I have owned the 2019 and 2021 Trek fuel, and now the 2022 Slash, all of them 9.8. The 2021 fuel was Rebuildt with Fox 36 150mm factory fork, and a DPX2 factory rear shock. They were all 3 different bikes, the 2019 Fuel was a lightning fast "burly" XC/trail bike, The upgraded 2021 Fuel was a "Jack of all trades", it could do long days on the trail, and even enduro syle races. But i was always feeling that the 130mm shock was holding me back on the fast descends. The Slash is defenetly a large bike, it`s not as fast and agile doing technical climbs, but the level of confidence and forgivness it gives you is just next level. 4 months with the Slash and I am jumpin big table- and gap jumps I never though I would even consider trying. It has definitely boosted my jumping and dropping skills. The upgraded fuel was awsome, and most of my KOM`s where taken using it. Its only the longest and steepest segments where the Slash is faster. However riding the Fuel at "KOM-speed" was pushing the limits a lot, and it always felt like I was on the limit of disaster. With the Slash being much stiffer and having more travel, it is a much more forgiving ride. Choosing a bike is usually a compromise, the best way to find out whats right for you, is trying it your self. Both the Fuel and Slash are great bikes!
@@JaredHoff Thanks! I swapped the Fox 34 140mm to a Fox 36 140mm, and than to a Fox 36 150mm(just changing air piston), going from Fox 34 to Fox 36 with the same stroke length was a much bigger improvement, than Fox 36 140-150mm. If you allreday have e fox 36 i would rather spend money on upgrading the stock shock. That being said, if you have a Fox 36, replacing the air piston is a really quick and inexpencive job.
Thanks for this comment. I currently have a Fuel Ex 8 2019. I changed the fork to a Fox 36 150mm and riding this bike is pure pleasure. It is a really comfortable and maneuverable bike. I'm learning to overcome bigger and bigger jumps and for a few days I've been planning to buy a slash 8. I'm still considering it, but I think I just have to try it. I hope it will be as nice and comfortable as the fuel
Great vid! Had a Fuel EX on order back in ‘21 but it never came in. Ended up getting an Intense 951 Trail from Costco. Pretty cool bike. Didn’t have much time to ride it because it got stolen along with a newer Top Fuel 8. Here comes the amazing part - the police dept actually recovered BOTH bikes 7 months later. Which was two weeks ago. Both in great shape! Sitting here in awe. Anyways, had to share this good news with someone that would appreciate it. Keep up the helpful and inspiring content. You’re keeping me stoked, brother!
Hi Jared, I just went on my maiden voyage today on my Trek Slash. This is an amazing bike and highly recommend it as a trail bike. The handlebars are stupid wide though at 820mm. I'm very happy with the suspension and the lockout works good. Only modification I see right away is chopping the bars down to about 770-780mm. I won't ever ride like you but I want the bike to always be more capable than myself.
@@JaredHoff Well, sorry to say I could not find the Slash 8 in M/L anywhere here in Southern CA. Only thing in that size locally was the 9.8 GX AXS. Damn pricy but I will not have to upgrade anytime soon. I'm really happy with this bike and happier I did not go with a pedal assist Rail.
What!!! 170 on a fuel ex 🤩 that sounds like a fun ride. I recently rode the Fuel EXe (video coming soon), and I was super surprised how good the 140/150 travel felt even when I sent a jump to flat lol
Hi! Greetings from Norway here! I have been through the same process. Did get a Fuel Ex 9.8xt for the trail riding and that bike gave me the fun on trails back again!! But then I happen to have a bike park with enduro trails in my back yard, so when the Slash 9.8xt arrived it was all party. What a bike!! BUT having 2 such expensive carbon bikes with limited time to ride does not feel good, so now I have sold the Fuel Ex and will sell the Slash as well in order to get one bike that can do it all :-) Cheers and thanks for a really nice video!!
I just rode the new Fuel EXe. It’s and EBIKE, but 140/150 travel and I truly think that’s the right amount of travel for a one bike that does it all build 👍🏻
@@JaredHoff I am really excited for that kind of ebike. I am waiting for a Revel Rail 29 and cant wait to se how that bike run on my trails compared to the Slash. I do belive that could be the ONE bike for me :-)
First wanted fuel ex but After your video i decided to go for slash 9.8 xt 2022 XL 29 and it arrived on monday and boy was i impressed. Absolute god bike. Huge price tag, but holly shit is it impressive. I was hesitating the price, but gotr on sale for 5,5k. After trying i have no regrets. I never have ride anything like this. The bike looks insane and does insane. You instantly feel the slackness of it compared to a trail, but i was massively impressed how well it climbs. It climbs better than my old bike which was pretty decent trail bike. Really easy to pedal even on roads. Verdict def worth it. Truly next level shit and it destroys trails like nothing. Suspension is very impressive, built quality top of the line. One thing i was also impressed about is how fast it goes, the speeds it can reach for downhill bike on a road is just nuts. Now also what i was impressed about is the size. My previous bike was xxl, but this one is xl and bigger. But perfect for me since im over two meter. Honestly for anyone who has doubts like before buying dont. Instant you try this bike, you have a new lover. I cant express how happy i am now.
