2023 Norco Fluid FS A4: First Look at a Great Beginner Full Suspension Mountain Bike

We picked up another new mountain bike brand! Norco joined us a few months ago and we are pretty excited about them. They are out of Canada and have a great selection of bikes in many different categories. #bikingroots, #norcofluid, #mtb
The Norco Fluid FS A4 is the first one we received and discussed in the video. For $1999 it gives a great value in the MTB market for those upgrading from a hard tail, those just getting into the sport, or anyone else in between.
With 140mm front and 130mm rear travel, 65 degree head angle, it is a perfect option in the trail bike category. The fact that it comes with a dropper post and a thru axle in the back, it gives you a great value in comparison to other beginner full suspension bikes.
We will be doing a video on our experience with the Norco out on the trail soon but weather and the holidays got in the way this time, so stay tuned!
Also, if you are local to the Houston area and want to purchase or come check out Norco, give us a call or come on by. www.bikingroots.com
Music in video from Scottdw …. “Don’t Be shy”
/ scottdwmusic

[@BikingRoots]

What do you guys think of the new Norco Fluid? Red or Black? Let us know below

[@alisebailey5071]

Red all the way!! ❤

[@BikingRoots]

Agreed! Although I haven’t seen the black in person

[@topchoice1621]

Can I upgrade the front fork

[@topchoice1621]

What’s the big difference between carbon and aluminum?

[@BikingRoots]

@@topchoice1621 Carbon is more expensive to manufacture as it requires many more man hours to lay up the carbon, cure it, etc. which is why most of the time it is a $600-1000 premium over the same aluminum build. The advantage of carbon is that most of the time it is stronger and lighter than aluminum and engineers can engineer flex into the design which is harder to do with aluminum from my experience. For most beginners into the sport, they are better off going with alloy and getting nicer components than going with a carbon build.

[@WrekLz_MTB]

“That’s My BIKE”… thanks 🙏 to the staff at BIKING ROOTS for not only taking the time to educate me and my son on my purchase of the NORCO, but for showing great honest, hospitality. Make sure to visit there shop in Houston Texas awesome people awesome shop. Take care guys… #Loving the bike bro..

[@BikingRoots]

Thanks man! Glad you decided on the Norco and are happy with the bike! Hope you have a lot of fun with it and appreciate the shout out! Take care and be safe

[@meteormedia7021]

Cool! Norco seems to be pretty much the only brand right now who has truly figured out the relation between geometry, sizing and suspension kinematics. I just wish they weren't so expensive and hard to get in Europe.

[@BikingRoots]

Thanks for the comment. Yeah they do seem to be on it with all those important things! Didn’t know that they were so expensive and hard to find in Europe. Hopefully that will soon change. Take care!

[@MainelyElectrons]

Great video, would definitely be considering this bike if I hadn’t picked up a 2nd hand Hawk Hill for $750. Love that bike! Came from a beat up genesis incline I got for $100, it’s a night and day difference. Your video made the decision really easy and was one of the few videos out there available! I also picked up a GT Aggressor Expert for $300 that has been converted into a dual hub motor e-bike. So in total I have 2 bikes both with minimal use for just over $1k (before the e-bike conversion) Hard to justify buying a new bike considering I couldn’t even get a hard tail with equivalent fork let alone an entry level full suspension bike.

[@BikingRoots]

Thanks for the comment! Wow, yeah Hawk Hill for $750 is a great deal! Congrats and glad I could help somehow. Interesting to hear about your GT Aggressor ebike! That sounds fun! Yeah, 2 bikes for around $1k isn’t bad. Have fun with them!

[@grahamrothphotography]

I got one back in winter and took it to a few mountain parks, recently Revelstoke BC Canada and it did well, keeping up with my friends who ride enduro bikes! Will go tubeless soon, and I want bigger rotors, brakes are good, but not as good as I want.

[@BikingRoots]

Thanks for sharing and glad you could keep up with the bigger enduro bikes! Yeah I could see why you'd want bigger rotors and brakes with more power. Check out the Lewis LH4 brakes on our website (and IG) which I've been using on my last 2 bikes. Super strong, great lever feel, and compared to some other high end brakes, much more reasonability priced.

[@briangonzalez6469]

That spec is absolutely on point for the price. 2000 bucks and you got everything you need including great tubeless ready tires 4 pot breaks and dropper 🤯👌👌👌 I need one 🫠

[@BikingRoots]

Thanks! Yeah, we think so too and we predict it will be a great option for a lot of people. Just need to get the word out. You should buy one! You can never have too many bikes ;-)

[@JM-xj2dh]

Glad I bought it from you guys before I moved! Thank you biking roots! It has been such a great bike

[@BikingRoots]

Hey man! Glad you could and thanks for your support over the years. Glad you are enjoying it and we like seeing your clips of your rides! Good luck to you and stay in touch!

[@JM-xj2dh]

Of course! Will do, thanks for being the best bike shop!

