Mavic Ksyrium Elite wheelset

The Ksyrium Elites have been part of Mavic's range for years, offering a balance of reliability and value, a real all-rounder ideal for that first upgrade from stock wheels. Mavic has made some tweaks to keep its stalwart bang up to date, including a wider rim bringing with it more comfort, lower rolling resistance and a better pairing with a 25mm tyre.

The internal width of the newly revamped Elite is 17mm, up 2mm from last year. This means they follow the trend of wider tyres across the whole road market that we've been seeing for the last few seasons. In fact the Ksyriums will now take tyres from 25mm to 32mm in width, which, according to Mavic, increases comfort and lowers rolling resistance.

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Mavic even gives us exact figures for that, which I guess is relevant to the supplied 25mm wide Yksion tyres. It says, “For the same tyre pressure the rolling resistance is reduced 13%” and “While maintaining the same rolling resistance you can lower tyre pressure by 20psi.”

A difficult theory to test without having the old and new to run side by side, but I will say this, the Ksyrium/Yksion combo does roll well and offers a very smooth and solid ride when pumped up to my usual pressure.

As far as the weight goes, our Elites came in at 1554g (claimed 1550g) naked, which is pretty good at this £500 rrp. Mavic has delivered a light wheelset that hasn't sacrificed weight over reliability.

The u-shaped rims are 24mm (front) and 26mm (rear) deep and are manufactured from Maxtal alloy, a grade exclusive to Mavic and which, it says, offers a higher strength to weight ratio than 6106 alloy, a commonly used grade in rim manufacture.

The nipples are screwed directly into the rim as the holes are ‘pushed’ through the inside wall rather than drilled, the pushed up material then being threaded to allow the nipple to be secured.

This means the Elites don't need any rim tape as there are no spoke holes in the upper rim; it basically looks like a tubeless rim, although it's presumably not entirely sealed as Mavic makes no claims for this.

The stronger rim allows for material to be milled out between the spokes to save weight without compromising strength. It’s not a new idea for the Ksyriums as it was something Mavic did about 10 years ago. This new version looks a lot more swoopy and smooth than the originals though.

>> Check out our guide to the best road bike wheels here

To make the Elites user serviceable, Mavic has installed steel double sealed bearings that are fully adjustable; Mavic even chucks the tool in with the wheelset. The bearings roll super smoothly and don't seem to be suffering from any water ingress after a very soggy couple of final weeks of testing. Adjustment wasn't necessary but we thought we'd have a play anyway and it was easy to fine-tune the load on the bearings.

So, does all of this technical innovation make for an impressive wheelset? Well, something does. While not an outstandingly flashy set of wheels the Mavics continue that ‘all-rounder’ reputation they’ve always had.

They are very stiff at the rim and through the aero spokes, not moving at all laterally under heavy sprinting or climbing loads. Even with brake pads running very close to the rims you get no rub whatsoever.

The weight means they pick up speed from a standing start with ease, making them perfect for the racer where aerodynamics isn't the main concern, and for the rest of us once up to speed they continue to spin freely – there isn’t a need to keep putting a harder effort on rolling terrain to keep them rolling.

The braking surface is machined smooth after the join has been arc welded, so you always get a consistent stopping power when slowing down. Our testing also showed no bedding in period was needed.

As I mentioned above, you get inner tubes and the Yksion tyres included in the package: Griplink at the front, Powerlink at the rear. The only thing that differs is the compound, the front having ‘supersoft’ shoulders for increased cornering grip, the rear using a harder one for getting the power down. Both use a harder compound running through the centre for longevity.

The tyres are okay. Rolling resistance is good, but I wasn’t a huge fan of the grip levels in the wet or dry. There is no real feedback from them and they just feel a little bit vague, so if they do break traction it's pretty close to the limit for getting them back.

>> Check out our guide to the best road cycling tyres here

Both come with a siped tread for wet weather use, which is a bit pointless, though plenty of manufacturers still continue to do it. Removing standing water is never really a concern on a skinny road tyre.

Overall, then, the Ksyrium Elites are a truly all-round wheelset for practically any road bike situation, especially now that they can run such wide tyres. The weight is respectable, which creates a stiffness level that’s impressive at any price point. Couple that with the fact that they’ll last you for thousands and thousands of miles and they’ll be a long-term investment.

Drop the tyres for something more grippy, though.

Verdict

Great mid-range wheels for the all-rounder, as happy to race as they are to cruise, but the tyres are average