Fox has refreshed its popular 36 fork both internally and externally, increasing stiffness and bushing overlap, as well as reducing friction under load. In addition, a brand new 36 SL option brings hard-hitting performance in a sub 1,800g package – click here for all the into on the lightweight 36 SL.

The latest Fox 36 looks unchanged at first glance, but take a closer look and you’ll spot the new brace, crown, and lowers.

Fox 36 need to know

• Redesigned chassis brings claimed 20% increase in torsional stiffness
• Improved bushing overlap – 30mm wider
• Bypass channels moved to inner leg
• Floating air spring piston reduces friction under load
• Generatively-designed crown and brace
• Low-profile bleeders
• Weight from 1,920g for the Grip X Factory model
• Redesigned mudguard
• UK prices are £879 (36 Performance) / £1,259 (36 Performance Elite) / £1,399 (36 Factory Grip X or Grip X2)

Inside the new MY26 Fox 36, with (L to R) Grip X damper, new lowers, crown-steerer-tube assembly, air spring top cap, air spring assembly.

Last year the 36 received the brand new Grip X2 and Grip X dampers, with larger base valve diameter, additional shims, and pressure balanced design. For MY26 the focus is on the chassis, with a new generatively designed crown and lowers, designed to improve stiffness, precision, and tracking. Internally, the new lowers broaden the gap between bushings, increasing overlap with the upper tubes to further enhance sensitivity under load.

The generatively designed arch is a visually slicker than the old bulbous design, as well as adding stiffness.

New generatively-designed chassis

First used to help design the unconventional, backward arch 34 SC launched last year, Fox has applied its generative design technology to the new 36 chassis. This uses artificial intelligence to come up with design solutions that meet certain design parameters given by the Fox engineers. Constraints like target weight, stiffness, and volume are fed into the algorithm and a range of design options are produced. These are then interpreted, honed and refined into the final article. Most obviously the lower leg arch and crown use this process, and both share an intricate, organic shape with webs, butresses, ridges and cutouts. Wrapping around the lower leg tubes is one way that the new arch helps Fox improve torsional stiffness by a claimed 20% over the previous 36. Furthermore, this is said to be nearly 90% as stiff as the current 38 (it used to be 75% as stiff), while retaining an edge on the scales of 275g.

Compact bleed valves and repositioned bypass channels are two of the more subtle updates.

Better bushing overlap

Inside the new lower legs casting, Fox has managed to spread the bushings an extra 30mm further apart. This increases the bushing overlap with the upper tubes, giving more support and reducing friction, particularly under side loads during cornering, or fore-aft loads under braking or landing jumps.

The negative air plate and piston head can move on rubber bushings (the black inner ring) to keep them aligned with the upper tubes, even under load.

Floating air piston

That’s not the only way Fox has helped improve the 36’s response under load. New rubber ‘bushings’ at the air shaft head and negative plate allow the piston to travel freely and smoothly through the upper tubes, without binding, even when the fork is being flexed or twisted. You could think of the new ‘compliant air spring’ like Buttercups for your piston head, rather than the piston base.

Moving the bypass channels to the inside leg means more material at the rear to support the bushings, and improve fore-aft stiffness.

Repositioned bypass channels

Like the 34 SL fork released recently, the bypass channels have been repositioned from the rear of the casting, to the inside of the leg. These channels allow fluid to flow back up to the seal area and keep the fork lubricated, anf moving them to the inside of the legs means there’s more material supporting the bushings at a crucial area for maximising fore-aft stiffness.

The new air bleeders are smaller, while a groove allows air to escape even when you’re covering them with your finger.

Smaller bleed valves and new mudguard

Other more minor updates include new, compact bleed valves for getting rid of excess pressure build-up in the lower legs. There’s also a pair of new mudguards that attach fully to the brace, with support at the seal flanges, rather than using the bleed port bolts. These are available in long and short styles. Finally, at the main air spring valve, the top cap is removable with a Shimano cassette tool instead of a socket wrench, just like RockShox.

I rode the new Fox 36 Grip X2 on Pivot’s Shuttle AM e-bike.

First ride impressions

Last year I travelled to the Fox launch, and listened to the presentation about the new Grip X2 and Grip X dampers with great anticipation and excitement. I couldn’t wait to get out and experience how the new base valve and shim stack gave me more control and support without added harshness or a loss of comfort. But I found only disappointment, sore palms, and a compression damper knob completely wide open. That first impression was backed up with similar experience on several other Grip X and Grip X2 dampers on various test bikes through the year. You can read my review of the MY25 Fox 36 Factory Grip X fork here.

This was one of the few rock sections I encountered out in the Arizona desert dust, so it wasn’t the ideal suspension testing ground.

This time, I hoped it would be different. And it was. I rode the new 36 Grip X2 on a Pivot Shuttle AM e-bike at a couple of spots in Phoenix, Arizona, and found the harshness had magically disappeared. I say magically, because Fox asserted that the stock damping tune in the aftermarket fork (OEM partners can choose different fork tunes to match their rear suspension, but consumers only get one option) is exactly the same as last year. So if the damping hasn’t changed, why did the fork I rode feel noticeably more supple than last year, with less harshness and feedback at my palms? And why did I end up running a few clicks of low-speed damping when I had to run all the other Grip X2 and Grip X forks fully open? The answer must be friction, or rather the lack of it. So while the damping hasn’t changed, the new 36 Grip X2 found more grip and delivered greater sensitivity because it could move more freely. Plainly the stiffer chassis and compliant air spring has done wonders for the performance of the 36, allowing the new Grip dampers to do the job they were designed to do, without friction giving it a bad name.

Sunshine, heat, loose decomposed granite, and unforgiving vegetation is about as far away from February in the UK as I could imagine.

In terms of stiffness, the trails were so loose and dusty that it wasn’t the place to really push the front end. But considering my 36 was mounted to a 23kg full fat e-bike, I had no complaints about the fork being flimsy or the steering being vague.

I have to admit that the trails I rode weren’t the roughest tracks in the universe, and I didn’t get a huge amount of ride time, but in terms of first impressions, it feels like the changes for MY26 have made a big difference.

If this is winter in Arizona, what does summer look like?

Something I found very interesting when chatting to Fox staff is that every Fox fork has its bushings sized to the upper tubes at the factory. Every single fork. This has to be a really expensive step in the manufacturing process, but it’s reassuring to know that Fox is going to these lengths to ensure that all its forks enjoy a similar performance, without having to go to an aftermarket suspension tuner. I’ve got the new Fox 36 Grip X2 for further testing at home, so expect a full review in due course.