Cycling Vanity - Choosing a New Bike On Looks Alone

malglass
malglass Posts: 19
edited September 2010 in Road beginners
Ok All

This is little different from the usual "what bike is best for £xxxx's.

What I am asking is in your opinion what is the best looking bike avaliable for under £2k??

I am stepping up from a Specialised Hybrid and I love the fact that people that I cycle past make very nice comments about it.

So Now its time to look at a road bike and I want to have the same response, in fact if Im throwing that much cash about I want slightly more than admiring glances and polite comments, I want half naked women chasing me down the street!!

I have looked so far at Felt (quite nice but limited range in local stores), Specialised (did not like the top bar), Giant (reallly good reviews but a bit of brand snobbery coming in), Wilier (even the alu bike look great, just waiting for the carbon ones to come into stock) and finally the CUBE Agree GTC Pro( I rode the bike on Saturday, it was one of the guys in the LBS's bike and he had pimped it with upgraded wheels and SRAM Red, hope thats right, went out for 10 mins and when I came back a little sex wee had came out!!)

So thats me so far, any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

Looking for a carbon bike as in my very shallow opinion they not only look cooler but its also better to say you have a carbon framed bike.

Cheers
«1

Comments

  • Kuota Kharma is a very nice looking bike, but I am biased towards that brand.
    Tail end Charlie

    The above post may contain traces of sarcasm or/and bullsh*t.
  • Lol, you seem pretty vein..... however I would be lying if I said looks don't count for anything when buying a new bike 8)

    This bike is the sexiest bike ever*

    http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Giant ... 360054093/

    I would absolutely love that bike.........one day....... hopefully........ :D



    *In my opinion
  • malglass
    you can get a Felt AR4 for under £2000 now - nothing comes close on looks
  • JackPozzi
    JackPozzi Posts: 1,191
    For 2K you can pick up a lot of very nice bikes which will all ride very nicely as well. So best advice is have a look around and see what stands out to you.

    Personally though I'd be looking at the pinarello fp2...
  • Dave-M
    Dave-M Posts: 206
    That Felt AR4 is good value at 1750 from Merlin!
    2010 Specialized Allez Elite
    2009 Specialized Rockhopper
    2009 Quintana Roo Seduza
  • Some £80 full suspension bikes look well smart ;-)
    Say... That's a nice bike..
    Trax T700 with Lew Racing Pro VT-1 ;-)
  • kingrollo
    kingrollo Posts: 3,198
    Kuota Kharma is a very nice looking bike, but I am biased towards that brand.

    +1 - But I am biased to !

    But seriously how the bike looks is a big deal for me to

    You can a Pinarello for under £2k - always nice looking bikes - and great to ride.

    Wilier Izoard - what I wanted - but couldn't justify the extra over the Kuota

    Orbea Orca - stunner - but be over budget now
  • pbt150
    pbt150 Posts: 316
    If it's looks you're after, how about a more 'old-fashioned' approach, and go for a high quality steel bike? IMO they look much classier, and would be on my bike cool wall ahead of most of today's carbon fibre offerings, which all look the same with a different paintjob.
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    The Cannondale Six 105. The Matte black paint looks amazing!

    http://www.evanscycles.com/products/can ... e-ec020261
  • mr_goo
    mr_goo Posts: 3,770
    For £1650 I think this Kuota Kebel is pretty stunning.

    http://www.primera-sports.com/Template.aspx?prodID=8235
    Always be yourself, unless you can be Aaron Rodgers....Then always be Aaron Rodgers.
  • Best looking bike I've seen under 2k?

    Enigma Elite

    http://www.enigmabikes.com/elite.html
    Expertly coached by http://www.vitessecyclecoaching.co.uk/

    http://vineristi.wordpress.com - the blog for Viner owners and lovers!
  • Philby
    Philby Posts: 328
    Bianchi Infinito or Orbea Onix would be on my list
  • most non cyclists dont know one from another , unless its trek because of the lance connection . but for me for £ 2000 would get a planet x nanolight fully blinged up .
  • giant_man
    giant_man Posts: 6,878
    malglass wrote:
    Ok All

    This is little different from the usual "what bike is best for £xxxx's.

