Road Cycling - Bikes, Bikes ,Bikes, but...........$ make a sudden impact!

Road bikes are numerous and many carry logos of things that are actually manufactured somewhere in asia.
I would like to know what is the most expensive bike (ROAD preferably) in the world today?

Everybody tries to outmatch each other due to cost and how much theyve spent. So now I would like to get the "lowdown" on the most expensive roadie. Money seems to shock and awe so I want to shock myself! Anyone knowledgeable on the ultimate?

Last month's VeloNews (I think) was a buyer's guide to bikes and listed a few bikes at and above US$10,000.
Here's one of the very high end road bikes.

http://www.bmc-racing.com/images/bikes/RO04TMR1_g.jpg

I saw the Pinarello Ego going for something like $12,000- 15,000 , depending on the exchange rate for the dollar, I believe. :eek:

Koff

I could build up a Serotta Ottrott for about $11k with full campy record carbon
gruppo. Some zipp special wheels (Z3's) or other custom wheels could push
the price up considerably.

Marty

The most expensive bike I've found is the one "I gotta have" that just happens to be beyond the range of what I'm willing to pay for it.

55/Rad

how the hell can a bike cost 10 grand?

The bmc is really >$10k? For some reason I wouldnt have thought that much for it. Many people will be able to build a custom bike spec'ed out with the lightest newest carbon or titanium parts that will jack up the price. I would think the pinarello ego would be the most expensive production bike, even if it is limited quantities.

the bmc is about 5k, give or take. certainly nowhere near 10.

The De Rosa Cinquanta is about $11,000, Pinarello Dogma Ego is about $16,000 (about a $10k paint job as the "regular" dogma is only about $6k). And Trek even has their $7k Lance Madone I think. I wonder what the Lightbike cost (the 9lb one).

how the hell can a bike cost 10 grand?

I'm still wondering about that myself, probably a supply/demand/R&D thing.

I read somewhere given the service, support and R&D that went into the McLaren F1, the $1,200,000 price tag doesn't even break even for them.

Before my aunt passed away, she had to get a custom heart valve made, it cost over $60,000 for the unit alone. It *looked* like some piece of plastic and metal that I could have made in my basement with a dremel tool but the fact that a small group of dedicated people spent a week on that 1 unit using advanced polymers and composites with extremely tight tolerances and advanced equipment to make sure every molecule is where it should be certainly drives the price up.

Sennheiser used to sell a pair of headphones that cost $18,000.

I can come close-- no one's remembered the famous Beryllium bike. Just remember not to file the metal and inhale it... The following is a quote from:

http://www.infomanage.com/mic_conversion/success/bikes.html

A beryllium bell won't ring

There were already 50 other companies using that metal, Hinshaw said, so he began researching something new. In aerospace journals, he found references to beryllium, the fourth element in the periodic table. The metal is light but so dense that a bell made of it won't ring. He found there were only two main sources for the metal. One was an American company called Brush Wellman, based in Cleveland, which had also thought about bicycles. Its experimental pure beryllium bike had a market price of $25,000 and was stolen from a warehouse.

Then Hinshaw found a Russian plant working with a beryllium-aluminum mix. He joined a Brush Wellman engineer from Saratoga, Larry Grant, who was looking for commercial uses for the mysterious metal he'd grown to love. They approached the Russian factory, which they said was two decades ahead in its experience work ing with beryllium, and where the operators were anxious for work. Today, the company makes bicycle frames out of recycled weapons and newly processed beryllium. [B]

I can come close-- no one's remembered the famous Beryllium bike. Just remember not to file the metal and inhale it... The following is a quote from:

http://www.infomanage.com/mic_conversion/success/bikes.html

A beryllium bell won't ring

There were already 50 other companies using that metal, Hinshaw said, so he began researching something new. In aerospace journals, he found references to beryllium, the fourth element in the periodic table. The metal is light but so dense that a bell made of it won't ring. He found there were only two main sources for the metal. One was an American company called Brush Wellman, based in Cleveland, which had also thought about bicycles. Its experimental pure beryllium bike had a market price of $25,000 and was stolen from a warehouse.

Then Hinshaw found a Russian plant working with a beryllium-aluminum mix. He joined a Brush Wellman engineer from Saratoga, Larry Grant, who was looking for commercial uses for the mysterious metal he'd grown to love. They approached the Russian factory, which they said was two decades ahead in its experience work ing with beryllium, and where the operators were anxious for work. Today, the company makes bicycle frames out of recycled weapons and newly processed beryllium. [B]

I was gonna order one, but they didn't have the shade of blue I wanted....darn





psych...(really just kidding...)

Colnago made a special handmade bike for the King of Spain this last year and it was entirely plated with gold! I guess the King of Spain is not one of those weight weenies. Colnago would not give a price, but was estimated at over $80,000.

LOL at first I thought you said entirely made OF gold. I was like, wow, definitely not a weight weenie there!

I say what? $80000.00 for a bike! Gee they sure do eat there "weeties" in Spain. He must be some serious cycle champ or hes had it framed and hung in his show and tell room!


not only $80000 for a bike...but $80000 for a bike that probibly wont be ridden. Where do you store an $80000 bike? not in your garage. trying locking that to a lamp post and see if its there when you get back :D