Is it "Stupid" to buy a lower spec bike because of color?
 

hello all,
I like the fit of Domane AL series, and I am tore between AL4 with Tiagra in the viper red I want, or the AL5 with 105, but I am not feeling the black and green color available for the AL5.

Is it dumb to buy a bike based on color? or I shouldn't worry too much about color and just get the bike with the best group set I can afford?

I don't think it's dumb to pick a bike on colour, but it wouldn't be my primary consideration. What I wouldn't do is live with a colour that I hated.

Yes, it's dumb to buy a lower spec bike because of the color. But, it's a sign of intelligence and sound judgement to buy a higher spec bike because of the color.

Lol. I might be a genius then.

I once went up a level specifically for "cool sparse spoke pattern."

It was a Cannondale R900 from the early 2000's. The model below came in the same candy apple red color, but didn't have what I thought was a cool spoke pattern at the time. Never broke a spoke despite being over 200 lbs the entire 10 years it was my primary ride.

I think I paid an extra $400 at the time to move up to it. Never regretted it. Loved the bike. I think loving what you ride is important, and color, look, are fine reasons to spend a little more to get what you really want.


https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...9e47f57e9b.png

Truth.

Many years ago, when buying my first "good" bike as an adult, I had it narrowed down to two similarly-spec'd bikes: one had a gray aluminum frame, and the other had a beautiful fire engine red steel frame. The gray bike was within my price range and looked boring, while the red one was more expensive but attractive. I chose the red one, and never regretted it. As an added bonus, I later learned a bit more about frame materials and realized that my frame was made of Reynolds 853 steel, which is great stuff.

When buying a bike, I always err on the side of spending more money rather than cheaping out.

haha, I wish that's my situation, where the AL5 is in the color I want with 105 as well.....

If you really love the red, go for it. Tiagra is still pretty decent. Parts can always be upgraded later.

MaxKatt Koyote strangely, the bikes I am looking at, it's all the lower spec having the color I want. It'll be a easy choice of spending $2k with 105 and the color I want, vs $1700 with Tiagra and color I don't want. why TREK...WHYYYYY.......

Is it dumb? Maybe. Should that worry you? No.

You want a bike in your garage that makes you go "phwooaar I wanna ride that today!" every time you look at it. If the other colour doesn't do that for you, then go for the one you like the most!

You can always upgrade parts later if you really want.

The obvious answer is to custom build a bike with your favorite color frame and whatever level components you want... which of course should be Record/Red/Dura Ace.

Seriously though, as long as the lower spec is still "good enough" for you, I don't see the problem. Just make sure to buy a kit and helmet to match.

Buy the AL5. My daughter has it, so I have worked on it and taken it for short rides. It is a much better value than the AL4/Tiagra. (She had a different variant of the same problem -- in her case the color she wanted was too big, which is much more compelling).

If you can be completely happy with Tiagra, get the AL4. If you ever envision upgrading (105 is significantly better), get the AL5 now and a can of spray paint (if you must).

We pimped her bike out with accessories that were colored, which made the pain and trauma easier to cope with.

Since you are buying the bike for your job, only the best possible components will do.


Oh, wait. You don't need a bike, and it is something you're buying for your hobby of bike riding? Maybe a bike you like the look of will be okay...

Weird. In the UK you can only get the AL4 in white and the AL5 in matt black

The AL2 in “Crimson to Dark Carmine Fade” looks amazing though. But sadly only Claris.
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...6b39ec7e6.jpeg



I have bought bikes in a spec I want but colour I don’t before. They are never truly loved. I think I’d get the AL4 in your case. Modern Tiagra is decent.

Can you buy the red bike and pay extra to have some components upgraded? Does Trek sell bare frames, or do you have to buy the whole bike?

Tiagra isn't a bad shifting group set. If you are comparing to 11 speed 105, then you won't really miss that extra gear between the high and low sprockets on the rear. So if you want the color, go for it. Save that money for your next bike so you can get up into the Ultegra stuff that will give you a lighter bike than 105 ever will. Don't get me wrong, 105 is a great group. I ran 11 speed 105 for quite a few years. But between it and Tiagra, it's only that one extra sprocket. Unless you are talking 105 Di2. That's a different consideration.

I think this would be just fine

Trek Domane Crimson Red

I'd say it's stupid to buy a bike you don't like, period. You will not like riding if you don't like the thing that's under you.

Not dumb at all. Get the color you want. Maybe ask the dealer to mashup the color that you want with the gruppo that you want.

as long as it has disc & some critical components in carbon fiber where steel once was 'used' , it dontz mattauh.

:D

Buy the right color & upgrade the group set ( & wheel set) before you leave the store with the N+1... Caution! The combo of purchases may result in melted credit card. Warning! Credit card may be too hot to touch!

if the preferred color motivates you to ride it more, than nope, do it. I would. Color is important to some.

This

Ok, so the difference in these bikes are...
AL5- 105 drivetrain, Bontrager centerlock hub, Bontrager Elite IsoZone bar.
AL5- Tiagra drivetrain, Formula 6bolt hub, Bontrager Comp bar.

Everything else is identical.

For $300 more, I would absolutely buy the 105 bike if these were my final two bikes to consider.
Or...I would buy the Tiagra bike, buy a 105 full drivetrain for $550 from a trusted source, and then quickly sell the unused Tiagra drivetrain for $250 on ebay. Same net cost in the end then. The differences at that point are hubs that are likely equal in quality(though centerlock is simple more convenient the 2x/year you even touch rotors) and handlebars which are of no different quality and you would probably want the bars on the Tiagra bike anyways(it has 20mm less drop).
If you cant swap the components that would be a cost to consider. Even if it costs $150 or 200 to swap, you now have the color bike you want and the lighter/nicer drivetrain.

You might not care that much about the color after a while.

Switching from red to grey is one thing. Pink and purple with sparkles is a different level.

Bought a 70s sports car in the early 80s which was affordable but was in a color I didn’t like because it was affordable - no doubt because of the color - sephia brown. The car was fine but the color constantly put me off when not driving it. As a result, I ended up unloading it two years later. Get the color you want and upgrade the components as expenses allow.