Giant TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS

The Giant TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS is a fabulous all-round race bike that's light, efficient, and offers an excellent ride quality. It also comes complete with some excellent components, including a wireless SRAM Force AXS groupset and Quarq power meter. Although spending £6,699 on a bike with a second-tier groupset takes some getting used to, that's the market these days; this bike represents very good value for money versus the competition.

If your budget is a bit lower, or you have a few extra grand burning a hole in your pocket, perhaps you should read the results of Jamie's highly scientific test from the summer, Would Pogacar win the Tour de France on a cheaper bike? Mid-range road bike vs superbike speed tested… Or just check out our guide to the best road bikes.

Giant TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS: Ride

First off, let's talk about the ride: it's excellent. The Giant TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS is superbly reactive when you turn up the power. It's light, with our large-sized model hitting the scales at 7.26kg, and while we'd never suggest that weight is everything – far from it – this is a bike that responds beautifully when you dig deep.

There are stiffer race bike frames out there – such as the top-level TCR Advanced SL – but the TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS still offers an efficient feeling, and the fork, which is the same as the one used for the top-level TCR Advanced SL, is superbly accurate when you corner hard.

The first generation Giant TCR was introduced way back in 1997 – an aluminium-framed race bike with a sloping top tube and small frame triangles designed to add stiffness while keeping the weight low. These features were radical at the time, although they've become mainstream over the years.

> Why the original Giant TCR from 1997 is one of the most influential road bikes ever

Back in 1997, the TCR came in just three frame sizes with an angle-adjustable stem available in three different lengths to help you get the riding position right. These days, all TCRs are carbon composite and it's a disc-brake-only platform. The frames are available in five sizes, and the adjustable stem has gone, but the basic frame shape remains.

Giant hasn't changed your riding position with this 10th generation, meaning that the TCR is still race focused and well balanced.

I was riding the L-sized frame with a 580mm top tube, 530mm seat tube, and 185mm head tube. Both the head tube angle and the seat tube angle are 73 degrees, while the stack is 581mm and the reach is 402mm. That gives a stack/reach of 1.45 on this size.

The riding position is the same whether you go for the Advanced SL, Advanced Pro or Advanced level of frameset, it's just that the Advanced SL has an integrated seatpost rather than a seat tube with a seatpost fitted inside.

That riding position is well proven. You always feel efficient and ready for action without ever being strained, and line changes are effortless when you want to dart about a group or avoid hazards in the road. The TCR behaves beautifully.

One other thing you need to know is that the TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS offers loads of comfort, as long as you're flexible enough for a race bike fit. The seatstays are about as skinny as they come, the composite Giant Variant seatpost certainly isn't a boneshaker like some aero options, and the Fleet SL short-nose saddle has Giant's ParticleFlow technology, meaning that there are 'high-elastic, free-flowing particles' held in pockets under the cover. These can move about to provide comfort and support as you shift. We all know that saddle comfort very much depends on the individual rider, but a large central cutout and a little flex in the base have helped this one win many fans.

Giant TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS: Frame & fork

The Propel has been Giant's out-and-out aero road bike since 2013, but the TCR boasts aero features of its own, most notably a development of the 'truncated ellipse tubing' that it first introduced to the lineup in 2020. Giant says that all tube shapes have been developed through CFD (computational fluid dynamics) and wind-tunnel testing – there's nothing unusual about that – to reduce drag at a wide range of yaw angles, and to work with standard water bottles in place.

Giant says the biggest gains have been achieved in the down tube, seatpost, and fork shaping, and that the whole setup was refined at the GST wind tunnel in Immenstaad (which we've visited a few times) with a dynamic (moving) mannequin in place, with spinning wheels and a moving drivetrain, although we can't vouch for the TCR's aero credentials without access to a wind tunnel ourselves.

Our review bike was fitted with a SRAM Force groupset so there were no gear cables to worry about, but even on the Shimano 105 mechanical-equipped TCR Advanced Pro 2 (£3,999) and TCR Advanced 2 (£2,699), there's very little to see unless you go hunting.

Routing is a key change that Giant has made to this latest version of the TCR. The previous design had external cables (where used) and hoses between the handlebar and the down tube and fork. Now, in line with high-end bikes from most other brands, everything is hidden from sight.

Some people consider internal routing to be a step backwards in terms of ease of maintenance, but that's the direction the market has been heading for years now and it was only a matter of time before Giant hid everything – albeit in modified form with the hoses squirrelled away under the stem (more on that below). In fact, we were a little surprised not to have seen something like this with the last redesign. 

Giant TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS: Finishing kit

Like the Advanced SLs, the Giant TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS is fitted with a carbon Contract SLR handlebar while the rest of the models at Advanced Pro level are equipped with Giant's aluminium Contact SL bar.

The two different bars are the same shape and dimensions, but whereas the Contract SL has a weight of 247g (420mm width) and costs £99.99 if bought alone, the Contract SLR is 165g (420mm width) and £299.99.

