2024 is shaping up to be a very exciting year for new road bikes and we've managed to get our hands on some of the top models. We've selected 7 brilliant bikes ranging from range topping offerings from Specialized and Cannondale to better value bikes for the everyday rider from Triban and Van Rysel. Let us know which is your favourite and which you're exited to ride in 2024.
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00:00 With the effects of the pandemic now safely in our rearview mirror, bike manufacturers have been
00:04 very busy designing and releasing new bikes, and this year was certainly an active one.
00:09 We're going to take a look at the new bikes that have impressed us the most,
00:12 the ones we'd recommend if you're after the latest and greatest,
00:15 and that doesn't mean the most expensive. Of course, we do have some so-called 'halo' bikes
00:21 in our list, but we've looked at value for money as well as pure performance,
00:25 and they aren't all made of carbon.
00:32 First up, we have a bike which certainly sits in the 'halo' category for many,
00:38 the Specialized Tarmac SL8. After a handful of leaks and an explosive launch at the UCI
00:43 World Championships in Glasgow, the bike landed to a reception of excitement and intrigue.
00:48 Now, in its eighth generation, the Tarmac has become synonymous with road racing,
00:54 not least because of its name, but since it's been under some of the world's biggest World
00:58 Tour teams for over a decade, it's also been the bike which has racked up hundreds,
01:03 if not thousands, of pro victories. We gave the Tarmac SL8 five stars when we reviewed it,
01:08 because we could not find a single thing we would improve. It's fantastically light,
01:14 plays host to a brand new cockpit which helps the bike slice through the air,
01:17 while also offering all of the stiffness you could want without a harsh ride. It's perfectly
01:23 balanced and leaves nothing to be desired. For those looking for a fast, responsive race bike,
01:28 this is the bike to get. One thing the Tarmac SL8 certainly isn't, is cheap. However, you do get
01:35 what you pay for. Full builds start from £6,000 and go all the way to £12,000. However, framesets
01:41 are available too. The pro level model can be purchased for £3,500, while the S-Works frame
01:48 comes in at £4,750. If you're in the market for a road bike under $1,000 or £1,000, you will
02:01 quickly find that there is little choice, especially when it comes to disc brakes. In fact,
02:07 the likes of Specialized and Trek don't actually offer a 2024 disc brake road bike below this
02:12 threshold. Triban, owned by sports retail giant Decathlon, has been long known for offering great
02:18 value products. And the Triban RC520 is no different. The bike features an aluminium frame
02:25 with an endurance slant. It comes fitted from stock with 28mm tyres, but can play host to rubber up to
02:32 36mm in size. Things start to get exciting when you consider that the bike has Shimano 105 derailleurs
02:38 and cable actuated hydraulic disc brakes. While the braking setup won't put fully hydraulic systems
02:44 out of a job, they do still perform better than rim brakes and fully cable actuated disc brakes.
02:50 The one area that the bike is let down is in its weight. The RC520 is not the lightest bike by any
02:57 means, with a frame that comes in at over 1,700g, a fork that's nearly 700g and a wheelset that
03:04 tips the scales at a claimed 2,300g. However, when we look at the bike as a whole, and considering
03:09 the ride it provides is pretty smooth and stable, it represents itself as a great value purchase in
03:15 the sub £1,000 category, which is why we gave it 4 out of 5 stars. All we would recommend doing
03:22 is upgrading the tyres to further improve ride feel, braking performance and grip.
03:33 Pinarello is entering 2024 with a completely fresh line-up of bikes,
03:37 compared to the one it entered 2023 with. Its road offering is now split into two pillars,
03:43 the F-Series and the X-Series, with the former being a racer's choice and the latter
03:49 being the endurance rider's pick. Both pillars of bikes are led by range-topping Dogma models,
03:55 but the bikes that sit below provide many of the same characteristics, but for a better price.
04:01 One bike stood out to us, that being the F7. The F7 plays host to an Ultegra 12-speed Di2
04:08 groupset, some carbon wheels, a carbon cockpit and the brand's famous Honda fork. The carbon
04:14 fibre used to construct the frame is just one step below what's used for the Dogma model,
04:19 so you're getting a lot of the same performance, but for a much lower price.
04:23 We would never say that £7,000 is cheap. It's of course a large amount of money to spend on a
04:30 bicycle, but if you are after the kind of performance that the Dogma F provides,
04:34 but don't want to pay for it, the F7 could be for you. We found the bike provided a pretty smooth,
04:41 dynamic and playful ride feel. However, we would recommend upgrading the tyres to something a
04:46 little bit more high-end to help you extract the most of what this bike has to offer.
04:57 Although the new Cannondale Lab 71 bikes look stunning when ridden in the mountains of the
05:02 Tour de France, the five-digit price tag is higher than the peak of the Col de Tourmalet.
