Santa Cruz Hightower 3 is designed for all-terrain riding. Up, down, along, around and over on trails, tracks and anything fun.

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By ben_haworth

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Details of new Santa Cruz Hightower 3

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£5.4k starting price – that can’t be for the SX-equipped ‘AL D’ model, surely not?

And yes, stereotypical first post about a new SC is mentioning price 😀

MAy well be expensive… but DAMN it’s nice… lovely !

Never thought I’d say this, but I’m overcome with apathy over it.

£5.4k starting price – that can’t be for the SX-equipped ‘AL D’ model, surely not?

And yes, stereotypical first post about a new SC is mentioning price

Don’t forget the rockshox 35. On a 5 grand alloy bike. 🤨

Licence to print money.

**** shysters.

£5.4k starting price – that can’t be for the SX-equipped ‘AL D’ model, surely not?

For the basic carbon model. Alu models not yet released.

You could get an Ebike for that.
😜

Another down tube storage box; it’s the  next industry “must have” I think  I Have one on the Spesh Enduro, and hardly ever use it.

This article really isnt clear on what the starting price relates to. Is it the alloy that isn’t yet available or the C R?

One is steep, the other is just nuts.

Santa Cruz are like assholes, everyone seems to have one now a days. Personally I don’t get their popularity as over on the west coast of the states, most people view them as mediocre.

The prices are ridiculous, more fool for the person who buys one. Better spec out there for a lot less money. Industry has gone completely bonkers.

Someone will probably be offended by my opinion 😏

Another down tube storage box; it’s the next industry “must have” I think I Have one on the Spesh Enduro, and hardly ever use it.

Wahayyy. Finally ground a post from nickc that I completely agree with.

Vile things

so mid, as the yoof say

Personally I don’t get their popularity as over on the west coast of the states, most people view them as mediocre

Really? As a recent owner I’ve discovered the mtbr forum to be a good source of info (when I was looking for shock clearances etc) and the yanks seem to fap over them as much as the brits

So expensive. But I guess they have to factor in all the warranty claims and bearings they are having to give away.

The bikes are on the websites, the 5.4k bike is the lower end carbon R model, with NX/Lyrik base/etc, it’s not moved up in price from the v2 hightower i don’t think.

From the looks of it, it’s very minor geometry tweaks and 5mm more travel, the v2 was pretty much doing the job, so no need for a revamp.

Really?

Kind of. Yanks/Canadians definitely have a slightly different perception of what is a ’boutique’ brand. When I was over there, they were very jealous of my Commençal which was rare and expensive over there (At the time it was cheap and common here), whereas SC were quite common there. Nowadays I feel like SC are pretty common here too.

Perhaps spending £7k on a well-equipped SC might make sense. But spending £5.5k on a poorly-equipped one absolutely does not IMHO (If the £5.5k price tag refers to the C R model). The S spec looks passable to me, but we don’t know how much that will cost.

I read on the SC website something along the lines of “An aluminium version of the V2 frame will continue to be available”. I can’t find it now. Since the Alu ones won’t come with a glovebox and the geo updates are so minor, it wouldn’t be too surprising if they just stuck with the same Alu frames (+/- new paint)…

This article really isnt clear on what the starting price relates to. Is it the alloy that isn’t yet available or the C R?

It’s the C R.

Another down tube storage box; it’s the  next industry “must have” I think  I Have one on the Spesh Enduro, and hardly ever use it.

It’s a nice to have, not a deal breaker.  I keep my OneUp pump/tool and a tube in mine.  Don’t often need to go in there but saves having them strapped to the frame as I ride packless.

most people view them as mediocre

Un-substantiated sweeping statement of the thread.

The prices are ridiculous, more fool for the person who buys one. Better spec out there for a lot less money.

Don’t disagree regarding price, but if we all bought the cheapest, best specced bikes we’d all be riding round on European mail order bikes moaning about lack of customer service / warrantee support.

The S spec looks passable to me, but we don’t know how much that will cost.

Will be about £6.2-£6.4 based on the MTv2 price.

Crikey, the flip chip is really for micro-adjustment, isn’t it?

Am I reading the charts wrong, or are you really getting 0.3 degrees of difference in head and seat angles, and a whole 3mm of bb drop difference?

I’m fairly sure I’d struggle to notice that.

I looked at the prices. Hightower 2 CC X01 £7299, price for the same spec Hightower 3 = £8299.

No thanks. Besides most S.C. owners I know have had warranty issues with them and had frames replaced. Granted they’re lovely bikes and warranty was good, but even so.

thanks. Besides most S.C. owners I know have had warranty issues with them and had frames replaced. Granted they’re lovely bikes and warranty was good, but even so.

Thats why they are so expensive. They have to factor in the numbers they will end up warranty replacing

Yanks/Canadians definitely have a slightly different perception of what is a ’boutique’ brand. When I was over there, they were very jealous of my Commençal which was rare and expensive over there (At the time it was cheap and common here), whereas SC were quite common there

They are a triumph of marketing over substance, they are part of one of the biggest bike companies out there. It’s like suggesting Specialized or Trek are boutique. Hats off to them for managing to pull this marketing trick off.

From the looks of it, it’s very minor geometry tweaks and 5mm more travel

Travel hasn’t changed, originally came with a 52.5 stroke shock giving 140mm but the 2nd year was a 55 stroke giving 145mm so assuming it can be used with either size

down tube storage box

Is this code/flowery w*nk marketing for “where the battery goes on our e-bike version?

