Merida Scultura 4000 2024

The Merida Scultura 4000 blends performance and value thanks to its pairing of a carbon road race frame with Shimano's 105 mechanical groupset. The entry-level wheels and tyres add a bit of weight, but with a comfortable ride from a stiff frame it's an ideal bike for the budding racer or those who just want a quick road machine on a budget, with plenty of scope for upgrades.

For more options, check out our guide to the best road bikes, from £300 up to more than £12,000...

Merida Scultura 4000: Ride

Merida's road range is split into two line-ups, with the Reacto focusing on aerodynamics and this Scultura being the general all-rounder, albeit with a few aero tweaks.

Geometry-wise (I'll go into the numbers in a bit) the Scultura allows a relatively aggressive riding position, with an average sized head tube/top tube combination. The head angle is typically road, so relatively steep, which gives quick and confident handling, while a sub-metre wheelbase (size medium) makes the whole bike feel lively when you need to get a shift on.

It's an easy bike to ride quickly. Well balanced throughout, and you don't need to be a seasoned racer to get the best out of it.

What do I mean by that? Well, it always seems to be rather forgiving even if you ride too fast into a bend, or a patch of gravel mid-corner catches you out. It's one of those bikes that's easy to correct, which gives you confidence and allows you to push into the next corner even if the one before you gave a twitchy bum moment.

The Scultura is a capable descender, too. It feels at home on technical sections, and I think a lot of that is also down to the ride quality of the frame and fork. For such a stiff bike the 4000 has a smooth ride, always feeling planted even on relatively poor road surfaces.

It's not a buzzy or chattery frame, and by muting that feedback it makes the Scultura feel even more planted and secure.

To hit this price point, compromises have been made on components, and at just over 8.6kg the 4000 is no lightweight, so it's not quite as responsive on the climbs or when sprinting compared with more expensive models in the range I've ridden.

That said, it's no slouch. It still feels quick for the weight, but with a change of wheels you can certainly unlock plenty more performance.

Efforts out of the saddle highlight a stiff bottom bracket area, and the rear triangle also feels tight, which means the Scultura doesn't make you feel as though any of your power is going to waste.

The geometry and comfort also work well together to make the Scultura a good mile-muncher. It's definitely a race bike that you can still head out for a 100-mile ride on and come back without your contact points feeling battered.

The slightly sloping top tube also meant I could run plenty of seatpost, which gives a small boost to comfort due to flex.

Merida Scultura 4000: Frame & fork

Merida offers each line-up of its road bikes with differing levels of carbon fibre frames. They share the same geometry throughout the range, but the grades of carbon used and the lay-ups differ.

For the Scultura, the range-topping models get the CF5 option, Merida's lightest and stiffest grade of carbon, while the lower ones get CF3, a carbon grade blending performance, durability and cost. Being the entry-level carbon model, this 4000 uses the latter and Merida gives a claimed weight of 997g for this size medium, so not too shabby.

Sizes on offer range from 3XS to XL, giving seven in total. Top tube lengths start at 505mm and go up to 590mm on the largest frame.

For this medium specifically, the top tube is 560mm, with a 140mm head tube. The angle for the latter is 73.5 degrees, as is the seat tube. Stack and reach figures are 557mm and 395mm respectively.

The wheelbase is 990mm, with 408mm chainstays, and the bottom bracket drop – the difference between the BB centre and centre of the dropouts – is 66mm.

Merida is one of the largest manufacturers in the world and knows a thing or two about creating carbon frames, and highlights many technologies that it uses in creating them.

Nano Matrix is one where it adds tiny nano-scale particles to the resin to bind the carbon fibres together, protecting the structure from damage. Merida claims that the carbon fibre's impact resistance is improved by up to 40%, allowing it to build a lighter frame overall.

Merida also focuses on the inside of the frame, laying up the carbon and using bladders to ensure a smooth compression around any corners and tricky junctions, removing any voids in the carbon fibre/resin mix which can cause weak points.

Things are just as smooth on the outside of the frame. Everything is run internally from the handlebar through the stem and down into the tapered head tube, with no cables or hoses visible again until they exit close by the mechs and brake callipers they are controlling. If at a later date you wanted to update to a wireless electronic groupset you can do so without leaving any redundant cable guides.

The internal cable routing is obviously well managed as there are no restrictions or ill effects on gear shifting.

The seatpost uses an expanding wedge design that sits inside the seat tube for more smoothness and integration.

Other aero touches are the smooth transition between the fork and head tube, and dropped seatstays.

Being a race bike the Scultura doesn't go in for a lot of mounting points, with just a couple of bottle cages catered for, but there are other little additions to the frame and fork such as Merida's Disc Coolers, a ribbed metal plate that sits between the bike and the brake calliper, acting as a heat sink during prolonged use of the brakes. More something that is required on long mountain descents than the short, sharp downhills we tend to have in the UK.

For frame protection there is also a metal plate to stop the chainstay from being damaged if the chain drops off the chainrings.

Merida Scultura 4000: Groupset

The 4000 comes equipped with the mechanical R7100 12-speed version of Shimano's 105 groupset which I reviewed just after it was released earlier in the year.

