7 highlights of Trek’s 2017 range

We visited Trek yesterday to check out the 2017 range and here are the road-going bikes that most caught our eye.

Domane SLR 9 eTAP £7,600

The Domane SLR bikes feature IsoSpeed technology in both the seat tube and the head tube designed to add comfort to the ride and keep you feeling less fatigued.

Check out our Trek Domane SLR 6 review here for a full explanation of the tech. 

The SLR Domanes have an adjustable rear IsoSpeed system where you can slide a bung up/down the seat tube to alter the performance. The SL Domanes have rear IsoSpeed too but the difference is that the it isn’t adjustable.

Both versions have front IsoSpeed.

The Domane SLR 9 is available either as a Dura-Ace Di2 version or as this SRAM Red eTAP model (£7,600).

Domane ALR 4 Disc £1,300

Something that's more realistic for most of us, the Domane ALR 4 Disc is built around a frame made from Trek’s 200 Series Alpha Aluminium. It lacks the front end IsoSpeed of its higher level siblings but you still get an IsoSpeed decoupler that allows the seat tube (and therefore the seatpost and saddle) to move independently of the rest of the frame.

The Domane ALR 4 Disc is built up with a Shimano Tiagra groupset (the 4 in the name denotes Tiagra, 5 means 105, 6 is Ultegra, 7 is Ultegra Di2, 8 is Dura-Ace, and 9 is Dura-Ace Di2) and Shimano’s new Tiagra-level RS405 hydraulic disc brakes. 

The Bontrager wheels come with 32mm-wide tyres but you can go wider. Trek says you can get 36s on here even if you have mudguards fitted.

Emonda SL 6 Pro £2,700

Trek hasn’t changed any of the Emonda frames this time around, although there are some changes to the specs, especially as far as wheels are concerned.

Take the Emonda SL 6, for example. It’s available with a Shimano Ultegra groupset and Bontrager’s Race Tubeless Ready wheels for £2,100.

However, if you want carbon wheels you can get the Emonda SL 6 Pro – exactly the same bike but with Vision Metron 40 LTDs – for £2,700. 

Bearing in mind that a set of Bontrager Race Tubeless Ready wheels retails at £250 and the Vision Metron 40 LTDs have an RRP or £1,500, you’re effectively getting a £1,250 wheel upgrade for £600.

You can get the same sort of deal in the Domane range, the Domane SL 6 becoming the Domane SL 6 Pro with Vision wheels for an extra £600.

It’s very unusual for Trek to spec non-Bontrager wheels. It used to be that the superlight Emonda SLR 10 Race Shop Limited (£9,700) was fitted with Tune wheels, but not anymore. Now it has new Bontrager Aeolus XXX SLs and Bontrager R4 tubular tyres.

Trek gives the wheel weights as 420g (front) and 556g (rear) - a total of just 976g! They use DT-Swiss based hubs, the rear one with a 36-tooth star ratchet. Believe it or not, there are no rider weight restrictions.

Emonda ALR 4 £1,000

The Emonda ALR frame remains unchanged for 2017, which is fine by us because we think it’s among the very best aluminium options out there at the moment.

There are three Emonda ALR bikes in the range, all based on the same 300 Series Alpha Aluminium frame with virtually invisible welds and a tapered (1 1/8 in top, 1 1/2in bottom) head tube.

The ALR 4 is the cheapest model at £1,000. This gets you a Shimano Tiagra groupset with virtually everything else coming from Bontrager, Trek’s in-house brand.

Check out our Trek Emonda ALR 6 review from last year here. 

Silque SLR 7 £4,400

Don’t call the Silque a women’s version of the Domane. Trek doesn’t like that. Plus, it’s not true because the Silque bikes are made from a different mix of materials and the geometry is more aggressive. 

The brand spanking new Silque SLR does, though, borrow IsoSpeed technology from the Domane at both the seat tube and the head tube, and it uses Trek’s new IsoCore handlebar which features a layer of rubber within the carbon-fibre layup to dissipate some of the high-frequency vibrations.

Check out our review of the Trek Domane SLR 6 here.

This £4,400 Silque SLR 7 is built up with a Shimano Ultegra Di2 electronic groupset. 

If you don’t want to spend quite that much, the Silque SLR 6 uses exactly the same frame but it’s built up with the mechanical version of Ultegra and costs £3,600.

Madone Race Shop Limited £11,500

Yes, this Madone Race Shop Limited costs £11,500… but do you really need both kidneys? We're not expecting too many people to consider buying this bike but it's nice to see how the other half lives from time to time, isn't it?

Trek introduced the new Madone last summer, designed to be lightweight, aerodynamic and comfortable, with an IsoSpeed decoupler within the seat tube to allow movement at the seatmast and saddle.

Our only problem with the Madone is that there are no cheap versions available. Trek offers aluminium versions of both the Domane and the Emonda, but if you want a Madone you have to go all in for carbon-fibre.

The Madone Race Shop Limited is top of the tree, made from Trek’s 700 Series OCLV carbon and fitted with a Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 groupset and Bontrager’s Aeolus 5 wheels.

We like the look of the £6,500 Madone 9.5 women’s bike too. It’s made from slightly lower grade 600 Series OCLV carbon and the Ultegra Di2 groupset isn’t all that much different from the Dura-Ace version.

Check out our review of the Trek Madone 9 Series Project One here. 

Zektor 2 £650

The Zektor is an aluminium city bike that was designed in Scandinavia. It has been available over there for a few years and you can now get it over here for the first time.

It looks like an interesting bike with a short and steep geometry, the idea being to provide a nippy, responsive ride.

You get rack and mudguard mounts, 32mm tyres with reflective sidewalls, and 32-hole double-walled alloy rims.

The groupset on the Zektor 2 is mainly Shimano’s entry-level Claris although the bike comes with Tektro M285 hydraulic disc brakes, so we’re guessing this bike will do well for year-round commuting.

www.trekbikes.com