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TECH NEWS
2023 Trek Domane+ SLR action - 1 (1)Trek releases lightweight Domane+ SLR and Domane+ AL electric road bikes
Trek has just released the all-new Domane+ SLR, an e-road bike that weighs as little as 11.75kg with space for tyres up to 40mm wide. Trek believes that the Domane+ SLR looks and feels like a non-electric bike. The US brand has also unveiled a new aluminium-framed Domane+ Al that’s a more economical option.
Trek Domane+ SLR
Trek says, “The Domane+ SLR doesn't look, sound, fit, or feel like an electric bike. It boasts a lightweight carbon frame, whisper-quiet motor, sleek controls and road-specific tune for a true road bike experience with a subtle and powerful boost wherever you need it.”
Frame
The new Domane+ SLR offers most of the features of the acoustic (non-electric) Domane, the endurance road bike that Trek recently updated.
> Trek launches new, lighter Domane endurance road bike and ditches front IsoSpeed system
It’s built with Trek’s highest-level 800 Series OCLV carbon to keep the frame weight down. You might remember that Trek first introduced 800 Series to ensure its Emonda SLR road bike frame remained under 700g when adding aero-profiled tubing to this traditionally lightweight platform a couple of years ago. Trek’s acoustic Domane SLR is now made with 800 Series OCLV carbon too.
> All-new Émonda gets aero to become "Trek’s fastest climbing bike ever" – and it's disc brake-only
Like the acoustic Domanes, the Domane+ SLR is designed for long-ride comfort and includes rear IsoSpeed which allows the seat tube (and therefore the saddle) to move independently of the rest of the frame. The idea is to smooth over bumps in the road for increased comfort and stability and to reduce fatigue.
If you want an extra helping of comfort, you can run tyres up to a maximum size of 40mm (or 35mm with mudguards; the Domane+ SLR has hidden mounts), which is more than is possible with the acoustic Domanes. This allows for 6mm of space all-round between the tyre and the frame/fork and is well into gravel bike territory. Trek offers the Domane+ SLR with gravel tyres and a SRAM 1x XPLR groupset (see below).
The Domane SLR+ is built to Trek’s Endurance geometry. Compared with the H1.5 geometry found on Madone and Émonda models, it features a tall head tube and long wheelbase, the idea being to maximise comfort and stability.
At 163mm, the Domane SLR+’s Q-factor – the distance between the outside face of each crank arm at the point where the pedal attaches – isn’t much more than that of a non-electric road bike.
> Could the wrong stance width be affecting your cycling performance?
Unlike the acoustic Domane SLR, the Domane SLR+ doesn’t have an internal storage compartment within the frame and there are no mounts for bags either.
Motor and battery
The Domane+ SLR’s power comes from a TQ Harmonic Pin Ring (TQ-HPR50) e-system. If you’re not familiar with it, this is how it works…
Trek already uses the same TQ system on its Fuel EXe e-mountain bike, providing up to 300 watts of assist and 50 N m of torque.
“It is the perfect system to be able to deliver an awesome ride experience,” says Trek’s director of road bikes Jordan Roessingh. “It's compact, it's lightweight, but it's a lot of other things too. It's super-quiet so you don't even hear it when you're riding. It allows us to use a really narrow road Q-factor so the bike rides and feels [like] a non-electric bike. This system is the foundation of an amazing road bike that we've never been able to deliver before.”
Trek says that the 360-watt/hour battery will take you around 60 miles in Eco mode – there are three assist modes that you can change between via buttons mounted to the shifters – although it’ll depend on rider weight and the terrain, and around 90 miles with the optional 160-watt/hour range extender (which adds around 900g).
Trek Central app
The Trek Central app connects with Domane+ and provides customised motor tuning, activity tracking and real-time range calculations.
“The app allows you to tailor the mode settings or the assist levels in each of the three levels,” says Jordan Roessingh. “Say you want to do 70 miles and you don't have a range extender. You can tune down Eco mode to assist you a little bit less but give you the ability to get all the way through your ride.”
You could tune the settings to other preferences. You might want maximum assistance on really steep hills, for example. The system gives you the ability to choose and you can revert to factory settings easily.
Who is the Domane+ SLR for?
Rather than targeting new riders with the Domane+ SLR, Trek believes it will be selling to existing cyclists who are looking for extra assistance.
“Whether you need help to be able to ride on a group ride, with your social circle or with your partner, and you want to ride at the same exertion level as the rest of the group, [this bike can] provide the right amount of assistance to be able to do that,” says Jordan Roessingh.
