You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
Looks good. 511 reach on an XL with a 465mm seatube? Liking the geometry.
Looks good and messages from our daughter says its even better in the flesh. Hope she gets chance to demo one before she comes home
Got to admit that looks really nice and the geo is right up there. The price will be the dealbreaker for me though, compared to a canyon or YT it'll be a few grand more for the same spec.
Is the geometry right up there? Is that really ideal for tooling around in the woods or only if you are richie rude? They just seems massive!
at 6' my current 2019 bike fits somewhere between the s2 & s3 which just seems nuts.
I haven’t ridden an Enduro since my large 29er 2015 model, but that was horrendously short in reach. If it’s been gradually increasing I’m sure it’s got to the point now where it’s a belter.
Is the geometry right up there? Is that really ideal for tooling around in the woods or only if you are richie rude? They just seems massive!
at 6′ my current 2019 bike fits somewhere between the s2 & s3 which just seems nuts.
If you look at it as a whole it's not that far out there.
A traditional large Xc bike would be something like 430mm reach and 110mm stem, giving an 'effective reach' of 540mm.
A modern enduro bike in large with a 40mm stem is still probably <495mm reach from most brands. Combined with the steep seat angle the cockpit is actually shorter. It's just re arranged and the front wheel punted out a long way in front a good 180mm further.
Prices certainly aren’t focused on the VFM side of the market...
Though I guess an alloy version will follow.
The pricing is crazy. The comp is £4,500 - Why would you pay that much when you could get a Capra CF Pro for £4,800
It does look nice though
Looks as though Spesh have addressed some of the criticisms that I could level at my 2016 S-Works 29er. It's certainly good to see more progressive suspension and the chainstays appear to be a touch longer, I daresay it'll feel more balanced and less front endy.
Specialized's Stumpy is pretty much all that most of us will need in the UK (okay, the South East at least), Specialized seem to have acknowledged the more limited appeal by making the Enduro both 29er only and carbon only. You're only going to cough up the £4k plus for the entry level bike if you're absolutely sure that it's an Enduro that you actually need, if it's a trail bike you're after then you're better catered for elsewhere.
There are short stretches of my local trails that would be an absolute riot on this new Enduro, although I suspect that I'd probably not appreciate it if I were pootling around the woods.
No alloy version apparently.
And I'd say the geo is good, around 500-515mm reach on the XL with with a 75/76 degree SA is a good place for me, its long but the steep SA will make it feel smaller when seated.
Not forgetting that it's a 170mm 29er made for maximum speed going down.
Specialized’s Stumpy is pretty much all that most of us will need in the UK (okay, the South East at least), Specialized seem to have acknowledged the more limited appeal by making the Enduro both 29er only and carbon only. You’re only going to cough up the £4k plus for the entry level bike if you’re absolutely sure that it’s an Enduro that you actually need, if it’s a trail bike you’re after then you’re better catered for elsewhere.
Poor people ride gnarr too. £4500 for the comp is just ludicrous.
On the one hand, r&d costs money and that needs recouping. On the other good design costs nothing, I.e. it's no more expensive to make a good bike as it is a rubbish one to the same spec. This is the same company that sold Pitch Pro's for <£1400 (or less than a grand if you wanted it in poo brown rather than black/green).
How can they with a straight face price it 50% more than an alloy Bird AM9 or carbon Jeffsy or Capra? Because be honest, your LBS is not going to have one in to demo at that price. I'd put money on Bird having a comparable sized demo fleet of am9's!
Poor people ride gnarr too. £4500 for the comp is just ludicrous.
Yep, agreed.
Crazy pricing and as Wills write up suggests it’s evolving a bit beyond the original Enduro’s classification. Far to much bike for most of the UK. Says me with a 2015 Enduro😁. It’s almost like the Stumpy has mutated into the Enduro’s role.
At those prices I’d be looking at a MegaTower.
