Giant TCR Advanced Pro 1
An exhilarating and exciting ride that feels efficient, accelerates rapidly and retains speed
£4199/ FULLY LOADED SPECIFICATION FOR GIANT’ S RACING LEGEND
Giant’s ninth-generation TCR may have moved away from its original three-size-only concept – but the Total Compact Road’s diamond frame shape remains, with its now-familiar sloping top tube and steep roadrace angles. Giant hasn’t moved towards dropped seatstays either, its own D-shaped carbon seatpost both damping vibration and offering an aerodynamic advantage. At first glance the 2021 TCR strongly resembles last year’s model, but look harder and you’ll see that every tube shape has been optimised, aerodynamically sculpted using kammtail profiles. And while aerodynamics are hard to quantify outside of a wind tunnel, the TCR feels superbly rapid.
On the road it’s just stunning – an exhilarating and exciting ride that gives you everything a high-quality race bike should. It feels efficient, accelerates rapidly and rewards strong efforts by easily retaining its speed. The handling is quick and direct without ever becoming skittish on poor surfaces, and while the ride is firm and taut, that’s part and parcel for this style of bike. The TCR’s mechanical Ultegra drivetrain is paired with the same groupset’s hydraulic brakes. Okay, Dura-Ace would trim a few grams but Ultegra matches Dura-Ace’s performance, and Giant really maxes the value by adding its own Power Pro crank-based power meter. This features dual-sided measurement that tracks pedal balance, force angle and cadence, and autocalibrating for temperature – and all with a claimed accuracy of +/- 2 per cent. Impressive.
Giant has also knocked it out of the park when it comes to the wheels. The new SLR-1s have a 42mm-deep aero-optimised rim built for tubeless tyres, its hookless shape making seating tyres a cinch and pushing the 25mm tyres to 27.3mm for extra plushness. Summing up the new TCR is easy – it’s simply the finest race-bred bike Giant has produced to date. And considering Giant’s track record, that’s quite an accolade.
THE VERDICT
Awesome – encompasses everything a fast bike should be