Kona Hei Hei 10
Wheel Size: 29”
Suspension Travel:
- Frame: 120 mm
- Fork: 130 mm
Geometry Highlights:
- Sizes Offered: S, M, L, XL
- Headtube Angle: 66°
- Reach: 449 mm (Size Medium)
- Chainstay Length: 435 mm (all sizes)
Frame Material: Carbon fiber
Price:
- Complete bike: $5,299 USD
- Frameset: $2,950 USD
Blister’s Measured Weight: 30.2 lbs (Hei Hei CR, Size Large)
Intro
The “Hei Hei” (pronounced “hay hay”) name has existed in Kona’s lineup for over 30 years now. Starting as a titanium hardtail in 1991, the Hei Hei eventually evolved into a full-suspension, carbon fiber Cross-Country bike. Today, Kona launched the 10th version of the Hei Hei, sticking to its XC roots while getting it up to speed on today’s XC tech and geometry. So what’s new? Let’s get into it.
The Frame
The Hei Hei maintains its 120 mm of suspension travel in the rear, using a similar-looking linkage layout with a few revisions. While many companies are focused on achieving ~120 mm of rear travel with as few pivots as possible for the name of weight savings on their race-focused XC bikes, Kona added a pivot point to the Hei Hei near the dropout, moving away from the flex stay design used on the prior generation bike. Kona also slightly revised the location and orientation of the upper link that drives the rear shock, leaving it hanging from inside the top tube near where it meets the seat tube, and revising where the shock mounts to the link. Kona claims that the Hei Hei’s revised suspension layout is designed with compliance and comfort in mind, and that they’re happy with the slight weight penalty of this suspension design when compared to a flex-stay design, which most other manufacturers have moved to for their weight-conscious XC bikes.
Kona also made it a priority to increase the anti-squat of the Hei Hei, especially deeper in this bike’s travel. This new Hei Hei still starts with around 118% of anti-squat, but the curve stays flatter for longer, ending with 98% anti-squat at bottom out. This new suspension design also resulted in a significant change in the Hei Hei’s leverage curve. The leverage ratio starts at just over 2.8, stays relatively flat for the first ~35 mm of travel, then dips down in a smooth, straight line at the sag point (30%), ending with a leverage ratio of just under 2.4 at its maximum of 120 mm of travel. Kona claims that this curve is similar in character to their longer-travel Process 134 and 153 Trail bikes, aiming for a consistent feel out of all 120 mm of available travel.
The Hei Hei is only available in carbon fiber, and Kona also prioritized a sleeker look with this frame, straightening out the down tube and seat tube, with the latter allowing for greater seatpost insertion. They also added UDH compatibility to the Hei Hei, and the frame features a whopping nine bottle bosses in the front triangle, allowing for plenty of bottle cage and tool mount options. (They’re not all usable simultaneously, of course, but there’s a ton of flexibility in positioning whatever you want to mount up.) Kona claims that at least two water bottles should fit inside the front triangle on every frame size, unless you choose to run a rear shock with a piggyback reservoir.
Fit & Geometry
The previous Hei Hei’s geometry wasn’t super out-of-date by any means, but this new Hei Hei has more modern numbers. Looking at the reach, the Small Hei Hei kicks things off with a 424 mm reach, growing by 25 mm each size up until the Large, then jumping 35 mm between the Large and XL sizes to finish with a reach of 509 mm on the biggest Hei Hei. This is an increase of 9 mm for each size when compared to the outgoing Hei Hei — a significant, but not radical jump. The 10th generation of the Hei Hei also (unsurprisingly) sports its slackest head tube angle yet, at 66º for all sizes — a change of 1.5º over the 9th gen Hei Hei.
It’s also worth noting that the new Hei Hei is designed around a 130 mm fork up front, an increase over the 120 mm forks spec’d on the previous Hei Hei. The Hei Hei’s stack height has also grown slightly to account for this, starting at 606 mm on the Small, then 620, 630, and 639 mm for the Medium, Large, and XL sizes, respectively. It’s worth noting that this is an increase of more than just 10 mm to account for the longer fork on this new Hei Hei, with stack numbers having increased by 15-29 mm, depending on the size. This stack height is a bit higher than some race-focused XC bikes, but still lower than most Trail bikes out there.
The rest of the geo chart looks modern and well-rounded, with an effective seat tube angle at about 76º, a degree steeper than the 9th gen Hei Hei. The Hei Hei’s chainstays have also grown by just 5 mm in each size, putting them at 435 mm across the board for all sizes. Some manufacturers have gone to size-specific chainstays on XC bikes, though it’s still more common to keep the same chainstay length across a size offering of XC bikes (as Kona has done here) than, say, Trail or Enduro bikes these days. Kona hasn’t yet offered a bike with size-specific chainstays, and they’re not starting with this new Hei Hei.
It’s also worth noting that Kona condones running the Hei Hei with a 120 mm fork up front for folks who want to give this bike more of an XC focus, though doing so will change the geometry slightly.
The Builds
Kona offers only one complete build kit for the new Hei Hei, simply called the Hei Hei CR. They’ve positioned this bike pretty close to the middle of the price spectrum for a complete bike these days at $5,299 USD. The build kit is not comprised of the lightest components out there, but instead, Kona appears to be using parts that are a step up in downhill focus from the lightest bits & pieces you’d typically see in the pits of a World Cup XC event.
Kona is also using the new cable-actuated SRAM Eagle 90 Transmission on the Hei Hei. This seems to be both a cost-effective and weight-saving move from Kona. Despite its popularity, electronic AXS Transmission systems are typically heavier than similarly tiered cable-actuated alternatives, so it makes sense to see Kona putting something like Eagle 90 Transmission on an uphill-focused bike where too much weight is indeed a concern.
Highlights from the available build are as follows:
Hei Hei CR ($5,299 USD)
- Drivetrain: SRAM Eagle 90 Transmission
- Brakes: SRAM Motive Bronze 4-Piston (180 mm rotors front & rear)
- Fork: RockShox Pike Ultimate (130mm) Charger 3.1 RC2
- Shock: RockShox Deluxe Ultimate, 2-position lockout
- Wheels: WTB KOM Team i30 TCS 2.0 rims laced to DT Swiss 370 hubs
- Dropper Post: TranzX +RAD Internal (125-200 mm, depending on size)
The Hei Hei is also available as a frameset for those who would prefer to build their bike from the frame up. The frameset includes the carbon Hei Hei frame, a RockShox Deluxe Ultimate rear shock, a rear axle with UDH hanger, full chainstay, seatstay, and downtube protection pieces, and a seat clamp. It’ll set you back $2,950 USD.
Some Questions / Things We’re Curious About
(1) It seems Kona is positioning the Hei Hei pretty squarely between the Cross-Country and Trail bike categories. So will it perform more like one than the other?
(2) Will the Hei Hei be able to keep up with lighter, dedicated World Cup XC bikes? Will it feel significantly more capable on demanding descents?
(3) With just one build kit available, will the Hei Hei CR’s components present any notable weak points worth upgrading?
Bottom Line (For Now)
This latest Hei Hei follows a similar trajectory to the previous models, making some notable changes in the realm of suspension characteristics and geometry, while keeping the Hei Hei’s uphill-oriented intentions. We have a Hei Hei in for review and will start spending time on it immediately, so keep an eye out for a Flash Review on the site soon, and a Full Review and Deep Dive later this summer after riding the Hei Hei on a wide variety of trails.