Titus Motolite
For hardcore mountain and trail riders there are but a few bike manufacturers that get it right. Titus is one of them. With nearly 20 different models to chose from the folks over at Titus want you to have the bike that suits your needs perfectly; on trails and mountains that might be the tight and rugged Motolite Full Suspension model.Titus bills this bike as a trail model rather than a full mountain model, due in part to its aluminum frame. It is still light enough to get a good climb yet riders can really feel the weight on the descent, especially if the suspension and fork are not dialed in correctly. Titus uses a 6069 aluminum alloy for the Motolite making it strong and durable with the minimum amount of weight. Still, it is not carbon fiber or titanium.
Titus utilizes a licensed Horst Link suspension considered by many to be the best on the market, and learning how to properly adjust it to fit our riding style and terrain can make or break your ride. With the Motolite the overall tone of user reviews seems to hinge on the suspension.
Motolite buyers purchase the bike frame along with one of four different mountain bike kits supplying all the rest of the parts. With the least expensive Mountain Kit 1, you will get an aluminum seat post with a WTB Rocket Comp saddle while more expensive kits come with the carbon post and the Fizik Gobu XM saddle. Both posts and saddles are high quality and have good reputations in the business. The WTB model is lightweight and inexpensive with a premium leather cover and carbon channels, but if you plan to do more mountain than trail the carbon post and Fizik saddle will be kinder to your backside.
Kit 1 brakes and levers are Maguras Louise model, known for nice modulation and good stopping power. The Louise brakes are mid-range quality that hold up well under normal conditions. The only major complaint is a tendency for the master cylinder to wear out, causing leaks and brake fade. Keep an eye on yours and check them before hitting the trail.
Overall the Motolites various components are made of lightweight materials which compensate nicely for the 6.5 lb. frame weight. The total bike weight ends up coming in nearly a pound less than many of its in-class competitors, without sacrificing the quality of the components. The fork and rear shock are from Fox; rims, hubs, and spokes are from Mavic; tires are Keda Nevegal; the shift system is the SRAM X-7.
One last point about the Motolite, which is unusual for such a high-quality machine: riders complain of excessive chatter caused by the chain hitting the right side of the chainstay. One would think Titus testers would notice this and make sure it was corrected, but apparently not. It is not important enough to keep you from buying the bike, especially since some creative use of foam tape soles the problem, but it does remind us that there is no such thing as perfection. With the Motolite though, it is really close.
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