Bike supplied by: Ashgrove Cycles, 498 Waterworks Road Ashgrove, Brisbane

RRP: $2199

Specs and detailed photos available here (o/s model shown, Aus model comes with 8" disc rotors)

Recently, thanks to the generosity of our local bike shop, the Brisbane bureau of Farkin.net got our grubby little hands on Norco's budget entry into the cross country / all mountain market; the VPS Fluid 3.0.

With 8" Hayes cable discs front and rear, Shimano Deore running gear, Marzocchi EXR forks and an FSR licensed rear end with travel adjustable from 4.5 to 5 inches the bike looked ready to take on some pretty serious trails straight off the shelf and while the Small sized (15.5") frame wasn't ideally suited to my 175cm frame, I sucked it up and loaded the bike up for some serious XC abuse at a local single-track loop.

The Frame

At the heart of the VPS Fluid 3.0 is Norco's 7005 aluminium VPS cross country frame with and FSR licensed 4-Bar rear suspension design. Rear suspension duties are handled by a Fox Vanilla R rear shock.

Having previously owned a Specialised FSR I found the feel of the VPS Fluid was immediately to my liking. The rear suspension tracked well through braking bumps and rock gardens and stayed active under brakes.

The Small frame with it's low stand over height and short wheelbase made the bike easy to flick around in tight, technical singletrack but somewhat sketchy when things turned downhill and the trail opened a bit.

Seated and climbing the suspension compressed and they rear tyre bit hard for traction. Smooth, even pedal strokes were the key to getting up steep grades as out of the saddle honking on the pedals caused the kind of pedal bob inherent to a fully active design such as this.

The Parts

The first thing I noticed about the part spec of the VPS Fluid were the brakes; 8" Hayes HMX-1 mechanical discs are a serious piece of kit and produced some serious stopping power. My first all-out haul on the front stoppers damn near catapulted me over the bars and from that point on it was a matter of keeping a cautious single finger covering both brakes at all times.

I was initially skeptical about the Kenda Kinetics 2.1" tyres the bike came specced with (Try "Get farked, there's no way I'm riding on those skinny pieces of..."), but in the loose, rocky, downhill switchbacks that kick-off our test track they proved to be worthy pieces of rubber. They climbed well and offered low rolling resistance though I'd still change them for something slightly larger out of the box, if only for psychological comfort.

New Shimano drivetrains, what can be said really; shifted smoothly, precisesly, yada yada yada you all know the drill by now.

For a lower-end fork I also found the Marzocchi EXR forks to be a standout. Smooth, stiff, well damped travel seems to have filtered all the way down to the lowest price-points and the forks would in my opinion keep anyone from the first-timer right through to the B-grade cross country racer boys happy. 

The Verdict

In the limited test we were able to carry out the VPS Fluid 3.0 proved to be a capable cross country trailbike with a killer spec for such a low price.

 The Small size was definitely not the right choice for my height, but a 100mm stem kept things comfortable enough in the cockpit to make the ride an enjoyable experience.

The VPS Fluid 3.0 would be well suited to a rider looking to get the comfort of a full suspension trailbike on a budget and with a few upgrades could even make the grade as a do-everything bike for a lightweight or junior rider. Once again a big thank you to Gav Finlay at Ashgrove Cycles for hooking us up (as always).