That was a reply to ChrisL about what the SL8 will bring over the SL7. Someone else on here called it the other week and it makes total sense. Firm’s are building stiffer and aero bikes, losing compliance and working to balance that with bigger tyres.
Next iteration the focus could well be ‘comfort’ and compliance whilst keeping bikes as fast and not adding weight.
ohs I am sorry, my mistake.
no worries at all I was very late in clicking reply and his post was a few up 
As noted, it is likely a tubular wheel vs clincher…however, it is also very possible that the CLX64 is more aero. The Tarmac is looking to balance weight / aero. Had they opted for a deeper wheel, it could have been more aero, but also heavier.
Obviously need to see the data to be sure…but seems a reasonable assumption.
I think it kind of flew under the radar but the Expert has a lower time save quoted on its product page of 33 seconds over 40km where the Pro and the S-Works both say 45.
So the Aerofly handlebars and the wheels are worth an extra 12 seconds off your 40km time. Interesting as I think most people thought it would be closer to a 50/50 frame/components rather than 75/25 as suggested here.
Some original photos here: https://www.81496.com/jouhou/road/specialized2021/38164.html
That’s also the one I’ve ordered so when I get it I’ll upload photos. That likely won’t be for at least another week unfortunately.
Off topic… but any pedal recommendations with the bike? I just ordered an SL7 and currently use the Favero Assioma’s (which I love). Obviously duplicative to use those with the SL7 given the powermeter. Thanks.
If you don’t need power pedals then everybody I know who has Speedplay absolutely loves them. And believe they also test as the most aero on the market as well, can’t imagine there’s a lot of gains to be had but it all adds up!
The “aero” test specialized is marketing with the SL7 against the SL6 and the Venge is using the venge aerofly II bars AND the Roval CLX64s, not what is coming stock on the s works out of the box. There is some tomfoolery in those numbers
Nowadays its so easy for most of us to check that aero thing or even check if we really go 45sec faster with the new bike.
Just go to your garmin account or whatever cycling computer you use, do the same ride you did before and have a look if you really went faster or not and all of that stuff.
Specialized or whatever other brand you like they do marketing all the time, they have to sell you the new bike no matter what as you have said in your post so…
You are joking, right? 
Aero testing with any level of accuracy is far from easy and well beyond “just compare a couple of the same rides”. It requires a very accurate and consistent power data source, consistent rider position and clothing among other things, and a very active effort to repeat routes with close precision, not to mention consistent wind conditions (best is no wind at all).
Check out the Chung Method if you really want to do a worthwhile comparison. In short, it takes real effort and time if you want decent info.
Anything less is not much better than guessing.
You must have a really good level for all of that, in a regular day with your friends riding i don’t know 100km for example, do you really thing you would find any difference about the timing, the 100grams you added to your bike because whatever reason or anything else?
If you can feel it i mean you ride with the specialized sl7 the pro or sworks and you ride with the last trek thats in the market or whatever other bike you want and you find a huge difference as i said, you must be a really good biker otherwise doesnt really matter.
Its my opinion, nothing else.
You are talking about three different things.
Your original statement:
Your second statement:
Then a third statement:
Mcneese.chad i like the way you reply to me, i mean i like what you have said on there and i agree on your answers but i find it quite difficult, at least for me, to be able to check “the new aero thing” in the new tarmac and compare it with any other bike or the previous tarmac.
The Chung Method you mentioned before, seems to be a very good way for that but are methods for pro people, i think.
In this thread there are two kind of riders i guess, people like you that really knows everything involved in a bike, that like to test every single detail and that can give a good answer about any subject, then there is people like me that is into cycling but not at that high level.
I like to learn and read new stuff and this one could be a good threat for that.
All good points. I’d break it down like this. People typically throw around 10% changes as a rough threshold for our perception of change in various arenas. I’d say that it’s likely you could reliably detect the difference in perceived effort of your round tube shallow wheel bike vs, let’s say, a venge with aero wheels. I don’t think you’d have much chance at all discerning between this SL7, an SL6, or a venge though.
Totally agree. The aero claims from any manufacturer must be taken with a grain of salt. Even if they publish detailed info about the testing and proof of those claims, it’s not easy to check those claims.
It takes a wind tunnel (expensive and rare) or the Chung Method (difficult to implement with accuracy) to really try to verify aero claims.
In either case, most of us have no “real reason” to put in that type of effort. The results from any of those advantages are largely irrelevant to most people (again, right on track with you there).
We are effectively left to trust them or not and chose as we see fit. Honestly, stuff is so good these days, that there is likely a minimal difference in any direction between major manufacturers. That leads me to say that people can probably pick based on any preference they have (color, brand, style, etc.) and be confident that what they have is good and competitive with any other product from that period and price range.
I appreciate the props, but I am well short of knowing a great many things in this realm. I also have no desire to wade into the actual testing related to the aero world here. Way too much work for something I sure don’t need to know at that level.
I am “blessed” with a decent ability to see the complexity and messy nature of some things and usually know just enough to be dangerous on a range of topics 
I appreciate the discussion. Happy training. 
Thanks! Appreciate it. I just noticed that this pic doesn’t have the aero wheels or flat bar which seem to be pictured in the specialized page for the expert at $5k.
Am I wrong? I just went to check and the site is down for maintenance.
I did find this, and it looks like it will be a good read, but they added their own wheels it seems.
Nice find! Interesting, that silver looks more white than silver in those photos. I was also surprised to see that the aero bars don’t come on it (I thought they did) and the wheels look “normal”. I thought they were about 25-30ish deep.
I did find this too…
Specialized.com down for maintenance? Ohhh noooo…
I know only a handful of people who get into things like Chung testing or wind tunnel time, and they’re nearly all TTers or triathletes. And even then they’re not really comparing one bike to another, they’ve already chosen a bike at that point and are using the testing to refine their position or to compare different equipment options for things that are a bit more affordable than getting a new bike - aerosuits, helmets, tires, maybe front wheel, etc.
So at the end of the day if you want to know how many watts you save going from an SL6 to an SL7 you pretty much have to rely on the manufacturer’s own claims or hope that a credible independent magazine does some testing. Or just buy the red one, since red is always faster 