Take a capra Pro race, add on an eagle axs upgrade kit, eagle cassette and chain, and an axs reverb and that makes it £6400, without taking into account selling the old bits. The same enduro spec (with XTR which is cheaper) is £9000.
The price is pretty ludicrous.
Thats the first Specialized I've been even remotely interested in for a loooooong time, it looks lovely & I agree that the geo looks good.
Lot of money for a Specialized though & I'm not generally a fan of the brand.
Looks decent enough but plenty of competition in the long travel 29er segment now.
I'm happy to stick with my radon swoop 29.
“The pricing is crazy. The comp is £4,500 – Why would you pay that much when you could get a Capra CF Pro for £4,800“
It would be crazier to sell it at YT prices considering that they’re not selling direct. Their dealers aren’t charities staffed by volunteers in premises at peppercorn rent and zero rates!
£4500 is still a big price for the the lowest model in the range . Don't expect it to be a big seller .
Don’t expect it to be a big seller .
They'll sell every one they build.
It'll be £2800 in a year. Like the last one.
They’ll sell every one they build.
Not at RRP.
good design costs nothing
Does it?
I agree of course, most of us will never need more than a Stumpy has to offer*.
I like it, but it is too rich for me, and it does feel like they're coming up with ever-increasingly complicated ways to actuate the shock, but meh, it looks cool.
*(potters off to garage to play with a stumpjumper)...
Sorry, but that suspension set up makes the bike look like a real dogs dinner to me.
It's not quite ugly but it's not far off.
I realise I must be in the minority though.
Silly money.... And for the majority of people they wouldn't know if they were riding a high end yeti /santa Cruz/Specialized or a mid range YT, Commencal or canyon if it wasn't for the name on the down tube. Let's be honest, most people are mincers regardless of what brands bike they're riding.
I always thought of Specialized as the vw of the bike World, but perhaps they are aiming for the santa Cruz market.
I won't be buying one because I just don't like Specialized.... Roubaix cafe... "enduro" copyright.
And a mate of mine worked for them for a while as a team mechanic. Got a tour of the HQ. Everyone there had drunk the cool aid. They had a guy there who introduced himself as Jumanji. Think his name was was Harold or something else inane. Good coffee machine, mind.
Their dealers aren’t charities staffed by volunteers in premises at peppercorn rent and zero rates!
I've two friends who have worked for Specialized just south of Munich. I've another friend who worked for Canyon in Koblenz.
I know what the specialized bis were getting paid (mechanic and marketing /promotion) and I know what the canyon boy was getting paid. I know where is rather be employed.
And the turnover of staff at the former is high which speaks volumes about the conditions and the culture.
Is the geometry right up there? Is that really ideal for tooling around in the woods or only if you are richie rude? They just seems massive!
Richie actually rides a comparitively short reach enduro frame with a fairly modest H/A
Richie actually rides a comparitively short reach enduro frame with a fairly modest H/A
He rides both the medium and large, depending on the course, the SB150 isn't exactly conservative, it's about the norm these days with a sub 65 degree HA too.
Have one of the new S-Works Enduros to try for a couple of days in Whistler 🙂
To be fair, it's not much different to my current bike in numbers, so should feel familiar.
The change in axle path will be revolutionary in terms of keeping momentum.
Does it?
The point being that most of the cost of the final mass produced product is production, distribution, etc. All those are relatively fixed costs per unit. Once it's in production then making a rubbish carbon bike isnt much cheaper than making an expensive one, just look at the prices for open mold frames, that's the cost of just making a bike (with potential really poor design).
Marketing and R&D are upfront costs that have to be spread across the sales. But they should be a smaller proportion of the cost.
So good design shouldn't add to the production costs (might even find ways to reduce it). And if something is well designed it should sell well and payback the increased design costs. So the hypothesis that specialized undoubtedly spends more on r&d than say YT should be reflected in sales volumes not pricing.
There have always been >£4500 superbikes it'll just be interesting to see how buyers react to model ranges starting at that price. If that's the pricing model specialized are going to follow then they're not going to be selling bikes to mountainbikers with average pockets.
