Source
r/whichbike•
DMatty

Adventure bike sanity check - Garneau Garibaldi G2 vs Specialized Diverge E5 Elite (or Elite DSW)?

I'm looking for an adventure (road/gravel) bike starting with 30-60km weekend rides with intentions of longer treks (with possible camping/multi-day adventures).

My price range is ~$1500cad +/- 250-500cad

I've narrowed it down to either the Garneau Garibaldi G2 or the Specialized Diverge E5 Elite (or even last years Diverge Elite DSW).

I am however having a devil of a time trying to determine why the G2 is ~$300-500 cheaper than the Diverge... Both have the same components (Shimano Tiagra), both have carbon forks, frame warranty, etc.

Yes, the Specialized does has the name behind it, has thru-axles instead of traditional quick-release, but otherwise is 1:1 unless I'm missing something (tires?). This particular Diverge E5 model doesn't come with future shock or other proprietary thingies so it's not that...

Please help me confirm my suspicions that with Specialized, the name (read: marketing) results in a higher price all things being equal?

Thanks!

Posted May 23, 2018, 1:51 AM UTC

12
DCBikeTrails•

It's interesting that while the spec sheet doesn't list the Diverge E5 Elite as having future shock, the description still mentions it if you expand to read the full text.

With this in mind, we implemented a new version of our Future Shock into the Diverge design.

It might actually have it which would explain some of the price difference. That being said I'm keeping an eye out for something similar and have noticed that in general there is usually a $100-$200 premium on the Specialized brand name alone when comparing similar specs.

1
DMattyOP•

Re: Future Shock.... must be a product of the "marketing" deployment. I test rode a E5 Elite the other day and it definitely doesn't have it...

Thanks for confirming your observation. It'd be great if I could find a valid reason for that extra $, but at least makes it easier to make the decision.

2