    What I am asking is in your opinion what is the best looking bike avaliable for under £2k??

    I am stepping up from a Specialised Hybrid and I love the fact that people that I cycle past make very nice comments about it.

    So Now its time to look at a road bike and I want to have the same response, in fact if Im throwing that much cash about I want slightly more than admiring glances and polite comments, I want half naked women chasing me down the street!!

    I have looked so far at Felt (quite nice but limited range in local stores), Specialised (did not like the top bar), Giant (reallly good reviews but a bit of brand snobbery coming in), Wilier (even the alu bike look great, just waiting for the carbon ones to come into stock) and finally the CUBE Agree GTC Pro( I rode the bike on Saturday, it was one of the guys in the LBS's bike and he had pimped it with upgraded wheels and SRAM Red, hope thats right, went out for 10 mins and when I came back a little sex wee had came out!!)

    So thats me so far, any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

    Looking for a carbon bike as in my very shallow opinion they not only look cooler but its also better to say you have a carbon framed bike.

    Cheers
    If you do choose a bike solely on looks, then you're a fool imo. You may hate the way it rides when you buy it. The bike that feels the best and FITS you best is the one for you.
  • Phate
    Phate Posts: 121
    For 2k I'd be tempted to go for something like the new Ribble Sportive with SRAM red and a nice set of wheels!

    To be honest I'm just a sucker for bikes with black/red/white paintjobs!
    exercise.png
  • Gazzaputt
    Gazzaputt Posts: 3,227
    Have a look at the Canyons in matt black or team colours.
  • malglass wrote:
    Ok All

    This is little different from the usual "what bike is best for £xxxx's.

    What I am asking is in your opinion what is the best looking bike avaliable for under £2k??

    I am stepping up from a Specialised Hybrid and I love the fact that people that I cycle past make very nice comments about it.

    So Now its time to look at a road bike and I want to have the same response, in fact if Im throwing that much cash about I want slightly more than admiring glances and polite comments, I want half naked women chasing me down the street!!

    I have looked so far at Felt (quite nice but limited range in local stores), Specialised (did not like the top bar), Giant (reallly good reviews but a bit of brand snobbery coming in), Wilier (even the alu bike look great, just waiting for the carbon ones to come into stock) and finally the CUBE Agree GTC Pro( I rode the bike on Saturday, it was one of the guys in the LBS's bike and he had pimped it with upgraded wheels and SRAM Red, hope thats right, went out for 10 mins and when I came back a little sex wee had came out!!)

    So thats me so far, any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

    Looking for a carbon bike as in my very shallow opinion they not only look cooler but its also better to say you have a carbon framed bike.

    Cheers
    If you do choose a bike solely on looks, then you're a fool imo. You may hate the way it rides when you buy it. The bike that feels the best and FITS you best is the one for you.

    Yes you're right but the OP asked what was the 'best looking' bike for £2k - not the best.
    Expertly coached by http://www.vitessecyclecoaching.co.uk/

    http://vineristi.wordpress.com - the blog for Viner owners and lovers!
  • giant_man
    giant_man Posts: 6,878
    malglass wrote:
    Ok All

    This is little different from the usual "what bike is best for £xxxx's.

    What I am asking is in your opinion what is the best looking bike avaliable for under £2k??

    I am stepping up from a Specialised Hybrid and I love the fact that people that I cycle past make very nice comments about it.

    So Now its time to look at a road bike and I want to have the same response, in fact if Im throwing that much cash about I want slightly more than admiring glances and polite comments, I want half naked women chasing me down the street!!

    I have looked so far at Felt (quite nice but limited range in local stores), Specialised (did not like the top bar), Giant (reallly good reviews but a bit of brand snobbery coming in), Wilier (even the alu bike look great, just waiting for the carbon ones to come into stock) and finally the CUBE Agree GTC Pro( I rode the bike on Saturday, it was one of the guys in the LBS's bike and he had pimped it with upgraded wheels and SRAM Red, hope thats right, went out for 10 mins and when I came back a little sex wee had came out!!)

