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Kenda Kozmik Lite Tire

4.1/5 (49 Reviews)

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Weight : 395 grams MSRP : $31.99


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Product Description

The Kenda Kozmik Lite II is a 60Tpi MountainTireThat features a lightweight semi-slick design with a low rolling resistance rubber compound makingThis a greatTire for use in urban or hardpack conditions.Tire Bead: Folding ISO Diameter: 559 ISO Width: 50 mm TireType: Clincher Tire Diameter: 26" Tire Use: Mountain Weight: 460 g PSI: 40-80 PSI


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Reviews 1 - 15 (49 Reviews Total) | Next 15

User Reviews

Overall Rating:4
Value Rating:4
Submitted by tirador a Weekend Warrior from philippines

Date Reviewed: April 24, 2011

Strengths:    These are very light tires. They roll fast on pavement and hold well in dry and semi moist conditions. I have been using the 1.75 version on the trails and they are still good! These have traction on dry trails i think because of the side knobs.

Weaknesses:    None that I can think of. These are semi slicks so they are not intended for muddy conditions, but aside from that they are great.

Bottom Line:   
Unless it is rainy season or muddy, these are my perfect all around tires to use. They are predictable and fast rolling. They are not prone to flats in my experience, so far just around 5 in 2 years. The 1.75s are a bit punishing on the HT in the trails but the 2.0 would be just right if you are looking for a softer ride.

Expand full review >>

Duration Product Used:   2 Years

Similar Products Used:   nevegals, small block 8, crossmarks.

Bike Setup:   cannondale f5, deore xt drivetrain, hygia slps, am classic 09 disc and a suntour axxon fork.
Overall Rating:5
Value Rating:5
Submitted by bdcain a Cross Country Rider from winnipeg manitoba canada

Date Reviewed: March 2, 2011

Strengths:    light fast durable very sticky on ice and hardpack snow!

Weaknesses:    price, cant get em anymore

Bottom Line:   
well its been over 10 years and the rear tire needs replacing soon
the cords are showing
the nubs are gone
and have a flap glued back after what looks like a scalping
but I will still run it for a while longer
good to see how far you can push it
just in case the world goes down the tubes

Expand full review >>

Favorite Trail:   any

Duration Product Used:   More than 3 years

Price Paid:    $60.00

Similar Products Used:   similar none

Bike Setup:   under 20 pound singlespeed santa cruz spot chris king etc
Overall Rating:5
Value Rating:5
Submitted by John a Cross Country Rider from Quezon City, Philippines

Date Reviewed: September 12, 2007

Strengths:    Fast & light. Fast climber. Low rolling resistance.

Weaknesses:    Potential rear washout during fast turns due to shallow thread design.

Bottom Line:   
Faster and lighter than the small block eights. Confidence building while climbing. Huge probability of a washout while doing fast downhills, especially with 50psi plus air pressure. You can leave others behind on the climbs, just be careful on the descents.

Expand full review >>

Favorite Trail:   Maarat, Sierra Madre, Montalban

Duration Product Used:   Less than 1 month

Price Paid:    $36.00

Purchased At:   Extreme Bike Shop

Similar Products Used:   Nearest would be Kenda Small block eight.

Bike Setup:   Giant XTC hybrid. Rockshox Reba. XT grouppo.
Overall Rating:2
Value Rating:3
Submitted by Will a Cross Country Rider from Hollywood, FL, USA

Date Reviewed: August 21, 2007

Strengths:    Light weight, low rolling resistance

Weaknesses:    Flats. Poor traction in sand, mud, etc., but that is not what this tire is supposed to be good at.

Bottom Line:   
Fast and light. But since mounting this as my rear tire, I have had at least half a dozen flats -- all on the rear tire. I am lightweight and do not ride aggressively, I do not get flats very often. I won't buy them again.

Expand full review >>

Duration Product Used:   6 months

Similar Products Used:   IRC Slick Mythos XC

Overall Rating:4
Value Rating:4
Submitted by David Shanahan a Weekend Warrior from Atlanta

Date Reviewed: February 14, 2006

Strengths:    Very light and VERY fast and fast and light. And fast. Tough for lightweight tires. Fast, too.