“The assistance allows you to spread your wings and do a bigger ride than you’d be able to without it, and the fact that it's lightweight and a drop bar configuration means it's super efficient and really fast, so if you're just trying to go as fast as possible to work, this is a great package.”
Trek believes that the fact that the Domane+ SLR looks like a non-electric bike is important too.
“I think that one of the awesome things about this package as a whole is that it’s visually super-discreet,” says Jordan Roessingh. “It’s a compact system and it’s really quiet.
“It also feels like a road bike. The combination of the light weight and the low Q factor means it rides like a standard road bike. For people who are used to that high standard of performance, it rides the same way. It's just adding a little boost on top of that.
“A core part of the Domane platform is the versatility behind it. The e-bike has 40mm of tyre clearance so it can do anything from performance road to gravel riding. You can ride it however you want.”
Builds and prices
Trek is offering the Domane+ SLR in six different builds.
“We're doing two different spec concepts,” says Jordan Roessingh. “If you want that performance road experience, all the Shimano-equipped bikes have 2x drivetrains [meaning they have two chainrings] with compact chainsets and a front derailleur, and they use 32mm tubeless tyres that will really help you there.”
“On the SRAM side of things, we’re speccing the bikes with 1x SRAM XPLR drivetrains that still have a huge gear range. These bikes come with Bontrager GR1 40mm gravel tyres. If you want some more versatility and the ability to do some exploring on gravel roads then the SRAM option is your perfect solution.”
As well as tubeless tyres, all Domane+ SLR bikes come with tubeless-ready wheels, valves and sealant.
Domane+ SLR 6 from £8,340
Claimed weight 12.4kg
Groupset Shimano 105 R7170 Di2
Wheels Bontrager Aeolus Pro 37
Tyres Bontrager R3 Hard-Case Lite 700x32mm
Domane+ SLR 6 eTap £8,900
Claimed weight 12.6kg
Groupset SRAM Rival eTap AXS
Wheels Bontrager Aeolus Pro 3V
Tyres Bontrager GR1 Team Issue 700x40mm
Domane+ SLR 7 from £8,900
Claimed weight 12.2kg
Groupset Shimano Ultegra R8170 Di2
Wheels Bontrager Aeolus Pro 37
Tyres Bontrager R3 Hard-Case Lite 700x32mm
Domane+ SLR 7 eTap £9,750
Claimed weight 12.5kg
Groupset SRAM Force eTap AXS
Wheels Bontrager Aeolus Pro 3V
Tyres Bontrager GR1 Team Issue 700x40mm
Domane+ SLR 9 £12,500
Claimed weight 11.75kg
Groupset Shimano Dura-Ace R9270 Di2
Wheels Bontrager Aeolus RSL 37
Tyres Bontrager R3 Hard-Case Lite 700x32mm
Domane+ SLR 9 eTap £12,900
Claimed weight 12.15kg
Groupset SRAM RED eTap AXS
Wheels Bontrager Aeolus RSL 37V
Tyres Bontrager GR1 Team Issue 700x40mm
Trek Domane+ AL
Trek is also launching the new Domane+ AL – the Al short for aluminium, of course.
“Domane+ AL is the highest value e-bike that we've ever made,” says Jordan Roessingh. “It leverages Alpha 100 Series aluminium, and despite the fact that it's an aluminium platform, it's still around 30lb [around 13.6kg] for the complete bikes, which is super lightweight.
“It shares the same E-system as [Trek’s existing] FX+ and DS+ so it’s a hub-drive motor with a 250-watt-hour battery and the same integrated display that we’re using on those other two bikes.
“The range of the Domane+ Al is about 60 miles. The reason that it's similar to the Domane+ SLR is the fact that it’s a lower-speed bike [20mph/32km/h in the US, as opposed to 28mph/45km/h for the Domane+ SLR, although both are limited to 15.5mph/25km/h over here] and it’s a slightly lower powered system.
“There's also an optional range extender system that's another 250 watt-hours, which doubles your range, so you should expect to see over 100 miles of range."
The Domane+ AL is built to the same endurance geometry as the rest of the range and has mounts for racks and mudguards. You get clearance for tyres up to 38mm here.
“Whether you just want to ride that little bit further and get that extra assist, ride with your buddies and get a little bit of help, or if you’re commuting… all of those same scenarios are at play for the Domane+ Al, it’s just that it’s a much more economical package,” says Jordan Roessingh.
The Trek Domane+ AL 5, built up with a Shimano 105 groupset, is priced at £3,200.