I guess I’m not the only one thinking the bike industry is becoming absolutely sickening with prices and marketing ploys.

Travel hasn’t changed, originally came with a 52.5 stroke shock giving 140mm but the 2nd year was a 55 stroke giving 145mm so assuming it can be used with either size

Same shock, travel spacer removed AFAIK. That’s what I did with mine in any case..

Full bikes take the proverbial.. But with component parts costing the earth these days what would you expect from a business trying to make a profit after wild fires and covid ..

Frame is the only option when looking at these and at £3599 its cheaper that a fair few companies and with better response times.
Off to check Treks slash frame pricing for a laugh …

They are a triumph of marketing over substance, they are part of one of the biggest bike companies out there. It’s like suggesting Specialized or Trek are boutique. Hats off to them for managing to pull this marketing trick off.

to be fair, they were a tiny company making and still frames in the USA while Spec and Trek were big companies. they’ve not been part of Pon for all that long. i think their cool reputation comes from their early days, rather than a marketing department fabricating a back story.

that isn’t to say the prices aren’t very high. i’m amazed that people pay what they pay for a specialized.

Same shock, travel spacer removed AFAIK. That’s what I did with mine in any case..

Probably, mine came with the 55 stroke tho

dont forget the US dollar has strenghened from $1 = 70p to $1 = 80p in the last 12 months hence oil and santa cruz bikes are now more expensive.

the Maroon aka ‘Translucent Purple’ colour looks great online, be nice to see it in the flesh

I guess I’m not the only one thinking the bike industry is becoming absolutely sickening with prices and marketing ploys.

You know you don’t actually have to buy one, don’t you? 🤷‍♂️

I can’t afford a ferrari (or a SC for that matter) but I don’t get upset when a new one comes along…

The ‘bike industry’ is just that – an industry. It’s not the third sector where they operate as non profits…

They’ll sell each and every one of them I’ll bet.

Is this code/flowery w*nk marketing for “where the battery goes on our e-bike version?”

A few bike brands are making their ebikes look normal by making their normal bikes look like ebikes. It’s a good tactic… it’s working on me anyway… having to look two or three times to identify which I’m looking at. Specialized are ahead of the game, but they are not alone.

reassuringly expensive – on my 7th santa cruz and absolutely love the way they ride – always buy secondhand though from original owners who haven’t used them much so that keeps the cost down – never had any issues in 20 years.
not a fan of the glove box though.

It appears the Santa Cruz photocopier has been in overdrive again…

Looks the exact same as all the other bikes in their range save for the colour.

I like their bikes and the way they act as a company, but the last few years it looks like their design has gotten a bit lazy and they’re just resting on their laurels and using the name to keep sales going rather than producing fresh innovating designs like some of their competitors have.

Suspect they may start to struggle. The base spec is truly terrible (disposable hubs at over £5k). How many halo product AXS reserve builds do they actually sell at RRP to support themselves and stif?

How many halo product AXS reserve builds do they actually sell at RRP to support themselves and stif?

Truckloads.

to be fair, they were a tiny company making and still frames in the USA while Spec and Trek were big companies. they’ve not been part of Pon for all that long.

THe carbon frames are made in the Far East like everyone else’s. For US made bikes the components are bolted on in the local market.  Pon took over in 2015 so plenty long enough for them to have made all the changes they wanted to

Hungrymonkey,

For me, money isn’t an issue. I don’t know how you came to that conclusion mate. For what it’s worth, I’m in a well paid career earning significantly above the median salary. I’m grateful I can say that.

Santa Cruz have never interested me.I wouldn’t buy one simply because the components are average on most new models and they are too common for my liking. Reminds me of Burberry or G-Star raw in the fashion world.

For 4.7k I was able to build myself a 9.5kg xc rocket with Rockshox Sid worldcup ultimate race days, Sram XX1, AXS shifting etc. Narrative you ask? Shop around, you’ll get a lot more for your money.

If someone likes Santa Cruz and gets a Santa Cruz, that’s fine. Just not for me buddy. I prefer something custom built or not as common. Personally I like uniqueness.

Personally I like uniqueness.

So you bought a Specialized?

THe carbon frames are made in the Far East like everyone else’s. For US made bikes the components are bolted on in the local market. Pon took over in 2015 so plenty long enough for them to have made all the changes they wanted to

sorry, i was meaning santa cruz’s cool reputation was made when they were a small company making bikes in the USA, as opposed to it being simply a marketing exercise.

prices are crazy, however.

Suspect they may start to struggle. The base spec is truly terrible (disposable hubs at over £5k). How many halo product AXS reserve builds do they actually sell at RRP to support themselves and stif?

agree, truckloads.

the real question is how many base spec models do they sell?

rather than producing fresh innovating designs like some of their competitors have

They have size specific chainstays, UDH, fully guided internal cables, integrated chainslap guard and downtube protector, threaded BB, easily user servicable suspension, on-trend but not ground breaking geometry including lowish seat tubes and head tubes that grow with the size.
And now a Swat box, which while they certainly arent innovators, it is far from a default feature of carbon full suss bikes currently.

what are they missing, a high pivot? They have possibly missed a trick with coil incompatibility on the new hightower though.