Cervelo Soloist Ultegra

The new Cervelo Soloist sits in the gap between the very aero S5 and the very light R5 models. That doesn’t mean it isn’t as good as either of them; in fact, it actually makes a brilliant blend of streamlining and weight reduction for the road rider who tackles a bit of everything. As Goldilocks would say: ‘It’s just right.’

Back in September of last year we announced the launch of the new Soloist, which Cervelo describes as a bike for ‘modern road racers who want something fast and light.’

> Buy the Soloist Ultegra now from Cervelo

In a like-for-like build the Soloist is around 250g lighter than the full aero S5, and about 250g heavier than the summit-searching R5.

It actually works very well indeed. At 8.47kg I’d say the weight isn’t bad considering the middling spec of the wheelset and finishing kit, so it’s a capable climber and feels responsive when sprinting. It also feels quick rolling along on the flat.

It’s definitely begging for some deeper section rims, however, such as the carbon hoops found on models higher up the range, to really exploit the performance.

The most noticeable thing is the ride quality, and in a good way. For such a chunky front end the Cervelo never feels harsh or too tight over buzz-inducing broken tarmac, while the oversized chainstays and huge bottom bracket have their stiffness tamed by slender seatstays. It takes the sting out of poor road surfaces.

This ability to minimise buzz gives a boost to feedback levels. With no distorting chatter coming through from the tyres, the bike talks to you clearly, helping you push hard through the bends or on descents. Even the slightest break of traction shines through instantly.

With a steepish head angle and the resulting quick handling, the Soloist’s front end is very quick to respond to your inputs, whether you’re lining up the front wheel into a corner or when adjusting your line due mid-bend for unexpected potholes, gravel or anything else.

This 56cm model keeps the wheelbase just under a meter, which means the Soloist maintains the nimbleness needed for a fast road bike while giving a planted feel on the road. Overall, Cervelo has nailed the geometry for confident, performance-orientated riders without alienating those who don’t want to take the corners as fast as they possibly can.

The riding position can be made aggressive with the stem slammed, or kept not that extreme at all with about 20mm of spacers underneath the stem. So there’s scope to switch the Soloist between a nose-down racer and a comfortable long-distance machine, providing you leave enough steerer tube.

On the whole, the Soloist is a great bike to ride. It can feel exhilarating and fast when you really push it, but if you knock things back a notch you still have a smooth riding and comfortable bike that’s quick without being a handful. It’s a capable climber, descender and distance machine all rolled into one.

Frame and fork

The Soloist’s frame is sculpted from carbon fibre and the aerodynamic efforts are plain to see; the traditional tube shapes are smoothly blended into one another, while the full carbon fork is integrated with the head and down tube junction. Unlike many modern frames though, there isn’t that much of a slope on the top tube, creating what I suppose is best described as a semi-compact design.

It’s finished here in lovely black paint, with a metallic flake under the lacquer which changes colour in the sunlight. It looks absolutely awesome.

Both the frame and the fork use the now standard flat mounts for the hydraulic brake calipers, and 12mm diameter thru-axles for wheel retention.

Unlike some of the newer framesets though, the Soloist is capable of running both mechanical and electronic wired/wireless groupsets. A large percentage of today’s high-end road bikes are shifting to electronic only.

The cables and hoses are run into the frame and fork via the head tube and headset, so the frame still has a very smooth and clean look to it.

The bottom bracket is a BBRight-47 (also known as a T47A or BBCorrect, helpfully) and is compatible with frames with an asymmetrical 77mm shell; it puts the non-driveside bearing inside the frame, and the driveside bearing outside. It uses T47 cups, which thread into the frame rather than being press-fit.

We have seen brands such as Trek switch to T47 to exploit the same benefits press-fit BBs offer – larger bearings for increased stiffness – while avoiding the issues of creaking and wear created by poor tolerancing between frames and bearing cups.

As for mounting points, you only get the two usual bottle cage positions, although the down tube mount gets three bolts to give some position adjustment.

The new Soloist comes with an impressive 34mm of tyre clearance – a few years back that would have made it a gravel bike!

Geometry wise the Soloist shares the numbers and angles of the R5, and is available in six sizes ranging from a 48 to a 61. That means top tube lengths of 516mm on the smallest and 598mm on the largest. This 56 has a top tube measuring 565mm, and stack and reach figures of 565mm and 392mm respectively.

