# why are roubaix s-works so expensive??



## carrock (Aug 10, 2009)

Quite fancy a Specialized Roubaix S works but at £5499 they're overpriced IMHO 

However, I can buy piecemeal as follows 

Frame £1800 
DuraAce Group £1000 from Merlin Cycles
Roval Wheels £500 from specialized or RS80 Carbon wheels from Merlin 

Plus another £300 or so for finishing kit, handlebar, seat, tyres, tubes, cables etc. 

Have I missed something, or is there a £2k saving to be had?? 

I still get a lifetime warranty on the frame from specialized, but the respective manufacturers warranty on the other bits.


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## ukbloke (Sep 1, 2007)

I think you are right. For the last 3 years (as long as I've been following it) the Specialized bikes are reasonable value up to the Expert level. At Pro level and above and definitely at the S-Works level, you can save significant money by ordering "a la carte" from respected internet sources and building it up yourself or at a shop. The other advantage is that you get exactly what you want, including the wheels of your choice.

Of course, there will always be the guy that works into the Specialized Concept store and buys the most expensive bike on the floor, and Specialized are happy to take that money. The volume is also massively skewed towards the low end bikes, so they need more profit margin on the high-end bikes. And they probably get discounted very heavily as the year goes by. I wonder if the top-of-the-line Di2 Tarmac and Roubaix will break into 5 figures MSRP this year? Maybe, given how quickly Specialized sold out of 2010s.


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## carrock (Aug 10, 2009)

*s-works*

Thing is, specialized RRP on the 2010 sworks frames is only £1800, and you get a lifetime warranty

So where is the other £3700 worth to get to RRP of £5499 for the complete bike- groupset and wheels £1500, finishing kit £400 to be generous, but still thats only £3700 for frame, grouppo, wheels and kit??

I'm astonished.


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## ukbloke (Sep 1, 2007)

Are those reasonable estimates of the RRP for the group-set and for the wheelset? The Shimano list prices for DuraAce 7900 are outrageous and the introductory prices did closely follow list price when availability was scarce. Specialized would have set these 2010 prices more than a year ago. 7900 has become less outrageous in more recent months from on-line sources, but the list price continues to be sky high. Similarly DuraAce tubeless wheels, as speced on that bike, have a street price that has recently come down quite a bit from the original pricing.

But I'm not arguing with you - that list price is unrealistically high. Either you go in and hardball on the negotiation based on this, or you build your own. Since the 2011 bikes are coming out now and the S-Works Roubaix frame got upgraded for 2011, you might be able to strike a deal either on a bike or on the frame-set.


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## carrock (Aug 10, 2009)

*sworks*

well I just looked on the Merlin cycles website

Dura Ace 7900 groupset=£1099 ( RRP £1700)
Dura Ace 7800 =£646 (RRP £1000)
Shimano RS80 wheels =£314 (RRP £449 )
DuraAce 6790 wheels =£425 (RRP £679)

So going for 7800 group and the RS80 wheels would be £960 for the group/wheels, £1800 for the frame and £300 for the finishing kit= just over £3000

Bargain!!


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## ukbloke (Sep 1, 2007)

I'd be a little surprised if anyone has a full DA 7800 group-set left to sell - they were getting hard to find when I built up my bike in late 2008. Actually your build reminds me of the approach that I took. You might want to take a look at the Dura Ace 7850-SL tubeless wheels, or the C24 variants.


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## Sworker (Jul 22, 2010)

The prices in the US tumble quickly on S-Works at many dealers (that I will not name specifically as they don't want to be named). My friend picked up a 2009 Roub S-Works for $5,500 US and a 2009 SL2 Tarmac for $4600. Wait for the bike to be one year old and your good to go. I got a 2007 S-Works Roub with Campy Record and Roval carbon rims for $4600 in 2008


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## borregokid (Jun 9, 2005)

*New-No Warranty*

I bought a brand new 2008 S-Works Roubaix in January for $2650. The steerer had never been cut and the chain never greased. It was from Ebay and of course did not have a warranty but the price was attractive.


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## 20854 (Mar 12, 2011)

I bought a 2010 Roubaix S-Works in the fall of 2010 for $5400. Fabulous bike! Great climber and descender. Terrific Dura Ace tubeless wheels.


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## Pharmerbob (Jun 27, 2011)

20854 said:


> I bought a 2010 Roubaix S-Works in the fall of 2010 for $5400. Fabulous bike! Great climber and descender. Terrific Dura Ace tubeless wheels.


Just Bought a 2012 S-Works Tarmac SL-4 with SRAM Red for a similar price (actually a little less). I know several people with S-Works bikes and all paid in the 5K range. 

Develop a relationship with your LBS!


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## Sworker (Jul 22, 2010)

$2650 you got a hell of a deal on that bike. I think the right price is around 5k. Almost all the time you are going to get a better deal with a complete bike versus ala carte. Plus the warranty on the ala carte bike from all internet is a pain.

My take, wait for it to hit one year old and buy.


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## dkilburn (Aug 1, 2009)

*Leftover*

Hey, I did the Leftover 2011 S-Works Roubaix from the local LBS. They have the deposit.

I'm sure I will tell the difference form a 2007 Roubaix Expert to the 2011 S-Works Roubaix.


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## Sworker (Jul 22, 2010)

Sweet, for sure you will be able to tell the difference just on the rims and component groups. The 2011 was a great year, I was not as impressed with the progress they made for 2012. Which components did you buy? How much>


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## dkilburn (Aug 1, 2009)

Hi, 
It's a full Dura ace, with S-Works cranks. It's black with the white S-Works. It was in the window from late winter I think. Just go to Specialized and look for 2011 bikes, you should find it.


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## Sworker (Jul 22, 2010)

How much?


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