Mat has been in cycling media since 1996, on titles including BikeRadar, Total Bike, Total Mountain Bike, What Mountain Bike and Mountain Biking UK, and he has been editor of 220 Triathlon and Cycling Plus. Mat has been road.cc technical editor for over a decade, testing bikes, fettling the latest kit, and trying out the most up-to-the-minute clothing. We send him off around the world to get all the news from launches and shows too. He has won his category in Ironman UK 70.3 and finished on the podium in both marathons he has run. Mat is a Cambridge graduate who did a post-grad in magazine journalism, and he is a winner of the Cycling Media Award for Specialist Online Writer. Now over 50, he's riding road and gravel bikes most days for fun and fitness rather than training for competitions.
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32 comments
I just don't get the reason for a lightweight high end road e-bike, especially at that ridiculous price. The motor does the work so whats the need for the high spec frame and components? I commute on a electric mtb and save my analogue mile munchers for the fun stuff. Maybe I've just become 'old man yells at cloud'
The motor doesn't do all the work, it cuts out at just over 15mph. Then you have, in my case with a Fazua Evation system, a struggle to keep up on the flat with companions riding faster than 15mph while dragging 5kg of deadweight battery and motor.
I opted for the Fazua system so that I could remove the battery for flat rides.
...and the motor.
Well, the motor doesn't do all the work, on a climb where the rider might usually put out 500W, say, the motor can only supply 250W, so the rider supplies the other 250W. Anything over 25kmh, i.e. most normal flat riding, the rider's supplying all the energy and so the lighter and better specced the bike is, the more return they'll get for their input, just as with any unpowered bike.
What a load of rubbish, the only reason anyone has a high spec e-bike is to trick others into believing they are riding a real road bike.
I was spanking out 25mph on my regular route a few weeks ago and some tool went past me on an illegal mountain bike at about 35, comically pedalling with his legs virtually blurring at about 160rpm like he was roadrunner. You can tell they're not putting in the effort though because you can see there is no resistance in the drivetrain.
I think it's sad that you belittle other people's choices. Why do you care if someone passes you on an e-bike? Why do you even think twice about it?
Your opinions about how fast/energetic/wealthy/fat/sweaty other people are come across as pathetic.
Why does it bother me that someone is riding an illegal motorised vehicle on the public highway without insurance or a licence? Hrm, that's a tricky one. With your obvious lack of common sense I hope you're not in charge of source control.
As for people riding a high spec e-bike, I have nothing against it provided the person genuinely needs it and isn't just averse to a bit of effort. But let's not pretend it's something that it isn't.
So what if they don't genuinely need it? What business is it of yours?
Total piss take on the price.
Get yourself a Cannondale Synapse Neo ... far more bang for half the bucks.
Ok, it's heavy ... that only makes a difference if you have to lift it up, or you've run out of battery.
I've only exhausted my battery on this bike once --- and that was after 80 miles - 40 miles in brutal headwinds of 30ish mph and 1200m of climbing.
Normal conditions has seen the battery cope with 100mile rides with no problem.
It's my only bike and gets used for gravel, club road, and active commuting.
Beautiful bit of kit, gorgeous to look at and pleasure to ride (but then I'm biased as I have one)
https://www.bikeradar.com/reviews/bikes/electric-bikes/cannondale-synaps...
Stupid prices.
If I was spending £8k I'd want something that doesn't require any pedalling and is capable of 100mph (though I have no desire to travel that fast). And a range of 60 miles is a bit pathetic.
I think electric assistance is great, I'm sure I will need it presently, but prices like these are just taking the piss.
I admit that lazy guys like me would drool over such a bike. I will not drool over it's price probably although the al version is reasonably priced. I do undestand though that there is a big market for such bikes and therefore it will sell like hot cakes in the US.
A simple electric road bike with upright near touring geometry, light battery to reduce weight and cost, cheap simple transmission (9 speed is just perfect for me and with electric assistance, 8speed would be nice too) and hydraulic disks would make it a great commuter.
Please can we drop the idea that you have to be a lazy person to have an Ebike? I have four bikes and regularly ride 100 km+ routes on weekends on my unpowered road and gravel bikes. Unfortunately, due to age and chronic illness, such efforts leave me pretty shattered the next day, for which reason I have an electrically-assisted road bike (Orbea Gain D40) to deal with the 45+ km per day commuting I do in London (most days, when I'm feeling up to it I take one of the unpowered bikes). The power gets me away from the lights quickly (an excellent safety bonus in London), helps me up a couple of stiff hills, and gets me up quickly to 25 km/h (its restricted speed) where I take over and ride it under my own power at around 32–35 km/h for roughly 75% of the trip. That's why I like having an Ebike that's as close to a normal road bike as possible, because for 75% of the time that's exactly what it is. Not trying to cheat, not trying to be lazy, not trying to hide it, just enjoying – and grateful for – a solution that allows me to ride greater distances than I otherwise would and that keeps me fit for my weekend jaunts.