The head tube is 156mm with an angle of 73°, which is the same as the seat angle. The overall wheelbase is 994mm with 410mm chainstays, and the fork offset is 45.5mm.

Finishing kit

Cervelo specs the Soloist in a range of builds including electronic and mechanical groupsets, and it tops out with SRAM’s Force eTap AXS at £7,100 with Reserve carbon fibre wheels. At the other end is a mechanical 105 build at £3,500. A frameset is available for £3,000.

This mechanical Ultegra model is £4,500. The R8000 iteration of the Ultegra groupset has been mentioned many times on road.cc, and fully reviewed on its own as well.

It’s a lovely groupset to use, offering virtually all of the performance of Dura Ace (when it was available as mechanical) for a bit more weight and a lot less cost.

You get a 52/36t chainset mated to an 11-30t, 11-speed cassette, which gives the ideal spread of gears for the performance of the Soloist – which is to say, its ratios focus on speed, but have enough bail out gears for the majority of hills.

The hydraulic brake calipers offer plenty of bite without being grabby, and have more than enough power paired to these 160mm rotors to bring you to a stop quickly.

The cockpit is made up of Cervelo-branded alloy components. The handlebar is a standard round affair – no flat sections on the tops for aero gains – and the shallow drop means that getting aero doesn’t have to mean too extreme a position.

The stem is a standard-looking unit apart from it having a computer mount on the face plate.

Most frames that run the cables in through the headset and head tube use a stem like the Deda Powerbox, which runs those cables and hoses internally from the handlebar. Cervelo hasn’t done that, instead running them under the stem and into the frame from the large spacer atop the head tube. This makes it easy to change the stem without bleeding the brakes, and easier to take the bike apart for travelling.

Sitting atop the Cervelo SP27 Carbon seatpost is a Selle Italia Model X SuperFlow FeC saddle, which I rather liked. It curves up towards the rear, which I get on with as I can push against it when climbing in the saddle, and I prefer a short-nose for when I’m in the drops.

The wheelset is Fulcrum’s Racing 600 DB, the ‘original equipment’ (OE) version of its Racing DB 6 wheels. They are tubeless-ready thanks to Fulcrum’s 2-Way Fit system, and with their 24mm aluminium rims weigh a claimed 1,780g.

They are a decent set of wheels for performance and durability, although the Soloist is screaming out for something lighter and deeper.

The tyres are Vittoria Rubino Pro TLR Gs in a 28mm width. They roll well and offer a decent amount of grip in the wet or dry.

Competition

Mat recently reviewed (and very much liked) the Giant Propel Advanced Pro 1, which comes with a SRAM Rival eTap aXS groupset and carbon fibre wheels. It retails for £5,499 and weighs much the same as the Soloist we have here.

A similarly-equipped Cervelo is £5,000, but you are only getting the same Fulcrum 600 DB wheelset as found on this Ultegra model.

An Ultegra Di2 build of the Giant is £5,999, whereas a Soloist with the same groupset and Reserve carbon wheels is £6,800.

At the same time as reviewing the Soloist, I have also been riding the Merida Reacto 7000. The Reacto is Merida’s aero race bike, one that feels fast and has a good level of comfort about it too. The 7000 is based around a Rival eTap AXS groupset and has deep section carbon wheels from Merida’s own catalogue, and is priced at an impressive £4,350.

The Reacto 9000 uses a lighter CF5 frame (pro peloton level) compared to the CF3 found on the 7000, comes with an Ultegra Di2 groupset and 65mm deep Reynolds wheels, and is £6,500.

Overall

So, while there are aero road bikes out there that offer a comfortable ride at a lower price, the Soloist really is a lovely bike to ride.

The balance of aero efficiency and low weight works nicely, while the ride quality is exceptional for such a stiff bike. The highlight is the geometry though, which – while looking quite steep and aggressive on paper – doesn’t really pan out like that in the real world. Yes, the steering is quick, and it’s a nippy bike on the whole, but all of that can be exploited whatever your level of riding experience.

> Buy the Soloist Ultegra now from Cervelo

Verdict

Needs lighter wheels to get the best out of it, but it’s a belter of a frameset

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