Specialized’s Turbo Creo 2 represents quite the update over its predecessor, with a gravel-oriented makeover and an all-new motor claimed to be more powerful, quieter and lighter.
We’ve got the cream-of-the-crop S-Works model here, which retails for a heady £12,000 / $14,000 / €13,000 / AU$20,500, but the range starts from a (slightly) less upsetting £5,000 / $6,500 / €6,000 / AU$10,500 for the Turbo Creo 2 Comp.
Let’s take a closer look at this spendy machine.
From road to rugged
The Turbo Creo 2 is constructed from Specialized’s FACT 11r carbon fibre, one rung below its 12r carbon found on the S-Works Tarmac SL8. The brand claims a 120g frame weight saving over the first-gen Creo.
The new bike looks very reminiscent of the Diverge with its subtly dropped seatstays, only with a more bulbous down tube.
Specialized says the geometry has been tailored to suit anything from fast road riding to rugged gravel. The new bike has been overhauled with a slacker head tube, shorter reach and taller stack.
The Turbo Creo 2 can take up to 57mm/2.2in gravel bike tyres, significantly increased from the 42mm tyre clearance of the Turbo Creo SL. Specialized says you must run a minimum 38mm tyre to avoid “excess risk of bottoming out”.
Elsewhere, you get eyelets for gravel bike mudguards, as well as rack mounts on the fork.
The new Turbo Creo 2 bikes feature Specialized’s remodelled Future Shock 3.0 steerer tube damper, delivering 20mm of travel. The tech is also found on the brand’s Roubaix SL8 series bikes.
This S-Works bike uses the 3.3 variant, featuring a fluid damper with adjustable settings. Conversely, the 3.2 variant (available on the cheapest Creo 2 Comp) drops the on-the-fly adjustability.
New bike, new motor
Specialized integrates its SL 1.2 electric bike motor into the Creo, which it says is “the most efficient e-bike system out there”.
The SL 1.2 is also found on the brand’s Levo SL electric mountain bike. Specialized claims it produces 43 per cent more torque and 33 per cent more power than its predecessor.
According to Specialized, its honeycomb structure makes it quieter than rival systems, with the brand comparing it against the Fazua Ride 50 and 60, as well as the TQ HPR50.
A 320Wh battery is fully integrated into the down tube and Specialized claims you can get up to 120 miles of range. An optional battery extender can give up to a claimed 50 per cent increase.
The charge port is on the non-driveside face of the seat tube, just above the bottom bracket junction.
The MasterMind TCU unit is integrated into the top face of the top tube and ride settings can be personalised in the app. There are also ancillary buttons nestled within the handlebar tape to cycle through the various modes when you’re on the go.
A SRAM and Roval-heavy build
Our size 56cm S-Works bike comes in what Specialized calls a ‘FSTGRN Carbon Dark Moss Green Speckle’.
While our images portray the finish as a matt black, in reality the bike has a subtle green shimmer in the light.
Specialized claims a size-56cm bike weighs 12.96kg – our bike came in at 13.13kg without pedals.
You get top-end SRAM kit for the lofty asking price – SRAM Red eTap AXS levers paired with an XX1 Eagle AXS rear derailleur and chain, and a 10-50t XG1295 cassette (one rung below the fancier XG1299 model).
SRAM also provides the Reverb AXS XPLR dropper post, enabling you to drop the saddle by 50mm on rowdy descents.
Roval, Specialized’s in-house components brand, features for the rest of the build, firstly with its Terra CLX II wheels. These 32mm-deep carbon hoops sport a 25mm internal rim width, with the hubs spinning on ceramic bearings.
47mm-wide summer-oriented Specialized Tracer Pro tyres are set up tubeless on the rims.
Roval’s Terra carbon handlebar should soak up some of the trail buzz, with its short 70mm reach and 12-degree flare.
The bar is paired with an S-Works Future stem with an integrated computer mount.
The fact the computer mount is aluminium is a neat detail, theoretically offering a more solid (but certainly more premium-feeling) platform over the plastic mounts most manufacturers spec.
Rounding off the build is a Specialized Power Expert saddle with Mirror technology. This is a relatively new saddle from the brand at a more accessible price point (£160) – its higher-tier 3D-printed saddles retail from £275 up to £350 for the S-Works models.
Rather than the entirety of the saddle being 3D-printed, ‘Mirror Tear Drop Inserts’ are incorporated under the sit bones to improve comfort. It looks highly reminiscent of the Elaston technology the brand previously used, but Specialized says it is not the same.
