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Tyres
The most important and cheapest upgrade - in relation to the achievable improvement. We consistently recommend top tyres such as the Conti GP 5000 or Swallow One. Preferred width: 30 to 32 millimetres. Professional cyclist Tadej Pogačar rode the 30-series Conti at the Tour de France. The extremely low rolling resistance compared to standard tyres can be seen on the speedometer: The speed increases from 30 to 30.7 km/h. Grip and puncture protection are also very good, they last around 4000 kilometres on the rear wheel. You can't go wrong with this tyre. Two versions of the tyre are available. The 5000 S is a folding tyre for use with tubes. We would recommend combining this tyre with a lightweight TPU inner tube, which rolls better, weighs much less and is safer than a standard inner tube. The newer Conti STR variant is tubeless-compatible, but this only brings added value in combination with appropriate rims, especially as this version is more expensive. Road prices, depending on the model: from 45 to 60 euros per tyre. A lot of money for little rubber, but worth every cent.
- Faster, grippier, lighter: high-end rubber is the best performance upgrade for any road bike
Handlebars
The contact point for the hands is a hot candidate for upgrades. However, the issue here is ergonomics rather than speed. Without question, a simple handlebar can also be suitable. But if you don't like the shape - whether it's because it doesn't feel nice, the brakes are hard to reach or the bar ends are too short or too low - there's a huge selection available to provide a more comfortable grip. But where do you start looking? The major online retailers are ideal for orientation, but also for purchasing. The range can be filtered by width, shape and material, and prices are also included for orientation. If you don't like the handlebars after trying them for the first time, you can return them online. In our experience, carbon handlebars with a slightly fuller top bar are the most comfortable to grip. Retrofit carbon handlebars can save some weight (100-150 grams), but with street prices starting at 130 euros and typically around 200 euros, they are also significantly more expensive than aluminium handlebars, which are available from 40 euros. The most important dimension is the clamping dimension in the stem, typically 31.8 millimetres.
- More comfortable to grip, better damping - a handlebar upgrade can contribute greatly to your well-being and is not a luxury on an inexpensive bike
Saddle
A saddle on a new bike is always a saddle on trial. Our tip: first test whether your bottom and saddle harmonise. If it pinches or you feel numbness, you can experiment with changing the seat height, angle and horizontal position of the saddle. If this does not bring any improvement, you will need a different saddle. Models from specialists such as SQlab can be problem solvers, but it always depends on the experiment. Haggling over the last gram of saddle is more for experts; the first step is to find the right saddle - the basic shape and width are crucial. The aim is to push a lot of the seat load towards the sit bones and relieve the perineal area. If the saddle is initially hard at the back under the sit bones, this is a good sign. Soft saddles in which you sink over a large area are more likely to cause problems in the long term than saddles that are healthily firm. Very good saddles are available from around 150 euros. Finding the right saddle is a crucial milestone in your road cycling career.
- Sitting better requires a willingness to experiment when choosing and adjusting the saddle. A different saddle can make any bike better
Seat post
Does the bike hardly bounce at the rear? Apart from the tyres, the seat post is the main reason for this. Aluminium models with a classic round cross-section can be replaced by more springy carbon seatposts; they cost around 200 euros from reputable suppliers and easily save 150 to 200 grams compared to aluminium seatposts. We advise against 20 euro carbon posts from China. Acute risk of breakage!
- Suspension-friendly seat posts can improve the suspension comfort of the road bike at the rear. The longer the seatpost sticks out, the more suspension you can expect
Impellers
Wheels in inexpensive road bikes are usually heavy. Here you can save a pound or more in weight in one fell swoop (a kilogram with tyres) and noticeably liven up the riding experience. With aerodynamically shaped rims, more speed is also possible with the same effort. If money were no object, high-end products would be the first choice, just like tyres. But money does play a role, which is why you need good products that are not completely out of the price range of the bike. There are many sources for this. With a 35 millimetre high aluminium drop-center rim from a German supplier such as Aerycs, wheels weighing 1650 grams are available from 600 euros. Leeze from Münsterland offers high-end performance at a relatively low price with the CC50 Basic carbon wheel for 999 euros; it is aerodynamically on a par with wheels two to three times as expensive. Even cheaper performance wheels are available directly from Chinese sources. Their key technical data sounds tempting, but the product quality can hardly be seriously assessed.
- Wheels with high carbon rims drastically change the character of the bike, they bring a race look, but also measurable speed and save weight - an expensive, but not crazy upgrade
Brake discs
The stamped discs of cheaper component groupsets often do not have a good braking effect, although they can improve with use over time. Ground discs from higher-quality groupsets or from retrofitters improve braking performance right from the start.
- Brake discs are a functional upgrade if the braking effect with original discs is not convincing
