In 1906, a bike company by the name of Ciclomeccanica Dal Molin laid its roots at the base of the nearly 6000-foot-tall Monte Grappa in northern Italy. The region is a hotbed of cycling, with Monte Grappa being a frequent mountaintop finish in the Giro d’Italia. Showing postwar patriotism, the company changed its name in 1945 to Wilier Triestina. Wilier is an acronym for “W (viva) I’Italia liberata e redenta,” which translated means “long live Italy, liberated and free.” Triestina refers to the city of Trieste, which was an occupied city after the war. Sixty-five-plus years later, Wilier Triestina continues to expand their bike line while still keeping with their racing heritage, notching up wins with Italian champions Damiano Cunego and, 2010 Tour de France points jersey winner, Alessandro Petacchi.
THE FRAME
Gran Turismo is a new addition to the Wilier line for 2011, falling between the $4000 Imperiale and $2500 Izoard XP. It comes in as a “performance-value model,” meaning it gets race-inspired technology from the Cento1, Wilier’s flagship ProTour race bike, while keeping with components that allow it to come in at a price well under the cost of a year’s worth of college tuition.
Using monocoque technology to the fullest, the Gran Turismo employs a complicated tube design to add extra material at high-torque areas. The top tube and downtube overlap at the head tube, creating what Wilier calls the Razor Edge Design. The Razor Edge Design gives the front of the frame a bit of an overbuilt look, but by unifying the three tube’s it creates front-end stiffness that will please even the most aggressive riders. Asymmetric chainstays maximize power transfer on the drive side, while slender seat stays flow uninterrupted down from the top tube. The narrow-leg, aero-esque fork is engineered exclusively for the Gran Turismo frame, ensuring the frame and fork are designed to perform as a single congruent unit. Internally routed derailleur and rear brake cables give the Gran Turismo a sleek look. The clean internal routing of the cables keeps them out of the elements and adds a high-end appeal to the frame. The Gran Turismo shares geometry with the Cento1, as well as the other Wilier models, showing Wilier’s dedication to performance-styled geometry across their entire line. Our size large test bike had a 55.4cm top tube with 73.5- and 73-degree seat and head tube angles respectively, giving it the digits of a ProTour-capable machine.
By overlapping the top tube and down tube over the head tube, Wilier creates the Razor Edge Design.
THE PARTS
The Gran Turismo comes smartly dressed in components that complement its already salient looks. Customized FSA parts with the Wilier logo and graphics matching the frameset give it the “oh-so-Italian” attention to detail. FSA Energy brake calipers, SL-K Light 50/34 compact cranks, SLK carbon stem, Wing Pro carbon handlebars, and SL-K carbon seatpost all get the Wilier logo touch. Keeping with the Gran Turismo’s Italian heritage are the 24mm-deep Fulcrum Racing 5 alloy wheels. The wheels feature a 24-spoke front and 27-spoke rear, utilizing Fulcrum’s Two-to-One Spoke Ratio. A Selle Italia SL saddle (also with Wilier graphics) makes sitting on the job comfortable, giving enough padding to keep the sit bones happy without sacrificing its racer look. Other than the FSA SL-K compact crank, Shimano Ultegra parts provide the bike’s drivetrain. Ultegra is a no-flash, solid-performing group that is going to be reliable and easy to maintain.
The top tube flows into the seat stays, giving the Gran Turismo an elegant look. The FSA Energy calipers had good stopping power, biting into the Fulcrum Racing 5 wheels.
THE RIDE
When it comes to bike tests, we can usually form a first impression after the first few miles of riding; the Gran Turismo didn’t even take that long. The rigidity that Wilier was trying to capture in the design of the Gran Turismo manifested itself in the first turn of the pedals. The front end stayed stiff even when we exaggerated our sprinting style, throwing our weight forward and pulling at the handlebars like we were sprinting for the victory at Milan-San Remo. Once we settled down and stopped trying to rip the front end off, we took the Gran Turismo on some of our favorite test rides, which have a good offering of climbs, twisty descents, high-speed descents, rough roads and, all too often, wind.
Once in the hills, we were able to appreciate the balance between racing and comfort Wilier gave the Gran Turismo. A 50/34 compact crank and 12-25 cassette made the climbing only as hard as we wanted it to be, while the racing-styled geometry allowed for an aggressive position, keeping the bike feeling quick and sporty Descending a twisty road on the Gran Turismo was a blast due to the frame’s and fork’s stiffness. Driving it hard through a corner and then sprinting back up to speed before diving into the next corner was an exhilarating experience. But once the speeds hit 35- plus mph, the 50/12 gear combination was overmatched. No big deal if you’re out riding on your own, but on a group ride or race, a cassette with an 11-tooth cog will be essential.
Over rough roads, the Gran Turismo felt good but not great. Road vibrations were smoothed slightly, but the rider still received a lot of road feedback over the rougher sections of tarmac. The balance between the Gran Turismo’s lateral rigidity vs. vertical compliance definitely swings to the lateral rigidity side.
THE VERDICT
The Gran Turismo is a solid performer that wants to be ridden hard and pushed to its limits. Although, without changing the cassette to an 11-tooth version, the Gran Turismo’s limits will be felt at about 35 mph. The bike boasts an impressive amount of lateral stiffness, enough to satisfy riders much more powerful than us. But what it gains in stiffness, it sacrifices in vertical compliance. If you don’t mind giving up a little stiffness for more comfort, take a look at the Wilier Izoard XP. It also touts an Ultegra group, and while its monocoque frame won’t be the sprint machine of the Gran Turismo, it will serve up a smoother ride.
PUNCH LINES
• Custom-tailored components give the Gran Turismo an Italian touch
• Internal cable routing keeps the frame looking clean and elegant
• The bike begged to be sprinted to the town limit sign, but gave up some vertical compliance to get there
STATS
Price: $3400
Weight: 17.4 pounds
Sizes: XS, S, M, L (tested), XL, XXL
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