Trek Madone SLR 9 Disc review

The Trek Madone SLR 9 Disc with its IsoSpeed damping-system has already won our aero-bike group test. But is the all-round performance of the Madone good enough to hold up against the best race bikes of the year? Or is its range of applications rather restricted?

This bike is part of a previous group test. Here you’ll find the latest GRAN FONDO race bike group test.

Even when stationary the Trek Madone SLR 9 Disc looks brutally fast. Both the diagonal colour contrast and arched top tube make it jump forward visually. Both the build-quality and haptics are on the highest level – everything makes sense, from the harmonious paint transitions to the tight tolerances. Inspect how the beautifully-integrated Shimano Dura Ace Di2 R9170 groupset with compact cranks and 160 mm rotors is mounted to the Trek, and you’ll only spot a tiny section of cable just before disappearing into the calipers.

The Madone just keeps on accelerating. Unfortunately, there’s no room for a rev counter on the cockpit…

Trek developed the cockpit and seat post components specifically for the Madone. The SLR 9 rolls on 60mm Bontrager Aeolus XXX 6 carbon wheels and Bontrager R4 tan-wall tires. With a number of different bar-width and stem-length options, the two-piece cockpit offers plenty of room for personal adaptations. As part of Trek’s Project One program, customers can choose from a wide range of unique spec-options and predefined ICON paint-jobs – and if you’re really fussy you can even create your own colour scheme via Trek’s online configurator. Our test bike weighs a solid 7.63 kg in size 56 and costs € 11,499.

The Trek Madone SLR 9 Disc in detail

Drivetrain Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 R9170 2×11
Gearing 50/34T und 11–28T
Brakes Shimano Dura-Ace BR-9170 160/160 mm
Seatpost Madone Carbon Seatpost 25 mm Setback
Stem Madone Internal Carbon 110 mm
Handlebars Madone Specific Adjustable 420 mm
Wheels Bontrager Aeolus XXX 6
Tires Bontrager R4 320 25C

The geometry of the Trek Madone SLR 9 Disc

Size	50	52	54	56	58	60	62
Top tube	521 mm	534 mm	543 mm	559 mm	573 mm	586 mm	598 mm
Sitzrohr	453 mm	483 mm	496 mm	525 mm	553 mm	573 mm	593 mm
Chainstay	410 mm	410 mm	410 mm	410 mm	411 mm	411 mm	412 mm
Head tube	111 mm	121 mm	131 mm	151 mm	171 mm	191 mm	211 mm
Gabel Offset	45 mm	45 mm	45 mm	40 mm	40 mm	40 mm	40 mm
Head angle	72.1°	72.8°	73.0°	73.5°	73.8°	73.9°	73.9°
Seat angle	74.6°	74.2°	73.7°	73.3°	73.0°	72.8°	72.5°
Wheelbase	974 mm	977 mm	981 mm	983 mm	992 mm	1,001 mm	1,010 mm
Reach	378 mm	383 mm	385 mm	391 mm	395 mm	399 mm	402 mm
Stack	520 mm	532 mm	540 mm	563 mm	581 mm	600 mm	620 mm

The Trek Madone SLR 9 Disc in test

It doesn’t matter how hard you spin the cranks of the Madone, the bottom bracket remains stiff and provides efficient acceleration. Because of the relatively high weight, the Madone lacks a certain liveliness off the mark, but still accelerates nimbly in bunch-sprints and out of corners. The Madone is an efficient climber too, provided you’re not chasing a KOM on really harsh gradients, though that’s undoubtedly due to the somewhat heavier system weight.

Once more the Madone impressed our test-crew with its good-natured, precise handling. So good in fact that it let’s you adjust your line incredibly precisely without feeling overly twitchy. The rear-end follows suit and makes the Madone feel stable at any speed while inspiring tons of confidence. This means that even at top-speed the Madone is incredibly mellow and literally begs you to hover over the white road markings – at 70 km/h! The Madone is very easy to ride and offers excellent grip.

Even when you come across tricky crosswinds it still feels predictable. It transmits an even side-pressure rather than a scary, sudden yank. Once again the adjustable and functional IsoSpeed damping system in the rear-end fully convinced us. Not only does this ingenious little piece of design dampen and defuse vibrations, but also brilliantly deals with harder knocks and bumps. Compared to the rear-end, and the cockpit comfort of some other bikes, the front-end of the Madone could offer a little more compliance.

Conclusion

For all aero addicts, from amateur to pro, the Trek Madone SLR 9 Disc is an incredibly fast bike with outstanding and precise handling. Over and over, the IsoSpeed system convinces us with its unique design and outstanding functionality. It was only the significantly higher weight and rather low front-end comfort that forced the Madone into second position behind our best in test.

For more info head to: trekbikes.com

This bike is part of a previous group test. Here you’ll find the latest GRAN FONDO race bike group test.

All bikes in test: Argonaut Road Bike | Basso Diamante SV 2019 | Bianchi Oltre XR4 Disc | BMC Timemachine Road 01 TWO | Canyon Ultimate CF SLX Disc 9.0 | Cervélo S5 | EXEPT Allroad Classic | FOCUS IZALCO MAX 9.8 | MERIDA REACTO DISC TEAM-E | Specialized S-Works Tarmac Disc SL6 Disc

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Words: Photos: Valentin Rühl