Weaknesses:    No lateral traction, makes me mess my bike shorts. Wear quickly. Climb fast, but any mistake in body position results in severs traction loss.

Bottom Line:   
I purchased these on advlce of the guy at the LBS. I asked for suggestions to lighten my ride. He had a bit of an odd twilnkle in his eye when he handed me these. Now I know why.

I switched out hubs, rims and tires at the same time and it felt like I had added a 3hp engine on the downhills. Holy crap these things are FAST! On my very first ride I crossed a small wet patch in the trail - maybe 3 feet across - we're talking flat, straight trail - and the bike side-sips a couple inches. Mind you, it feels like a foot to me because I've only ridden Panaracers and the like, and they won't slip in 3" of bacon grease.

I was determined to give these tires a full audition. In the past year I have ridden them many times on trails in GA, NC and AL. In all of these locations one can expect a little moisture on the trails at some point. On the bright side, I feel these tires are tougher than one mjght expect from an ultra-light tire. I took them on some pretty rough trails in Montesano (Huntsville, AL), and while I did manage to fold the tire half way around the side of the rim on one patch of rocks, I never punctured the tire or got an irreparable flat. In the long run, however, I have mostly abandoned these tires after 1 year because I simply cannot muster any confidence while using them. Any speed gains I got in climbing and downhills were probably negated by me slowing down excessively in the turns. Any time I saw loose dirt or sand in a turn, or, heaven forbid, a wet patch I would slow it down and still and hold my breath. On a easy or moderate, wide trails (most of DuPont Forest trails in NC) they would be great, but for typical XC conditions here in the SE they don't work for me. YMMV.Still, I give them four chiles because they are tough and they are exactly what they claim to be. Did I mention they are fast?

Expand full review >>

Favorite Trail:   aska loop - Blue Ridge, GA

Duration Product Used:   1 Year

Price Paid:    $36.00

Purchased At:   REI

Similar Products Used:   Hutchinson Mosquito, Panaracer Fire XC

Bike Setup:   Giant Ranier, XT drive, lots of upgrades
Overall Rating:4
Value Rating:5
Submitted by Michael a Weekend Warrior from Pittsburgh

Date Reviewed: October 7, 2004

Strengths:    Extremely light (395 grams). Low rolling resistance. FAST, FAST, FAST!!

Weaknesses:    Rear tire tends to stray on gravel. I sort of expected this, however.

Bottom Line:   
So far, so good. Have had no issues with pinch flats -
keep mine at 80 psi. I've been riding on this pair of for about 1 1/2 months. I do all of my riding on streets or rails-to-trails. The amount of speed you pick up switching from a MTBtire to this semi-slick is amazing! I highly recommend them, especially at the price I paid - $34.00/including S&H! I'd give them 5 Flamin' Chilis but I want to ride a few more miles before I make a final determination. Currently I have 75-100 miles on them. Previously I had the IRC Mythos XC Slicks which produced quite a bit of vibration (and yes, I did have the direction correct).

Expand full review >>

Duration Product Used:   3 months

Price Paid:    $34.00

Purchased At:   Ebay

Similar Products Used:   IRC Mythos XC Slicks

Bike Setup:   Stock Trek 3500 MTB w/Kenda Kozmik Lite semi-slicks. Slime
tubes.
Overall Rating:5
Value Rating:5
Submitted by Richard a Cross Country Rider from Ontario Canada

Date Reviewed: July 30, 2003

Strengths:    Light, Very Fast

Weaknesses:    Side nnobs could use more bite

Bottom Line:   
I have 1500 miles on these in 2 years with only 3 flats (2 this year). They are just starting to tear the side knobs off. On hard packed they fly and you lose a little in breaking but climb exellent. They do tend to be a bit lose in cornering(could use a more agresive side knob) but overall an exellent tire for the money. I have just purchased a second set on ebay for next year. I would just like to ad that these are for hard packed terrain and not for mud.

