Fourteen-thousand dollars. Let that sink in for a minute.
Earlier this week Specialized launched its first-ever E-Road bike: the Specialized Creo SL. There are four models in the Turbo Creo SL line – three for road riding, and one for gravel. They are all powered by the same SL 1.1 motor, designed in-house by Specialized. That motor offers pedal assist up to 28mph. They all come with some mix of components based off a 1x Shimano Di2 drivetrain and they range in price from $9,000 to $17,000. Yes, the cheapest bike in the range is $9k. The most expensive is just flat out insane.
Yes, they’re cool bikes. Yes, they’re fairly revolutionary (bordering on “science fiction” though, please no). But, no, I can’t be complicit in normalizing this kind of pricing.
For $14k I could buy a few bikes, and still have money left over for a used motorcycle. Hell, I could buy a used car and throw a perfectly race-able mountain bike and a road bike on the roof. Before you think I’m simply shitting on e-bikes, I am not. If I want an e-bike: the Orbea Gain series has a 250W, 40 Nm motor and a 105-equipped version goes for $3200.