Giant says that it takes the view that as you go up the range, the groupset should improve, obviously, but so should various other components. In this case, you get a bar that's made from T800 and T1100 (Toray) carbon fibre.

The L-sized bike I was riding was fitted with a bar that measured 440mm wide at the ends (measured centre to centre), but the drops flare out at 11 degrees, so the width at the hoods is considerably narrower. On our review bike, for example, the tops of the hoods at the point where they meet the bar (measured centre to centre) was more like 380mm. This means that when you rest your hands up there, your stance is fairly narrow for aero efficiency, but when you go down to the drops, the wider position makes for plenty of stability.

> Find out about handlebar dimensions and what they means

The profile of the top section of this bar is a little flattened, which makes for excellent comfort when you're climbing with your hands up there, and while we're talking about the front end, you might notice that this bike is fitted with a negative rise stem. It's Giant's Contact SL Aerolight model, made from aluminium with a -10-degree angle, bringing the handlebar a touch lower than it would be with a standard stem.

Another thing to bear in mind about the Contact SL Aerolight stem is that it comes with an open channel on the underside for the brake hoses. Those hoses are plumbed internally through the handlebar before emerging at the centre and then heading backwards in this channel to the top of the head tube, and then internally along the D-shaped fork steerer tube.

You can't see those hoses unless you flip the bike up and look underneath the stem but, importantly, they don't run inside it. This means that swapping to a stem of a different length is straightforward without the need to re-hose the brakes. Each headset spacer is an interlocking two-piece affair, too, so you can adjust the front-end height without needing to re-do the brakes.

Giant TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS: Wheels & tyres

The new Cadex Race GC tyres are 28mm wide, they're supple, and they come set up tubeless so you can run them at fairly low pressures without risking a pinch flat. I also found them to be grippy in a variety of conditions, and a Kevlar material included in there helps prevent nicks and cuts. If you want to go for something larger for increased comfort, the latest incarnation of the Giant TCR comes with space for tyres up to 33mm, an increase of 1mm over previous versions.

The tyres are fitted to Giant's SLR 0 40 Carbon Disc wheels. Designed as all-rounders, these come with hookless rims that are 40mm deep and 28mm wide (22.4mm internal). They might not offer the aero advantage of something deeper, but these are lightweight (1,339g), reasonably stable in crosswinds, and well built with aero carbon spokes.

They're not as shouty as some rivals – in fact, they're decidedly understated – but the 40-tooth ratchet driver in the rear hub is quick to engage and adds durability, and they've stayed perfectly round and true through an extensive review period.

Giant TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS: Groupset

As mentioned, the TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS is fitted with SRAM'S second-tier Force AXS groupset which offers excellent shifting and braking. The shifter hoods are smaller than previously and the shifter paddles are larger, both of which are ergonomic improvements.

On the flipside, I'd say that SRAM's 48/35T chainset would be more suitable for this bike than the 46/33T chainset fitted. With a 10-36T cassette out back, you're getting a few really low ratios here. I can't say that the 33x36 lowest gear saw much action during the review period, but I guess it could get you out of trouble on a tough day.

At the other end of the scale, I could occasionally have done with a larger gear than the 46x10 on offer when descending at speed, although I imagine that Giant knows what its market wants much better than I do.

The chainset comes with a Quarq power meter, and we've always had good experiences with these. The downside is that the power meter is integrated with the chainrings. This means that when the chainrings wear out, you need to replace the lot all in one go, and that's not cheap. Whoever thought that was a good idea? Grrr! Still, in the meantime, you'll find the power meter to be easy to use, accurate, and reliable.

Giant TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS: Value

Putting the price of the Giant TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS into context, a Trek Madone SLR 7 AXS Gen 8 is £8,500, for example, a Specialized Tarmac SL8 Pro is £8,250 and an Orbea Orca M21 eTeam Pwr is £6,999. Each of these bikes is equipped with a SRAM Force AXS groupset, including a power meter.

Canyon offers its Ultimate CF SLX 8 AXS with the same groupset (including power meter) and Zipp 303 Firecrest wheels for £6,499. On paper, that looks to be exceptional value, although we've only reviewed the higher-level Canyon Ultimate CFR AXS (£9,749) so we can't comment on the ride.

You might lament the fact that prices are such that we now think £6,699 for a middle-of-three frameset built up with a second-tier groupset is a very good deal; we all do, but that's the reality of the market right now.

Conclusion

The Giant TCR Advanced Pro 0 AXS is an outstanding race-focused bike. You'd expect it to be lightweight and efficient – and it is – and the superb ride quality is an integral part of the package. With impressive components throughout – from the SRAM Force AXS groupset to Giant's own wheels, handlebar, and saddle – this is an excellent buy.

Verdict

Excellent all-round race bike that balances efficiency with comfort