Given a swift makeover for 2018 the Specialized Enduro has been revamped and now sports geometry closer to that of other bikes in its class. Keen to check out what the bike at the lower end of the price range offers we have an aluminium Enduro Comp 29er in for test.
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OK, when we say lower, this bike still retails at £2,999 so it’s not exactly budget busting but it is the cheapest Enduro that Specialized offer. Seeing as we like to test bikes that we think a lot of people might buy, we opted to test this alloy version of the new Enduro.

2018 sees the bike fall in line with its all mountain peers and go longer and slacker through the use of a flip chip Specialized have given you the option to slacken the head angle and lower the bottom bracket. The alloy version gets all the updates the more expensive carbon versions get so you’re not missing out by spending less cash.
Whats New?
The new bike gets a longer top tube, up 11mm compared to the 2017 bike on the large size we have here. This takes the reach out to 462mm, a 12mm increase on last years bike, not super long but definitely roomier.

A flip chip allows the rider to alter geometry between two positions; high and low. The flip chip is essentially a washer which lives inside the shock extension which can be placed between the bolt head and the extension for the ‘low’ setting or the extension and the shock creating the ‘high’ position.

Last year’s 29er Enduro saw the head angle set at 66 degrees, this year it is 66 degrees in the high setting and 65.5 degrees in the low setting. The low setting also drops the bottom bracket 8mm from 354mm to 346mm which (in low) is 6mm lower than the 2017 29er Enduro.

A longer top tub allows the Enduro to be specced with a shorter stem, the large size last year came with whopping (well, relatively) 60mm stem, now though it’s back down to a more appropriate 40mm.
All these changes also eek out the wheelbase by 13mm in the high position, a measurement that will get even longer when the chip is flipped and the low position is engaged, we’ll measure this and report back to you on the increased length.
What’s the same?
Geometry wise the 2018 Spesh Enduro 29 keeps the same length headtube, it’s still a 160mm travel bike and the chainstays are just about at same at just 1mm longer (433mm). The seat tube lengths are also pretty much the same across the range, 430mm for a medium and 467mm for this large. Seat tube angles still stay on the steeper than average side too. In fact the large gets a 76.5 degree seat angle, 0.5 degrees steeper than last year which is a good thing where climbing is concerned.

What else do I get?
For your 3K you’ll get 160mm RockShox Yari RC forks, RockShox Monarch Plus shock with Autosag. Autosag is a Specialized specific technology designed to let the shock settle into its travel (or sag) to where Spesh think you need it to be. To set the sag you over-inflate the air chamber via the regular air valve on the shock so the shock is totally extended, the rider then sits on the bike in their riding gear with the shock fully open, then unscrew another valve on the shock body and press this valve in until all the excess air has bled out. This procedure balances the positive and negative chambers in the shock to the sag level Spesh think it best for the bike and rider weight.

Elsewhere on the bike is equipped with other SRAM kit – four pot Guide R brakes, a GX mech and a 10-42T cassette. The front chainring is a small 28T ring paired up with RaceFace Aeffect cranks.

All the rest of the kit is Specialized branded stuff, wheels, tyres, grips, bars and stem included. The rims are alloy the Roval Traverse 29 which have a 29mm internal diameter and a reshod with the newly redesigned Butcher 2.3″ tyres. The Butcher has been updated to offer staggered sides to the tread blocks which Specialized say increases stability under load and provides an additional biting edge.

What don’t I get?
The Enduro Comp also comes with a dropper post but just a regular 125mm Command post, not the new WU dropper. Whether that is a good thing or a bad one we will have to wait and see, we are yet to be convinced that added WU will provide us with all the drop we need, we need to ride one before giving our opinion on that one though.

You also don’t get any SWAT on the alloy bike, so no downtube storage and no nifty bits of kit in the steerer tube either. Not a dealbreaker we don’t but pretty nice if you do have it!
The details of the new range are all over on www.specialized.com. There is also a big gallery of images up at the top of the page of our Enduro Comp. We’ll be back soon with the first thoughts from our tester shortly!