Expand full review >>

Favorite Trail:   McCauly Conservation

Duration Product Used:   2 Years

Price Paid:    $24.00

Purchased At:   Price Point

Similar Products Used:   Michelin jett, sprints, Irc mythos slick, WTB racing raptors

Bike Setup:   Giant XTC1-xtr,crossmax disc,time,thomson
Overall Rating:3
Value Rating:4
Submitted by Matt a Cross Country Rider from Bay Area, CA

Date Reviewed: July 11, 2003

Strengths:    super light, low rolling resistance, decent side knob bite

Weaknesses:    Scary. Scary going up, scary going down, scary in the corners

Bottom Line:   
These things should come with a warning label. No one who rides off-road should even consider it as a front tire. I did a test ride today using this on the rear and a Michelin Comp S Light on the front, riding my favorite hardpack (this time of year) trail.

It's got about as much traction as my 1.85 Intense Wedge tires did in the straights, but while the huge side knobs made the Wedge and effective mud tire (at 100 grams heavier), the Kozmik definitely isn't. That having been said, this thing is amazingly fast on hardpack. Which is good, because it slips really quickly under low-speed, high torque (read: technical) riding. You need to carry a lot more speed into short, steep, loose hills. And stay seated.

I have no objective measurement of whether I was faster than when I ran a Hutchinson Python Air Light rear and Intense System 2 front, but I definitely spent a lot more time concentrating on my line and laying off the rear brake to prevent skidding out the tire.

I'm 185 lbs. with Camelback and ran it at 40 psi with a 125-gram Continental tube with no problems on some harsh, high-speed chatter bumps.

Expand full review >>

Duration Product Used:   Less than 1 month

Purchased At:   www.jensonusa.com

Similar Products Used:   Intense Wedge 1.85

Bike Setup:   Titus Racer-X, custom 1400-gram wheelset
Overall Rating:3
Value Rating:3
Submitted by Chas a Weekend Warrior from Tampa FL

Date Reviewed: July 4, 2003

Strengths:    Speed and smoothness.

Weaknesses:    Loses it on wet pavement.

Bottom Line:   
Needed a semi-slick after my primary riding became more pavement than dirt :^( Tried Racing Raptors but they flatted an average of once every two weeks. Moved to Kenda Kozmic Lites recently. Great tire. Fast and smooth riding. But don't try any sharp fast turns on wet pavement. They lose grip and you end up sliding.

Expand full review >>

Duration Product Used:   3 months

Price Paid:    $14.00

Purchased At:   Performance

Similar Products Used:   Panaracer Fire XC Pro, WTB Racing Raptor.

Bike Setup:   Giant Rincon - Rock Shox Judy. All other components stock.
Overall Rating:5
Value Rating:4
Submitted by Thomas a Racer from Ontario, Canada

Date Reviewed: March 28, 2003

Strengths:    Light! Fast! Light! Fast! Cheap! Fast! Did I say it was light?

Weaknesses:    Wears a little fast...Not great traction, but good considering the design

Bottom Line:   
These tires rip for racing. The acceleration quotient is wicked. They hold well untill it gets really slick. They can't really be pushed through really rocky sections, but most race courses are boringly easy anyway. Good for Racing!

Tip: Put on your old, inferior, heavy tires for training. Put these back on week of race, bike will feel mysterioulsy fast again.

Expand full review >>

Favorite Trail:   the one i havn't ridden yet

Duration Product Used:   1 Year

Price Paid:    $28.00

Purchased At:   Bike Show

Similar Products Used:   Bontrager Super X

Bike Setup:   Trek 8000 xt/517, flat bar
Overall Rating:5
Value Rating:4
Submitted by Duncan a Weekend Warrior from Cambridge

Date Reviewed: March 23, 2003

Strengths:    Very light, unbeleivably fast, the first time I used them I could not believe the acceleration or top end speed that could be achieved.Use them when ever I think I can get away with it.

Weaknesses:    SLIDEEEEEEE.. makes for some interesting cornering, they tend to slide if pushed on most surfaces (except clean, fast hard pack surfaces or tarmac, a little slow to turn in sometimes. Ride in the wet at your peril!!

