Ibis Mojo HD3: The Evolution of a Classic
When the resurrected Ibis brand introduced its first bike, the Mojo, at the 2005 Interbike trade show, riders were instantly drawn to the combination of the marque's heritage and the beautiful, organic curves of the frame itself. Less obvious at first glance were the structural underpinnings that made it a fantastic ride: great geometry, a well-tuned suspension, and quality carbon construction.
But what’s remarkable about the Mojo is how Ibis has continued to innovate and refine the design even as it looks so similar to those first bikes from a decade ago. Equally remarkable: The current iteration, the Mojo HD3, still looks somehow fresh and timeless, and rides even better.
Modern Geometry, Same Flowing Lines
Perhaps nothing on the Mojo has changed so much since its inception as the geometry. That’s partly because of a change in wheel size, from 26 to 27.5-inch wheels, and partly a reflection of the broader geometry shift in trail/enduro bikes, which are getting longer wheelbases and front ends, slacker head angles, and shorter stems.
On the HD3, the top tube on our medium scoots out 13mm, while the wheelbase grows 37mm, compared to the now-departed HDR in 27.5 livery. But despite more travel, standover height actually drops 27mm. The head angle is an enduro-friendly 66.6 degrees with a 160mm fork. The blocky Thomson X4 stem is a stubby 40mm long.
But one thing Ibis has kept: the distinctive flowing curves of the original Mojo, created by Roxy Lo—one of the few female industrial designers in the bike industry. I mention it because it would be easy—and wrong—to skip over Lo’s influence on how bikes look, and not just Ibis’ bikes. Before the Mojo, most suspension frames were collections of straight lines and angles. But look around now and, from Santa Cruz to Specialized, you’ll see hints of the softer, smoother lines and tube transitions Lo pioneered.
More Travel
The original 26-inch Mojo had 140mm of travel. Through the years (and through various other iterations of the bike), Ibis added to that except when it introduced 27.5 versions, where travel shrunk slightly to accommodate the bigger wheels.
The HD3 fully fuses those approaches, marrying the larger wheels to more travel via the geometry changes noted above. From 130mm on the older HDR, you now get 150mm in the back, all via the same DW-Link suspension design used by Ibis from the beginning and also found on highly regarded brands like Turner and Pivot.
Fox supplies the suspension, with a Float DPS rear shock with three compression damping settings, plus low-speed compression adjustment. Tuners take note: While our tester had a standard Float DPS, the rear shocks on most complete-bike HD3s shipped now come with the DPS’s optional EVOL sleeve that increases positive air volume and makes it more sensitive to smaller forces. The spring curve on the EVOL-equipped DPS can also be adjusted with spacers. Up front, a beefy Float 36 RC2 with 160mm of travel handles things nicely. You can opt for a 150mm fork, which steepens the angles a bit and lowers handlebar height slightly.
Wider Tires and Wheels
Ibis jumped on the fat-rim trend early. Its 741 carbon wheels, available as part of the Works upgrade kit (or separately for $1,449), feature a 35mm internal bead seat. The 2.3-inch Maxxis Minion DHF tires didn’t grow in width on the wider rims, but the sidewall doesn’t bulge quite as much and seemed to better resist folding over in hard cornering, while the shoulder blocks had good bite. How wide rims affect traction and ride seems to vary from tire to tire depending on width, casing, and tread, but I found the Minion DHF to be an ideal candidate for the setup.
I was able to run lower tire pressure (with PSI in the mid-to-high teens for a rider who weighs 165 with gear) than on conventional rims, resulting in ridiculous amounts of traction, and the DHF casing was great at controlling rebound. I did manage to tear the rear sidewall on a rock, but it was the only flat I experienced on the bike in four months of testing. The wheels themselves were excellent.
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The Finer Touches
Among the lesser-remarked but valuable tweaks Ibis made with the latest version of the Mojo are an optional polycarbonate downtube guard to protect against rock strikes, new internal cable routing including stealth dropper post ports, and a direct-mount front derailleur with a clean-looking face plate if you want to run a 1x drivetrain.
Ibis even managed to open up enough space in the main triangle to put a water bottle on the top of the downtube rather than the underside, taking the bottle out of a spot I like to call the Giardia Zone.
Riding Impressions
The HD3’s geometry and resulting rider position creates the sensation that you’re positioned almost down in the bike, behind the front wheel. This is mostly good. The HD3 positively rails descents, in keeping with its enduro-centric mindset. On one recent ride, I slithered down a sinuous singletrack with numerous drop-ins. I hit the remote on the KS Lev dropper post to get my weight even further back, and the HD3 rolled over every obstacle with the solidity of a tank tread. Then: a straightline bomb down a gully trail rattling with loose rocks. I sat almost down and in the bike, pointing the wheel straight and trusting the bike to find the right line. Finally, a nailed a high-speed run on a narrow trail so ancient that the tread sinks in a steep-sided U a solid 8 inches down from the edges, which threaten to grab a misplaced front wheel and flick you headlong into the aspens.
Particularly at speed, the HD3 seems to assume a low, defensive stance, almost sinking into its travel slightly. The long wheelbase and slack head angle improve stability the faster you go. But I was struck by the bike’s nimbleness in slower, quieter moments. It was sure-footed on tight switchbacks and the stability I found at speed was also there on slow-speed rollovers and rocky stairstep sections.
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The only time that I didn’t like the position the HD3’s tall front end and slack head angle puts the rider in was on steep climbs, where those qualities, and the 1x drivetrain, made it a struggle to keep the front wheel grounded as I tried to stay on top of the gears.
Over the Mojo’s life, it’s been shaped by riding styles and preferences, engineering advances and, yes, fads. Right now, the shape of trail bikes looks very much like the HD3: longer travel, long-and-low geometry, 27.5 wheels. In fact, Ibis has entirely left 26-inch wheels behind and offers the Mojo only in 27.5.
But technical specs aside, what makes an Ibis is pretty much what always has: They’re fun to ride. That’s an approach and ethos that’s been consistent from the first steel hardtails founder Scot Nicol built back in the 80s to the second, modern iteration of the company and bikes like the Mojo and Ripley. Perhaps tastes will change in the coming years. But the HD3, like its predecessors, will always be at the heart of a good time.
Price: $2,900 frame with rear shock; $7,960 as built
Weight: 28.9lb, size medium
More info: ibiscycles.com
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