16 for 2016: The Best New Road Bikes of 2016
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Colnago Arabesque
Colnago is reissuing the collector’s favorite Arabesque lugged steel frame after discovering a forgotten stash of original lugs from the early 1980s in the basement underneath Ernesto Colnago’s home. The Colnago Arabesque’s signature details are the carved chrome lugs, but this reissued version also receives the Master’s “star-shaped” tubes: The original Arabesque’s tubes were round. The Arabesque will be offered in very limited numbers, and the frame set will sell for $3,800.
Price: $3,800
Info: Colnago.com
Colnago Arabesque, $3800.00
Parlee Chebacco
The Chebacco is Parlee’s production do-most frame. It looks like a ‘cross bike or a gravel racer—and indeed it was designed for (and has the clearance and features for) either—but the geometry splits the difference for all-season versatility. Parlee is especially proud of the fork, saying it worked hard to be sure it provided a smooth feel for road riding with narrower, high-pressure tires. The Chebacco is priced at $6,700, and built with Shimano Ultegra Di2 and Shimano hydraulic disc brakes.
Price: $6,700
Info: Parleecycles.com
Parlee Chebacco Ultegra Di2, $5999.00
Giant TCR Advanced SL 0
As Giant’s premier race frame, the company’s engineers did what they do when it’s time for a redesign: They made the TCR Advanced SL 0 lighter, and got it onto our list for the best road bikes of 2016. The bike cut about 12 percent of its weight, or 181 grams, but the TCR’s very high stiffness is claimed to remain the same. Meanwhile, the fork dropped 30g but got stiffer, despite very lithe-looking legs. The top-of-the-line TCR Advanced SL 0 receives Giant’s new 1,335g carbon clincher wheelset, a Giant carbon bar and stem, and Dura Ace Di2. On our scale, a size medium weighs less than 14 pounds out of the box.
Price: $9,000
Info: giant-bicycles.com
Giant TCR Advanced SL 0, $9000.00
Jamis Xenith Comp Femme
Underneath that beautiful color and mid-range price is a performance road bike. The Xenith Comp Femme has large frame tubes, an oversized bottom bracket shell, tapered head tube, and asymmetric chain stays to help attain a stiff and reactive frame. The build is quality, too; it’s equipped with a Shimano 105 11-speed drivetrain, Ritchey cockpit, tubeless-ready wheels, and luxurious Fizik MicroTouch bar tape.
Price: $2,199
Info: Jamisbikes.com
Jamis Xenith Comp Femme, $2199.00
Trek Emonda ALR
The Trek Emonda ALR is the aluminum kin to Trek’s very-light Emonda SLR carbon race frame. Like its kin, the ALR is light: Claimed frameset weight is 1,408 grams—1,050g for a 56cm unpainted frame, and 358g for the carbon fork. The bike is lighter than comparable aluminum bikes from Cannondale and Specialized, says Trek. Three builds are offered, ranging from $2,200 to $1,310; shown is the $1,680 ALR 5. If you prefer to build your own, the frameset sells for $990.
Price: $990
Info: Trekbikes.com
Trek Émonda ALR
Specialized Allez Sprint DSW SL Expert
Like Trek, Specialized has a new aluminum road-race frame. The Allez Sprint DSW employs lessons learned from engineering the new Tarmac, resulting in an aluminum frame that’s as stiff at the headtube and stiffer at the BB than its more expensive carbon kinfolk. And, like the Tarmac, the 2016 Allez Sprint DSW gets a bit of aerodynamic tuning to make it a bit faster thought the wind. Two builds are offered $2,600 or $2,000 (shown). If you prefer to build your own, the frame set sells for $1,350.
Related: 2016 Specialized Allez DSW Sprint X1 Expert
Price: $1,350 to $2,600
Info: Specialized.com
Specialized Allez Sprint DSW SL Expert, $2000.00
Cannondale CAAD12 Disc Dura Ace
Cannondale never gave up on aluminum, and the metal's revival of the past few years owes much to Cannondale’s CAAD series. The CAAD12 is the latest iteration of the company’s premier aluminum frame, and the frameset is 200 grams lighter, and more compliant than the previous generation. The CAAD12 Disc Dura Ace is the top-of-the-line disc-equipped model—rim-brake versions are also offered—and is built with Dura Ace-11 speed derailleurs, RS785 hydraulic disc brakes, and Cannondale’s HollowGram Si crank.
Info: Cannondale.com
Buy It Now: $3,999 at Competitive Cyclist
Cannondale CAAD12 Disc Dura Ace, $3999.00
Cervélo S2
Aero road bikes aren’t fluff: They provide real benefit. Cervélo has lived aerodynamics since its beginnings, and can be credited for popularizing the aero-road trend. The Cervélo S2 is the company’s entry-level, full-aero road bike—set apart from Cervélo’s R-Series bikes, which are designed for optimal stiffness-to-weight with a bit of aero benefit—and borrows engineering from both the S5 and the ultra-rare RCa. Well-equipped and featuring Shimano 105 11-speed, the S2 comes in at $2,800—or 28 percent of the RCa’s frame-only price.
