That bike has a carbon-fibre frame and a mostly Shimano 105 groupset, although Stu said that the firm ride wouldn't suit some. Of the road bikes that we've reviewed recently, the Merida Reacto Disc 4000 is the closest in price to the CAAD13 Disc 105 at £2,000. I'd urge you not to take that line of reasoning because it just ain't right. Cannondale will win a lot of fans with this move.Ī lot of people assume that a carbon bike is necessarily better than an aluminium one. This might not be a big deal in much of the world, but it's a boon here in the UK where wet conditions are an inevitable feature of cycling. There's no integrated brake bridge on the disc frame so Cannondale gives you a removable mudguard bridge that you bolt in place. I said right up top that the CAAD13 offers increased versatility and that's largely down to the addition of mudguard mounts to the fork and seatstays. This means that your riding position sits between that of a SystemSix aero race bike (stack 580mm, reach 398mm in a 58cm size) and a Synapse Disc endurance bike (stack 609mm, reach 394mm).
This, along with a tiny change in head tube angle, results in an increase in stack (from 584mm to 595mm) and a slight reduction in reach (from 399mm to 395mm). The head tube of the 58cm CAAD12 Disc was 17.5cm while it's 18.8cm on the CAAD13 Disc. Whether you're sprinting for signs, smashing up power climbs or slicing through tight corners, it has the beef required to stand up for itself.Įssentially, as well as changes brought about by making the top tube slope a little, the CAAD13 has a longer head tube than its predecessors.
This isn't a bike that flinches when you muscle it about. A lot has changed since then but the CAAD13 feels equally tight and strong. I used to own a CAAD3 about 20 years ago – what's that? I don't look old enough? Yoooou! – and it was a burly beast. The danger with chasing extra comfort and aero efficiency and altering the tubes so significantly is that Cannondale could have sacrificed features for which its CAAD bikes have always been famous: frame stiffness and snappy handling. The tube shapes and design closely mimic those of the SuperSix Evo and we've seen similar features on many proven aero road bikes over recent years, but we've not taken the CAAD13 to the wind tunnel, and neither has Cannondale. I'm not going to guess at the aero results of these design features, I'll just report that Cannondale reckons that "these minimalist airfoils can reduce aerodynamic drag by up to 30 percent, delivering more speed with less effort" (which isn't the same as saying that the drag of the CAAD13 frame is 30 per cent lower than that of the CAAD12). Even when you're spinning through the most neglected, gravel-strewn back lanes, the whole feeling is very composed. You're not totally isolated from what's going on beneath your tyres, of course – let's not get silly about this – but the ride quality is high and not much annoying (and ultimately energy-sapping) vibration is transferred up to you in the saddle. Bleary-eyed traditionalists might lament that, but one of the results is a bike that feels more comfortable and chatter-free than ever before over poorly surfaced roads. The CAAD13 isn't so much a revision of the CAAD12 as a complete overhaul with new tube shapes and a frame silhouette that bears no resemblance whatsoever to those of the early Cannondale CAAD bikes Cipollini rode back in the day. There was too much feedback coming through the handlebar, and this didn't match the smoothness at the back. This bike offers a superbly smooth ride.ĭave praised the CAAD12 Disc highly in his 2016 review, but one of his few gripes was that the front end could sometimes feel too firm. That's one of the more pervasive myths in the bike world but one ride on the new CAAD13 (CAAD stands for Cannondale Advanced Aluminium Design, fact fans) is enough to demonstrate that's really not the case. Pros: Smooth ride, aero features, mudguard eyeletsĪluminium bikes are always harsh, right? No, no, no.This is a really impressive revamp and an excellent alternative to carbon.
#CANNONDALE QUICK DISK 1 ALLOY REVIEW UPDATE#
The CAAD13 Disc 105 represents far more than a quick update for Cannondale's aluminium race bike – drag has been reduced, versatility has increased and the ride is more comfortable than ever.
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