2023 has some of the most exciting new aero bikes on the market. We've pulled together 8 of the best aero bikes for 2023. After the change to the UCI's stipulation surrounding the 3:1 rule saying that tubes can't be more than 3x deeper than their width, we've started to see some incredibly creative designs. Trek, Bianchi and Scott have all taken advantage of the new rules and have gone deeper in their tubing than ever before. Sure, innovation costs, and these bikes are by no means cheap, however, if money were no object, which would you go for? All 8 of these aero bikes by themselves are great and represent the best aero bikes that are available today, so which would you choose?
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00:00 Aerobikes are all about raw speed, and they just keep getting faster.
00:08 In this video, we're going to have a look at the bikes that we think are going to be
00:11 the ones to beat in 2023, both in the World Tour and in the sprint for the Towns sign,
00:17 and there are plenty to choose from.
00:19 With the UCI removing the 3-to-1 regulation, which prevented tubes from being more than
00:24 three times deeper than their width, engineers have quite literally gone deeper in the pursuit
00:29 of speed, and that has resulted in some really exciting new bikes.
00:34 Why should the UCI regulations make a difference to what I ride in my chaingang, you might
00:38 be asking?
00:39 But the fact is, generally the top aero bikes are developed initially for pro racing, with
00:44 the notable exception of the Bianchi Ultre RC, which we couldn't miss out of our list.
00:54 Let's first of all look at a radical new bike that stirred up plenty of debate and
00:59 is UCI legal, the all-new Trek Madone.
01:03 In the case of the Madone, the newly formulated Camdell tube shapes were overshadowed by the
01:08 bike's crazy-looking Isoflow technology.
01:12 Gone is the Isospeed decoupler of the previous bike that had been introduced to help make
01:16 the bike more comfortable.
01:18 In its place is a hole.
01:20 By removing the adjustable Isospeed system of the last Madone, the bike became both simpler
01:26 and lighter.
01:27 Combined with the use of 800 series OCLV carbon, the new frame weighs 300g less than the previous
01:34 model.
01:35 But of course, the cutout section was also created with aerodynamics in mind.
01:40 Trek say it's a way to direct some high energy flow into a low energy region of the
01:45 bike.
01:46 What that means is that the seat tube area creates a disproportionate amount of drag
01:50 and the hole helps to dissipate this by adding what Trek call a jet of fast-moving air.
01:56 The new frame is claimed to be almost 20 watts faster than the last generation, which equates
02:02 to 60 seconds per hour when ridden at 45km/h.
02:06 And that is a lot.
02:13 Like the new Trek Madone, the new Giant Propel Advanced SL is both lighter and faster than
02:19 before.
02:20 Its weight was reduced through a fusion process, which sees the top tube grafted to the seat
02:25 tube using filament to hand-weave the tubes together before remoulding them under high
02:30 pressure and heat to strengthen the junction.
02:33 Giant say the new Propel is 225g lighter than its predecessor, with the new Advanced SL
02:39 frame weighing 845g with the complete frame set claimed to be almost 14% lighter than
02:46 the outgoing model.
02:48 To make the Propel faster, Giant used a combination of airflow simulation software, wind tunnel
02:53 testing and real-world application.
02:56 The resulting aero-system shaping led to what Giant describe as truncated ellipse aerofoil
03:02 shapes across the down tube, seat tube and seat stays, as well as a redesigned frontal
03:07 area, an area crucial to the reduction of drag.
03:11 There's even two different bottle cages designed to improve the aerodynamic performance
03:16 of both the down tube and the seat tube.
03:19 The result is a bike that Giant say is 27 seconds faster over 40km at 40km/h, thanks
03:27 to a reduction in drag by more than 6 watts.
03:36 This is the bike that the all-conquering Jumbo Visma team were riding all through 2022, a
03:41 long time before the official launch.
03:43 As with all the new aero bikes we've seen, the frame's aero profiles have been deepened,
03:48 a product of the relaxing of the UCI regulations.
03:51 This is most noticeable at the head tube and the bottom bracket area.
03:55 Elsewhere, the trailing edges of the tubes are more aggressively shaped, while the rear
03:59 dropouts have been simplified a little due to the frame being compatible with electronic
04:04 group sets only, another trend we're seeing.
04:07 It comes with new reserve wheels that have differential rim profiles and save over 5
04:12 watts compared to the previous wheels.
04:14 The front end has been overhauled with a new handlebar that, despite the radical Y shape
04:18 without a conventional stem, also has the benefit of reducing the system weight by a
04:23 little over 50g.
04:25 Naturally, as a pro-level bike, the S5 doesn't come cheap.
04:30 If you want to create your own dream build, then a frameset retails at just under £5,500.
04:37 Let's start with the numbers.
04:43 Scott claim the new foil is 20% faster, 10% more comfortable and 9% lighter than the outgoing
04:50 version.
