New Specialized Tarmac SL8 images leaked online

Has a new Specialized Tarmac SL8 broken cover? According to images leaked on the Weight Weenies forum it has, and there are some notable changes to the current SL7.

An image first appeared on the forum last Monday claiming to be an official internal marketing image from the brand, although the low quality may have made some sceptical.

Further images from a Soudal Quick-Step training camp have since emerged on the forum, showing the same bike in team colours suggesting that this isn’t a false flag, a Specialized SL8 is almost certainly on the horizon.

Not that it’s too much of a surprise. The previous iteration of the bike, the SL7, was released in July of 2020, three years after the SL6 in August of 2017. Following that launch cycle, an SL8 always seemed imminent.

There were some lingering doubts when a new bike didn’t emerge at the Tour de France. Those have now been allayed, although there’s still no official word from Specialized.

So, what has changed on the new bike? Looking at the photos, there are a few noticeable differences which are likely to take the bike down a well-travelled aero and lightweight path.

More aero?

currentsea, Weight Weenies

The Tarmac SL8 appears to have a deeper head tube.

When it first emerged in 2003, the Tarmac E5 was billed as Specialized’s all-round race bike.

A new pure aero bike honed in the wind tunnel then emerged in 2012 in the form of the Venge. That naturally pushed the Tarmac into more of the climbing category, while still possessing aero undertones.

Things took a new twist when the SL7 was unveiled. There was to be no more Venge which was discontinued in favour of the SL7, a bike Specialized said was for all needs, combining aero and lightweight characteristics into one superbike.

It had plenty of new aero features, including some adopted from the Venge such as the Aerofly handlebars. Many of the aero gains came from new tube shapes taken from Specialized’s self-designed FreeFoil Shape Library.

From what we can see in the images, it appears that Specialized have continued down a similar more aero-orientated path with some noticeable changes including a much deeper head tube.

The UCI relaxed their rules around tube depths in 2023 and the ballooned head tube differs to many modern bikes as it juts out in front of the steerer. As the frontal area is critical for aerodynamic efficiency, it’s almost certainly for aero gains, so we’ll be intrigued to hear the advantages once the bike is fully released.

Perhaps surprisingly in the current cycling world of integrated bars, all of the Soudal Quick-Step riders appear to be using two-piece bars and stems. Specialized’s in-house Roval brand recently released their new one-piece Rapide cockpit so we suspect this is only a temporary setup.

More lightweight?

Jz91, Weight Weenies

Images from a Soudal Quick-Step training camp have also emerged.

Alongside aerodynamics, weight sits as one of the key metrics of a bike’s ability and it’s rare that new models are released without claims about both.

The Tarmac has always been a lightweight bike so it’s no surprise that Specialized appear to have taken some weight-shedding measures with the SL8 while keeping the shape of the bike essentially the same.

Both the chain and seatstays have slimmed down which will undoubtedly shed some grams and potentially lead to greater tyre clearance.

The down tube also appears to be slimmer, which we can presume is in the name of weight saving. Having less frame material can disrupt airflow so this will undoubtedly have been fine-tuned as to not disrupt the aerodynamics.

While there are still a lot of unknowns and there has been no official word from Specialized, it appears that a new Tarmac SL8 isn’t too far from release. Keep checking into GCN to find out when it officially breaks cover.