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Cervelo P5 Triathlon Bike Unveiled Early…Sort Of

2012 Cervelo P5 triathlon and time trial bike
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What with all of the official (and some not so official) images already leaked, it appears the official Cervelo P5 Triathlon Bike has launched two days early. Sort of.

Dubbed the “most advanced and most aerodynamic triathlon bike,” the P5’s mini-website now has this video and pics, but the link to full specs is forcing us to wait until Wednesday for all the specs. But we can tell quite a bit from the images…

2012 Cervelo P5 triathlon and time trial bike

The Cervelo P5 will reportedly come in a full on, UCI-be-damned triathlon format and a Union friendly version with external front brake and no nose cone. What you see here is the triathlon model with full aero fairings in front of the headtube and incorporated into the stem/handlebar design.

2012 Cervelo P5 triathlon and time trial bike with magura RT8TT hydraulic brakes and electronic Di2 shifting

Looks like they’ll offer various aerobar/stem setups to accommodate different riding styles and sizes.

2012 Cervelo P5 triathlon and time trial bike with magura RT8TT hydraulic brakes and electronic Di2 shifting

This looks like the top end model with full Di2 shifting on the aerobars and what has all of us salivating, the new RT8TT (presumably) hydraulic brakes.

2012 Cervelo P5 triathlon and time trial bike with magura RT8TT hydraulic brakes and electronic Di2 shifting

Click these two images and you’ll see the sides of the lever blades have no center (more aero) and an adjustment screw (reach? pad contact?) central on the front below the pivot. The nose cone is likely hiding the hydraulic hose and piston for the front brake arms.

2012 Cervelo P5 triathlon and time trial bike with magura RT8TT hydraulic brakes and electronic Di2 shifting

The seat post looks to have multiple mounting positions and a similarly aero clamp like the S5 rear-adjusting seatpost clamp like on several prior P-series aero bikes.

2012 Cervelo P5 triathlon and time trial bike with magura RT8TT hydraulic brakes and electronic Di2 shifting

Bottom bracket is definitely BBRight and the seat tube is incredibly narrow. What look like cable port holes are likely screw holes for a removable cover to hide the rear brake’s hoses and such. If we had to guess, those brake arms and their pivots look very much like the center-push design of Magura’s original hydraulic road brakes.

2012 Cervelo P5 triathlon and time trial bike with magura RT8TT hydraulic brakes and electronic Di2 shifting

The cables, wires and/or hoses all remain invisible to the eye and the wind. The top tube appears to have water bottle mounts tucked directly behind the stem.

2012 Cervelo P5 triathlon and time trial bike with magura RT8TT hydraulic brakes and electronic Di2 shifting

More as we get it…

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36 Comments
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Barrett
Barrett
12 years ago

That is an incredible looking bike. Major props to Cervelo for continuing to push the design envelope. Di2 + hydraulic brakes + straight up disregard for ridiculous UCI regulation = pure aero awesomeness!

greg
greg
12 years ago

the seatpost clamp is more like the p2/p3 than the s5 (which was related to the p4 clamp design). the p2/p3 clamp was hassle-free, so it’s a plus in my book.
saddle clamp looks like Ritchey’s adjustable one, which is nice since it’s easy to use and parts are available anywhere, but requires different hardware for different rail dimensions.
overall, i think i like it

greg
greg
12 years ago

…and if i were a betting man, i’d say the screws on the top tube were for a bento box, like the Trek Speed Concept. scew on the center aerobar bridge for bottle cage? everyone knows thats the fastest place to put it.

h2ofuel
12 years ago

At least the brake levers are Magura. Right lever reads “MA____”.

will
12 years ago

way to go cervelo. eliminate the sti shifters for hydraulic brake levers. thats a real performance gain. trp brakes would have worked just fine while achieving the aero benefit the were going for.

MTB
MTB
12 years ago

Wow, can’t wait to watch Team Cervelo/Garmin on this bike for the TT at TdF.

Xris
Xris
12 years ago

Alright, we need to have a contest between this and the Specialized Shiv non-uci-friendly version to see which one we think we would get if we had the money and rode the things. Absolutely gorgeous!

Cam
Cam
12 years ago

Heres the front brake without the fairing courtesy of weight weenies: http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s269/Tillquist/MultiSport-Forum/cervelo_p5-002.jpg

Gillis
Gillis
12 years ago

@Will: they didn’t elimitate the sti/ergo levers. Modern TT/Tri bikes use have been using bar-end shifters, well, since the areobar became standard. Being able to use hydraulic brakes is just ancillary to that.

It’s a nice looking rig. Fast. I don’t care for the “e’ ” on downtube though.

