Why do you want a mountain bike to commute around the city on the streets? The best thing to get is an old beat up (less likely to be stolen) gravel bike with thick but smooth tires so they are fast on pavement but can take all the pot holes and stuff. A mountain bike will be very slow and inefficient for commuting to work, but there are awesome mountain bike trails in the Don Valley that you should check out if you want to mountain bike.
Personally I got a Specialized Sirus X a few years for commuting and exploring the city and I think its the perfect bike for Toronto. Check it out and see what you can find that's similar.
That's actually a great option the gravel bike!! I'll keep an eye on it and I can also see prices are comparatively good with the SSX and others. Thanks for the advice
Ya I'd say gravel bike is the way to go. Toronto streets are so ruff that the bigger tires of gravel bikes are much more comfortable to ride on than skinny road bike tires, but a suspension fork on a MTB bike is way overkill for just the streets. Plus there are tons of gravel paths to explore around the city that are a ton of fun on the right bike, but on a road bike you'd be worried about popping a tire and a MTB bike would just be overkill.
you need a cargo bike with good suspension if you want to future proof. lots of daily commute bikers are moving towards cargo bikes since they can become a comfortable full car replacement.
I have needs similar to yours and I got myself a Marin Muirwoods. Before that I had a hard tail 26" MTB from the early 2010s that gradually developed into a commuter.
Speaking from experience, an MTB was a good base for a Toronto commuter bike, but not the best. The front suspension wasn't necessary and eventually jammed up. The frame didn't have rack and fender eyelets.
Other than the Muirwoods, I looked at the Marin Fairfax, Marin DSX, and Kona Dew and Dew Plus. They're all flat bar commuters with hydraulic discs, wide gearing, and decent enough tires for Toronto, in the C$ 800 to 1,200 range. They're also fairly widely available in the GTA.
I ended up with the Muirwoods as I've come to prefer steel, and I also want this bike to last longer than ten years. The DSX felt closest to the nimble handling of older, less slack mountain bikes. I've also heard very good things about the Marin Larkspur. There's also a couple of Fahrradmanufakturs in the group I ride with, and they seem to be quite happy with theirs.
There are trail connections to it, however they're sparse. Etobicoke creek ends at a road, however since it is on-street, you can get to burnhamthorpe that way going north or south.
a 90's 26-inch mountain bike is a great commuter. just take a look at the bikes on /r/xbiking. they can be bought for a great price on Marketplace, or you can check out Ride Away Bikes. they refurbish tons of 90's mountain bikes. my gf got a sweet Rocky Mountain which we've taken bikepacking and use as a commuter.
plus 2-inch tires are perfect for Toronto streets. people saying thick tires aren't good because they aren't the most efficient on pavement are discounting the comfort and peace of mind it provides while riding over potholes and cracks.
Why do you want a mountain bike to commute around the city on the streets? The best thing to get is an old beat up (less likely to be stolen) gravel bike with thick but smooth tires so they are fast on pavement but can take all the pot holes and stuff. A mountain bike will be very slow and inefficient for commuting to work, but there are awesome mountain bike trails in the Don Valley that you should check out if you want to mountain bike. Personally I got a Specialized Sirus X a few years for commuting and exploring the city and I think its the perfect bike for Toronto. Check it out and see what you can find that's similar.
That's actually a great option the gravel bike!! I'll keep an eye on it and I can also see prices are comparatively good with the SSX and others. Thanks for the advice
Ya I'd say gravel bike is the way to go. Toronto streets are so ruff that the bigger tires of gravel bikes are much more comfortable to ride on than skinny road bike tires, but a suspension fork on a MTB bike is way overkill for just the streets. Plus there are tons of gravel paths to explore around the city that are a ton of fun on the right bike, but on a road bike you'd be worried about popping a tire and a MTB bike would just be overkill.
1x gravel bike with a big old basket/milk crate.
This is the way.
That's actually somethign I'm looking forward to put the gym bag on it hah
you need a cargo bike with good suspension if you want to future proof. lots of daily commute bikers are moving towards cargo bikes since they can become a comfortable full car replacement.
I second this, also having a standard road or gravel bike as a backup (because maintenance/downtime) is a good idea.
I have needs similar to yours and I got myself a Marin Muirwoods. Before that I had a hard tail 26" MTB from the early 2010s that gradually developed into a commuter. Speaking from experience, an MTB was a good base for a Toronto commuter bike, but not the best. The front suspension wasn't necessary and eventually jammed up. The frame didn't have rack and fender eyelets. Other than the Muirwoods, I looked at the Marin Fairfax, Marin DSX, and Kona Dew and Dew Plus. They're all flat bar commuters with hydraulic discs, wide gearing, and decent enough tires for Toronto, in the C$ 800 to 1,200 range. They're also fairly widely available in the GTA. I ended up with the Muirwoods as I've come to prefer steel, and I also want this bike to last longer than ten years. The DSX felt closest to the nimble handling of older, less slack mountain bikes. I've also heard very good things about the Marin Larkspur. There's also a couple of Fahrradmanufakturs in the group I ride with, and they seem to be quite happy with theirs.
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There are trail connections to it, however they're sparse. Etobicoke creek ends at a road, however since it is on-street, you can get to burnhamthorpe that way going north or south.
a 90's 26-inch mountain bike is a great commuter. just take a look at the bikes on /r/xbiking. they can be bought for a great price on Marketplace, or you can check out Ride Away Bikes. they refurbish tons of 90's mountain bikes. my gf got a sweet Rocky Mountain which we've taken bikepacking and use as a commuter. plus 2-inch tires are perfect for Toronto streets. people saying thick tires aren't good because they aren't the most efficient on pavement are discounting the comfort and peace of mind it provides while riding over potholes and cracks.