For anyone familiar with Shimano's model policy, this news comes as no surprise. One year after the top-of-the-range Dura-Ace groupset, the Japanese component giant has now completely overhauled the number two among its road bike groupsets. Technically and visually, the new Ultegra R8000 is strongly orientated towards the Dura-Ace R9100. However, other materials and production technologies ensure that the Ultegra is significantly cheaper than the Dura-Ace and therefore remains affordable for a broad range of buyers.
Experience shows that it will be a while before Shimano delivers the first test groupsets of the Ultegra R8000. Nevertheless, we were able to get a first impression of the groupset before the official presentation. During a visit to the Italian road bike manufacturer Pinarello at the end of May, we were able to test the Gan RS model with the fully mechanical Ultegra R8000. We noticed this during a test ride in the hills north of Treviso:
The shift/brake levers have only been moderately revised. The inner shift levers are slightly larger than before and can be reached perfectly from all grip positions. As with the Dura-Ace, the rubber grips have a texture on the surface and are extremely comfortable to grip, even without gloves. As before, the distance between the brake levers and the handlebars is infinitely adjustable.
At least with the new cables, the operating forces when shifting are so astonishingly low that it almost makes sense to consider the expensive electric Di2 shifting system. However, our initial suspicion that Shimano had also introduced new shift cables with the new Ultegra was not confirmed. The polymer-coated cables used on the Gan RS with the type designation OT-RS900 are the same as those used on the Dura-Ace groupset. The fact that the operating forces nevertheless appear subjectively significantly lower than with the old Ultegra could also be due to the more direct cable routing of the rear derailleur, which replaces the previously common 180-degree bend of the outer cable.
Ultegra is not a whit behind the Dura-Ace
While endeavouring to ensure smooth operation, the developers made sure that clear feedback can be felt when the gears engage. The new Ultegra masters this balancing act perfectly and is therefore not a whit behind the Dura-Ace.
Formally, the rear derailleur follows the Shadow design familiar from the mountain bike groupsets and the Dura-Ace R9100. The rear derailleur suspension now sits in the slipstream of the parallelogram. This means that the chain changer protrudes less outwards and is better protected against damage. The rear derailleur is available in two versions: As an SS version with a short cage for cassettes from 11-25 to 11-30 teeth and as a GS version with a medium-length cage for 11-28 to 11-34 teeth. The long version of the old Ultegra rear derailleur could only handle sprockets with up to 32 teeth, while the current Dura-Ace rear derailleur, which is only available with a short cage, officially stops at 30 teeth. The guide rollers rotate around sealed deep groove ball bearings.
The front derailleur adopts the compact design familiar from the Dura-Ace. The modified cable routing has significantly simplified the previously rather complicated adjustment. The compact shape also reduces the risk of the front derailleur getting in the way of the wider tyres of cross bikes and gravel bikes.
The Ultegra rim brakes: crisper than the predecessor brakes
The new brakes are just as impressive as the shifting system. The calipers benefit noticeably from a stiffer construction and respond even more crisply than their predecessors. The slightly modified shape also reflects the trend towards wider tyres. Only 25 millimetre tyres were fitted to the test bike. However, the space under the brakes would easily have been sufficient for 28 mm tyres. The SP41 cables with silicone lubrication already used on the old Ultegra and the tried and tested R55C4 brake pads remain unchanged. As before, the rim brakes are also available as a direct mount version.
Ultegra crank and 11-speed chain in detail
The eye-catcher of the Ultegra 8000 is the striking four-arm crank, which is made of aluminium as before. With its deep grey anodised surface, the drive unit has a sophisticated and high-quality look. Shimano continues to rely on the proven Hollowtech 2 technology with a continuous 24 millimetre shaft. The crankset is based on the "one size fits all" principle and allows all common chainring combinations such as 50/34, 46/36, 52/36 and 53/39 teeth to be fitted. Shimano had already abandoned the previously common separation between standard and compact cranks in the old Ultegra. Unlike the Dura-Ace cranks, the outer chainring is not made entirely from aluminium. Instead, Shimano uses a composite of light metal and plastic. The chain shifts between the chainrings without any significant resistance via a plastic ramp glued to the inside of the chainring. The Ultegra eleven-speed chain will be available in two versions with a conventional rivet lock or with a practical chain lock. Although the latter can only be used once, it does not require any special tools.
After an hour and a half of intensive riding, the difference between the new and old Ultegra seemed greater than that between the current Dura-Ace and its predecessor. Even though the Ultegra 8000 offers no real innovations apart from the larger rear derailleur capacity, the enormous quality and precision with which the shifting and braking performance has been raised to a new level is impressive. Despite all the enthusiasm for the groupset, however, it should not be overlooked that real innovations are more likely to be found in future versions with disc brakes and electric shifting systems. In human judgement, a mechanical road bike groupset can hardly get much better than the new Ultegra. We will report on our experiences with the disc brakes and the Di2 version of the new Ultegra as soon as we have our first findings.
Weights new Shimano Ultegra R8000*
mechanical Ultegra R8000 with rim brakes
STI brake/shift lever438 grammes
Rear derailleur 200 grammes
Front derailleur (for base) 92 grammes
Crankset (52/36 teeth)681 grammes
Inner bearing 63 grammes
Cassette 11-speed 11-30 t. 269 grammes
Chain (114 links) 257 grammes
Brakes (f./h.)360 grammes
Total2,360 grammes
Ultegra R8000 Di2 with rim brakes
STI brake/shift lever295 grammes
Rear derailleur 242 grammes
Front derailleur (for base) 132 grammes
Crankset (52/36 teeth)681 grammes
Inner bearing 63 grammes
Cassette 11-speed 11-30 t. 269 grammes
Chain (114 links) 257 grammes
Brakes (f./h.)360 grammes
Total2,299 grammes
mechanical Ultegra R8000 with disc brakes
STI brake/shift lever550 grammes
Rear derailleur 200 grammes
Front derailleur (for base) 92 grammes
Crankset (52/36 teeth)681 grammes
Inner bearing 63 grammes
Cassette 11-speed 11-30 t. 269 grammes
Chain (114 links) 257 grammes
Brakes (f./h.)280 grammes
Brake discs (160 mm)257 grammes
Total2,649 grammes
Ultegra R8000 Di2 with disc brakes
STI brake/shift lever360 grammes
Rear derailleur 242 grammes
Front derailleur (for base) 132 grammes
Crankset (52/36 teeth)681 grammes
Inner bearing 63 grammes
Cassette 11-speed 11-30 t. 269 grammes
Chain (114 links) 257 grammes
Brakes (f./h.)280 grammes
Brake discs (160 mm)257 grammes
Total2,541 grammes
*Weights in grams/manufacturer's specifications