Your timing on this video could not be better for me, i currently ride a 2021 fuel ex 8 xt and as you describe, its insane how i improved over the last 2 years. Last week i tryed my friend slash 9.8 and i was just blown away how a diffirent machine it was. I really feel like the 140/130 travel on the fuel is not enought anymore, i always bottom out doing small drop and stuff. But at the same type im not rdy yet for full double diamond crazy down hill. Really feel like im moving toward enduro bike. For me the weight of the bike isnt an issue, im a goat coming from road racing.
I am honestly impressed with how well the Slash climbs. There’s only a few times when riding with XC bike friends that they beat me up the hill, BUT I fly past them going back down lol
Well said. Perfectly summed up. I would not go shorter travel for the local trails here. The slash is the do it all kootenay enduro weapon. But if I lived back where I used to, where the mountains weren’t so big. And the trails weren’t so gnar…. I would think twice before buying a slash.
Funny - I got both the 2022 Top Fuel (not EX) 9.8 XT and the 2022 Slash 9.8 GX AXS - 2 completely different bikes. The Slash is a lot heavier but can roll anything. It does really well on the climbs too. I love both bikes for different reasons - I will say the brakes on the Slash GX absolutely suck compared to the XT - love your videos!
I own a 2022 Slash 8 - the thing eats, EATS, trails for breakfast! I bought it as an all rounder… granted it’s definitely more biased to down hill, but it can climb relatively ok.. not great with tight switch backs, but that’s to be expected. It can feel a bit heavy at times. It loves bike parks.. I’ve never had so much fun on a bike than I have with my slash.. it’s broken my bones (literally) but I still love it! 🤟🤟🤟🤟🤟
You convinced me. Was trying to choose between slash 9.8 xt and fuel ex 9.8 gx. So ill go for slash. Right now i can get on 20 percent discount for 2022 variant.
Having not ridden for 8 years and getting back into the sport last year I went with a Jamis Faultline 130 front & 115mm rear travel. This bike was the perfect bike to get started with again, however, yesterday I was at a bike park I have never ridden before and found the travel was holding me back and I was bottoming out on pretty every trail. Now, I'm 94kgs or 205lbs and over the last few months have been wanting to upgrade to a bigger suspension bike as my skills improved and which I think is important for a heavier rider like myself. So, I am now the new owner of a Trek Slash 8 as I don't care about how long it takes me to get up the hills, it's more about how much fun I have going down them!
For sure! The Slash 8 is an amazing MTB machine. If I could afford more than one bike,,, I might have a short travel bike as well but for now the Slash does it all 👍🏻
2 years ago I was looking for my first full suspension mtb after 3 years of riding an XC hardtail. My choice fell on the Trek Remedy 8 XT. It has this exact balance between uphill and downhill and enough travel; it's stiff enough for me as a 107 kg rider who needs an agile bike. Now after 2 years I am starting to wish trying a 29er and the Slash has always attracted me but I am sure it is an overkill for my home Trails
I do think the Slash is an amazing MTB, but 160/170mm of travel can be a bit of overkill for a lot of trails. Although, I used this as a one MTB that does it all and it kind of worked for that. Just not keeping up with XC guys on those climbs 😂
I just found a 2021 Slash shop built custom for $3999 at a local store with a slightly odd build, Magura MT8 brakes which I think are cross country 2 pistons, Bontrager Dusters, Zeb, Float X, and I think they said NX drivetrain which I'm not too keen on. Definitely not my first pick for bike and parts but that sounds like a great price right now. Specially considering I just saw inflation hit a $300-400 price jump in some brands I was window shopping yikes! 3.8 bike now 4.2.. the 5k bike now 5.3, I super regret not snagging that Sentinel in stock now before the price jumped! 😬😬😬 But have you seen that new Transition Carbon Patrol release video it looks KILLER!
Bike prices continue to climb 🤦🏼♂️ definitely not making it any easier on us. The 2021 Slash is a great bike, but there’s definitely some things you’d need to change out on that one. Maybe you could sell the parts it has on it now to help fund the upgrades 🤔
Just got back into mtn biking after 23 years (last mtn bike was a Gary Fisher Joshua F4 for reference lol) to mix things up as I was getting bored with just road and gravel - picked up a Trek Roscoe 9, so 0mm of travel in the back lol. But here in Tucson, it works well as I'm not exactly doing down black diamonds at this point. I've upgraded it a bit, and so far I love it. However, down the road I can definitely see myself getting a FS for the super rocky stuff here....I'd prob go with the Slash, but I'll see how the skills progress as I'm basically relearning everything at this point and getting used to the modern slack geometry (which I prefer).
