Specialized Diverge 2018 as a road bike?
 

It seems the new 2018 Diverge has good credentials as a gravel / adventure bike.

But what's it like as a road bike? If you were to put on some lighter road wheels with 28mm tires would it compete favourably with dedicated endurance bikes, such as the Roubaix?

I know that it's a bit heavier, and the Future Shock is set up for off-road use, but I'd be interesting in hearing how well it works on pavement.

Thanks!

John

Great question as I too am thinking of the 2018 Diverge or 2018 Salsa Warbird as a 50/50 rode/gravel bike by just switching wheel and tire combo. The new Warbird is released the end of July. Ive been trying to accomplish this on a Giant TCX (cyclocross bike) but the geometry of the bike just is not working for me. Beats the heck outta my body after an hour on rough and loose gravel and seems pretty slow and sluggish on a fast group ride. I will be following this post closely but I am not sure to many people have got their hands on the 2018 Diverge yet.

Snap! I also have a Giant TCX that isn't ideal for me as a road bike ( at least not compared to dedicated road bikes). I've not ridden it on a long gravel or off road ride yet, but I find it a bit twitchy at the front and the high bottom bracket makes it feel somewhat precarious at speed.

I'm ideally looking to replace it and my rather heavy Trek Crossrip commuter with a do it all utility bike. If this can also work on a group road ride or gran fondo then so much the better!

It would be fine.

I've had my Diverge for 3 weeks now, probably 250 miles, 80% on road, rest on packed dirt. Has 38's for tires and they're mostly designed for trails, not roads. Still, it rolls well and is close to my Robaix in performance and geometry is similar. I've no doubt that if I put slick 32's on it , then it would be a pretty good road bike. Flats and downhills are close in performance now, uphills a bit slower. Future shock is a bit weird on roads as sometimes you want a stiff front end and it gives a bit and which can be a little bothersome while climbing a paved road. I'm happy though as it makes riding on chip seal so comfortable and the off road stuff is the best. I'm no racer but it seems to hold a line through curves well, maybe I'm just more confident in thru axles and wider tires do help. Brakes are great also and give confidence.

It really is a sweet ride and is the closest I've found to be a perfect all around bike, at least for me.

Which tires are your 38s?

Specialized Trigger Pro.

Thanks for the feedback. Does your Roubaix also have future shock or is it an older model? I understand the Diverge FS has "progressive resistance", which presumably means the spring resistance changes according to its compression, whereas the Roubaix FS is more linear in response. I rode a 2017 Roubaix and was very impressed by the front end on bumpy road surfaces - really felt good with lots of control, so I don't think I would want it any stiffer on paved surfaces - but I'm sure this is personal!

If you going on a long 100% paved ride, would you take your Roubaix or the Diverge? This is probably the answer to whether it can really compete with the purebred endurance road bikes!

What do you think of the value for money of the Diverge? It's about the same price as the Roubaix Comp, but has a lower grade groupset (105) and brakes (RS505), which made me wonder where the cost was going (the Carbon is a heavier grade too).

Thanks!

My Robaix does not have fs or discs. It is a great bike and geometry works for an older neck like mine. It barely fits 28's though, in fact I put a 25 on the front as clearance is too tight with a 28. I've ridden distances on it frequently. .

got the Diverge because we travel and camp a lot and never know what surface I'll be riding on so fatter tires and discs were appropriate. Also it has a 48/30 crank which is nice and allows me to stay in the big chainring longer. I'd choose the Diverge for a century ride, just is softer. Keep in mind, I ride solo and a century takes me close to 7 hours, so I'm not breaking any speed records.

Value is relative, it is the most I've ever spent on a bike. IMO, 105's are what Ultegra was and there's not much harm there. I'm planning on keeping it for a long time. I think I've finally got 2 good bikes for any conditions.

Good summary; thanks! Ideally I would like the same line-up that you have gravel-bike + nice road bike, but thats a lot $$$ and would take be some time to achieve. I'm trying to decide which one to get first! The answer will depend on the type of riding I mostly do, and want to do (which are often different...)

Since you already have a Giant TCX, I'd assume you are happy with Giant bikes in general? It sounds like the Anyroad line would be a good fit for what you're looking for, no?

Thanks for the suggestion. I had a look at the Anyroad, and didn't particularly like the look of it, but I'm sure it's a capable bike. Sounds trivial, but the aesthetic just didn't grab me!

