well if you are looking for a plus bike and you wanted a dual floating pivot design (new JS-Tuned system) and the gorgeous sleek looks of Intense, then you will certainly stand out upon this unusually coloured model. Price wise, well you know you won’t get a cheap Intense, but at £ 5399.99 (€ 6482.00 converted) this is about a standard price for US quality and branding and for your money you are getting a good build with no poor quality or unreliable components. This is definitely not an out and out racer’s bike, but if you just like to ride with your buddies, jump off everything, hit turns fast on big rides out, then you won’t go far wrong with the ACV.
Bottom Line of the Intense ACV
Intense really do seem to have made some excellent revisions to the earlier generation carbon frames in looks, detail and rear stiffness. This is one hell of a great looking bike and one of the most fun bikes we have ever ridden. Looking closely at the design and shape of the tubing plus the quality of the paint’s finish it is evident that Intense are well and truly back in the game with this model and we imagine they will take the plus size market by storm when this bike hits the shops.
For more information visit intensecycles.com.
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Words: Photos: Isac Paddock
