What has happened to Kona?

I have always been a fan of Kona, been riding them for over ten years, mainly Stinkys/Stabs but also a hardtail

Last one I bought was a 2007 Stinky Primo, very happy with it

But the 08 and 09 bikes don’t appeal to me, the Magic link adds weight and flex to the coilair frames and they haven’t changed the frame design of the big bikes. The frames look a bit old compared to the new Treks, etc

It is a shame to see such a great brand falling by the wayside as other manufacturers speed past them by pushing MTB technology on

What do you guys think?

I’m not a huge fan of kona but i really like this.

They haven’t produced anything ‘good’ for a long time. Their full suspension bikes have been overpriced and poorly made for a long time. They make good used buys however, as they’re worth nothing!

I think that’s a little harsh. Their suspension system works, why change it?

Overpriced hardly.

Poorly made? Some of the strongest bikes out there.

Solamanda do you know what your talking about or have Kona pi$$ed in your shoes?

I’ve had a stinky, it was s**t. I saw the light when I replaced it, the suspension is awful. A friends stinky bent after moderate use! The parts on them are poor quality for the price compared to other full bikes.

Halfords started selling them!

I love Kona’s. Ridden plenty, owned one. However I’ve got to agree with Solomanda on the parts thing. They are very often specced with lower range parts than other equivalent bikes. Also don’t like the new magic link.

Personally I would buy a NOS Dawg or Coiler frame and build it up my self. Sure it may cost a little more but would gift you a great bike.

One of the guys I used to work with has a Kona Stinky and I was shocked at how poorly equipped and built such a relatively expensive bike was.

The last Kona I owned was an ’93 Kona Lava Dome, which was actually pretty nice.

They’re just not niche enough for me.

Lies. I still ride an old Kona HT 😉

I was looking forward to seeing my mates Kona full suspension but was shocked at how cheap it looked, the pivots, linkage and overall finish looked much like lower end bikes. Shame as i like the brand Kona and think they have done some great bikes in the past.

Missus has Kona (pink) hardtail we seems fine though

I never got on with the feel of Kona but for many years, I respected them (if that’s the right phrase) as a bike. However, like Voodoo, who also once make great bikes, they seem to have lost their way somewhat. Are they both victims of the Halfords kiss of death?

It’s the cartoony graphics that spoil them for me – such a far cry from those early splatter-job hardtails!

And they don’t seem great value, spec-wise.

Had a quick go on a Dawg and it was quite good to ride though.

I thought the coilair with Magic Link looked pretty sweet when I saw one in Grizedale bike shop, but then I read about people having the cranks bash on the chainstays because of flex in the frame. 😕 Pretty major design flaw.

I think that Kona’s big bikes are a bit crude (apart from that magiclink nonsense) but that in turn means they are fairly bulletproof. I’ve lost count of the numbers of times I’ve stacked my Coiler but it still scrubs up rather well.

I have owned 3 Kona’s…

98 Lavadome, a great bike!
04 Coiler, impulse buy, but fun
06 Caldera, current ride and love it!

But none of the new kona’s appeal to me anymore….on the market for something different, but they do make great bikes…IMO 🙂

But none of the new kona’s appeal to me anymore.

I take it you’re not the official importer then?

😉

Not anymore, dont like the new colours etc 😉

Don’t think being stocked in halfords has affected anything – halfords don’t have any say in the spec like they do with voodoo/saracen/gt. Spec on the lower end ones is atrocious for the price though, don’t know why anyone would buy one unless on serious clearance.

The geo is pretty nasty on most of them as well, short tt and long seat tube. Maybe thats personal preference to a point. The one saving grace for me was the stab supreme, really really long with a nice short seat tube. Spot on for a lanky guy such as myself, I can have a long bike but keep the standover and sexy looks of a small!

Some brands keep their finger on the pulse and some don’t I guess it’s the way it goes. I can remember when the likes of Saracen and Ridgeback made drool worthy bikes. Right up there with the Specialized/Kona/Marin of the time.

What has Halfords got to do with it? Most stores I know of only sell a few of the lower end models.

It’s no secret that I am not a fan of Full Suspension bikes bar a handful but FS Konas look like something that British Eagle would be proud of. Such a shame since their mid 90s steel hardtails are absolutely beautiful and I love my 94 Cindercone SS to bits. It does indeed sound like they’ve lost their way at least in the looks dept. I can’t say I’ve ridden anything recent by them so opinion is based on appearance alone. Shallow I know, but it’s still an opinion.

I think Kona suffer because they are not one of the big boys ie Specialized Trek Giant so they cant get the deals on parts like they do but they are too big for the niche crowd

Apart from anything else, I can’t deny I am put off by the image of Kona – it just seems really childish. Don’t really like the logo/colours etc.

Im a big fan of the old hardtail konas…ie.lavadome,cindercone,kula
As for the clump frame and suspension set up…bad and dead feeling.
Defo not worth there cash now…

Defo need to go back to the drawing board or they will go down the swany.

Last years Hei Hei was one gorgeous bike – I think they’ve painted it s**t colours this year though…

Really like the look of their Scandium frames, I wonder if now they’ve taken the investment hit they might start speccing the bikes a bit better in years to come…

Mags don’t seem to have much bad to say about them either…

Being the current owner of an Explosif, a Le Roi and a Dawg (and god know how many other that have been sold) I must say that I love the geometry. I’m surprised that somebody commented on them being short in the TT ?