And if something is well designed it should sell well
Just go back up the thread and read Alpin's comments about Specialized to see how this assumption while fitting nicely into economic theory, is mostly bollards when it meets the real world.
Look at the success they've had with the Stumpy Evo, and look how that's priced, and look how it was launched. specially it was "Alloy only" until it wasn't. And if you think this bike's expensive, go and check out how much the carbon Stumpy Evo is, and that's been flying off the shelves.
New bike looks awesome, but as mentioned, the price is the sticking point.
When in the market for a new 29er, mid to long travel, the options these days are endless... choosing the right bike is no easy task.
Have one of the new S-Works Enduros to try for a couple of days in Whistler 🙂
To be fair, it’s not much different to my current bike in numbers, so should feel familiar.
Be interesting to hear the feedback, espiecially on the sizing.
S3 is very similar to the current enduro with similar reach, longer front centre and long chainstay. S4 is approaching G1 territory, save for a shorter backend and slightly shorter front centre.
Stunning to look at and great geometry.
Its not really a comparison pitching the price of this against a YT or a Canyon; they have completely different business models.
I suspect the new cycle to work limit will mean more expensive bikes becoming attainable for more people (similar to the car industry where people now look at monthly cost rather than purchase price).
Given how conservative Specialized have been for the last few years its good to see them catch up finally. Threaded BBs, longer reach, shorter seat tube etc.
Just go back up the thread and read Alpin’s comments about Specialized to see how this assumption while fitting nicely into economic theory, is mostly bollards when it meets the real world.
True. I'm just surprised that a company as big and corporate as Specialized appears to me moving into higher value bikes rather than where I'd perceive the mass market is. I'm sure they've got enough MBa's to be right. I would have just assumed the most profitable place in the market was to make aluminium bikes <<£2000 (the old pitch which you couldn't move for at trail centers at one point) and a smaller number of expert/pro/s-works models.
Assuming they are making them to a normal distribution that pricing means their average enduro is going to be well over £5k!
Either that or they're bringing back something at the old Pitch/Camber level to sit below the Enduro/Stumpjumper with the same geometry and suspension kinematics, but cheaper manufacturing and materials.
I’m just surprised that a company as big and corporate as Specialized appears to me moving into higher value bikes rather than where I’d perceive the mass market is
The volume of Sirrus sales in the UK alone is staggering. Bike companies sell more than just crabon fribe gnarwagons, you know! 😀
why has it got a 2.3 rear tire?
It'd be nice to see the return of something like the Pitch, god knows there's enough headroom in Spec's pricing to allow for that.
The volume of Sirrus sales in the UK alone is staggering. Bike companies sell more than just crabon fribe gnarwagons, you know! 😀
That's my point, where's the mid range?
On the road you can get an Allez, Allez sprint and tarmac/venge/Roubaix. That enduro and the stumpjumper range are both in the tarmac/venge/Roubaix price range and the aluminium hardtails are mostly in the Allez tier.
why has it got a 2.3 rear tire?
Speed not comfort.
Lot of focus on pricing - $9750 for the top end S-Works with 12sp XTR, Fox Factory suspension and own-brand carbon wheels, while a Megatower with XTR, own brand carbon wheels and a Fox 36 (with rockshox rear shock) is $9999.
Cheapest Megatower is $4499, comes with a Yari. Enduro comp with Lyrik Select $4510.
$3299 for the Megatower frame with Rockshox shock, $3310 for the S-Works with Fox X2
It's in line with similar bikes from other brands, maybe a shade cheaper. Still a lot of money, sure.
It's the first Specialized I've been genuinely interested in for a while, but the price means it's completely unjustifiable for me. Even if the cheapest one is reduced to £2800, it's got NX stuff on it and I'd not want to ride a bike with that. It'll weigh a ton for a start.
