richard.susanto

Hello fellow cyclists,


It's cold and icy outside here in Chicago, so I was sitting in my desk looking (and drooling) at new bikes on the web. Would like to get your input on whether I should upgrade my old bike or buy a new one.


Old Bike Trek Madone 3.1 2014

This is my first and only dedicated road bike at the moment. My other bike is a gravel bike, made by Canyon, which I also ride on the street regularly.

Specs: Trek 300 OCLV Carbon frame, Cheap Aluminum Bontrager Wheels (weigh 2500 gr), Shimano 105 shifters, Shimano Tiagra cassette, SRAM S350 crankset, Shimano 105 rear derailleur, Shimano Tiagra front derailleur, Aluminium generic brand rim-brake

Condition: Good. All functioning although needs a bit of indexing and tuning. Looks like new. I can probably sell it for around $350 - $600.


If I upgrade, I'm planning to replace these components:

- Replace the whole groupset with the Shimano 105 7000 groupset (Cost $450 from Merlin Cycles)

- Replace the stock wheelset with the DT Swiss PR1600 Dicut 21 Clincher (Cost $490 from Merlin Cycles)

- With labor cost, having my local LBS does the whole job, I estimate a total cost of around $1,200.


If I buy, I'm planning to get the Canyon Ultimate 8.0 CF SL Disc which costs around $2,799. So the total cost becomes $2,500 with the proceed of my old bike.


So, with the difference of around $1,300, should I just upgrade my old Trek, or get a more modern bike with disc brakes and internal cable routing? I don't race. I enjoy riding with my local groups regularly, and for this year I have already signed up for a couple of bike events involving tons of climbing (century rides with about 10k feet of climbs).


Appreciate any feedback.

Richard

noodle soup

I might not choose that bike, but definitely go new bike.

richard.susanto

Any feedback on the Canyon Ultimate?

noodle soup

nothing bad to say about it, but it’s not a good fit for my body. I have freakishly long legs, and a short torso.

Iride01 

I can't tell you if the Canyon is right for you, but any additional bike you get can be a plus if you have room for them. Even if they are all road bikes you can have each set up for a certain type ride conditions such as one for fairly flat routes and another for really hilly routes. If you get a third, then maybe set up for rides that include gravel roads.

thehammerdog

u better spend cash.....buy new......

bpcyclist

I would not personally buy a Canyon, because I won't buy what I cannot test-drive. But there are some terrific bikes available in you price range. The Cervelo R2 is a screaming deal right now, if you don't need disc brakes. There are some Orbeas and Wiliers and BMCs. A Pinarello or two. On and on. Good luck!!

rami_arna

I would say go new. You would spend money upgrading but it won’t be as exciting as getting a new bike.

CAT7RDR

It is always a convenience to have two road bikes in case one is down for maintenance or rain is forecast and you do not want to expose the newer bike to grime/moisture. If you are into road cycling for the long haul, two bikes are the way to go. My Kestrel is my dedicated climb/distance bike. I just purchased an older steel Schwinn Peloton for more local and flatter rides.

Russ Roth

Hate to be a downer on this but I tried buying a group from merlin and they wouldn't ship sram or Shimano to the US anymore. Can still find decent prices with some hard searching.

Ghazmh

Buy the new one. keep the old one as a rain bike assuming you’ll ride in the rain.

eduskator

New bike all the way. You usually don't build a new house on old foundations.

Even if upgrading cost you less than buying a new bike (it's usually the opposite), I'd sell the old one and pay the extra few hundreds $ to benefit from new materials. I wanted to upgrade my old bike with DI2 & CF wheels and it turned out to be a lot more expensive than replacing it. I ended up saving $.

ChrisAlbertson

One way to look at this is that you are fixing some kind of problem that annoys you. What is it about your current bike that you don't like? It seems that it is mostly aesthetics and you want matching parts. If so then as you said, either buy all new parts or a bike from a maker that uses entire matching group sets. But if there is something specific you don't like about your bike you can do a targeted upgrade at a much lower cost. You should always be able to say "I want to fix this problem:...." and then explain it before spending money.

I think you have overestimated the cost to swap in new parts because (1) it is not hard to do this yourself and (2) your old parts have some resale value. and (3) the parts are not that expensive if you stay with rim brakes. The upgrade could cost half your estimate. It is winter in your part of the world so you have time to learn.

I'd buy your current bike in a second for $350 if it fit me and I lived closer but you could use it as an indoor traianer.

My main point is to be honest without yourself and state the problem you want to fix.

richard.susanto

Thank you for your input.

Just want to mention that we can actually test drive a Canyon bike. On the caveat that you will have to assemble it (basically put the handlebar, seatpost, and wheels) and disassemble/box it to return the bike to Canyon. I bought a cheaper version of the Canyon Grail, assembled it, rode it for almost 30 days (still in clean condition), converted the tires to tubeless, and decided to get a different model. The return process with Canyon was quick and painless. The call took about 2 minutes, no question asked. And I received my refund in a few days (including the original and the return shipping cost). I ended up buying a more expensive version of the Grail. I've been happy with their customer service.

Joe G

Two thinks to think of here

If you really, really like the frame and it fits you well then go with upgrade of the parts.

If you want a new sparkly bike then get the new bike, if you don't you'll have buyers remorse when you get out and ride the one you upgraded