Also note in the 4th photo, on the lever in the lower left (right hand lever) you can see what looks like perhaps a reach adjustment screw, similar to the original Hayes levers

Gillis
Gillis
12 years ago

oops, I guess the part about the screw was mentioned above.

will
12 years ago

gillis

sti levers are not bar end shifters. your comment is wrong sti levers are the integrated brake shift lever found on the base bar.

Willgis
Willgis
12 years ago

Will is absolutely correct, STI levers are quite different from barend levers.

The standart setup on tribikes, (and tt bikes, which have become alarmingly focused on “aero” rather than “comfortable” and/or “fast”) is full aero bars with shifters for the full tuck, and brake levers spread further for climbing. This is the MAIN strongsuit of electronic shifting, that you can have shifters in both positions. This is also a very compelling reason one might run a hydraulic system for brakes, since you can have two brake lever positions without loosing power.

Gillis
Gillis
12 years ago

Then I misread what Will was saying.
There aren’t aren’t any sti levers on this bike nor any modern tt/tri bike with a basebar, so I’m not sure why they were mentioned to begin with.

Gillis
Gillis
12 years ago

my original point in saying “they didn’t elimitate the sti/ergo levers” was because there was nothing to eliminate, sti/ergo type levers are not standard on this type of set-up.

Peter
Peter
12 years ago

Gillis, what I think Will is getting at is that with this set up they have removed one of the major functional gains of shimano di2, which was the addition of an sti shifter on the base bar so you could shift from both riding positions. Sti, just stands for ‘Shimano Total Integration’ ie; a combined shift brake lever, it has nothing to do with shape. I would have to agree with him, in that I don’t think the trade off of a hydraulic brake is worth losing the ability of being able to shift in both riding positions with ease especially in a hilly TT course where you may even end up needing to shift out of the saddle.

Gillis
Gillis
12 years ago

Peter, I see what see what you are saying and I wasn’t considering that option when I spoke. To me Sti still means the traditional shifter/brake lever. Although I will add that while it is a trade off in losing the additional shifting position, it is an option only a select group of riders have been privy to in the past year or two. In the coming years it will most likely become more standard as electric evolves. But in the meantime I don’t see it as a huge advantage. Perhaps they will be able to integrate something like that remote “sprint” shifter in its place? As to whether these new brakes are worth the tradeoff? that is yet to be determined.

will
12 years ago

gillis

having shifters out on the base bar is a huge advantage. anytime you are up out of the saddle and have to shift with a bar end shifter only set up, you have to sit back down, shift, then resume standing again. with base bar shifters you never have to break your rhythm. that is the huge advantage in terms of rider performance. the rider can maintain their feel while standing.

i think hydraulic brakes are more of an option for a select few than electric shifting. as of now this is the only hydraulic brake system available. these hydraulic brakes take away any choice a consumer has. at least with electric shifters, if you dont like them you can change to another system. so only the select few who buy this bike will get these brakes.

Brandon
Brandon
12 years ago

We need to clear up what “STI” means, because Will and Peter aren’t using the Shimano term correctly which is leading to some confusion.

Shimano coined the term to describe their drop bar integrated shift/brake levers. While the Di2 basebar brakes also have shift buttons in them, and probably could fall under the “STI” moniker, Shimano refers to them as brake/shift levers. While they are NEAR the same location, the brake lever is not a shifter, so Shimano doesn’t refer to them as STI.

STI is referring to a brake lever that also shifts. The Di2 brake lever does not shift, though it IS right next to your shifters.

will
12 years ago

im not using sti incorrectly. thats what they are called

http://www.starbike.com/p/Shimano-Dura-Ace-Di2-ST-7971-TT-Tri-STI-levers-pair-3760-en

sti just means shimano total integration. it has nothing to do with a road component or a tt component

Barrett
Barrett
12 years ago

Brandon,

Thank you for kindly clearing that up. I just got very frustrated reading will’s responses. You can still have shifting in both positions with Di2, no matter what kind of brake lever you use. Quite easily actually. Brakes are independent of shifters.

will
12 years ago

brandon

you are still confused. if you are using di2 on the base bar (sti) you have to use shimano brake lever. the shifter and brake lever are one unit. you can only have shifting in both positions by using shimano levers only. this is the whole point of my critique of cervelos choice of eliminating the possibility of using any brake lever and brake for that matter by forcing the consumer to use the magura system.

Brandon
Brandon
12 years ago

Will:

Sorry, but you are confused. The Shimano Di2 brake/shift levers that mount to a TT basebar, are NOT STI. I realize that as a one-piece unit, they do SHIFT AND BRAKE, but, they DO NOT use the brake lever to shift. Hence the reason they are NOT STI. STI refers to a brake lever that also shifts, but that is NOT how Di2 basebar levers work. The shift buttons on the Di2 basebar brakes are NOT part of the lever.

