2025 Santa Cruz Hightower!

• Posted on 17 September 2024
• 0

Following the launch of the new Bronson last month, it's now the turn of the 29er equivalent - here's the new 2025 Santa Cruz Hightower!

So what's new?  To sum it up;

- A new VPP layout to give lower anti-squat

- Tweaked geometry

- A streamlined range of builds, with changes to specs across the board

- A return of frame only?!

"Old Growth Green" or "Matt Deep Purple"

And the other important bit, prices;

- 2025 Santa Cruz Hightower Carbon C R Kit - £4900

- 2025 Santa Cruz Hightower Carbon C S Kit - £5700

- 2025 Santa Cruz Hightower Carbon C GX AXS Kit - £6600

- 2025 Santa Cruz Hightower Carbon CC X0 AXS Kit - £7800

- 2025 Santa Cruz Hightower Carbon CC X0 AXS Reserve Kit - £8800

- 2025 Santa Cruz Hightower Carbon CC XX AXS Reserve Kit - £10000

- 2025 Santa Cruz Hightower Carbon CC Frameset - £3600

Scroll on for more of a deep dive...

New suspension layout and geometry.

Santa Cruz are constantly tweaking VPP, all while keeping the same core idea of 2 short links connecting sturdy front and rear triangles.  For the new Hightower, they've reconfigured the shock placement and links to give lower anti squat for a more efficient ride than ever before.  There's a wee bonus that the new cutaway gives even better view of your shock for checking sag.

We still see the same great frame features that we love on Santa Cruz bikes - Carbon C and Carbon CC versions, reliable collet axle system and their lifetime frame and pivot bearing warranty backup.

New build kits

Santa Cruz have slimmed the range in terms of what they're offering on the Hightower and we're glad to see this.  With bike stock always proving difficult, making sensible moves to simplify a range is only a good thing in our eyes - hopefully we'll see better availability because of this.

Specifically, GX AXS Reserve kit is no longer - we can always add Reserve wheels/rims to a GX AXS kit to make a GX AXS Reserve.  Unlike with the Bronson, the XX Reserve kit continues for the Hightower, if you fell like going fancy!

In terms of components changes, there's still the familiar build kits, but with tweaks to bring them bang up to date;

- Fox Float X and Fox 36 forks across the board, other than the R kit

- Sram DB8 (R and S kit) and Maven (GX AXS and above) brakes

- Assegai EXO+ MaxxGrip/DHR II EXO+ MaxxTerra across all build kits.

Sensible moves all round!

Frame only looks to be back on the cards, which is promising given the very limited supply over the last few years.  Bear in mind that CC bikes and frames won't have gear cable routing - wireless drivetrain only on these!  We've yet to see it properly confirmed, but there's word that Santa Cruz will also be starting to offer the Carbon C as a frame only option.  Watch this space...

We expect stocks of the new 2025 Hightower to be pretty tight until the New Year proper, partly while the last of the 2024 stock winds through.  As always - give us a shout to discuss a potential purchase, whether a complete bike, custom build or frame swap.  Email's usually best!