LIV INTRIGUE ADVANCED 1
£ 4,199 Light, nimble and playful with few compromises
While you may have seen Liv’s MTB ambassador Rae Morrison riding a 160mmtravel Hail enduro bike, the 140mm Intrigue is the burliest option available to British buyers. Planted on nimble 650b wheels, its carbon frame helps to create the lightest bike on test and it boasts confidence-inspiring suspension.
The frame
Thanks to its carbon fibre front triangle – made with a layup created specifically for women – the Liv is the lightest bike on test, at 12.73kg. Saving another few grams, the rocker link is made of carbon too. The Intrigue is available in XS, small and medium, but you can’t buy a large in the UK. For our 5ft 5in (165cm) tester this was OK, but taller riders may find the cockpit a little cramped.
Liv’s geometry isn’t especially extreme or progressive and the dimensions are in common with classic trail bikes. While it’s not the longest bike here in terms of reach (432mm, medium), the Intrigue does have the lengthiest effective top tube, offering a good amount of room for pedalling. This bike definitely sits more on the playful and easy-handling side of things, and it can accommodate tyres up to 2.6in wide to roll through rock gardens with confidence.
The kit
Along with the frame, the Giant TRX1 Composite carbon wheels are the lightest on test. Although the head angle isn’t the slackest here (66.5 degrees), Liv encourage descending by speccing a burly, 150mm-travel Fox 36 Performance Elite fork up front. This works well in conjunction with the Fox DPX2 Performance shock, which is sensitive to small bumps, providing a smooth ride and lots of grip at the back end.
It’s a nice touch that the wheels come set up tubeless out of the box. The SRAM GX Eagle drivetrain is a decent mid-range performer and we had no issues with it. Although the SRAM G2 brakes work solidly in all conditions and the contact-point adjustment is a great addition, they can’t match the braking power of the Shimano XTs on the Canyon.
While we’re being fussy, we don’t like the way the cables are left quite long, creating a bit of an untidy mess around the handlebar. Also, while we complained about the short 100mm dropper on last year’s model, we couldn’t get the 150mm post supplied this year low enough in the frame to have the saddle at the right height for pedalling. For us, a 125mm post would strike the best balance of drop and length.
The ride
The first thing you notice with this bike is how incredibly light it is. Whether you’re unloading it from the car or throwing it around corners, it feels effortless. Combined with the 650b wheels, this makes for an agile ride. A middling 66.5-degree head angle gives it a satisfyingly direct steering feel for composed handling.
It may not be the biggest or most aggressive bike on test, but the Liv feels more stable on the downhills than the Canyon (the other 650bwheeled bike here), thanks to its longer chainstays and reach, and smooth suspension. With its stiff, 36mm-stanchion chassis, the fork allows you to hit rougher tracks just that little bit more confidently.
The rear suspension is quite sensitive, which translates to good rear-wheel traction, but at the expense of some pedalling efficiency. We had to use the shock lockout to restrict pedal bob, and pressure has to be carefully balanced to maintain enough sag for the downhills without introducing too much suspension movement when climbing.
The Intrigue isn’t the flat-out fastest bike here and doesn’t carry speed as well as some, but it’s fun and versatile and has the fewest performance compromises in this test. We’d love to see a slightly slacker version, maybe with bigger hoops too. As it is, though, it’s still the bike we’d choose to take home from this foursome.
THE INTRIGUE ISN’ T THE FLAT-OUT FASTEST BIKE OUT THERE, BUT IT’ S FUN AND VERSATILE AND HAS THE FEW EST PERFORMANCE COMPROMISES HERE