Sometimes two wheels will get you from A to B in the stone jungle or the countryside better than four. And you don't have to betray your favourite automobile brand either. So let's go for a bicycle ride.
Who said four wheels are better than two? All the civilised Europe and half of Asia too have already appreciated the advantages offered by two-wheel transport. Leading car makers are quite willing to support their fans in their striving for a healthy and environmentally friendly lifestyle by offering brand-name bicycles.
Ciao, Italia
When we say Italy we mean style, when we say style we mean Italy. Accordingly, bikes by Italian car manufacturers are first and foremost about style.
Alfa Romeo
One of the world's automobile fashion trendsetters, Centro Stile Alfa Romeo and Ducale, presented a line of luxury accessories: Alfa Romeo bicycles. It includes three types of models: Stradale for cruising on good roads, Cross for negotiating rough terrain and racing Competizione models.
The last group deserves a special note: Competizione bikes are truly professional sport bicycles. Carbon frames and front wheel forks allowed to reduce the overall weight to just 6.9 kilos. The main component parts are made by Campagnolo. The line includes four models.
Competizione Record is a professional road bicycle. The Record Fashion version comes with carbon wheels. Competizione Chorus is the most basic model in the line but still one of the leaders in its class. All three bikes feature frames covered with two layers of brand-name red 8С paint. 8C Competizione is an embodiment of challenging spirit, the two-wheel successor to the supercar, a bike for champions. Its transmission ratio is different than the one in the Record model. And the unpainted supertough carbon frame is sure to provide veritable aesthetic bliss for the speed aficionados.
Ferrari
Ferrari didn't leave its fans without a two-wheel alternative either. The latest bicycle for "Maranello Stallions" - CX 70 - combines brand-name design with highest technology. Ultralight aluminium frame, Cyber Nexus accessories by Shimano, Continental Explorer Pro 26" tires and painstakingly chosen little things like handles and seat upholstered with the same leather as Ferrari Luxury Edition's passenger compartment. The advantages of a two-wheel Ferrari over its four-wheel relative are quite obvious: no queuing, no quotas and of course the affordable price – a bit more than €2,000.
German order
German premium car makers aren't ready to make way for others in the bicycle segment either: each of the "big three" offers a line of bike models.
BMW
BMW comes with three all-terrain models: Enduro, Enduro Special Edition and mountain Cross Country. Enduro has everything for free riding, going across mountainous terrain and through mountain passes. The four-hinged rear suspension is particularly sensitive, while the Manitou Minute front wheel fork "swallows" even the biggest bumps on the ground with its 140 mm absorption travel. A profiled aluminium frame provides unsurpassed toughness. Cross Country is a veritable sporting bolide with four-hinged rear suspension and one of the best front wheel forks in the world - Manitou R7 with 100 mm travel and Lockout function which can be turned on at any time, even in motion, by a handlebar-mounted shift. Shimano XTR rear shift and Magura hydraulic disk brakes (weighing just 350 grams) will make any trip a safe and engaging adventure.
For those who like riding along busy streets or empty boulevards, BMW presents the Cruise model. It has a striking personality, elegant design and good dynamics. The frame geometry ensures exceptionally comfortable seating. Shimano 24-step transmission allows to ride off road as well.
As for the BMW Touring bike, it will make any journey simply inimitable. The gel seat and shock-absorbing supporting pillar make riding pleasurable for many kilometres. 27-step transmission allows dealing even with the steepest slopes quite easily. This bicycle has everything to ride on public roads, from wheel fender, light sensor and parking lights to reflector. All these things make riding safer and more pleasant.
Audi design mountain bikes received numerous best design awards. Like cars by the same manufacturer, the bicycles are sporty, featuring advanced design and innovative technologies as well as top-quality materials and craftsmanship.
Audi
Audi bicycle designers pay particular attention to the light aluminium frame created with the help of Audi Space Frame technology. The seat support with its finely crafted details makes a sharp visual contrast to the powerful thick tubes of the main frame.
The pearl of the Audi bicycle line is Audi design Cross Pro RS. It's a top-end model: the advanced Shimano XTR/XT transmission with integrated carriage not only allowed to greatly reduce the weight but at the same time made the whole drive system much stronger. The SPV shock absorption system with Manitou Minute 2:00 front wheel fork and Manitou Swinger Air absorption pillar prevents running gear swinging due to the drive's impact and the cyclist's shifting their weight. The SPV ignores that sort of impact but immediately reacts to any bump on the ground. This allows for the most efficient use of pedalling effort and gives full control over the bike on any kind of road surface. Plus there's an opportunity to adjust cushioning, shock absorption and the SPV system at the fork and absorption pillar.
The lightweight, fully hydraulic disk brakes remain perfectly sensitive and reliable in dry and damp weather alike. Audi design Cross Pro RS comes with a set of very lightweight Mavic Crossmax SL Disc wheels. Their component parts are made of aluminium alloys specially designed for high pressure. For example, an aluminium alloy rim provides about 30% more stable than ordinary aluminium rim wheels. And the special Continental Vapor Pro tires with original new profile design not just reduce roll resistance but ensure perfect friction with any kind of road or ground surface, so the bike rolls amazingly quietly on the road and goes equally well across country.
Mercedes
Mercedes-Benz Accessories GmbH drafted professionals from the ADP Engineering GmbH, maker of the famous Rotwild bicycles, to work on their own bikes. Now the Stuttgart company offers a line of three bicycle models.
Elegant and comfortable bikes of the Fitness series feature tough aluminium frame, light magnesium fork with rigid fixation option, reliable Shimano Alivio transmission and efficient disk brakes.
Lavishly equipped Trekking bicycles feel quite at home on any road - or off it. The reinforced aluminium frame allows taking on up to 25 kg of luggage. An interesting technological novelty is a light sensor automatically switching on the front halogen light and rear lights.
The pinnacle of the "collection" is a veritable racing bolide: extremely light carbon frame, parts by the famous Italian maker Campangolo. This bike is good enough for active pastime enthusiasts and professional sportsmen alike.
The latest creation of Mercedes-Benz Accessories GmbH engineers will find its fans among megapolis residents fed up with traffic jams: it's a folding Mercedes. The unique system allows to fold the bike in a single motion, turning it into a compact 800x800x280 mm package which easily fits into a car booth. And then, say, if there was simply no parking place next to your favourite restaurant and you had to park some distance away, you can take it out and ride back…
Ilya Kalinov
Photoreport
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