NOTE on Comparing Star Ratings between Interbike 2014 and 2015 bike tests: I’ve found already that the new bike designs I’m riding this year are a step better than the best bikes I rode last year. What was a 5 star rating last year would only be a 4 star rating this year.
The DeVinci Spartan was the most downhill-oriented of the bikes that I rode in the last two days. It tracks like a locomotive going downhill or going fast through the corners, but also requires more body movement to change direction
Climbing - 4 stars
The Spartan actually was a decent climbing bike with a solid feeling under hard pedaling. Where it falls short is that the Spartan is just not a fast climber due to its weight.
Descending – 5 stars
The Spartan is an extremely stable and solid-feeling descender. It was one of the best bikes I tested in the last several days for maintaining direction and not getting knocked off course by rocks.
Cornering - 4 stars
The Spartan’s cornering is extremely predictable, but it lacks the last degree of nimbleness that the best bikes in the category (Turner RFX, Santa Cruz Bronson) now have.
Summary
This is a bike to consider if you are looking for one bike that can be used for bike park riding as well as for trail riding. If you're mainly going to be doing trail riding, the DeVinci Troy might offer a better balance between climbing ability and descending capability. Our review of the Troy from Interbike 2014 is located at: Dirt Merchant Bikes' DeVinci Troy review.
5 stars - Absolutely outstanding
4 stars
3 stars - Solid performance, meets expectations
2 stars
1 star - Misses expectations by a wide margi