Thanks to its balance of performance and cost, 105 has always been regarded as the entry level to race-ready groupsets. Riding it side by side against the higher-level Ultegra you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference, especially with this latest version. Ultegra mechanical is only available in 11-speed R8000 guise, which was launched back in 2018.

For this particular model Merida has specced a compact 50/34-tooth chainset and an 11-34T cassette, giving a gear range spread that'll suit all kinds of fast riding and time in the hills thanks to that 1:1 ratio at the bottom end.

As you can see from my review, the shifting from 105 is brilliant and the new lever shape makes them very comfortable to use for all kinds of hand sizes and shapes.

The hydraulic braking is powerful and uses 160mm rotors front and rear.

Merida hasn't deviated from Shimano for any of the components, with the rotors, chain and press-fit 86.5mm bottom bracket all coming from the Japanese company's catalogue. With some bikes these can be specced from other brands to keep costs down.

Merida Scultura 4000: Finishing kit

Merida provides the majority of its bikes with its own finishing kit, so it's no surprise to find its branding on the Expert SL handlebar, Expert CC carbon fibre seatpost and Expert SL saddle.

It's all good kit. The handlebar has accessible drops for those who aren't that flexible, and their shape allows a close reach to the brake levers – though the 105 levers do have reach adjustment too.

The carbon seatpost is easy to adjust and the saddle perched above it has a low profile with a swoopy shape that lends itself well to plenty of seating positions. I certainly got on well with it.

The stem is the only deviation, being from FSA, its SMR ACR, which is specced on many bikes at this price point as it is designed to run the cables and hoses internally.

Merida Scultura 4000: Wheels & tyres

The wheels haven't escaped the Merida branding, with Expert SL rims and hubs. The rims are 22mm deep but only 17mm wide internally, which is quite old school in this day and age. They work fine with the 28mm tyres fitted, the shape maintaining a smooth curved profile, and as the Scultura maxes out at 30mm tyre clearance they'll work with those too, although the transition between rim and tyre won't be as smooth as with wheels of a 19mm or 21mm internal width.

That aside, it's a tough wheelset with what looks to be good durability. They arrived running true and remained so throughout the test period. The hubs are 28 spoke front and rear, and come with Center Lock mounting for the rotors and 100mm (F), 142mm (R) spacing for 12mm thru-axles.

On its website Merida states that the 4000 comes with Maxxis High Road tyres, although the photographs show Continental's Ultra Sport, which is what our review bike arrived with.

The Contis are a cheap but effective training tyre, supple enough for good feedback, grip and road feel while being tough enough for riding in all kinds of weather conditions. You aren't going to be flinching either should the road you are riding on become an impromptu light gravel excursion.

Merida Scultura 4000: Pricing & value

As mentioned earlier, this is the entry-level carbon frame model, with two disc-equipped aluminium bikes sitting below, and three rim-braked models with prices starting at £885, while the carbon range tops out at £8,000 for the Team model with Shimano Dura-Ace, deep-section wheels and a power meter.

So, how does the Scultura 4000 compare with the competition?

The Ultimate is Canyon's race bike, and I recently reviewed the top-end CFR model which I absolutely loved, but at nearly 10 grand it's out of most people's price range. The CFR uses Canyon's top-end carbon grade but the more affordable CF SL line-up includes the 7 model fitted with 105 mechanical and alloy DT Swiss Performance LN wheels for £2,349, plus a a CP0030 carbon integrated cockpit. You do need to factor in delivery costs, though, which come to around another £68.98, whereas you could by a Merida from your local bike shop with no delivery charge.

Van Rysel has released a range of new road bikes, including the recently reviewed NCR. Van Rysel describes it as an endurance road bike but compared with many it's very much in the racy side of the camp. Our model came with a 1x SRAM Rival electronic groupset, although a 12-speed 105 mechanical version is available for £2,000. It has a slightly longer wheelbase than the Scultura and larger 35mm tyre clearance, but the front-end geometry is very similar, giving you that same racy feel as you get with the Merida.

Giant's TCR is an all-round race bike which comes in a huge number of builds and frame grades. It may not have some of the aero tweaks of the Scultura but it rides very similarly, especially in how the frame and fork balance stiffness and comfort. I own a 2022 TCR Advanced 2 so actually rode both side by side during the Scultura's review period.

The current TCR Advanced 2 comes with the 12-speed 105 mechanical groupset (but with a 52/36T chainset), alloy Giant wheels and alloy components, for £2,699.

I reviewed the rim-braked version last year and was impressed.

Orro has just released its Gold Evo road bike which, like the Van Rysel, is more towards the endurance side of things, but not by much. It has a similar wheelbase length as the Scultura and a steep seat angle, but a slightly slacker front end.

I'm currently riding the only model in the range, the mechanical 105-equipped bike which costs £2,499.99. My review will be up soon, but you can read what I thought of the Gold STC model, which has the same geometry.

Merida Scultura 4000: Conclusion

The heart of any bike is the frameset, and the Scultura's is very good indeed. Great to ride, regardless of your racing aspirations, and ripe for upgrades, which in itself brings longevity to your ownership.

Verdict

Fun, fast and comfortable race bike at an affordable price