I picked up my 2018 Diverge Comp Carbon (satin blue matte) Friday afternoon and yesterday did the 50 mile leg of the Bike to the Beat in Appleton, WI. I cannot even begin to describe how much I love this bike. Most roads here in NE WI leave a lot to be desired, and I was tired of the hard hits and the inability to continue on when the pavement ends, so I researched gravel bikes after a group ride where one of our regular riders switched a Specialized cylcecross bike and was ranting and raving about the comfort compared to her road bike. This was the epifaunal moment for me, as I already had the itch for a new bike. My previous road bike was a 2011 Felt F Series aluminum frame/carbon fork with 6800 series Ultegra and 23c tires. The Diverge is about 3 lbs heavier at 21.8 lbs for the 61 frame compared to the Felt (this includes pedals). I ride with this group regularly, so it would be pretty easy to tell if the heavier bike with larger tires (38c Triggers) would slow me down. I can tell you it cost me nothing as far as speed and pace, and this was by far the most comfortable I've ever been on a "road bike". The S-works seat post and Future Shock smoothed the bumps out considerably. I'm excited to try this out on some of the camp roads and gravel trails in the area. If you are considering the Diverge as a road bike replacement, I wouldn't hesitate to purchase it. And if you are riding with your roadie buddies, you can always create some angst by hopping a curb or going across the occasional ditch to beat them to the rest stop!

Yeah, I'm no slower on my Diverge than I am on my 16 pound racing bikes. The only time it really feels any more sluggish is when I'm sprinting, and even then I don't think it translates into actually being slower.

the e5 comp version comes with 30mm tires so I assume they are selling that one to be more on road than off it is 11sp btw

The 30mm Espoir Sport tires actually measure exactly 32mm on those 22mm rims.

...for climbing or long hills, you guys don't feel a difference?
example: I would have thought a 16lb F10 would climb better than a 22lb Diverge....purely because there is an extra 6lb/3kg to carry up a hill...

I know 90% is based on the power a person can output on the hill but surely some of the components of a race bike contributes

Zero difference. But I don't live in the mountains. Maybe then there would be a little difference, but if I were to go up a climb 20 seconds slower or something, who cares. I'm not racing. I do have lots of short and nasty hills that drop plenty of people in my group rides, but I'm no slower on them by any amount that's measurable.

My bike (Jami's Quest Comp) is marketed as a road endurance bike, but it weighs 22lbs, and is steel with carbon fork. I do fine on fast group rides with all my carbon/16lb roadie friends. Even on long hills.

Also, I'll be entering it in my first cyclocross race in September, since it can fit 30mm cross tires...so these divisions are, in my opinion, somewhat fluid.

In fact, a lot of the more expensive carbon "gravel" bikes can get under 20lbs.

Figure a 165lb guy and a 16lb bike is 181lb to pull up the hill. With a 22lb bike it's 187lb to pull up the hill. That's only a 3% difference. So 10mph vs 9.7mph, for example. That wouldn't really be noticeable since there are so many other factors involved as well, and that's only on the uphills anyway. If you had already drank one of your water bottles that is a pound and a half right there.

I'll be the first to admit that I'm a slower climber on the Diverge. It doesn't feel slower as it rolls so well but I know it is. I do live in the mountains and I have 38's on it. If I cared,or if I was a lot slower, I'd put thinner tires on but I like the versatility with present setup.

Weirdest thing about the bike is that they scalloped out the seat tube a bit to fit wider tires and keep a shorter wheelbase. Didn't notice it at first. No big deal, but you need to pay attention to how you unclip. If you push your heel in, you can rub shoe against tire. Almost went over a few times due to this. Just have to train myself to push heels out, probably good idea anyway but never had to pay attention to this on other bikes. I don't know if the Diverge could fit 42's as advertised, might just rub the seat tube.

Diverge vs Warbird
 

I nearly purchased 2018 Diverge but ended up with Warbird. Warbird is amazing and has huge tire capacity. More tire capacity gives more options. Mounted with Panaracer 40c Gravelkings, it is amazing how much off road is rideable. Having said that, the WTB Exposure 34 is a good compromise if you ride 50% road or more. Still capable to explore trails, but smooth rolling on the road. Stack height is lower than Diverge. If you need more upright position, then choose diverge.

28mm tires would make the already low bottom bracket dangerously low

I was torn between the warbird and the diverge as well. Ordered the Diverge Expert. I'll have to put a lower, longer stem and new bars, but tire clearance is good with up to 42m (maybe a tad more?) I get a nice discount on it that I wouldn't have got on the warbird, or I might have gone that route. I'll be racing gravel on it.

Diverge is firstly a road bike that also does everything imo