Win Every Ride – that’s the mentality that helps a company design a bike to be 27 seconds faster over a 40k distance than their previous frame, which is exactly what Scott has done with their completely redesigned Foil.

The 2016 Scott Foil

Compared to its predecessor, the new Foil saves an average of 6 Watts over the tested yaw spectrum. This equates to a gain of 27 seconds over 40 kilometers with an average speed of 45kph. Yet speed was not the only consideration. The new Foil increases bottom bracket stiffness by 13% and torsional head tube stiffness by 13.5%. Vertical compliance of the seat tube area was increased 86%. All of this in frame weighing just 945g (size medium). The fork weighs in at an additional 335g.

The blue line is the previous generation foil and the second line is the 2016 Foil

The new Foil is a complete redesign from the head tube going back. The head tube features a head-to-toe aero profile that terminates in a smooth transition to the fork.  In addition, the connections between down tube and head tube have been lowered. These changes in construction remove the gap behind the fork crown, which results in air stagnation and increased aerodynamic drag.

An interesting thing to note is that the front brake is still located in front of the fork. This is a bit of a different approach than we have seen with bikes like the BMC TMR01 and the new Specialized Venge ViAS.

The new Foil’s down tube diameter increases towards the bottom bracket. This positively affects the BB stiffness. And Scott claims that wind tunnel tests have shown that, compared to a straight down tube, these characteristics improve the aerodynamic performance. Finally, on the upside of the down tube is a single entry port for all cables.

The new Foil features a Shimano Direct Mount rear brake that is fitted below the bottom bracket. The lowered seat stays combined with the removal of the caliper brake bridge between them decreases the gap behind the seat tube and the seat stays. The new Foil’s fork blades and seat stays have also been optimized, resulting in an advantage at yaw angles between 3 and 5 degrees. A chain guard is also located above the bottom bracket.

Like the original, the new Foil features an integrated aerodynamic seat post with a setback of 5mm and 20mm. For those choosing to go with Shimano Di2, the battery can be mounted in the seat post.

One of the most noticeable changes is the new RR1.0 cockpit from Syncros, which will be available on the top two Foil builds. The new cockpit features an integrated stem and full integration of brake cables, mechanical and electronic shifting cables, and Shimano’s Di2 junction box to ensure a smooth transition between the cockpit and the frame and aerodynamic cable routing. The bar design even features a recess to ensure a smooth transition between the bar tape and the grippy top area of the bar where no bar tape is needed. The carbon cockpit weighs in at 395g (42cm bar width/110mm stem length).

The bar angle is predetermined due to the one-piece cockpit construction. Recognizing this, Scott conducted an in-depth analysis of handle bar positions to ensure a neutral position. Two different mount options allow Garmin head units to be perfectly positioned in front of the cockpit so the rider has his data easily visible at all times. Specific Aero Spacers have also been designed for the new Foil in order to achieve a smooth transition between the stem and the frame. The Aero Spacers are available in 2mm, 5mm, 10mm, and 20mm in order to fine tune the stack of the cockpit.

The Builds

At launch, the new Foil will be available in five specific builds. The lowest three builds get Scott’s HMF carbon and a Syncros RR2.0 cockpit, which features a separate handlebar from the integrated stem.

First up is the Foil 30 featuring a Shimano 105 5800 groupset and Shimano RS330 wheels. Next in line is the Foil 20 with Shimano Ultegra 6800 with Syncros RR2.0 wheels.

For those looking to go electronic, the Foil 10 ups the ante with Ultegra 6870 Di2 and Syncros RR2.0 wheels.

The top two builds get the Syncros RR1.0 cockpit (with the integrated stem) and use Scott’s top-of-the-line HMX carbon. The Foil Team Issue comes with Shimano Dura-Ace 900 and a Zipp 60 wheelset.

And finally the Foil Premium comes with Shimano Dura-Ace 9070 Di2 and Zipp 404s.

Unfortunately, as of publication, we did not yet have pricing information for any of the models.

Our Thoughts

The original Foil has long been a favorite of the AeroGeeks. Aero and well balanced, it offered a compelling ride and had the speed when you needed it. This new Foil takes everything we loved about the original and made it faster and stiffer, all without sacrificing the ride. Personally, the build we want to spend the most time with is the Team Issue. You get the fully integrated cockpit and Dura-Ace mechanical with a paint job we happen to love. The good news is that Scott will have Team Issue builds available for us to test later this year. Win Every Ride is starting to sound a lot less like a motto and more like a challenge. Game on!