2011 Specialized Amira S Works or 2012 Amira Pro



Ophthodawg

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Jul 30, 2012
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we are deciding between a 2011 Specialized Amira S-Works and 2012 Amira Pro but are having a difficult time deciding.

With the sale price the 2011 S Works is very similarly priced with this years Amira Pro. My concern is with buying a frame that was replaced this year and is now a 3 year old design. I think the design change represents evolutionary update vs. an inherent issue with the 2011 frame.

I guess the question is does anyone know of any issues with the 2011 Amira frame set that would be a reason not to go for it? thanks, really appreciate it...
 
Nope. A three year old design is hardly out-dated. Manufacturers update designs all the time, and it rarely has anything to do with anything being wrong with the previous design.
 
@Alienator, thanks. From what I understand the flared top tube of the 2012 design provides a modest increase in stiffness. However I'm wondering if additional stiffness is even desirable. Specialized may have also reduced the weight of the frame a tiny bit by reducing weight in the seat and or chain stays.

During my wife's test ride she felt the 2011 S Works felt more responsive than the 2012 Amira Pro. We'll likely go with the S Works...
 
Ophthodawg said:
During my wife's test ride she felt the 2011 S Works felt more responsive than the 2012 Amira Pro.
Going with the bike that rides best/feels best is always the best choice. That means something whereas the marketeers' claims about stiffness mean very little.
 
agreed. definitely, great advice @alienator placed a deposit on a 2011 Amira S Works today. Wife should be happy! cheers
 
What he (alienator) said.

At the end of the day it doesn't matter what what other people say - if you want to ride it because it's ace then that's the right bike for you or in this case, your better half. If you have a drool worthy bike like the Amira S-Works and it rides ace then even better but conversely "feel" does not directly equal "more speed"

Plus with the S-Works you should get the uber sexy S-Works carbon cranks that are one of the best in the business. Does it make you go faster? Maybe a tad up a long big hill but the bling factor is huge!

When I got my Cannondale SuperSix Hi-Mod, sure it was stiff - just like the marketing blurb said but the most amazing thing about the bike was isn't mystical vibration damping properties. Nothing about that in the blurb. Two corners and about 1/4 mile on a less than perfectly smooth bike path and it'd surpassed the almost dozen other high end bikes I'd tested. In moments like those during a test ride you forget the marketing waffle and soak in the mystical properties of the ride based upon what you feel because at the end of the day that's all that matters. Does it work for you? yes/no... Needless to say I rode it some more, literally rode through the open door to Mikes Bikes and whilst still sat on the bike handed over the card...

... and the knob-jockey sales guy that looked like he'd be sprouting facial hair sometime around 2015, still had the nerve to tell me that I needed a 56cm frame instead of the 58 I was on. I told him I don't want a circus bike - I want to be comfy and if he was going to argue I'd be putting my debit card away. That was a conversation ender...
 

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