Less Than $3k! GT's Full Suspension MTB That Won't Destroy Your Wallet [Video]

Baller bikes that cost $10,000 are pretty freaking sweet, but the reality is that most of us won’t ever ride one for any significant amount of time, much less own one. But just because most of us won’t be ripping it up on expensive bikes doesn’t mean that we can’t ride great bikes. These days, just a couple thousand dollars will get you a pretty badass bike. GT is a bike company that’s been around for seemingly ages, so it’s safe to say that they know what they’re doing when they make a bike. The GT Sensor is a great example of a “budget” bike that keeps up with the current standards and is actually a rad bike despite its price. Read on to learn a bit more about it.

Overview

• 140mm travel in the front and 130mm of travel in the rear
• Flip-chip for adjustable geometry
• Threaded English Bottom Bracket
• Space for water bottle
• Boost spacing
• ISCG05 tab
• Air and coil Trunnion shock compatible
• Sizes XS, S, M, and L

The bike that we have in the shop right now is the GT Sensor Alloy Comp. It’s a 130mm travel bike sporting 29in wheels, modern geometry, and a parts list that won’t make you second guess your purchase. I mean, just a few years ago it would have been nearly impossible to find a bike under $3,000 that came from the factory with a dropper post, but here we are today. The Sensor has Rockshox suspension in front in the form of the 35 Gold RL, which is essentially the Pike from not long ago (AKA a really good fork). There is a RockShox Deluxe Select+RT for the squish in the back, and it doesn’t get much better than that. It’s equipped with Shimano, Schwalbe, and GT parts throughout. 

The bread and butter of the Sensor is its LTS suspension or Linkage Tuned Suspension. The major selling point of this suspension platform is that it isolates braking forces from your rear wheel, allowing your bike to still track the ground even while you’re dropping the anchors. This helps tremendously when trying to maintain traction and stopping at the same time. You won’t feel your rear wheel stiffen up and get chattery when you hit the brakes. It’s a fairly linear platform, but not so linear that you can’t run a coil shock on it. Personally, I love the idea of running a coil shock on a smaller bike, especially when you consider that the Sensor is pretty darn slack for its travel range. This bike is going to tempt you to do big things.

Speaking of the geometry, the Sensor has a flip-chip that allows you to switch things up depending on the trail you’re riding. In the high setting, the headtube angle is a fairly slack 66 degrees. Flip the chip and you get even slacker at 65.5, which for a 130mm travel bike is pretty slack. Oh, and it lengthens the bike for extra stability and speed. You can essentially think of it as the “go faster” mode. Reach on the Sensor ranges from 400mm on the XS all the way up to 500 on the XL. The seat tube angle is a very modern 76.4/77 (depending on the size of your frame) and the wheelbase stretches from 1140mm for the smallest bike up to 1250 for the largest. All too often you see budget bikes that have geometries that are four years old, but that is far from the case with the Sensor. GT was clearly thinking of the everyman when they designed this bike.

Specs

• Aluminum frame
• 29” tubeless ready wheels
• Boost front and back
• RockShox Deluxe Select+RT rear shock
• RockShox 35 Gold RL
• Schwalbe Nobby Nic 2.35” tires
• Race Face Aeffect Crankset
• 73mm BSA bottom bracket
• Shimano SLX 11-speed chain
• Shimano SLX 11-speed rear derailleur
• Shimano SLX 11-speed cassette
• Shimano SLX 11-speed shifter
• Shimano SLX hydraulic brakes with 180mm rotors
• TranzX Dropper (120mm for S/M and 150mm for L/XL)
• WTB Silverado Sport saddle
• GT bars, stem, and grips
• Lifetime warranty on the frame for the original owner

As you can see from the spec list, GT did a great job of putting high value, but not wallet crushing parts on here. I think the most impressive spec is the fact that this bike only costs $2,625, which is insane value considering the high-quality parts stuck to it. Oh, and did I mention that it’s the same suspension platform that Martin Maes has won Enduro World Series on? I guess that should answer your question of if it’s capable of going fast. GT built the Sensor to be awesome, and they achieved that goal. So now you really don’t have much of an excuse to not get that new bike that you’ve been looking for...it’s right here.

Ride Review:

My time of the GT Sensor was not long but within the short time I did spend on the bike, I grew to appreciate everything it had to offer. Being able to ride all the boutique, high-end, carbon bikes you see on our Instagram account, sometimes it is easy to have a jaded opinion on alloy bikes that as cost-efficient much like this GT. I wish I had a lot more time on the bike, however. The reason is that it truly felt like a great all-around bike. From climbing to descending and even jumping and trying to do tricks, the Sensor managed to surprise me on all levels.

Climbing:

Being a 130mm travel 29er, the Sensor fits in at the prime specifications for the ultimate trail bike, especially around our California shop. Anything more than 130mm travel is more so just overkill unless you are driving 30-40 minutes to Simi every day to ride Rocky Peak. But back to the bike. Building the bike straight out of the box, I did not adjust any travel ranged or the flip-chip. How the bike came is how I rode it.

Having 130mm of travel front and rear, the Sensor didn’t have any slack angles restricting the efficiency of how the bike travels uphill. Also, being a slightly over-weight and or out of shape individual with a desk job, I never felt like I was working harder than I should have on steep and rocky climbs. The 29” wheels help roll over just about anything in the trail too which leaves you having to worry about less on your ride. The overall playfulness of the bike was what I most enjoyed about how this bike climbed. Although playfulness isn’t always a selling point for people looking to climb, being able to jump and whip the bike around helped me climb over obstacles I would normally try to avoid on a more sluggish bike.

Descending:

Going downhill was incredibly fun! All the climbing we do should have rewarding downhill that should test your bike and your riding abilities. Being a 140mm travel front and 130mm rear 29er, downhill riding doesn’t sound like the ideal course to take. BUT, the Sensor did not feel like a shorter travel bike. The 29” wheels roll over everything and help you gain speed quickly. I like to think the suspension design sits among my favorite on the market as the bike never felt like a 130mm bike. It felt much like my 150mm enduro bikes I have ridden in the past, going downhill. The overall playfulness of the bike again comes to mind. This thing lets you kick out someone footers like no other… Being able to whip the bike around and tweak it out in any direction helps clear obstacles and overall helped me choose a better line down the trails. Although my ability to choose the worst possible line on any trail did result in a flat or two.

Conclusion:

“Overall, I do place the GT Sensor in my top 5 favorite bikes. Its ability to ride both up and downhill is almost unmatched especially when looking at other bike options for the price point of this build. The build itself comes decked out with a ton of reliable and good-looking components as well. My only complaint or suggestion is upgrading to a thicker tire choice. Maybe Maxxis or WTB as Schwalbe tends to be very thin but also lightweight, but also going tubeless which won’t cost you too much more. The rest of the build should last most riders quite some time. I would totally build up a higher-end model for my personal rig!” – Reamonn Ryan