05:07 But you don't have to spend a massive chunk of change to get a good value road bike.
05:12 The Cannondale CAD Optimo 4 with an aluminium frame and carbon fork leans on all the lessons
05:17 the American bike maker learned since launching the CAD line of road bikes in 1997. The Optimo 4
05:24 is an entry-level aluminium road bike that offers good value for those making their first foray
05:29 into drop-bar bikes without committing thousands up front.
05:32 As the only rim brake bike on this list, you can rest assured that the Optimo has plenty of other
05:38 attributes which make it a worthwhile choice for those wanting a nippy road ride. Unsurprisingly,
05:43 a lot of your money will be going towards the frame itself. The ride it provides is one which
05:48 is stable and predictable, but retains the dull road feedback that is so characteristic of aluminium
05:54 frames. The 8-speed Claris gearing isn't quite as impressive as the components you'll find on
05:59 the Triban RC520, but this bike is much lighter. So, if you're after a lighter weight road bike
06:05 suited to faster-paced riding, but want a great value option at around the £1000 mark, then this
06:12 poses a very good choice. Another brand to grace this list from the monolith that is Decathlon,
06:24 is Van Rijssel. Back in spring of this year, a new range of bikes were unveiled at the Sea Otter
06:29 Classic show by the French brand, and one of the new models was the Van Rijssel RCR.
06:36 Soon to be the official ride of Team AG2R Citroen, this bike looks to be a do-it-all racing machine.
06:42 The reason why we're particularly excited about this bike is because pairing the good value of
06:46 a Van Rijssel with world-tour performance could create an irresistible combination for consumers.
06:53 Van Rijssel says it's the perfect balance between lightness, stiffness and aerodynamics,
06:58 and looking at the bike, it's easy to see where it's coming from. The sculpted tube
07:03 shapes and claimed frame weights hovering around 800g could be a real recipe for success.
07:08 Back in February, Cannondale released the fourth generation of its much-loved Super 6 Evo.
07:19 The race bike, which holds quite the climbing reputation, saw an aerodynamic redesign,
07:24 as well as frameset hierarchy changes. The introduction of the Lab 71 framesets,
07:30 which dethroned the High Mod as the range-topping build option,
07:33 made headlines with a price tag of $15,000, or £12,500.
07:37 In recent years, we have seen a trend of lightweight bikes becoming more aero,
07:42 and aero bikes becoming more lightweight. After completely remodelling the Super 6 from its
07:48 previous generation, the new Super 6 Evo has continued down a more aerodynamic path,
07:53 receiving some serious revamping for 2024. However, there's a good reason why we awarded
07:59 the latest generation our Climbing Bike of the Year award. Because, during our period of testing,
08:05 we found that the bike retained its snappiness when put under pressure riding uphill,
08:09 but it still floated a sweet balance between being a fast-handling bike
08:13 without being overly skittish on the descents.
08:16 We also liked that the bike has reverted to a threaded bottom bracket, has clearance for tyres
08:21 up to 34mm in size, and has cleaned up its method of internally routing cables in the headtube.
08:27 It's clear that the fourth generation is far more refined than its predecessor,
08:32 and has been successful in rediscovering some of the Super 6's climbing DNA.
08:37 Happily, the new generation is available in a multitude of different builds,
08:41 spanning an incredibly wide price bracket, making this one of the more accessible platforms to get
08:47 onto. The Factor O2 VAM is a road bike that has looked to captivate the weightweenie audience
08:58 instead of going all out with aero claims. Debuting at the 2023 Tour de France, the new O2,
09:05 with its claimed frame weight of 730g, is clearly right in the Superbike category. But how does it
09:12 ride? We knew even from our first ride of the Factor O2 VAM that this bike was a real contender
09:18 in the Superbike space, and it has continued to impress us ever since. If you're in the market
09:24 for one of the best road bikes, then the Factor O2 VAM should definitely be making your shortlist.
09:30 We really like that the tried and tested geometry has remained largely the same,
09:33 bar a small increase in stack height, and we also just enjoy how light the bike is.
09:39 The O2 we had on test came in at 6.33kg, resulting in a bike which is incredibly responsive and
09:46 playful. The area this bike is let down in is its flatline speed. It's simply not an aero bike,
09:52 or even a do-it-all race bike, meaning if you do live anywhere particularly flat,
09:57 you will be missing out on some wind slicing properties. But for those who spend as much
10:01 time riding up hills as they do going down them, then the O2 could be for you.
10:06 Let us know down below, which of these bikes would you pick? If you enjoyed the video,
10:13 then please do drop it a like, subscribe to the channel for more content,
10:16 and we will see you again very soon.