SRAM Brake Launch: New Motive Brake and Limited Edition Motive and Maven Ultimate Kits

After the huge demand that the SRAM Maven brakes generated when they launched last year, we have all been wondering when it would be time to overhaul the other end of their braking spectrum and it would seem that time is now, with the brand new Motive brake launching and taking the place of both the existing G2 and Level brakes.

Looking to simplify their brake range, SRAM now split their brakes into just two families. Their “Heavy Duty”category is covered by the new Motive range and their DB brakes, while the “Extreme Duty” category is picked up by their hugely potent Maven brakes.

Within each of those braking families SRAM then encourages users to further customise the power and feel of their system by varying rotor size, rotor type and pad choice so suit their individual use. 

Aimed at XC and trail riding, the Motive is a very lightweight 4 Piston brake intended for use on shorter travel bikes where raw power needs to be balanced against overall weight. SRAM primarily expects the Motive to see service on bikes up to around the 130mm travel mark, but it could also quite easily be at home on a longer travel bike for a lighter rider looking for a less aggressive, more controllable brake. 

As with the existing Maven, the Motive is a Mineral Oil brake system, running on SRAM’s Maxima Racing Fluid. Chosen for its ability to preserve performance over time and through wide temperature ranges, SRAM’s Mineral Oil brakes are intended to keep bleeding to a minimum once a brake has been set up initially. 

A new DirectLink lever drives all Motive brakes, giving a linear power delivery, so that overall feel remains consistent throughout the lever stroke for maximum modulation and control. All Motives feature tool free reach adjustment, but they do forgo SRAM’s excellent contact point adjuster in the pursuit of keeping the overall weight as low as possible. 

For launch only, alongside the regular brakes there are also a very limited number of Ultimate Expert Kits to be had. The kits are designed to really give riders the chance to fine tune the setup of the brake to suit their own bikes and trails, including 4 Centreline-X floating rotors, mounting brackets, a pro bleed kit with fluid and both organic and sintered pads alongside a set of custom Teal and Black Ultimate brakes. That creates a tremendous amount of scope to tune the power and feel of the overall setup and at £585 it’s barely more expensive than just a set of Ultimate brakes alone.

The Ultimate Expert sets are a one-off run for launch, very limited in number and once they are done, there will be no more for the foreseeable future. When the Maven launched last year, the limited edition sets all sold before they even made it to the shop floor, so if you want to get a launch set of Motives, then be quick with the pre-order! 

For those who missed out on the Maven Ultimate sets first time round, there is also another chance for those, as SRAM are also making available a fresh run of Maven Ultimate Expert kits, also in the new Teal and Black colour scheme. The Maven kit contains 4 HS2 rotors from 220mm down to 180mm, brake mounts, choice of brake pads and a Pro Bleed Kit with Maxima Oil. As with the Motive kits, we expect these to go fast so get in touch quick if you want to get your hands on a set!

Drilling into the stand alone brake options alongside the launch kits, there are several levels of Motive and a new model of Maven to look at.

Motive Ultimate is finished in a polished silver, features Carbon Lever Blades, plus Ti hardware for the lightest possible setup and weighs just 264 grams per brake. Cost is £270.

Functionally near identical, the Motive Silver uses Stainless Steel bolts instead of Ti along with an alloy lever. Coming in a Polished Black, it weighs 273 grams and saves a fair bit of cash at £220.

Finally the Motive Bronze does without the lever bearing, instead running on a simple bushing and attaches the caliper with a compression fitting rather than a banjo. That sacrifices a small amount of fitting options and refinement but saves a chuck of cash at just £170 per brake while still weighing only 279 grams. 

Alongside the new Motive, SRAM are also launching a new budget Maven, called Maven Base. Subtly different to the existing Maven brakes, the new Base model uses a Directlink rather than the regular Servo lever, along with a slightly smaller set of four 18mm pistons (the regular mavens use 2 x 18mm and 2 x 19mm pistons). That creates a Maven with a more linear feel through the stroke than the existing brakes, and potentially makes for a brake that might suit smaller and lighter riders better with slightly less peak force compared to the existing brakes. Running on Organic pads as standard to further improve modulation the Maven Base weighs 380 grams, and costs just £180 making it a very reasonably priced way to access tremendous levels of braking power.  

After any of the new brakes? We’ve limited stock of both Ultimate Expert Kits while they last and individual brakes to follow. 

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