Roscoe 9 is an amazing bike and one you’ll want to keep even if you get a FS bike. I’d like to get a Roscoe as well, but can’t justify the extra cost since my Fuel EX pretty much does everything I need it to.
@@JaredHoff Oh yeah, I'll definitely keep the Roscoe....it's great for easier/flowy trails (I'd actually prefer it over a full suspension) and tooling around/skill practice, and the 29x2.6" stock tires work well on mild chunk/rock gardens - I do have some Conti Argotal/Kryptotal tires ready to go on once I wear them out. The frame also seems to ride surprisingly "soft" for an aluminum hardtail, but again the tires help a great deal as did switching to a carbon handlebar. It's just a fun bike that feels good, and if my skills were up there, I would take it down some of the gnarly stuff here in the area. I almost got a Fuel EX when I was getting the Roscoe, but glad I got the Roscoe as when I get a FS, it'll be more enduro-based....plus the hardtail will basically force me to learn to pick better lines, something I was never good at in the past. Kind of a win-win.
Solid video ! I just picked up a fuel ex gen 6. seems the gen 6 is even closer to the slash with the extra 10mm travel and the fox 36 from factory. Im hoping its the quiver killer
It’s definitely closer to the slash, and what I would call a do it all MTB. I just upgraded my EX7. Tried to take it for a ride today, but mid covered trails ruined the ride 😬
@@Andreas01 nice 👍🏻 Stoked for you! I’m working on a video right now talking about the new Slash and what’s changed/what hasn’t changed from last year. They relabeled my Slash 9.7 as a 2023 on the website so technically I have a 2023 as well 😂 🤦🏼♂️
I love and I recommend top fuel, but I have bought slash, just because its got bigger wow factor. I still thinking about top fuel, so sexy frame so light. another option is Santa Cruz Blur TR. next my bike will be Blur TR :)
I’m from MN and currently have a hard tail. My problem is I want the harder downhill stuff and go for slash, but most of mn trails are cross country single track that isn’t the gnarliest ahha
Always get the bike for the riding you do most. Maybe the Fuel EX with a 150mm fork would work on your local trails, but still handle harder downhill stuff that you ride every once in a while 🤔
i love the idea of more $uspension on the Slash but does it wash out in the turns (some may say understeer but ...) compared to the EX i.e for flatter technical trails but lots of roots to deal with?
@@JaredHoff I was torn between the 2022 Trek Slash 7 and the 2022 Giant Reign Adv Pro 2. Both were similar price, ended up going with the Reign as it was slightly better spec'd (Carbon Frame + Zeb Fork), overall great bike.
Dude, nice review. I had a remedy 8 and It was a lot of fun bike, now i got Slash 8 and IS a beast for almost anything but weights too much... I like enduro but I dont do to often, so do you think 160 front 150 Rear travell is enough to do enduro an trail? Also I have a zeb suspensión wich I loves, thanks for the giving back
I just rode a 140/150 travel bike on my local trails and almost felt like that was enough. You really don’t need all the travel the Slash has, but man it’s fun having it lol
@@mariopazmino160 the only difference I felt on the carbon frame is that it dampened the trail vibrations a bit and feels a tiny bit more stiff. But I don’t ride as fast as the pro riders, so the difference is probably minimal at best. Maybe even a little placebo effect lol
the Remedy is truly the swiss knife army of Trek. That bike is capable of everything, it climbs so good, it can be fast on downhill, I spend countless hours on that beast because it's so comfortable. The only thing is, the bike is underated because it comes only in 27.5 and not 29 inches as most of people want. But to me, 27.5 is so playful.
I rode a hardtail for almost 2 years, wich lead to into hard enduro moto..im coming back into mtb for the exercise...im trying to pick wich one of these..my hardtail was a pain to pedal so i was thinking the fuel but i want a bike i can progress in..how much better does the fuel climb?? I really want the slash but most of my local riding in ky is trails..no mountains but a 2 hr drive theirs windrock dh bike park
The Slash still climbs good, but I’ve never done back to back laps. I’ll have to go demo a Slash from my local shop and see if I can feel a difference riding both back to back. I know the Fuel EX will climb “better” but not sure how much I’ll feel the difference 🤔
Initially impressions is that the Fuel EX can handle almost everything the Slash can. But it will be interesting to see how the EX feels at the lift access bike park. At the bike park the slash makes you wonder if you even need a DH bike.