    So thats me so far, any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

    Looking for a carbon bike as in my very shallow opinion they not only look cooler but its also better to say you have a carbon framed bike.

    Cheers
    If you do choose a bike solely on looks, then you're a fool imo. You may hate the way it rides when you buy it. The bike that feels the best and FITS you best is the one for you.

    Yes you're right but the OP asked what was the 'best looking' bike for £2k - not the best.
    He also said 'choosing a bike on looks alone' .....
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 40,209
    I'd hope to find a Pinarello FP3 second hand. I almost bid on one last year on ebay and think the Pinarellos are the best looking bikes out there, the colour scheme on this one was superb too (pink, white and black from memory). But as with all things beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I also like the Williers and Orbeas - pictures don't do them justice. At the other end of the scale I would have the more compact frames such as Planet X as I find the proportions a bit ugly but before I get lynched by Planet X fanboys again it's just an opinion and I would certainly consider one on a value for money basis. Boardman carbon frames with the bare carbon also look surprisingly good in the flesh especially with SRAM Red.
  • Some really helpful replies here thanks.

    Glad to see most people have taken the topic as it was intended.

    I am fully aware that how the bike rides is of paramount importance, however I am not spending all that money on something I dont like the look of.

    I do like the look of the Ribble bikes however being up in Scotland there is no way to see one.

    Finding it quite difficult to find a shop that carries some of the more unusual/rare brands up this way, so again any pointers would be appreciated.
  • I currently rather like the look of Cinelli bikes.

    I don't own one / never ridden one and currently have no intention of getting one.... but i think they look cool.

    good brochure as well....

    http://www.cinelli.it/home.php
  • Nothing wrong with pre-loved, just meens less pain when you scratch it for the 1st time :wink:



    http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Orbea-Orca-Carbon ... 19bfc0a561

    Obviously it would need to fit...
  • Dave-M
    Dave-M Posts: 206
    Whoever posted the link to the AR4, needs shooting. Can't stop looking at it!

    :x
    2010 Specialized Allez Elite
    2009 Specialized Rockhopper
    2009 Quintana Roo Seduza
  • Nothing wrong with pre-loved, just meens less pain when you scratch it for the 1st time :wink:



    http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Orbea-Orca-Carbon ... 19bfc0a561

    Obviously it would need to fit...

    Now that is one seriously good looking bike, the angles on it are very similar to the Bangle designed BMW's.

    Mmm food for thought.

    Thanks for the link really appreciated
  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 40,209
    Nothing wrong with pre-loved, just meens less pain when you scratch it for the 1st time :wink:



    http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Orbea-Orca-Carbon ... 19bfc0a561

    Obviously it would need to fit...

    If I had £2k at present that would now be winging its way to my shed, looks a great buy to me (and it would be the ideal frame size for me).
  • I'm currently dreaming about a Wilier Izoard but keep getting interrupted by the Argon 18 Krypton!

    No idea which I like better now.

    And then there's the Cube Agree GTC, which pops round every now and again.

    Too much shiny!
  • nochekmate
    nochekmate Posts: 3,460
    Pross wrote:
    Nothing wrong with pre-loved, just meens less pain when you scratch it for the 1st time :wink:



    http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Orbea-Orca-Carbon ... 19bfc0a561

    Obviously it would need to fit...

    If I had £2k at present that would now be winging its way to my shed, looks a great buy to me (and it would be the ideal frame size for me).

    Noticed that somebody has posted the Orbea Orca that I am selling on eBay on this thread! You may not need £2K if we can cut eBay out of the equation! Beautiful bike with quality spec. Viewings welcome. PM me if interested
  • Two or three bikes:

    Either the Felt AR4 or the Felt F3

    Or the Ribble Scuro.

    Anything with an integrated seatpost really
  • lucan
    lucan Posts: 339
    Kuota Kebel in red/white/black

    It rides well, too :P
    Summer: Kuota Kebel
    Winter: GT Series3