Bottom Line:   
If you can handle the odd heart stopping slide these are the fasted tyres you'll find

Expand full review >>

Favorite Trail:   Coed y Brenin / Flume Ride, Tahoe

Duration Product Used:   1 Year

Price Paid:    $28.00

Purchased At:   JT CYCLES

Similar Products Used:   Panaracer ss & sk

Bike Setup:   Super light, fox etc etc
Overall Rating:4
Value Rating:5
Submitted by stuff-junkie a Racer from Burlington, Vermont

Date Reviewed: December 9, 2002

Strengths:    wicked fast! light has h*** (am i allowed to say stuff like that?) i felt a huge difference the first time I rode them

Weaknesses:    wear a little fast, i recomend only using them for races or other rides that require something extra, unless your loaded

Bottom Line:   
These are a great tires for fire roads and hardpack, just don't try to make them do anything else.
If you're looking for a super light and fast tire, then this is the one for you.

Expand full review >>

Favorite Trail:   technical madhouse- northcountry vermont

Duration Product Used:   6 months

Price Paid:    $30.00

Purchased At:   can't remember

Similar Products Used:   nothing even close to this light

Bike Setup:   Trek Fuel 98, mostly XTR
Overall Rating:4
Value Rating:5
Submitted by Timur a Weekend Warrior from Almaty, Kazakhstan

Date Reviewed: August 22, 2002

Strengths:    Light, rolls fast, easy to fit, good grip on fire-road

Weaknesses:    Those small knobs wear out fast - I lost every 2nd in 4 months.

Bottom Line:   
Not a real slick, but stiil a rocket! And you can shave some weight when lose half knobs. Needs high air pressure.

Expand full review >>

Duration Product Used:   3 months

Price Paid:    $23.00

Purchased At:   JensonUSA

Similar Products Used:   Conti Town&Country (long-lasting tires)

Bike Setup:   Klein Attitude Race 2000 - light and fast
Overall Rating:5
Value Rating:5
Submitted by Matt a Cross Country Rider from Blacksburg, VA

Date Reviewed: August 12, 2002

Strengths:    durable and "Oh WOW!!" light

Weaknesses:    not a lot of grip in the loose stuff and on rocks, and a couple of pinch flat- but that is the price you pay when you step up to semi-slicks

Bottom Line:   
Hey, you wanna shave some weight? I lost about a pound with these tires and I definitely felt a difference on hardpack and on the street. I don't race but I love to ride fast and these tires are the ticket to my adrenaline rush. They aren't great in loose dirt or on rocks but that is not what they are designed for anyway. When you use 'em on hardpack they SHINE. You will feel your bike want to spurt out from beneath you. They do pretty darn well on the street, too, but wear quickly if you log a buncha miles on the asphalt.
If you need a speed fix, you gotta try these. If you mostly ride slower, more technical terrain then you should probably look elsewhere.

Expand full review >>

Duration Product Used:   2 Years

Purchased At:   jensonusa.com

Overall Rating:5
Value Rating:4
Submitted by Loi a Cross Country Rider from West Covina, CA

Date Reviewed: January 22, 2002

Strengths:    Light weight. Fast rolling.

Bottom Line:   
I got my Michelin Wildgripper on front and Kozmik Lite on the rear. I have managed to climb hardpack, loose rocks, and slick mud without much difficulty. There were some slippage on the slick mud, but the mud sheds right off the Kenda. The tires are slick so don't expect it to climb like others, but for all around cross-country these are awesome. The sidewall seems stronger than my michelin. I have torn two sidewalls of my Michelin Wildgripper Comp S tires. It is narrow, so going through technical rocky sections a little scary, but it handles it decently. Going through corners hard are sketchy, but so are my Michelin.

Expand full review >>

Favorite Trail:   El Prieto, Hacienda Hills

Duration Product Used:   6 months

Price Paid:    $23.00

Purchased At:   Jenson USA

Similar Products Used:   IRC Velociraptor, Michelin Wildgripper Comp S, Bontrager Jones, Panaracer Pyros

Bike Setup:   GT XCR1000, SID SL, WTB Motem Disc Wheels, Syncros, XT/XTR, 858 Pedals, and Avid Mechanical Disc Brakes
Reviews 1 - 15 (49 Reviews Total) | Next 15

Review Options:  Sorted by Latest Review | Sort by Best Rating

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