It looks like the backend was designed for dry conditions not the mudfest we have in the UK. Even YT have managed to designed their latest bikes so the don't collect a ton of mud, they even put it in their blurb.
That’s my point, where’s the mid range?
They have bouncy bikes starting at £1800
I think it looks good, and the frame option is comparably priced with other similar offerings from trek/yeti/SC/transition etc.
The top end bike builds have always been bad value from specialized, when I built up a 2016 s-works enduro, I did so with a higher spec and a grand cheaper than the ready built model, buying everything new (although shopping around obviously), that really shouldn't be the case.
It’s in line with similar bikes from other brands, maybe a shade cheaper. Still a lot of money, sure.
Yes, but SC have always been an expensive niche brand.
The surprise isn't that there's a $10k s-works model, that price points been there for a decade. My surprise is that the range doest start with an aluminium Yari/SLX model arround £2000-2500.
Look at Giant, the base model is generally usually priced only slightly above the frame only option (albeit with a lower spec material and shock).
I'm sure it's an amazing bike, and MBR will give it 10/10, but £4500?
£4500 is still a big price for the the lowest model in the range . Don’t expect it to be a big seller .
I think the point is that if you want a "Cheaper Enduro" specialized would probably point you towards a Stumpy Evo now.
They've got so many bikes in the range in both Alloy and carbon plus all the variations in spec and wheel size, I'm not surprised they decided to just roll out the new shape Enduro in carbon only this year....
Having said that they've still got the 'Old' Alloy enduro on their website as a current model (linky) a snip at just £3150 🙂 , so even if you're a pauper and can't stretch that extra £1500 they've got a 160mm toy for you to buy nicely positioned between a Stumpy Evo comp and an carbon Enduro comp...
I think there's a bit of a roadmap here (wild guesses ahead), Carbon Enduro this year, Alloy Enduro and Carbon Stumpy next year, and so on, working backwards down the range adding that Demo-derived shock linkage. So that there's a nice easy little visual indicator for the carpark bitches as to who's got the wad for a shiny new Spesh and who hasn't...
SC are mass market mass produced bikes. They are along way from niche. They are part of one of the biggest bicycle manufacturers in the world. The only difference is branding
SC aren’t mass market in the same league as Specialized though. Yes they are popular at trail centres, and within the MTB enthusiast market, whereas Specialized are a globally recognised cycling brand, at all price points, and this is their performance model. Like comparing a Lamborghini to a Nissan GTR
tomhoward
Like comparing a Lamborghini to a Nissan GTR
Nissan sell GT-Rs for £175K these days. Ford do a £450K GT. Selling stuff at a lot of price points doesn't mean you can't sell expensive stuff.
Lamborghini is to vw what s-works is to specialized.
Nissan sell GT-Rs for £175K these days. Ford do a £450K GT.
Still a Nissan/Ford though.
Selling stuff at a lot of price points doesn’t mean you can’t sell expensive stuff.
They are still mass market brands though. That puts some people off, regardless of how good the product is, they see it as ‘cheap’ or not as good as your perceived premium brands. Tell people you have a Lamborghini/Santa Cruz, they know it’s a premium product. Nissan/ford/Specialized requires a caveat that ‘it’s a nice one’.
"S-Works" is as much a premium brand as Santa Cruz, Id have thought. It's all very subjective either way, I'd see Santa Cruz as more BMW and S-Works as Audi
You can indeed buy a Nissan GT-R for loads of money, £80,000 for the basic one and £175,000 for the Nismo. But the entry level one is still a premium product and doesn't come with steel wheels and a five speed manual from a Micra, which is the equivalent of the entry level Enduro coming with NX and bog-spec Rovals.
“S-Works” is as much a premium brand as Santa Cruz, Id have thought.
Do people say they ride an S-Works?
omhoward
Do people say they ride an S-Works?
Yes, they absolutely do.
Yep, just the same as people who say, "Sorry, got to go, my iPhone is ringing".
