Road bikes are undeniably expensive, however, there are brands out which do put bang for buck right at the heart of their ethos. So, if you're looking for the latest and greatest road bike from brands who do try to offer you more than more value than premium manufacturers, then, watch this video as Sam Gupta lists all the road bike manufacturers which he believes will be updating their ranges in 2024.
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00:00A couple of weeks ago I published a video which went into detail about some of the bikes that I
00:04would love to see be released in 2024. But, rightly so, some of the viewers thought I had
00:10missed out some of the better value brands. So I went back into the archives to dig out
00:15six bang for buck road bikes which I would love to see get an update in 2024.
00:201. Cube
00:25First up we have the German brand Cube. Currently it sponsors the world tour team
00:31Intermarche Wanti Gobert and they are running the brands Lightning Aero and Air. The former,
00:36as the name suggests, is Cube's aero bike and the latter is its lightweight climbing bike.
00:42It was only in 2022 that Cube launched the Air, so I don't believe that a new version of the bike
00:47will be coming next year. And that's just as well because it doesn't actually
00:51really need updating. It boasts a claimed weight of 6.6 kilos and features most of the latest mod
00:57cons meaning it looks right at home racing up the side of a mountain amongst the other bikes in the
01:03peloton. However, it's when we turn our attention to the Lightning Aero that some of the tech
01:08starts to look a little bit outdated since it was last updated in 2019, so is well overdue some TLC.
01:16For starters, the claimed weight of the frame is a pretty hefty 980 grams. Of course, it's not
01:24terrible and since this is an aero bike it will always be a little bit heavier, but I believe
01:30that the brand has the opportunity to save at least 100 grams from the frame while also refining
01:36some of the tube shapes. Some parts of the frame are undoubtedly good looking like the head tube
01:42and the top tube and the fork and actually the down tube too. However, it's when we turn our
01:47attention to the seat tube cluster that things start to look a little bit dogged. The seat post
01:53also looks like it was a bit of an afterthought, so perhaps if this were to be slightly more
01:58integrated with the overall frame shape the bike could start to look even more attractive front to
02:04back. The Californian bike brand, Felt, is one which has left me a little disappointed in recent
02:16times. In the past it felt like they had a bit of a heyday but haven't yet returned to those same
02:23heights. When I look at its range of bikes I can start to see why, which is a real shame because
02:29it is a brand which I think has some great innovation behind it and has the potential to
02:35offer so much more. Currently both the AR and FR look pretty dated and even the specs of those
02:41bikes reflect that as many of them are still wearing 11 speed Shimano group sets, but I do
02:47like how on the top models Felt has opted to fit third party wheels like the Zipp 353 NSWs or the
02:54Reynolds AR58s lower down in the range. If the brand could give both range of bikes a complete
03:00refresh so that they can compete with the likes of the Tarmac SL8 and the Cannondale Super 6 Evo,
03:06it could be on to a real winner. Felt always used to deliver a really good level of bang for buck
03:12and it always felt like you were getting something which should have cost at least a thousand or so
03:17more. So if it can get back to that and release a new aero and climbing bike which delivers some
03:22superb value, then I cannot see why it won't return to being one of the go-to choices for consumers.
03:33You cannot speak about bang for buck bikes without speaking about Van Riesel. Back in spring of this
03:39year it released an entirely new range of bikes and there is one which I'm particularly excited
03:44for, that being the RCR. Soon to be the official ride of team AG2R Citroen, the bike looks to be
03:52a do-it-all racing machine. The reason why I'm particularly excited about this bike is because
03:57pairing the good value of a Van Riesel with world tour performance could create an irresistible
04:04combination for consumers. Van Riesel says that it's the perfect balance between lightness,
04:09stiffness and aerodynamics and looking at the bike it's easy to see where it's coming from.
04:15The sculpted tube shapes and claimed frame weights of around 800 grams could be a recipe for success.