04:51 Those are some big claims.
04:53 Like the other manufacturers, Scott took advantage of the UCI rule change and redeveloped the
04:57 new foil, pushing right up to what's legal.
05:00 That meant deeper cross sections for the tubes, as well as the fork crown being a little higher
05:05 up from the front wheel and the oversized head tube acting as a fairing according to
05:09 Scott.
05:11 The bottom bracket area has also been beefed up, while the seat tube now follows the arc
05:15 of the tyre much more closely, before the seat post itself transitions to shoot straight
05:20 upwards.
05:21 The seat stays are designed to shelter the brake calipers, but they've also been angled
05:25 at 10 degrees to force the laminar flow of air into the spinning spokes.
05:30 That doesn't sound to us like something that would make it go faster, but Scott conducted
05:34 whole system testing and used an actual wind tunnel, rather than only using CFD software.
05:40 Scott say this iteration is 1 minute and 18 seconds faster, over 40km at 40km/h than the
05:47 previous model.
05:49 Another neat little point is that the bikes are being sold with 28mm tyres specced on
05:52 the rear and 25mm tyres on the front, but it is eye-poppingly expensive.
05:57 The flagship SRAM Red eTap AXS equipped Foil RC Ultimate build costs an incredible £15,899.
06:07 But happily there are plenty of models that come in cheaper than this.
06:13 We've spent quite a lot of time talking about this bike recently and have possibly,
06:19 slightly unfairly, poked fun at it.
06:22 Bianchi's new bike, which it says is the first hyperbike, has air deflector technology.
06:28 These are little air intakes either side of the head tube, which Bianchi explains are
06:32 inspired not only by motor racing, but also by aerospace and architecture.
06:38 It is, Bianchi say, a world-exclusive, patent-pending technology.
06:43 Bianchi make some huge claims for the bike.
06:45 It saves 17.1 watts at 50km/h, but also has a 30% advantage over the best aero road bikes
06:52 in the market in variable wind conditions.
06:56 It's also claimed to weigh 6.85kg in a size 55, which is pretty impressive.
07:03 We don't have our own wind tunnel to independently test it against those other bikes, and we
07:08 haven't had one on our scales yet, but there's no doubt that this will be one of the most
07:12 talked about bikes in 2023.
07:15 Bianchi will be the bike sponsor of Arkea Samsic in the World Tour next year, so we'll
07:21 see the Ultra RC in action in pro racing, but without the air deflectors, which are
07:26 simply bolted to the head tube and very easily removed.
07:29 So if they don't win everything in sight, well, that'll be why.
07:38 The Specialized Tarmac SL7 and the Pinarello Dogma F might not technically be aero bikes.
07:43 They're all-rounders, since the two brands have decided that separate aero and climbing
07:48 bikes aren't necessary.
07:50 The Tarmac SL7 was a result of the Venge, Specialized's last true aero bike, merging
07:55 with the Tarmac.
07:56 And ever since the original Pinarello Dogma F8 was launched in 2014, completely redesigned
08:01 and aero-ized, the Italian brand also doesn't see the need for a dedicated aero bike.
08:07 We'll see these two bikes winning plenty of races in the World Tour in 2023, and if
08:12 you're thinking about the best bike for the chaingang, the club run or even the trip
08:15 to the Alps, it could well be that one of these all-rounders serves you best.
08:25 Most recently released is the Colnago V4 RS.
08:28 Now, you may have seen a bike looking pretty similar to this one as Colnago debuted the
08:33 Prototipo at the Tour de France, where five different versions of the bike were being
08:38 used, each with a different carbon lay-up as they continued to develop the bike.
08:43 Now launched just in time for the start of the new year, we have the V4 RS, which is
08:48 claimed to be even more slippery in the wind.
08:51 Colnago is saying nearly 20 watts faster than the outgoing V3 RS.
08:56 It's also claimed to be lighter, but only by 57 grams, and of course, stiffer.
09:01 The V3 RS created some rather large boots to fill, but since the Prototipo was piloted
09:07 to 23 victories and 28 podiums in the space of four months, we're confident that Colnago
09:12 was able to maintain the winning recipe.
09:15 Of course, riders win races, but you certainly need the tools to do it, and from the look
09:19 of it, the V4 RS is quite the tool to have.
09:23 I doubt you'll be surprised, but it's not cheap, as the frame set comes in roughly
09:27 on par with the cost of an S-Works Tarmac SL7 or a Pinarello Dogma F frame set, as it
09:34 will set you back €5,250.
09:37 While it's certainly at the top end of the market, and probably not one for the masses,
09:42 it sure does look good.
09:44 So, if money were no object, which bike would you choose?
09:49 Let us know in the comments below.
09:50 If you enjoyed the video, drop it a like, subscribe to the channel for more content,
09:53 and we'll see you again very soon.
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