Wilier Izoard XP 2013

RichardKingston
RichardKingston Posts: 60
edited March 2013 in Road buying advice
Hi guys,

After months of looking at bikes in the competitive £2,000 price range I am 99% sure this is the bike that I want to buy, took it out for a test ride this morning and its light, stiff, fast and looks sweet as well. Got a comment about the looks from another cyclist at the lights when I was test riding it and I was only out for 45 minutes!

There is one question though, Campag or Shimano? The one I rode was a Campag Centaur and I've I've never ridden Campag before, the changing felt a little bit more clunky and mechanical than the Shimano, I understand that this is a trait of the Campags? I'm not questioning the quality, I wasn't dissapointed (although the finger shifter felt really odd to me) I just don't know if I would be better off with the Ultegra? I understand the Centaur sits somewhere in between 105 and Ultegra and the price difference is £100, in the long run I guess it would be worth it? I'm aware there are some people feel that Campag should go with the Italian bikes and that is sitting in the back of my mind as well!

tl;dr - Buying Wilier Izoard XP 2013 - Campag Centaur or Shimano Ultegra for £100 more?

Comments

  • keef66
    keef66 Posts: 13,123
    I'd choose the Centaur on the basis of looks alone. And I ride Shimano.
  • thegreatdivide
    thegreatdivide Posts: 5,803
    Centaur all the way :-)
  • RichardKingston
    RichardKingston Posts: 60
    thegreatdivide wrote:
    Centaur all the way :-)

    Care to elaborate? :lol:
  • keef66
    keef66 Posts: 13,123
    I just think the Campag chainset looks a lot nicer than the Shimano that's all. Especially so on a frame like the Izoard.
  • chrisvanderkaap
    chrisvanderkaap Posts: 323
    Centaur is one of those gruppos that will never grow old.
    Excellent ergonomics, crisp and intuitive shifting, firm brake feel components and derived of great materials.
    Don't get me wrong, Shimano's 105 and Ultegra both are great and reliable group sets but Campy's aluminum road gruppos are just the stuff of legends and is the only thing that'll justify the Italian thoroughbred Izoard you are obviously buying with your heart.
  • thegreatdivide
    thegreatdivide Posts: 5,803
    RichardKingston wrote:
    thegreatdivide wrote:
    Centaur all the way :-)

    Care to elaborate? :lol:

    I have an Izoard XP with Centaur (and a bit of Veloce) and it works very well indeed – it looks good too. Then again I've also got bikes with straight Veloce, Athena and Super Record...I like Campagnolo ;-)
  • RichardKingston
    RichardKingston Posts: 60
    keef66 wrote:
    I just think the Campag chainset looks a lot nicer than the Shimano that's all. Especially so on a frame like the Izoard.

    Do you buy into this whole Campag because its an Italian bike thing? I've seen some discussions around to that effect!

    I took some pics on my phone (not great though)

    IMAG0657_zpsd49f8f02.jpg

    IMAG0659_zpsd6a5a410.jpg
  • keef66
    keef66 Posts: 13,123
    What is that chainset??
  • thegreatdivide
    thegreatdivide Posts: 5,803
    You see - that looks great! However the chain set isn’t Centaur, it’s part of Wilier's continued collaboration with FSA (plus stem/bars/post). Nowt wrong with it though.

    FSA do Wilier editions of their Energy, SL-K and K-Force chain sets and brakes.
  • keef66
    keef66 Posts: 13,123
    I'd want Centaur for the chainset; that FSA looks no better than the Shimano stuff.

    It's not about nationality for me, it's about the looks.
  • RichardKingston
    RichardKingston Posts: 60
    Yeah, lots of FSA on what I rode. Only some parts swapping between Campag and Shimano, not all. Sorry, I'm not great at specific specifications. Would that change anyone's mind?

    Comparison from the website -

    compare_zps71a21795.jpg
  • thegreatdivide
    thegreatdivide Posts: 5,803
    You get all the FSA/Wilier stuff on the Campagnolo bike but not on the Shimano bike. Same chain set on both.

    So it's down to the shifting and look. FWIW the red edition of Centaur looks very nice.
  • lostboysaint
    lostboysaint Posts: 4,250
    I have an 11 model Izoard with Centaur and it just gets better with miles.

    Interesting that they're now on FSA kit, probably because of the ATB tie-up. Mine's all carbon Ritchey.

    Oh, and ditch the shite tyres!
    Trail fun - Transition Bandit
    Road - Wilier Izoard Centaur/Cube Agree C62 Disc
    Allround - Cotic Solaris
  • RichardKingston
    RichardKingston Posts: 60
    Ultegra here -

    http://www.wilierbikes.co.uk/2013/shopi ... %20web.jpg
  • RichardKingston
    RichardKingston Posts: 60
    lostboysaint wrote:
    I have an 11 model Izoard with Centaur and it just gets better with miles.

    Interesting that they're now on FSA kit, probably because of the ATB tie-up. Mine's all carbon Ritchey.

    Oh, and ditch the shite tyres!

    I already picked up on the tyres, I wasn't impressed with those! The LBS is giving me 25% off extras so the Contis are going on before I even get it!
  • lostboysaint
    lostboysaint Posts: 4,250
    Yep, run 25mm GP4s mine and they're fantastic.
    Trail fun - Transition Bandit
    Road - Wilier Izoard Centaur/Cube Agree C62 Disc
    Allround - Cotic Solaris
  • RichardKingston
    RichardKingston Posts: 60
    Okay, looks pretty unanimous on the Centaur! With a new pair of Conti GP4000s to replace the poor tyres, black Specialized Comp Road shoes to replace my mangled white ones and a pair of Black Look Keo Classics I've been given a price of £2099 (£1899 bike + £200 for the extras (25% off extras). I've got the weekend to think about it!
  • thegreatdivide
    thegreatdivide Posts: 5,803
    Sounds like a good deal tbh. Happy thinking!
  • RichardKingston
    RichardKingston Posts: 60
    thegreatdivide wrote:
    Sounds like a good deal tbh. Happy thinking!

    Oh we both know what I'll be doing :lol:

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