Magic potion: Avid Elixir CR

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According to Avid, Elixir is lighter, more powerful

By James Huang

Avid's engineers and designers certainly had a daunting challenge in front of them when developing a new brake line to supplement its popular Juicy. At least on paper, they certainly succeeded: according to Avid, Elixir is more powerful yet easier to control, plus 20-30g lighter as compared to a similarly configured Juicy 7. Moreover, its intended usage now spans the full range from cross-country all the way to downhill.

Elixir isn't an evolution of Juicy as much as it is a wholly new design. The master cylinder boasts a radical new TaperBore internal architecture that should ultimately yield better long-term durability plus the integrated concentric fluid reservoir makes for a tidy appearance. In addition to the tool-free reach adjustment introduced on the Elixir R, the upscale CR comes with an inline pad contact adjustment at the end of the body. Aluminum lever blades are standard but carbon levered versions are on tap as well.

The two-piece caliper is all-new as well and the upsized pistons (roughly between Juicy and Code) provide more clamping force. The pads are now top-loaded for easier replacement and the correspondingly bigger caliper window works in conjunction with the grooved piston faces to dissipate more heat. Unlike the standard Elixir R's inline hose attachment, the CR caliper gets a rotatable banjo for more customizable hose routing.