[@BikingRoots]

@@JM-xj2dh Ha, thanks!

[@whatyagotgoinan]

Just picked up the XXL full squish I’m 6’’6 fits perfect 👍🏻 Beautiful bike ❤

[@BikingRoots]

Oh right on! Congrats and glad that they made a bike that fits very tall people! Hope you have fun on it and thanks for the comment

[@dems_mtb]

I just brought home the 2023 Fluid FS A2 two days ago. Yes here in Canada bikes are awesome and trails are wild! :)

[@BikingRoots]

Oh no way?! The A2 looks pretty sweet. Yeah Canada does have nice trails (haven’t been but hope to some day). What color did you get?

[@dems_mtb]

@@BikingRoots Silver with red fork

[@BikingRoots]

@@dems_mtb Nice! That’s the one I would have picked. Looks sweet. Have fun with it!

[@jameslazaro8107]

Cool bike always wanted one of this👍👍👍

[@BikingRoots]

nice, you should get one!

[@brettm.1115]

I like that paint job. Looks like a sweet bike.

[@BikingRoots]

Thanks! Agreed. You should totally buy one ;-)

[@manolos8230]

I went to bike shop for something and I seen that bike it’s badass

[@BikingRoots]

Nice! Yeah it's a pretty fun bike and a good value for what it has right now. Thanks for sharing

[@txmale5070]

i considered this bike is this the one that won pinkbike of the year? i like the red looks great

[@BikingRoots]

Yes it was in 2022! In the top of the line carbon version but yeah it looks great in most of the colors it comes in. Great beginner FS bike in this build but also could make it real nice with some higher end/lighter components. One of my favorite trail bikes. Currently I just started riding the electrified version! Coming soon to the channel. Take care

[@diegoperezvaldes3207]

Thanks for showing this model so much, it's just the bike I was looking for. One question, how much does the bike weigh? If I can buy it in my country, is it useful for driving on the road and on gravel? (it's the first time I would have a full suspension bike). I would greatly appreciate your opinion. A hug from Chile.

[@BikingRoots]

Thanks for your comment and I'm glad you found it useful. So stock w/ stock pedals installed, it comes in at 36.6 lbs which is more than I would have thought but that's what it weighs. It feels a lot lighter when you're riding it though and honestly doesn't feel that heavy. Yes, you can absolutely use in on the road and gravel it just is more at home on rough trails. So, it depends what you ride the most. I personally prefer mountain bikes because you can use them anywhere and I like the rough stuff. Thanks for the hug from Chile! Have known some cool people from there! Hug from Texas :-)

[@spencerisverycool]

very cool!

[@BikingRoots]

Thanks!

[@topchoice1621]

I’m going to order my new one tomorrow

[@BikingRoots]

Nice congrats!

[@grimaceg1253]

Nice looking bike coming in just under 2K.

[@BikingRoots]

Thanks, yeah it’s a pretty sweet option

[@LucasY_YT]

I am 5' 5", but growing fast. What frame size would you recomend?

[@BikingRoots]

Normally I’d say small, but the medium is a smallish medium so go for the medium

[@TheFullofnihil]

Hello! I have that bike and it has been amazing! I’d like to know if upgrading the fork to a pike ultimate 150mm is a good idea? Thank you! Cool videos and very helpful!

[@BikingRoots]

Hey what’s up! Oh nice choice for an upgrade. I had the pike ultimate on my last forbidden druid, nice and light fork. Going 10mm over stock is ok (I wouldn’t go more than that though since the bike wasn’t designed for going too big. As you raise the front end, the bike gets slacker and the bottom bracket is raised which can change the handling of the bike. 10mm though should be fine. Good luck!

[@ld749]

how was the wheel hubs on yours i feel mine has defectives as i uses it only for 60km in 14 days and weak rear hubs was making clanking sound..sound like i broke it i hope they put not cheap wheel hub on this as mine has bear paws brand install i hope they put shimano or formula atleast… 2022 fluid fs4 matte black

[@BikingRoots]

Thanks for the comment and question. So we actually had to warranty one that we sold. Same issue as yours it sounds like but this customer's started after a few months. Norco sent a warranty hub that we are having rebuilt on the wheel. Yeah, maybe they had a defect on a batch of these bear pawls hubs. Not a fan, but I guess you can't expect too much at this price boost thru axle.

[@shanedickeson1]

Is the front fork an air or coil fork?

[@BikingRoots]

comes with a Rockshox Recon air fork

[@EricMarenyi]

I’m probably late to the party but now the stump jumper alloy is on sale for about the same price! Have you ridden each and can you offer your opinion on the comparison?

