Mountain bikes are made for rough terrains and passing through difficult obstacles without having any damage. These are made of high-quality components to achieve efficient riding, no matter how rough the terrain is.
As a result, mountain bikes are costly. Even an affordable mountain bike can cost you up to 1000$; you can probably buy a new heavy motorcycle or car at this price. But why are mountain bikes so expensive? The reason behind it relies on various components and factors, which I’m going to discuss below.
- Lightweight Than Ever
- High-End Drivetrain
- Hydraulic Brakes
- Carbon Handlebars
- Tubeless Tires
- Durable Wheels (Rims)
- Dropper Seat Posts
- Hydraulic Shifters
- Build Under Standards
- New Innovations
- High Build Quality
Lightweight Than Ever
Higher-end mountain bikes have a much lightweight frame; made of carbon fiber. Carbon fiber is an aerospace material that is rigid and lightweight. So, a lightweight frame will help you riding uphill and building up speed efficiently.
There are also aluminum mountain bike frames worth value, lightweight (not lighter than carbon), rigid and durable. But it can’t beat the carbon fiber frame at all. You have to premium price for extremely lightweight and durable aerospace materials—carbon frames cost manufacturers around 350$ alone. A high-end mountain bike’s weight can be as low as 21 pounds(9 kg).
High-End Drivetrain
Usually, mountain bikes manufacture use SRAM or Shimano drivetrains. They don’t build drivetrains on their own. So, the high-end bike has costly carbon drivetrains, which are more efficient in riding.
A high-end mountain bike using SRAM Eagle XX1 can cost them more than 1000$, including cassette, crankset, rear derailleur, and chain. You can also get a lower price Shimano drivetrain components on a mountain bike having the cost of around 600$
Cheap mountain bikes don’t use Shimano or SRAM drivetrains. Instead, they use steel drivetrains from low-end manufacturers, which are much weighted and less reliable.
Hydraulic Brakes
Hydraulic disc brakes are a very beneficial innovation. Usually, you found in cars and surf. But having hydraulic brakes on a mountain bike is a fantastic experience. It is probably possible to go as fast as you want and then to stop hard at any point.
Moreover, these disc brakes can be used in any weather condition. You can stop you even on a raining wet road, unlike rim brakes. Rim doesn’t work fine at wet tracks. All the mountain bikes have hydraulic brakes, but the difference is in quality and adjustment features.
Less-price hydraulic brakes don’t have a tool-free contact adjuster or power adjuster. Some lower price hydraulic brakes have Allen wrench power adjusters. These are also worth paying for equipment. All hydraulic brakes require less maintenance and provide you better control on stopping; they are smooth to handle.
Carbon Handlebars
Carbon handlebars are not a necessary thing for many riders as it is not a mechanical part but
Modern bikes have carbon handlebars maintain super lightweight. Carbon handlebars are more rigid and lightweight than standard titanium and aluminum handlebars.
Suppose you are not a professional rider and don’t have to set a new record, then don’t ever pay a premium price for carbon handlebars. Buy paying value mountain bikes with titanium or aluminum handlebars.
Tubeless Tires
Tubeless tires are worth paying component of high-end mountain bikes. These don’t get a puncture or flatten quickly. They are much lighter than regular tube tires. You can ride them on significantly less PSI level.
Meanwhile, tube tires easily get punctured by thrones and bumps, and you can’t use them on lousy traction surfaces with low PSI because it will damage your tube tire from the side and make them flatten.
Durable Wheels (Rims)
Expensive mountain bikes have carbon wheels (rims) which are much reliable and rigid than aluminum rims. They don’t get bends on hard bumps. More rigidity makes them more efficient in riding experience. Due to significantly fewer chances of curves and spots, these require less maintenance.
Meanwhile, aluminum rims are also rugged enough if you inflate the tire properly. Still, they can beat the comparison of carbon rims.
You can ride faster on rough tracks with low PSI with carbon rims without having a single bend.
Dropper Seat Posts
Nowadays, mountain bikes come with a dropper seat post. What is the Dropper Seat post? It’s an adjustable seat post with a lever – you can adjust the seat’s height by just pressing the lever or button on the handlebar. The adjustable seat post is worth paying for convenience. You can quickly lower down and heighten your seat while riding by just pressing the lever.
Dropper seat Post Works on the basic principle of an office chair, but their liver is on the handlebar but below the seat.
Hydraulic Shifters
Like hydraulic brakes, high-end mountain bikes also have hydraulic gear shifters, which provide extra comfort and zero lag while shifting. Hydraulic shifters are very convenient and precise. Shifter size is small to make them handy, and you can change the gears with just a thumb press.
Build Under Standards
Expensive mountain bikes are always built to their standards. Just like additional components, they are compatible with there most mountain bikes. You will easily find repairing and maintenance tools for your bike. Additionally, they provide consistent series of additional upgrades like upgrading drive chains, brakes, shifters, and derailleurs.
So, you will need to upgrade bikes after a few years; you can remain in competition by upgrading compatible tools manufacturers provide.
New Innovations
When you are buying new technology, actually you are paying the research and development department. Highend manufactures new technology in bikes which adaptive by other manufacturers years later.
The expensive bike brands aim to provide the best in market product to the professional bikers in the world. So, these mountain bike manufacturers spend a lot on R&D before making any innovation. They also have to pass through several tests before launching innovation to market,
which makes high-end new mountain bikes much costly.
High Build Quality
Highend bikes spend a lot on manufacturing and assembly of different components of bikes. QA department checks the build quality of each mountain bike. After passing through several tests, they launch a product to market. They keep it measured that how much torque has to give to each bolt. Give a lot of attention and precision to small details increases the price level.
Testing every component of the bike requires high effort and cost. So, brands have to hire expert riders to test bikes; they pay them a high salary.
FAQs
Why do mountain bikes cost more than Dirtbikes?
Mountain bikes are all-rounder bikes; they have to face every type of terrain. Manufactures focus on speed, efficiency, reliability with maintaining their super lightweight. Most of the raw materials used in mountain bikes are carbon fiber and Aluminum which is costly.
Meanwhile, dirtbike manufacturers don’t need much focus on highly lightweight bodies. They have a coil suspension fork on the front and back instead of an air suspension. Dirt bikes are mostly made up of Aluminum and steel, which are much cheaper than carbon fiber.
Is it cheaper to buy or build a mountain bike?
Mountain bikes are expensive due to their high-quality components. They use high-end automated machines to assemble different parts with precise amounts of torque. If you are thinking about building your mountain using those high-end components, it will cost you the same or maybe above that. Moreover, you can’t meet the build quality of the original manufacturers.
How much does an entry-level mountain bike cost?
According to your budget, you can buy an entry-level mountain bike for actual mountain biking from around 2500$ to 5000$. You will get mountain bikes with high-quality components, SRAM drivetrain, full suspension, tubeless tires, hydraulic brakes and shifters, and a lightweight body bike frame.
The difference lies in entry-level bikes, and professionally premium mountain bikes are in components and high-build quality.
Conclusion
High-end mountain bikes are costly, but they are worth the value. Mountain bikes use carbon fiber components to make them lightweight and rigid. Expensive mountain bikes are totally new technology components. Research & Development is also a significant cause of the high mountain bike prices. Manufacturers have to pay a handsome amount to research to optimize their products and make innovations in markets.
Another main reason is customer targeting; high-end mountain bikes are as costly as 13000$. Those bikes are for professional riders who have to compete in an international tournament or set a new record, so a millisecond of lag can cause you to lose the game.
Entry-level mountain bikes also have all the features, but their prices are much lower.