Hope Technology EVO GR4 Brakes

When Hope dropped the Tech 4 brake some three and a half years ago now, we were impressed. So impressed, in fact, that we awarded it Product of the Year for 2022. Since then, we’ve been running multiple pairs of these brakes on several different bikes, and we’ve remained impressed – this is clearly still one of the benchmark products in the MTB braking world. For 2025 however, Hope decided that an evolution was due, and in true Hope fashion, they racked their brains for a new name and came up with…EVO. For as underwhelming and generic as that name sounds, the changes made to the brakes are significant, and in our opinion it’s a clear case of the “best just got better”. Keep reading to learn more!

Hope Tech Evo GR and TR Highlights

• Larger pistons increase ratio of the brake for more power (GR4: 2x17, 2x18 // TR4: 2x16, 2x17)
• New cam design decreases the free stroke while maintaining the feel and modulation in the braking zone
• Bleed port added to the master cylinder body enables bleeding without removing the lid
• Increased lever blade hook for greater control and security during aggressive riding
• New dimple design improves comfort during hard braking and retains grip in all weather conditions
• Roller bearing main pivot
• 2 guide bushes keep the piston running perfectly smooth and straight
• One-piece caliper design for the best stiffness to weight ratio
• New bore cap design decreases overall width of the caliper for easier packaging and better frame compatibility
• TR4 now uses the larger pad shared with the GR4 caliper to improve lever feel and consistency
• TR4 Braided hose - RRP £235.00 // €295.20 // $307.42 (ex tax)
• TR4 Black hose - RRP £225.00// €282.60 // $294.35 (ex tax)
• GR4 Braided hose - RRP £250.00// €314.00 // $327.04 (ex tax)
• GR4 Black hose - RRP £240.00 // €301.50 // $313.97 (ex tax)

Initial Impressions

When the first pics of the prototype EVO brakes popped up online, all the talk was about what appeared to be a bleed port on the brake lever. Sure enough, this turned out to be true, and it marks a pretty significant milestone for Hope brakes after many years of open-reservoir bleeding. The new system isn’t fundamentally a departure from the previous version, as it still works by pushing fluid through the hose from the lever down, by opening and closing the caliper bleed port while at the same time pumping the lever blade. The difference is that you no longer have to remove the reservoir cover to keep the reservoir filled with fluid, you just screw in the bleed cup, fill it with fluid, and bleed away to your heart’s content. This change should have no bearing on the outcome of the bleed, but it’s a lot less messy (if you really want to, you can still remove the cover and do it the old way, too).

Looking over the EVO brakes for the first time, the Tech 4 heritage is plain to see – it’s only when you dig into the details that the changes become apparent. To start with the most obvious one, the lever blades have a new shape with a more pronounced “hook” for the finger. There are now also three different lever blades to chose from; Standard, Power, and Control. The brakes ship with the Standard blade installed, with the other variants available to order separately if you need to. The Power blade is a little bit longer and sits a bit further out from the grips, making it suitable for those with long fingers who like to run their brake levers as far out as possible. The Control blade is a bit shorter, and is shaped to allow the blade to get as close as possible to the grip, providing a solution for those who find that the Standard blade still sits too far out. Because the overall leverage rate changes with the length of the blade, there is a small effect on the power, but it is essentially negligible. We’ll come back to this point, but pick the lever blade you need based on how close to the grips you want it, not the “power rating”.

It is not only the shape of the lever blade that has changed on the EVO, but also the way the blade interacts with the master cylinder piston. The new brake uses a floating cam that alters the leverage rate as the piston is compressed. At the start of the stroke, the leverage rate is lower, which means that the piston moves faster relative to the lever blade movement. As the piston moves deeper into the stroke, the leverage rate becomes progressively higher, which translates to more power. The result is less dead stroke without trading away the power deeper into the stroke. To give you an idea of numbers, the shortest amount of free stroke we can dial in with the EVO TR4 is about 10mm, whilst on the Tech 4 E4 we measure about 11.5mm. As for how the different lever blade shapes stack up, here are the TR4 reach numbers measured at the bite point:

The master cylinder piston diameter is still the same, at 9.5mm. Hope added another guide bushing to the piston though, to help it stay perfectly straight and glide smoothly. Moving on to the caliper side, there are more changes to discover. The bore cap design has been updated to reduce the width of the caliper and improve frame clearance. The caliper pistons themselves have increased in size on both the TR4 and the GR4, up to 16/17mm and 17/18mm respectively. The outgoing Tech 4 calipers featured 4x16mm pistons on the E4, and a 16/18 combo on the V4. Hope says that the increased piston size provides 6-6.5% more power than the equivalent Tech 4 brakes for each model respectively. Comparing the hydraulic leverage rate of the EVO to some of its competitors, it is right up there with the most powerful brakes we’ve tested. SRAM’s Maven uses 2x18mm and 2x19.5mm pistons in the calipers, and what is commonly believed to be a 9.5mm piston in the master cylinder (unverified by SRAM). The Hayes Dominion A4 (and T4) uses 4x17mm pistons in the caliper (unknown master cylinder diameter), while the Trickstuff Maxima gets 16/17mm pistons in the caliper with an exceptionally small, 9mm master cylinder piston diameter. To clarify how hydraulic leverage works, the bigger the size difference is between the master cylinder piston and the caliper pistons, the more hydraulic leverage you get (after which you also factor in the mechanical advantage provided by the lever blade itself to arrive at the overall leverage rate).