[@BikingRoots]

Thanks for the comment and question. Yeah, saw that the Stumpjumper dropper in price, great for the consumer to have sweet options at that price point. So I haven’t ridden one on the trail in a while so can’t comment between the two but I’ve always heard great things on the stumpys! They are great bikes. Personally I don’t care for the frame design which has that weird thing by the shock (but that’s just me). Spec wise you get a better fork with the rockshox 35 air fork compared to the recon. I actually prefer the drivetrain on the Norco however (we’ve had many issues with SRAM SX derailleurs and shifters). I prefer the shimano budget stuff over sram budget stuff personally (but prefer sram higher end stuff over shimano!). If you can test ride both, awesome, if you want something a little less common, pick the Norco. May come down to which color you like better! Good luck

[@EricMarenyi]

@@BikingRoots makes sense. I kind of felt the same!

[@timleavitt9103]

That sandcastle took forever lol

[@BikingRoots]

Ha! I bet. I heard though that someone else built most of it!

[@aaronburela432]

Fluid vs rift zone is good head to head match up

[@BikingRoots]

Yup, agreed. We’ll be getting the new 2023 Rift Zone 2 next week and will do a quick overview of it. A head to head comparison would be good. May not be able to do one on the trail but at least compare the specs and design. Stay tuned!

[@aaronburela432]

@@BikingRoots love it man! just dawned on me that these go great head to head.

[@elitehvaccontractor]

That norco for kids had the fork on backwards?

[@BikingRoots]

Ha, yeah a common comment/question. It has a manitou fork and they put their fork brace on the opposite side of everyone else. So, nope it’s on correct!

[@topchoice1621]

Can you put a fox fork on this bike??

[@BikingRoots]

Yup sure can. Just needs to be tapered, 29er, and boost spacing (15x110mm)

[@ecomicro]

whats the weight on this one?

[@BikingRoots]

depending on size and w/ or w/out pedals. I think we measured our medium without pedals to be in the mid 34 lb range. So not light but about average for this price range 29er with dropper

[@Thebiggestbass]

Is it electric or am I just dumb

[@BikingRoots]

No, this one is not. Norco does make a fluid ebike and will have a new one coming out in the spring. Usually you can tell when you see more surface area near the crankset (where the motor is) and they are also unfortunately still a lot more expensive than non ebikes.

[@islarun4103]

The A3 weight 16.3kg 😅

[@BikingRoots]

Is that with pedals? What size? I can’t remember what it was now when we weighed it

[@mtdes23]

Rift zone 1 2023 27.5 inch, orange - blue, please :D

[@BikingRoots]

You really want one apparently! Ha

[@BikingRoots]

what size are you looking for?

[@mtdes23]

@@BikingRoots size S bro

[@BikingRoots]

@@mtdes23 nice we just found out we have one coming in next week. Are you in Houston?

[@mtdes23]

@@BikingRoots yes bro thanks 😍

[@roundwheels]

!

[@tenn101310]

Is it tubeless tire?

[@BikingRoots]

Yes, tubeless tire and it also comes with the wheels already taped, sealant, and tubeless valve stems so you just have to pull the tubes out, stick in the tubeless valves, fill it with sealant, air it up, and you’re good to go! (no always that easy, but for the most part it is)

[@tenn101310]

@@BikingRoots thanks for the info. Appreciate it so much! 👍

[@topchoice1621]

Can the front fork be upgraded

[@BikingRoots]

Yes very easily. You just need a tapered 29er fork with boost spacing thru axle up front (15x110mm). 140mm of travel is what comes stock. If you want to go above or under that, technically you can, but it may change the handling and/or void warranty IF something were to go wrong with the frame.

[@topchoice1621]

@@BikingRoots I was just asking but I feel that it’s still a sturdy bike

[@topchoice1621]

Now I’m freaking pissed The fuck off because I ordered this exact bike from JENSON USA and they messed up my order and it had to be cancelled 😡

[@BikingRoots]

Oh no! Dang, sorry to hear that man. Mistakes happen. What size and color were you looking for?

[@topchoice1621]

@@BikingRoots I wanted this exact color and large

[@topchoice1621]

@@BikingRoots do you have one in large?

[@BikingRoots]

We have one in large but it received some damage in shipment and are waiting on a replacement piece from Norco

[@topchoice1621]

@@BikingRoots it’s ok tomorrow I’m going to my local bike shop and gonna have them order me one

[@kiethpederson7558]

Any bike under 2k is kinda junk or at least come with wack specs

[@BikingRoots]

These days as higher end bikes are on sale at closer to the $2k mark, I can see where if you spend a bit more, you can get a better bike. Which specs in particular on this one do you think are wack?

[@kiethpederson7558]

@@BikingRoots well a lot of lower and bikes come with sram SX ,micro shift , in avid mechanical disks. I just picked up izzo core 1 for 1900 and seams to be a good price n spec. Pike base , select + rear shock. Sx drivetrain. Crank brother wheels , sram g2 brakes

[@BikingRoots]

@@kiethpederson7558 I've never seen any mechanical disc on bikes more than $600 thankfully. Congrats on the izzo. Those look like sweet specs for the price. Yeah, direct to consumer companies do have some crazy deals right now