Last week we presented to you the Giant Propel (here) and while we liked what we saw we didn’t exactly love the price.  Well today Giant released more details about the bike, specifically the data, and all of a sudden the price seems just a bit more reasonable. ( You can read the full details in Giant’s Propel white paper here).

One note to consider, all of this data does come from Giant and as far as we can tell has not been independently verified.  We look forward to seeing independent verification of this data in the future.

Aerodynamics

The most important aspect of an aero road bike is of course going to be the aerodynamics of the bike.  The test data below demonstrates that this is in fact more than just an all around good bike (as we previously asserted), instead it appears this bike may be a best of breed aero design.  Giant asserts that over a 40km distance (at 40 kph) the Propel will save 36 seconds compared to a Scott Foil (one of our favorite frames).

Weight

When talking to most triathletes, weight is not a primary consideration in buying their their bikes.  But anyone who has done a serious climb or two recognizes the benefit of a light weight frame.  In our first post we alluded to the lightness of this frame, but Giant’s data shows just how light this bike really is.  The frame is 546 grams (1.2 pounds!!!) lighter than a Cervelo S5.  (Almost the weight of a full water bottle).

Stiffness

We like when a company is willing to show that it is not the best at everything and Giant does admit this with the Propel.  But while it may not be the stiffest bike out there it is worth nothing that the numbers for the Propel are extremely similar to the Specialized S-Works Venge (a bike that Mark Cavendish won a few stages of the tour with).

Overall

Last week we liked the bike, but now that we have seen the data our feelings have changed in a very positive way.  While we still find a $7,000 bike a tough pill to swallow, based on this data you would be getting a truly world class bike.  And while in our first post we mentioned the lowest model was a Red equipped version, the UK version of Giants site is now showing an Ultegra version (here) that should be quite a bit cheaper if it makes it across the pond.  Either way we are now extremely excited about the Propel and look forward to our first opportunity to get our hands on one.