😀
i dont
SC aren’t mass market in the same league as Specialized though. Yes they are popular at trail centres
Isn't Santa Cruz owned by Pon Holdings and ain't the frames made in China/Taiwan?
In the UK SC is about as mass market as high end bikes get, they just don't do cheaper bikes like other larger manufacturers do.
In the scheme of global bike sales that makes them niche compared to Spesh.
When talking about a bike like the Enduro, I think it's unfair to expect significantly lower price options compared to SC just because you can get a Spesh branded FS for much less.
Not surprising that some would view the bike as less special though.
Any real world feedback of the Enduro? Reviews suggest it's up there with the best descending enduro bikes, how are people finding it for general use and trail riding?
What's that lower linkage like to live with in UK conditions?
We managed to get a full bike after giving up on finding a frame. Abigale disappeared for a month in the Alps and came back raving about it.
[img] 
[/img]
I was going to have her old Enduro but found a good deal on another one, swapped some of the stuff about from that and sold it on.
She was right and had some of my best riding in Finale
It does take a bit more cleaning around the shock area
[img] 
[/img]
Any real world feedback of the Enduro? Reviews suggest it’s up there with the best descending enduro bikes, how are people finding it for general use and trail riding?
What’s that lower linkage like to live with in UK conditions?
It’s a really good bike if you’re riding and racing some really nasty stuff, all of the time. You can take the spacer out of the shock too and take it up to 190mm travel - essentially it’s a DH bike that you can pedal up hills. But you absolutely need the hills to make it work.
It’s a big bike & a real pig on flatter, mellow stuff, not light or spritely at all.
Lower linkage is an absolute mud haven, the best way of dealing with it is some moto foam under the linkage. There is a lot going on there, and they do like to go through their bearings, mostly because it collects so much crap & stays there. Also would suggest stripping it down and heavily greasing up the main pivot, as they creak like crazy.
I bumped mine on as soon as the new Stumpy Evo came out, even for riding & racing in the UK it’s a better bike.
Thanks @hob-nob. I've no doubt it's perfect for Alps and Finale @Tracey, it's having it as my main bike for UK riding that is the stumbling block.
Enduro looks like exactly what I want for a small percentage of rides, but overkill for everything else.
Stumpy Evo looks great, but yet to find an S4 or S5 comp in stock.
Ride mine everywhere as does Abigale, she's just set of for a days riding on hers. Geometry wise it's alot different than the old Enduro but climbs just as well.
Good luck in finding a Stumpy Evo in the size that fits. I would want to throw a leg over a couple of sizes before I committed to one.
I have the new enduro and love it, I cannot speak highly enough of it! Yesterday on a ride several buddies swung a leg over it and loved how it felt and this was on mellow-medium trail with their own bikes being a 130mm trail bike and 160mm 29er.
I run the fork around 18% SAG and the shock around 25% and I have no issues hopping it or finding it playful. Its the sizing I like the most, I'm 6'1 and the S5 is perfect, I am so centred on the bike and with the bikes composed nature and calm rear braking I cant get enough of it.
Enduro looks like exactly what I want for a small percentage of rides, but overkill for everything else.
I live in the SW and the stuff on my door may not warrant a bike like this, but I picked up the bike so I could go places which are steeper, rougher and longer and not only enjoy them but really push myself and this bike does that in bag fulls. I dont even find the bike that much of a slog on some of blue of the trail centre when linking off piste, it pedals really well when stood or sat.
Only issues I have had are that a stone got in between the top of RS Deluxe and frame and on a heavy landing scuffed the paint down to the carbon, same has happened on the outside of the seat tube as something got in between the frame and rear links. Small little knicks annoyingly in the only places the invisframe doesnt cover!
Managed to take a 2020 Enduro Elite out for a demo ride. Through the rough and steeps it was as good as expected, but cornering was where it stood out for me. grip levels were phenomenal, even on sloppy trails I felt so confident and committed through turns.