I understand what you are saying, by using the Magura brake you no longer get the shifters near your brakes. But, you keep using the term STI to describe the Di2 brake levers, and that is NOT a term Shimano uses for that part AFAIK. Which is leading to confusion.

When running an entirely Di2 TT/Tri bike, you do NOT have any STI levers on there. By removing the Shimano brake/Di2 shifters you lose the functionality of shifters on your basebars, but you have not removed any STI parts because STI parts were never on your Di2-equipped TT/tri bike to begin with.

To summarize: if you are using the Di2 shift/brake levers on your basebar you CAN shift from there, but you still are not using STI shifters. You are misusing the STI term.

Brandon
Brandon
12 years ago

Barrett:

I also think you are a bit confused as to the Di2-specific parts. When using the Magura brakes, you do lose the integrated basebar shifters. The Shimano basebar shifter/brake are one assembly, so by using the Magura hydro brakes, you lose the Di2 basebar shifters.

It’s not that it’s impossible to put shifters on the basebar with the Magura levers, but you’d need to fabricate something with the remote shifters or something along those lines.

Gillis
Gillis
12 years ago

Thank you Brandon, I’m glad I wasn’t the only one thinking that. But in Will’s defense (for the moment) the Di2 basebar shifters are integrated into the mount of the brake levers and no other option is available for that location.

To be clear, I checked the Shimano (N. America) website. While the use of Sti is indirect, I found it only being used when concerning mechanical levers. Electronic levers are referred to as St Di2.

And frankly Will, I’m not inclined to agree that having that extra shifter position is better, that is unless everyone had it. This isn’t Formula 1 and the team with the best traction control system shouldn’t have the advantage. As impossible and idyllic as it may sound, I would like to see someone win based on strength, mental and physical, not mechanical.

Brandon
Brandon
12 years ago

Gillis: This is where Will and I do agree. The shifters on the basebars I think are awesome. I don’t think they are or will be a make or break, nor should they be. But if you find yourself on a descent and need to shift while on the basebars they could be very nice to have.

I actually think the Di2 shifters on the basebars are probably the best part of Di2 shifting.

Gillis
Gillis
12 years ago

Brandon, I didn’t say they weren’t awesome, hardly, I’m sure they are. As I ended with earlier, I’d rather see an even playing field from a mechanical standpoint. In fact this is probably a safer system that all should have. Given this is a small point that only effects a few in only a handful of events in the season.

dgaddis
12 years ago

HOLY COW!!! Enough on the shifters already!

Neat bike.

Brandon
Brandon
12 years ago

Gillis:

There never will be an even playing field? How would you draw that line? Everyone ride a steel round-tubed bike with 32h box-section wheels? Unfortunately or not, TT bikes are all about technology and buying the newest go-fast goodies. But, luckily you still need to pedal the bike!

YourMomGoesToCollege
YourMomGoesToCollege
12 years ago

“OH NO THE BAND WAGON IS LEAVING WITHOUT ME!!”

Gillis
Gillis
12 years ago

Brandon, I did say it was impossible and idyllic to think that. But yes, as much as I enjoy the tech side of bikes, I don’t care what the pros ride and would be fine if they all rode steel frames and traditional wheels.AN IROC type environment would be fine by me. My context has never been about “buying the newest go-fast goodies”.

dgaddis: yeah I know, it was a bunch of interweb miscommunication. 5 minutes face to face and it would’ve been settled.

will
12 years ago

gillis

having base bar shifters is a god send. having to sit to shift on a hilly tt course can be the difference b/w winning and losing.

i lost track as to who made the argument of adding a shifter to the cervelo set up on the base bar- go ahead and tell the customer that they need to spend another 125 us for something that should be there in the first place. i would love to hear what jerkhard vroomen has to say about this silly retrograde decision.

well, cervelo dealers have fun with charging your customers at least $100 for what used to cost $30 way to go

bottom line is 2 sets of shifters are better than one. in fact thats why shimano offers not just 1 but 2 different satellite shifter pods for road di2.

will
12 years ago

i know this only shows a road lever but dont be nit picky here is the best definition of sti i could find

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shimano_Total_Integration

Chipollini
12 years ago

LOL! STI circle jerk “no, yes, no, ahhhhhhhhh”

Bas Simons
Bas Simons
12 years ago

well, looks like the RT88 do not work with Di2, so no shifting on the handlebar, only in aero position. bummer. BUT it’s an easy DIY upgrade 😉

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