The EVO brakes come in either black or silver, with reservoir cover and bore cap accents available in all the standard Hope colors. The color accent is now implemented on the caliper hose connector as well, a tiny little addition of bling to the overall look. As with all Hope products, the EVO brakes can be fully rebuilt if need be, with all spares available for separate purchase (Hope also carries spares for their products for long after they stop selling them, providing extra peace of mind in this regard).

On The Trail

We’ve never really had an issue with the old, open-reservoir bleed process, but the addition of the lever bleed port is nice and certainly provides for much less spillage. We were able to get solid bleeds on the first try when installing our two test sets, GR4s on the big bike and TR4s on the trail bike. Both sets worked flawlessly out of the box, and it was easy to align the calipers and get the pistons to work in unison for a drag-free set-up. We used Hope’s direct mounts to clean up the cockpit where possible (deploying both MatchMaker mounts and SRAM AXS Pod clamps).

Out on the trail, the new lever cam design makes itself felt immediately. The EVO has the same light lever feel as the Tech 4, but the pads engage faster and the initial bite seems even “smoother” when it rolls on. Being able to dial in a further reduced amount of free stroke is cool, something that will in particular suit those who like to also run their levers closer to the grips. On that topic, the Control lever blade will really allow you to get the blade up close, which works even better with the shortened free stroke. As for the difference in power between the different blade options, something we alluded to in the previous section, it is not at all as significant as the naming convention would suggest. We were not really able to feel any difference in power delivery between the three lever blade options, but the ergonomics are unique to each variant which really lets those with bigger or smaller hands dial in the reach and feel of the brake around the bite point. In terms of shape and texture, Hope moved away from the flattish blades of the Tech 4 in favor of a more rounded and more comfortable profile on the EVO. The extra hook also provides for a more positive and defined area to wrap your finger around, while the dimples are smaller and smoother to the touch.

What about power in general then? Well, the Tech 4 never lacked power, but the EVO bumps it up another notch. It’s not very noticeable when going from one to the other, but the EVO is even more effortless in terms of how the power ramps up when you get into the lever stroke. It really doesn’t take much finger strength to deploy full anchors, and this is part of what makes this brake special. The other ingredient in the special sauce is the amount of modulation on offer, making it really easy to always feel what the brake is doing, even in steep terrain or when less than ideal grip is available.

The topic of power and feel brings us to one last point: which EVO version is right for you? The GR4 is a little bit more powerful than the TR4 overall, but this comes with a tradeoff. The GR4 needs to push more fluid to the caliper pistons to achieve the same amount of pad travel (which is how it delivers the extra power), that also introduces a little bit more lever blade movement around the bite point as power builds up. To translate that into rider experience, it gives the TR4 a slightly more direct connection between your finger and the brake pads, while the GR4 builds power more gradually. In our opinion, if your terrain and riding style let you “get away” with running the TR4, then do so. Only reach for the GR4 if ultimate stopping power is at the top of the list of your requirements.

What’s The Bottom Line?

The Tech 4 wasn’t in desperate need of an overhaul, and we still rate it among the very top performers of the current crop of brakes on the market. There is always room for improvement though, and the changes Hope made to the EVO will without doubt contribute to keeping it at the top of the rankings for many more years to come. The new cam mechanism shortens the free stroke and provides for direct, oh-so-smooth engagement, with effortless power on tap in any riding conditions. The new lever port makes for less of a mess when bleeding the brake, and it is easy to install and set up for drag-free running. Add in the excellent reliability record, near-endless rebuild possibilities, and the many color accent options, and you’re looking at one of the very strongest contenders in the category.

More information at: www.hopetech.com.

About The Reviewer

Johan Hjord - Age: 52 // Years Riding MTB: 20 // Weight: 190-pounds (87 kg) // Height: 6'0" (1.84m)

Johan loves bikes, which strangely doesn’t make him any better at riding them. After many years spent practicing falling off cliffs with his snowboard, he took up mountain biking in 2005. Ever since, he’s mostly been riding bikes with too much suspension travel to cover up his many flaws as a rider. His 200-pound body weight coupled with unique skill for poor line choice and clumsy landings make him an expert on durability - if parts survive Johan, they’re pretty much okay for anybody. Johan rides flat pedals with a riding style that he describes as "none" (when in actuality he rips!). Having found most trail features to be not to his liking, Johan uses much of his spare time building his own. Johan’s other accomplishments include surviving this far and helping keep the Vital Media Machine’s stoke dial firmly on 11.

Photos by Johan Hjord and Nils Hjord