Lapierre Xelius SL
Lapierre Xelius SL
Lapierre’s Xelius SL is not just an improvement on the Dijon-based company’s previous Xelius, it’s a marked redesign.
The new Xelius is designed to be as light as possible, resulting in an 850g frame, but Lapierre have also paid careful attention to comfort. As a result, the Xelius SL boasts a unique seatstay/seattube junction, whereby the seatstays bypass the seattube and meet directly with the toptube.
Lapierre Xelius SL 700 – review
It’s a design which allows the seatstays to offer more flex and it works, based on our review of the Shimano Ultegra-equipped Xelius SL 700. That aside, the Xelius SL also has a neatly seatpost clamp and the ‘Power Box’ technology deployed elsewhere in the Lapierre range, including on the Aircode SL, whereby the bottom half of the frame is designed to ensure maximum stiffness, and the top half to offer comfort.
The result is a race-ready machine which strikes a superb balance between comfort and rigidity. No wonder Thibaut Pinot (FDJ.fr) rode it to victory on Alpe d’Huez at the Tour de France.