Seconded - is my mate who is 90 lazy for needing an e-bike to let him do his 60 miles? Or other mate who is in his 70s wants to ride with his friends and uses an e-bike to allow him to do the 80 or 90 miles to join the friends he has been cycling with for years? Or the 5 or so people in the club who have effort-limiting heart problems so they cannot excede about 130bpm which means that any significant hill is off limits - without an e-bike?
As for form, bikes like the Orbea, with a motor virtually invisible between cassette and disc and battery in the down tube are beautifully designed to allow normal touring cycling without the extra weight of the cheap and cheerful bikes where they need to use power all the time to overcome the weight.
What I do agree is that these bikes are stupidly expensive. A high quality road bike suitable to be a basis for an e-bike is around say £2500, and a motor installation of some sophistication perhaps around £1500 so a high quality e-bike should drop in around £4000 - Orbea are less. Trek are putting premium on premium with their pricing. Don't rubbish the principle because of Trek's ability to massively overcharge due to consumer brand foolishness.
Thirded.
Some of us have been left unable to ride conventional bikes due to the deeds of others – in my case an 80 year old man driving a Mondeo deciding that his journey was more important than my life.
An e-bike for me is the only viable solution to not being able to ride and be able to experience the same joy and sense of freedom that cycling gave me prior to the collision and it’s not something that I am prepared to give up just because of other people’s prejudices, generalisations and misconceptions.
I am in my early 50’s and a life not being able to ride a bike is inconceivable to me … thanks to the e-bike.
Wow guys, a fast post and a missed word "me" may have changed my meaning. I meant lazy guys like "me" as I am not crazy cyclist, I mostly commute small distances with small parts of touring (ok haven't been touring for a while).
I am a big advocate of e-bikes, but their prices have to be seriously dropped. A whole Xiaomi electric scooter cost 300 so the electrical part is simple and cheap. I don't care how other people may identify themselves, but I have absolutely no problem to identify as lazy. Laziness is the source of evolution both biological and technological and is a very misunderstood word. You may add injured, old or whatever, but I see it from my perspective which is lazy.
There is an 'edit' button ...
If you felt slightly mischievous, you could edit your post to include the missing word, and make the 3 of us look like we're whinging at nothign .. 😉
fixed!
There is a simple resolution to this outrage at the cost of electrification
Yes, for everyone to remain in peak condition throughout their lives and never to get ill or have commutes that are unfeasible on an ordinary bike or want to transport three kids in a cargo bike in a hilly area or still be capable of keeping up with their grandchildren on group rides when they're eighty...otherwise some folks might find electrification quite handy.
Come on Rendel - as we all know wtjs rides nothing more newfangled and soft than a fixed gear, relies on dynamo lighting (or at a push rushlights) and his excellent pictures of the scofflaws of Lancashire are all done in oils. Still haven't figured out how he gets them onto the internet without the aid of electrickery though...
Being able-bodied enough to get away with it an ideal for me would be if we limited the number of plug in bikes - particularly for all the batteries we are making. But somehow I seem to be typing this on a computer and using a mobile, and I'm not keen on those petrol-powered motors either, so I better zip it. Plus I tried one once and it was quite fun.
Acetylene flame generated by water and carbide for the lights, surely...
Foppish luxury!
Come on Rendel - as we all know wtjs rides nothing more newfangled and soft than a fixed gear, relies on dynamo lighting
Although I anticipated this sort of thing as some light relief, what I meant was 'don't buy posh stealth e-bikes'- there's enough competition in the non-stealth field to allow people to choose reasonably priced e-bikes. I, of course, am a great advocate of 9-speed, disc brakes, new folding bikes and excellent dirt-cheap Aldi lights
A 2022 Domane SL6 with Ultegra is £3700, more than twice for the electric version with 105 is really taking the piss. The usual markup for the electrified version of the same bike is around £1500-£2000, £5000 for electrification?
Well not quite £5k, comparing like for like, the 105 Di2 SL6 is £4800, so £3.5k difference. At least £500 of that will be for the battery alone, but still a bit of a reach/piss-take.
Fair point, I missed the Di2 - still not acclimatised to it being available with 105!
Please can you never use the word "acoustic" when referring to a non-electric bike ever again
Steam powered?
Analogue?
Meat powered? Flesh powered?
Traditional
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