The Norco Fluid FS A3 is a fun to ride trail bike that is surprisingly affordable for a bike that shreds as hard as it does. Read on to find out what makes the Fluid FS A3 a worthy consideration if you’re considering getting your first full suspension MTB.
Pros
- Balanced and modern geometry
- Plush suspension
- Solid climber
- Grippy tires
- Comfortable to ride
- Little need for upgrades
Cons
- Fairly heavy
- Brakes are good but not great
Bike specs
Frame
6061 Alloy frame with 130mm of travel
Geometry
(for size large frame with 29-inch wheels)
| Spec | Measurement |
|---|---|
| Reach | 480mm |
| Chainstay | 435mm |
| Head tube angle | 65° |
| Seat tube angle | 76.7° |
| Wheelbase | 1245mm |
| Bottom bracket height | 348mm |
| Bottom bracket drop | 30mm |
| Standover height | 699mm |
Suspension
Front fork
RockShox 35 Silver TK Air with 140mm travel
Rear shock
X-Fusion O2 Pro R AV, custom tuned
Brakes
Tektro HD-745 with 180mm rotors
Tires
Front: Vittoria Mazza 2.4″ Trail G2.0
Rear: Vittoria Mazza 2.35″ Trail G2.0
Drivetrain
Rear shifter: SRAM SX Eagle
Rear derailleur: SRAM SX Eagle
Crankset: SRAM SX Eagle DUB
Seatpost
SDG Tellis Dropper
Bike weight
36.3 lbs
Handling and overall bike impression
The Norco Fluid FS A3 is a fun to ride trail bike that feels right at home over all sorts of terrain. This budget friendly mountain bike delivers a full suspension setup, quality components and geometry designed to be ridden aggressively.
The bike’s modern geometry, with a 65° head tube angle gives it plenty of confidence and swagger over all kinds of terrain and makes it feel very capable when the trails get rough and steep.
Our testing found the Fluid FS A3 to be a comfortable ride. The bike’s effective seat tube angle comes in at 76.7° and feels like it puts you in a good position that is comfortable and keeps you centered in a good position over the bike which lends to the confidence this trail bike gives the rider.
The Fluid FS A3 keeps things smooth with its plush suspension setup. This includes a 140mm RockShox 35 Silver TK Air up front, and the X-Fusion O2 Pro R AV shock out back, providing 130mm of rear travel.
An important note on the X-Fusion rear shock – Norco actually custom tunes the rear shock to make sure its set up optimally for this bike in particular, and we found the shock did perform very well from the first ride.
Not only does the suspension help to keep things smooth over rougher sections of trail, but it, along with the knobby Vittoria Mazza tires that come standard on the Norco Fluid FS A3, help to provide for excellent traction on the trail in all sorts of conditions thanks to the compliance they give between the trail and both the front and rear wheel.
Norco has also incorporated its Ride Aligned Design system into the Fluid FS A3. What does this mean? When you purchase the Fluid FS A3, you gain access to Norco’s bike setup assistance through its Bike Setup Guide.
This is an app-based setup assistant that helps to tune your bike to your size and weight, as well as how you ride. Based on these variables, Ride Aligned Design optimizes your suspension and allows you to get the most out of your Fluid FS A3, improving your handling, precision and ride quality.
Climbing
Climbing on the Norco Fluid FS A3 is a bit of a mixed bag.
The bike does put you in a good position to generate power in your pedal strokes while staying centered. It keeps your weight far enough forward to maintain traction while climbing, even when seated, and the tires help with keeping that traction so you can avoid spinning your wheels.
The dropper post that comes standard on the bike, allowing you to get your weight up higher while climbing, certainly doesn’t hurt either.
On the downside, the bike’s weight of over 36 lbs can make it feel a bit sluggish when riding uphill for longer stretches.
Descending
The Norco Fluid FS A3 comes into its own on descents. The 65° head tube angle helps to keep the handlebars out in front of you and makes downhill sections of trail feel less steep, which is definitely a confidence booster when tackling steeper trails.
The speeds you hit on descents is also where you most need your bike’s suspension, and both the RockShox 35 Silver TK Air and the X-Fusion O2 Pro R AV do a good job at keeping things smooth and manageable – even at higher speeds. We never felt like riding faster hurt the performance of the suspension, which is impressive, especially at this bike’s price point.
The Fluid FS A3 feels quite stable when hitting higher speeds on downhill trails, and we credit this at least in part to its relatively long wheelbase of 1245mm.
While overall we found the Fluid FS A3 to be an excellent descender, one weak point stuck out which was the brakes. We didn’t find the brakes to be terrible by any stretch, but they did seem to be a bit underpowered. However, for a bike in this price range the brakes still performed well – maybe our expectations just got a little high considering how well this bike is spec’d otherwise.
Related: Norco Torrent Review
Rough terrain, jumps and drops
Rough terrain
The Fluid FS A3’s suspension gives it excellent rough terrain capability. Through rough trails and chop, we found the Fluid FS A3 to be a composed and steady performer. Even over bigger hits, we found the suspension held up well.
Norco’s emphasis on providing a well spec’d full suspension bike at this price point will allow more riders to feel the joy of ripping through rough trails and riding a little less cautiously. This bike allows you to ride over obstacles you may have to ride around on other bikes in the same price range.
The large, knobby tires that come standard on the Fluid FS A3 also help it to perform when the going gets rough, improving not only the traction on the trail but also helping to absorb some of the impacts from obstacles you hit.
Jumps and drops
The Fluid FS A3 inspired confidence when hitting features that get you airborne, whether that be jumps or drops.
The Fluid FS A3’s slack head tube angle boosts your confidence when approaching jumps or drops, and helps quite a bit in keeping you back and keeping the wheel in front of you as you come down for a landing.
If you’re pushing yourself on features, there’s going to be times your landings are less than ideal. This trail bike’s plush suspension comes in handy when your landings are less than perfect, whether that be on jumps or drops, and adds a level of forgiveness that won’t only help you maintain control on rough landings but improve your confidence from the time you start your approach to a jump or drop.
Frequently asked questions
Yes the Norco Fluid FS A3 is a trail bike. It’s considered a trail bike because it can be ridden on trails of all sorts, up and down hills, and is quite versatile.
Yes, the Fluid FS A3 comes standard with the SDG Tellis Dropper post.
The Fluid FS A3 weighs in at 36.3 lbs.
Yes the Norco Fluid FS A3 is a solid climber, thanks to it having a dropper post and putting the rider in a good position to pedal from. It also provides good traction on climbs because it allows riders to get their weight far enough forward to stop the front wheel from floating and because of the aggressive tread in its tires.
It can be a bit sluggish while climbing if the climbs are long or frequent because of its relatively heavy weight.
Mountain bike review criteria
When reviewing mountain bikes, these are the things we look for:
- Frame quality
- Component quality
- Bike weight
- Bike style and aesthetic appeal
For a detailed breakdown of how we assess each of these criteria, see How We Review Mountain Bikes.
Conclusion
The Fluid FS A3 is a fun and versatile bike that eats up rough trails and fast descents while not sacrificing much in its ability to climb. While it is a bit heavy, its fun factor definitely outweighs this sand makes the Norco Fluid FS A3 a worthy consideration for anyone looking for a budget friendly full suspension bike.