04:22Only time will tell how it fares when we get it in for testing but I am happy to take a small
04:27amount of confidence in it becoming AG2R's new bike. The team wouldn't just accept anything so
04:33it must have conducted some internal testing on the bike along with Van Riesel itself, so I'm
04:39hoping that the cross-collaboration will have resulted in one of the best bang for buck race
04:44bikes out on the market. British brand Ribble is also one to watch in 2024. It has fully established
04:57itself as a brand which delivers value above pretty much all else. However, the Ribble Ultra SLR
05:04has also tested pretty fast in the wind tunnel too. Launched back in 2021, the bike landed like a bit
05:11of a space rocket. The deeply sculpted frame and radical handlebar design set it apart from pretty
05:17much all other bikes on the market but now as we approach 2024 there is a small chance we could
05:24see something new and updated from the brand. I'd imagine it would come in late 2024 if it comes at
05:31all but if and when it does come I'll be expecting something pretty exciting and otherworldly and
05:37likely something that not many people could even imagine up. One bike in the Ribble range which I
05:43believe is crying out for updating is the Endurance model. I would love it if Ribble could spend some
05:50more time making the frame set just a little bit lighter. If Ribble could reduce the overall weight
05:56by about 10 to 20 percent that bike would quickly become a lot more playful and a lot more fun to
06:02ride. The other area of improvement I'd like Ribble to focus on would be its own in-house wheels.
06:08These need to be wider and they need to be lighter. If it can sort these issues out the
06:13Endurance would make really big steps forward in its appeal, performance and ride feel.
06:23This year Vitus launched a new gravel and all road bike, the Venon. We loved the bike and how
06:29you could buy it as a full gravel setup or in a more road-going Endurance build. There's one bike
06:35in the Vitus lineup which in the past we have also shown a lot of love to, that being the Vitesse Evo.
06:42In 2021 we gave it our Editor's Choice award. Thanks to the bike's fantastic build options paired
06:47with how the bike performed out on the road it all came together as the ideal choice for riders
06:53looking for a great value road bike that performed like others that cost much much more. This is why
06:59I'd love to see Vitus give this bike a refresh next year. It's fair to assume it may only be an
07:04incremental improvement from the current generation but since what Vitus currently has is so good
07:11anything it can do to make the Vitesse even a bit better is only a win in our eyes. It's not often
07:17that you can buy a bike with a full SRAM Red AXS groupset for around the six thousand dollar mark
07:23so for the next generation I would love to see more Shimano builds offered at a similar level
07:28of value and also more frame set availability and colour options really wouldn't go amiss
07:34for those that want to build one up themselves. Last on this list is the Focus Izalco. It's not
07:45a bike which puts bang for buck right at the heart of its ethos as it does cost quite a lot to get
07:51onto the platform and has some fierce rivals which a number of people I believe would probably prefer
07:57to go for but the Izalco does still retain a loyal fan base. This loyalty can be attributed
08:04to the bike's stiff frame but one which still allows you to hammer out the miles and owners
08:09also rave about how the bike handles and performs when the road gets twisty. It really does embody
08:14the do-it-all race bike mantra however in the UK you have to spend over five thousand pounds to get
08:20a bike with electronic gears and even then you're only getting SRAM Rival AXS. The only price point
08:27which slightly redeems the Izalco is right at the top end as the Dura-Ace build mercifully tops out
08:33just shy of the £10,000 mark. This is where other brands could probably be charging another couple
08:39of thousand on top but Focus does hold back here probably out of recognition of its place in the
08:45market. So if we are to see a new model launched in 2024 I would hope Focus retains a lot of what
08:52its loyal fan base loves so much because all it really needs are a few tweaks to the frame
08:57shape and a small reduction in the full build ways. Let me know down below which bang for
09:02buck bike would you love to see be updated in 2024. If you enjoyed the video then please do
09:08drop it a like, subscribe to the channel for more content and I will see you again very soon.