TREK TOP FUEL 8

The new Top Fuel looks conventional but the trail reveals a thrillingly dynamic performer

£3,750 / 29in / trekbikes.com

Understated, verging on vanilla, there’s nothing head-turning about Trek’s new Top Fuel, but to write off this revamped short-travel ripper at first sight is to make a big mistake. Indeed, the Top Fuel is a two-wheeled equivalent of the Q car (or, sleeper to our friends across the pond) – the kind of unassuming, run-of-the-mill executive saloon that flies unobtrusively under the radar, but packs a knock-out punch under the bonnet. In other words, the kind of car preferred by ‘90s bank robbers. But before I elaborate on this bike’s unexpectedly blistering pace, let’s take a look at what’s changed for 2022.

Originally conceived as an XC race bike, it slowly morphed into a marathon bike around 2019, right about when XC race bikes became mainstream and capable enough to go marathon racing on (see Trek’s Olympic and World Cup winning Supercaliber).

So, the Top Fuel continues its slide sideways, slotting into the short-travel trail/down-country category. Or, in plain English, a bike that’s trying to balance pedal efficiency with downhill capability and is more about having fun than finishing first.

Backing up this role change is a raft of small but significant revisions to the Top Fuel. Firstly the geometry has seen a wholesale shift towards a better all-round balance between climbing and descending. The head angle has been slackened by 1.5° to 66° (the Mino link lets you steepen it back by 0.5°), and the reach has grown by up to 15mm, depending on the frame size. Talking of which, there are now six, yes six, different frame sizes available, from S right up to XXL, making this one of the most comprehensive size ranges on the market. Trek has also steepened both the actual and effective seat tube angles to improve weight distribution for climbing, and it has increased rear-wheel travel by 5mm to 120mm (although we measured 115mm).

Geometry adjustment has been a feature on Trek’s bikes for a while now, but for 2022 the Top Fuel’s Mino Link has moved from the rocker link (other Treks locate it in the upper seatstay pivot) to the lower shock mount. The reason for this is that Trek has moved to a Trunnion Mount shock for 2022 – and it’s no longer upside down – reducing room at the rocker link. In its new position, the Mino Link is still easy to access and still gives you a head/seat angle change of 0.5° and a BB height variation of 5mm (the reach will also grow very slightly if you put the bike in the high/steep position).

Moving along, the Knock Block steering limiter has been made slightly less limiting. Previous models used a 58° sweep – now that’s been upped to 72°, but the system retains its compatibility with standard stems and there’s down tube clearance for fork crowns, so its job is more about protecting the top tube from controls if you run a super