Price: $2,800
Info: Cervelo.com
Cervélo S2, $2800.00
Litespeed T1 SL
Carbon may be the most popular material for high-end racing bikes, but Litespeed builds a race frame that’s more metal. The US-made T1SL frame has a claimed weight of 1,000 grams, with 6/4 titanium sheet bent and welded to form the multi-sided top tube. Like a carbon race frame, the T1SL has an oversized head tube for the tapered-steerer fork, PF30 BB shell, and convertible routing for mechanical or electronic shifting. The frame is $4,000; complete bikes are available for up to $10,000.
Price: $4,000 to $10,000
Info: litespeed.com
Litespeed T1 SL, $4000.00
Cipollini NK1K
The made-in-Italy NK1K features a slightly more upright position and relaxed geometry, and claims improved comfort relative to Cipollini’s hard-charging race frames. A proprietary upper head tube system allows the head tube to be lengthened for higher bars without spacers. The frame uses the BB386EVO standard, is provisioned for mechanical or electronic internal cable routing, and comes in either direct-mount rim brakes or disc brakes. It’s available in seven sizes (from XXS to XXL), and the frameset sells for $6,895.
Price: $6,895
Info: cipolliniusa.com
Cipollini NK1K, $6895.00
BH G7
BH’s new G7, the company’s top-of-the-line race bike, is illegal to race in UCI events for now. That’s because the G7 is offered only with disc brakes, and the UCI does not yet allow disc-equipped bikes at the sport's highest level of competition. The aerodynamically shaped G7 tests faster in the wind tunnel than the model it succeeds, the rim-brake G6. The frame features thruaxles front and rear, a semi-integrated, no-cut seat mast, BB386EVO bottom bracket shell, flat-mount disc caliper interface, and internal cable routing for an electronic or mechanical drivetrain. The bike retails for $4,799, and is built with Shimano Ultegra mechanical shifting, Shimano hydraulic disc brakes, and a DT-Swiss wheelset.
Price: $4,799
Info: bhbikes-us.com
BH G7 Disc, $4799.00
Felt ZW3 Disc
Rather than ‘shrink it and pink it’—the phenomenon of creating a women’s bike by simply making it a smaller version of the men’s bike and painting it in “women’s” colors—Felt builds distinct frames for its women’s bikes. The ZW line of women’s frames are lighter and less stiff than the men’s models, but stiffness-to-weight ratios are said to be almost the same, for a comparable ride quality. The ZW3 Disc is offered in 43, 45, 47, and 50cm sizes, and is equipped with a Shimano Ultegra 11-speed mechanical drivetrain and Shimano R685 hydraulic disc brakes for confident braking in all weather.
Price: $3,399
Info: feltbicycles.com
Felt ZW3 Disc, $3399.00
Pinarello Gan S Ultegra
The Pinarello Dogma F8 is a fantastic bike. It’s also a very expensive bike. The Gan S is heavily inspired by the Dogma F8, with similar aerodynamic tube shapes and asymmetric design and features, but is executed with lower-grade carbon, so it’s a bit less stiff and somewhat heavier. Nicely built with Shimano Ultegra 11-speed and Fulcrum wheels, it comes in at $3,950. For comparison, the Dogma F8 frameset is $5,750.
Info: pinarello.com
Buy It Now: $3950 at Competitive Cyclist
Pinarello Gan S Ultegra, $3950.00, $3,950 at Competitive Cyclist
Wilier Triestina GTR Team Disc
The GTR Team Disc marries Wilier’s mid-range frame with slightly more relaxed steering geometry (compared to the top of the line Zero.7), with the control of disc brakes and the stiffness of thru axles. It’s also a pretty great deal: For $3,349, the Team Disc is equipped with Shimano Ultegra 11-speed mechanical, Shimano RS805 hydraulic disc brakes—which use the clean and minimalist flat-mount attachment standard—and DT-Swiss wheels.
Info: wilier.com
Buy It Now: $3,349 at Competitive Cyclist
Wilier Triestina GTR Team Disc, $3349.00, $3,349 at Competitive Cyclist
Look 765
Look adds flax linen fiber—claimed to be very effective at damping vibrations—to the fork and chainstays of the endurance-focused Look 765 road bike, one of our favorites for 2016. Further smoothness, Look says, comes from a 27.2mm-diameter seatpost and thin seatstays. The 1,100g frame features a PF30 bottom bracket, carbon dropouts, asymmetric chainstays, and routing for both mechanical and electronic shift systems. A complete Look 765 built with mechanical Ultegra will run $2,800, while the 105-equipped version shown will cost $2,000.
Price: $2,000 to $4,300
Info: lookcycle.com
Look 765, $2000.00
BMC SLR02 105
Your eyes do not deceive you: That’s a blue–not black, not red–BMC. The SLR02 frame is made with less expensive carbon-composites than the SLR01 the BMC Pro Team rides, but frame profile and geometry are very similar. The SLR02 has a full Shimano 105 11-speed groupset, a wide-range 11-32 cassette, Shimano RS11 wheels, Fizik saddle, and Continental tires.
Price: $2,599
Info: bmc-switzerland.com
Whichever bike you choose, be sure to pair it will a well-fitted helmet:
BMC SLR02 105, $2599.00
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