Carbon Vs Aluminium Bikes | VERSUS with Sir Chris Hoy.

In this episode of VERSUS with Sir Chris Hoy, Chris discusses the potential gains to be had with spending your money where it counts, is carbon all it's cracked up to be? can aluminium stand a chance in today's market? tune in to find out.

[Caleketa]

I agree with Sir Chris Hoy. I have owned a Klein Quantum Pro Aluminium bike, no probs at all. After that i purchased a Canyon Endurace carbon bike. After 1, 5 years i got a cracking noise in the bottom bracket, i had to send it back a couple of times to Canyon. They could'nt fix it. So after i got fed up with it i purchased a almost brand new aluminium Prorace Cross cyclocross bike, and i own this bike now almost 4 years and no problems at all.

[Bluesman]

The CAAD12 is much much better than a lot of carbon frames

[alexlintern]

This is sound advice from a man who knows his stuff. Modern disc road bike also has a wider wheel rim that accomodates a larger volume tyre that will probably roll and grip better than a 23/25c tyre and therefore absorbs or cushions more of the irksome road vibrations.

[joaofigueira]

Can anyone tell me what bike is that on the video???

[pomajzsolt]

What do you think about the Vitus zenium T700 carbon with shimano tiagra?
Very good price

[LeoInterHyenaem]

Well, boutique and ubiquitously-recognised manufacturers' bicycles are generally more expensive than less popular or more budget-oriented brand bikes. Also, the same bike / frame will be priced differently in different countries. To illustrate, the bike I plan to buy next (Accent Feral), costs a smidgen under €2.000, - in Poland (where the brand is situated) than elsewhere in Europe (€2.699, - to €2.999, -). The frame alone costs ca. €1.100 in Poland, but €1.799 in Germany (where the same shop, incidentally, sells a Niner carbon gravel frame for only €200, - more). If Trek or Specialized were to manufacture or sell that very frame, they would likely be asking €3.000 for it.
Then, there's discounts. For instance, last year's models will lose value by up to 40% in some cases, without being any different (save for the paint job) than the most current model. Does it mean it is any worse? Surely, a better value, but hardly any worse.
To complicate things further, boutique and custom bike manufacturers cannot afford to spit out be models every year or two, nor can they afford to significantly discount older bikes. Market leaders, upon the other hand, do it all the time, incentive being to kerb second-hand sales, to clean up the inventory and sell more bikes.

[jeffreykaufmann]

What aluminium hybrid bikes would you recommend that is relatively light and minimizes road vibration? I commute in the city only 20km a day so I think spending an extra $1000 for a carbon bike would be a waste of money

[colinchan]

Why do so many aluminum bikes have carbon forks?

[aaronhargrove]

Would 6061 triple-butted Aluminum be a good start for a road bike?

[JGstunts]

I do agree that you dont want cheap carbon but for $2500 or so you can get a 500 series trek carbon bike that is well constructed. Aluminum is just as fragile as carbon. I set my $2, 000 aluminum bike up against a pole and it slid and landed on a rock and dented and creased it so bad it ruined the frame . I've also slid out on a corner on a carbon bike going 30mph and the frame wasnt touched only my bars and derailleur and pedals .. so they both have weaknesses. But if you are going to choose between a cheap carbon with low end drivetrain or a good aluminum with high end components go with the better components for sure

[fucktheworld]

I guess my 2015 Cube Agree GTC carbon, 62cm frame with full Ultegra, which cost me £1, 400 is a sack of shite to Chris :p

[dandurlle]

Carbon has much lower roll resistance which is great for carrying speed. Good hubs will make a huge difference too. I am currently rolling with Oxive Carbon from China - .