The New Shimano XTR Di2 Wireless Groupset is Here!
After many many years of waiting, Shimano's XTR Di2 drivetrain gets re-imagined, and brings with it some very neat upgrades...
Christmas came early this year.
Meet the new Shimano XTR Di2 Wireless groupset...
The cranks will be offered in XC and in Trail. For the most part these are the same crank, with the exception that on the trail crank the wall thickness of the spindle itself is slightly thicker, making it slightly stiffer and more robust.
The XC crank comes in sizes: 165mm, 170mm, 175mm
The Trail crank comes in sizes: 160mm, 165mm, 170mm, 175mm
Just like the cranks, the brakes also will be offered in XC and Trail. The newly redesigned brake caliper is a 4 piston caliper with resin pistons instead of ceramic.
Shimano is also now using a low viscosity mineral oil for the brakes and in turn all of the seals have been re-tuned to match the rate of the lower viscosity fluid.
The rear derailleur has been redesigned as well. The clutch has been taken away and replaced with a dual spring on the inside. Dropping the clutch helped streamline the derailleur and keep it protected against rock strikes. The dual spring combined with slightly more chain-wrap capacity has increased chain retention by about 70% when compared to the previous generation.
The battery itself has multiple seals, one at the bottom and one at the top where it engages. That means in order for water to penetrate it would have to get through 2 seals, as well as the vertical climb. In other words, great design to keep water out.
Additionally the derailleur has an sleep mode that turns on after 30 minutes of non-use, as well as an automatic crash recovery mode, should you crash or bang a rock.
The shifter is incredible. It is an electronic shifter with a mechanical feel. Each lever can be set up to have a double press or single press function, which can be toggled on and off by a 2mm on the bottom side of the shift lever body.
Additionally both of the shift levers positions can be adjusted to the riders liking with an allen key.
There is also a 'bonus button' on the shifter that can be used to make adjustments to shifting on the fly without ever getting off the bike.