It really struggles to carry momentum as soon as gradient eases off though. Didn't get chance to ride any mellow trails but can't imagine it being much fun. And yes, the linkage was absolutely filled with mud.
Spec is awful for such an expensive bike. Potentially due to set up or rotor size but the SRAM Code R had nowhere near enough power, tyres and dropper felt cheap and past experience tells me GX groupset won't last long. The ex demo price keeps it in contention, but I can't believe that was the build kit for a £5.5k bike.
Stumpy Evo looks great, but yet to find an S4 or S5 comp in stock.
There are a few about at dealers but it's going to be a case of calling about. I have a friend who has picked one up between Xmas & new year which was a cancelled order. Funnily enough he's also an ex-Enduro owner too (although he cracked his around the top link, which they do have a bit of a weak spot for).
Running my Stumpy in Low - Neutral seems to be my sweet spot, with a couple of tweaks I reckon I can get it as fast as the Enduro, but about 8lbs lighter & a hell of a lot more fun to ride day to day. If you like how the Enduro corners, then you would love the Stumpy as its significantly lower as well.
So far, I can't think of a reason why I would pick the Enduro, given the choice between the two 🙂
How have people mounted and attached motofoam on their Enduro's
grip levels were phenomenal, even on sloppy trails I felt so confident and committed through turns
I really noticed this coming from a 2018 Enduro, seems so planted, loving tight corners on steep sections now and just steep trails in general!
It really struggles to carry momentum as soon as gradient eases off though. Didn’t get chance to ride any mellow trails but can’t imagine it being much fun. And yes, the linkage was absolutely filled with mud.
I found this with sag at 30% on the rear, I increased air pressure and removed some rebound dampening and the bike became livelier-ish pumping the ground better, no hiding its a big bike but it does pedal well
Spec is awful for such an expensive bike. Potentially due to set up or rotor size but the SRAM Code R had nowhere near enough power, tyres and dropper felt cheap and past experience tells me GX groupset won’t last long. The ex demo price keeps it in contention, but I can’t believe that was the build kit for a £5.5k bike.
Snap, I got an elite which was an ex team bike for a steal, it was the better fork off the elite but the NX groupset, I moved my carbon wheels with Schwalbe tyres, Code RSC and PNW Components dropper from my old bike over and love it. Last week fitted 220mm rotors front and rear and really liking the ease of applying the power and being able to break later and harder
he’s also an ex-Enduro owner too
Maybe this is the kicker, right now, I love everything about how my Enduro rides compared to my old bike, its filled my full of confidence and I cant wait to get out and ride, the weight doesn't bother me and I find it climbs a lil better then my old bike. Maybe when the honeymoon period wears off I might think about another bike and the '21 SJ Evo or Canyon Spectral look like good packages, but I'm not there yet
EDIT:
How have people mounted and attached motofoam on their Enduro’s
I havent figured it out yet, will wash the bike from the weekend later and figure out where and how I can put the foam around the rear shock/linkage
How have people mounted and attached motofoam on their Enduro’s
The 'well' at the front of the chainstays under the linkage is where it seems to really collect (with the sort of mud I rode in anyway). I had a piece about 4cm wide by 8cm long which I wedged under the link which sat lengthways inbetween the arms of the very bottom link.
It was a bit too big, so once wedged, stayed in place fine & didn't need to be attached. It wasn't perfect by any means, as that whole area is a real mud magnet but having had the linkage apart chasing creaks & checking out the state of the bearings, it would definitely be something I would keep an eye on. As I said before, there is a lot going on there & it's a real b*tch to work on.
I'd be half inclined if I still had it to run one of the smaller RRP rear mudguards, that would keep the worst of the mess out along with the stock one.
Interesting. I’ve been pricing up a Propain Tyee using their online configurator, and for £7.5k I can have literally every bell and whistle there is (AXS, carbon wheels, you name it), and it looks just as good I think. But it doesn’t have the S Works label, and that’s the power of the brand I guess...