Fox suspension forks and shocks are now guided by small needle bearings. This technology has been known for years from Cannondale's Lefty suspension fork, whose patent protection has just expired. Fox is seizing the opportunity and installing tiny micro generators in these needle bearings. The damping specialist has entered into a joint venture with Maxon, the leading manufacturer of micromotors for space technology.

The microgenerators convert the friction during compression into electric current. Just like the classic bicycle dynamo, now simply in the high-tech version with a diameter of just 0.8 millimetres. This energy is fed into the e-bike batteries via internally routed cables. There are 20 of these micro-generators installed in a suspension strut and 30 in each bar of the suspension fork. A full-suspension bike therefore has 80 such energy sources.

The harder the descent, the more power

The efficiency of this new recuperation technology depends on the route. The rougher the descent and the more suspension travel available, the more effective the charging process. On test rides on Monte Altissimo on Lake Garda, up to a quarter of a 750 Wh battery was recharged in a single run. The very rough Altissimo descent is one of the toughest mountain bike trails in Europe with an altitude difference of 2000 meters. The test rides also showed that, despite the charging resistance from the generators, there was no subjective effect on the suspension sensitivity. The suspension behavior is identical to the previous suspension struts without needle bearing technology.

Fox will be equipping all suspension forks for e-bikes with Recharge technology with immediate effect. E-bike versions of the Float suspension struts will also be available in future, logically all with the new recharge technology. According to Fox, most major bicycle manufacturers will integrate this technology into their models directly from the factory and in series production. Retrofitting is also possible; adapter pieces are available for Bosch, Shimano, Maxon and Brose motors. However, the motor must be removed for installation and the connecting cables to the suspension elements routed inside the frame. The Fox suspension struts and suspension forks with the new Recharge technology will be available from April 1, 2022.

This article was published on April 1, 2022