I agree that often the spec can be poor compared to say Spec but as others have said it down to buying power I guess. However, I would much prefer a long lasting frame with cheap bits on it to a cheap frame with expensive bits ! Only ever had one problem with a frame – my Le Roi and it was replaed with a complete new frame within days.

As for my Dawg – well I’m happy to chuck that off anything as it built like a brick house.

Must admit that things have gone a little astray but the new scandium frames are nice.

Well I’m a fan. I’ve got a 2007 Heihei custom build and it’s just fantastic. I can’t express how brilliant it is to thrash around an XC race course. As for the big bikes, well they look a little heavy for what they are sometimes, I dunno. When I replaced my stolen Patriot I looked but there didn’t seem to be anything quite so versatile in their lineup. Having said that, the Magic link seemed a great idea and kudos for innovating, but if it’s as flexy as mentioned above then that’s a shame. They should fix it tho for the future, you’d have thought.

If I could only ride one bike mind, it might well be a Kona Four. That looks sweet to me.

I also have a lovely Kona road bike which I like, and that reminds me of my favourite thing about Kona – the sheer variety of different bikes they make. Great stuff 🙂

Interesting comment guys

I think that their FR/DH bikes are very strong, but perhaps a bit dated and too heavy now. I rode a 2003 Kona Stab for 5 years, did many DH and FR miles and didn’t have any probs. The 07 Stinky Primo I now ride is superb at what it does, but at 47lbs, it sure isn’t light. I know that it can be lightened, but when you get a bike of rrp £2800, you don’t want to start spending more money to modify it

Usually when I am buying a new bike, I just looked at the Kona catalogue and picked one, but this time I researched the mtb market. I was after an all mountain bike for about £1K, the konas for that price were under specced compared to their competition, so I decided on a Cannondale Prophet which I’ve bought. One thing that attracted me to it was the single pivot. The thing that annoys me most about Konas is the pivot bearings(particularly the nylon bushes) needing replaced a few times a year if you do big miles, plus changing the main pivot bearing in a full suss Kona is one of the hardest things to do to a mountain bike i think

I hsve a 2003 entry level Kona hardtail and the frame is as good as new, it has taken much abuse and still shines up well and comes back for more, i love this little bike for xc

I still think Konas are one of the best riding bikes out there, ,just that they are now under-specced and over-weight for the money compared to their competition. Hopefully they will come out fighting for 2010 with a updated range/design

It is just me or do their big fs bikes look like they were designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel?

Did I read that correctly? 47 bloody pounds!!!!

Jesus!!!!!

Yes man, 47 lbs

Thats with DH tubes and Dual ply tyres. But it is good to know that when you pile into a rock garden and go off line a bit, you won’t be stopping to fix a puncture

But the frame weighs a tonne, it does have the DOPE brake arm also

Kona road/cross bikes – classy and understated, apart from the steel road race bikes, which are just classy!

Kona MTB’s – dog’s breakfast this year. Some of the colour schemes look like they were rejects from the design of the Raleigh Stryka/Boxer.
They have ALWAYS been expensive, but the spec/moolah ratio this year is unacceptable.

Agreed, is a shame.
I think they’d be better focusing more than trying to cover such a wide range.
They obviously don’t have the finances like Spesh / Trek etc.
I’d love an early 90’s Kona. Lusted after one back then, & still do now.

Kona may not be as big as Trek, Spesh and Giant – but other medium-sized bike companies manage to put together much better value bikes.

Wonder how they manage it but Kona can’t?

Jake the Snake is one of the most iconic bikes ever. Caldera has been one of the most balanced bikes on the market in recent times, good spec, great ride and often a nice paint job too.
The Unit was one of the first SS bikes to come from one of the bigger manufactures, still good imho.

And rightly pointed out by a fellow further up, have you seen those Steel road frames OMG! oh, i nearly forgot the Paddy Waggon, Cowan & Shonky. Kona’s rock.

I’d love an early 90’s Kona. Lusted after one back then, & still do now.

I’ve got one…. Had it (literally) man and boy.

My Kona wish list:

2007 Major Jake/Jake the Snake – still Easton Ultralight & one of the best looking bikes I’ve ever seen.
90’s Explosif – in metallic green. With silver bits, P2s & flat bars. I feel knackered just looking at one.
Last years Dawg Supreme.
The new Kapu or Haole.
Titanium Hei Hei.

thats it RS, they don’t like it up em’! the fightback starts here 8)

My second MTB was either going to be a Marin Palisades Trail (two tone grey with purple bits) or a classy green & grey Cinder Cone.
After annoying Mike Cookson with stupid questions over several weeks, I chose the Marin IIRC cos it had an alloy stem!
It was a great bike, fitted me perfectly and I miss it still, but I a bit of me still cries when I see a racy Kona old-school hardtail.

The mark-up on them must be huge!

http://www.mtbikers.com/StoreFront/products/viewBrand.do;jsessionid=A832FCA693E8FD3B2A76840DF15D02F0?id=153