The 2023 reign has already claimed one victory. Luke Meier-Smith used it to win the first UCI Enduro World Cup in Australia in March - albeit in a Mullet set-up. We tested the Giant Reign in a 29-inch set-up.
After three years, the Reign has been given a makeover with more travel, a longer reach and a three-stage flip chip. The equipment is functional, without bling-bling. Although the paintwork glitters, the look is rather plain.
The geometry is trimmed for downhill riding, as you would expect from an enduro race machine: long, flat, low. In tame passages, it can be a bit of a struggle to accelerate the Giant through the trail - even with its lightweight carbon wheels.
Giant Reign 2023: What happened to the iron?
The long wheelbase is noticeable in tight corners. Here you have to use more force to push the bike into the turns than on other high-end enduro bikes in our test. If the trail tilts into the fall line, the smooth geometry comes into its own, but the suspension is surprisingly rough. With the recommended air pressure, the fork and shock absorber dealt out blows.
So let the air out! After a setup tuning, it worked much better, but the Giant didn't become a comfort miracle and had to outperform the swallowing competitors. Prime and Bold can be pulled. "The Geo can go faster than the suspension," said tester Max in a nutshell.
On tame terrain, the Giant feels overpowered and a little sluggish. The long chainstays also demand a lot of strength when pedalling. On climbs, the Maestro rear suspension bobs noticeably and the platform is only moderately stable. Small testers complained that you can't sink the saddle deep enough into the seat tube.
Conclusion on the Giant Reign Advanced Pro 1 test:
We remember the Reign as a downhill expert and an iron. Although the 2023 model has first-class geometry for racers, the suspension in our test model did not fully utilise this downhill potential. We found it lacked comfort at full throttle on rough terrain. - Peter Nilges, Test Manager BIKE
Technical data and notes Giant Reign Advanced Pro 1
Manufacturer information
- Price: 6999 Euro
- Available from specialised dealers
- Frame material: Carbon
- Frame size: S, M,L, XL(tested in L, 45 cm)
Measured values
- Weight without pedals: 14.92 kg
- Frame weight without shock: 2760 g
- Weight of wheels: 5169 g
- Handlebar width: 800 mm
Equipment
- Fork: Fox 38 Float Performance Elite FitGrip2
- Shock: Fox Float X2 Performance Elite
- Front/rear suspension travel: 168/162 mm
- Crank: Sram GX Eagle
- Gear system: Sram GX Eagle 1 x 12
- Gear ratio / bandwidth: 32; 10-52 / 520 %
- Brake system / Disc (front / rear): Shimano SLX BR-M 7120 / 220 mm / 203 mm
- Telescopic post / stroke / Ø: Tranz X + wheel dropper / 200 mm / 30.9 mm
- Wheels: Giant TRX 2 carbon system wheels
- Tyres: Maxxis Assegai; 3C MaxxTerra Exo+ Protection TR 29 x 2.50; Maxxis Minion DHR II; 3C MaxxTerra TR DD 29 x 2.40
Ease of maintenance: weak
PLUS: Race geometry; brakes; carbon wheels
MINUS: Suspension; saddle cannot be lowered far enough
FREERIDE test rating: 8.5 out of 10
¹BIKE measured values
²with pedals (350 g)
³without shock absorber, possibly with rear thru axle
⁴with tyres, cassette and brake discs.
The measurements were taken on a test stand at the Zedler-Institut.
Laurin Lehner
Editor
