Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL8 vs SL9

By Sam Nelson

Long-time iRIDE customer Sam Nelson has owned a number of bikes over the years, including a Specialized Crux gravel bike. After a chance to ride the S-Works Tarmac SL9 and SL8 back-to-back, he shares what stood out, and whether he’d make the change.

AT A GLANCE

The shared feel. Two refined race bikes with all-day appeal.
The standout difference. A more instant, snappy response from the SL9 when accelerating out of the saddle.
The upgrade question. For Sam, the SL9 has the edge, but the SL8 remains an exceptional bike.

THE RIDE

After a fun few hours attacking, putting in some efforts and generally throwing both bikes around, firstly on the SL9, then on the SL8, here are my thoughts.

Both feel like properly refined race bikes, crisp, planted and connected to the road, but without feeling like bikes you’d only want to ride hard for an hour or two. I could happily spend all day on either of them.

WHERE THE SL9 FEELS DIFFERENT

The biggest difference for me was the out of the saddle acceleration. Neither bike feels remotely sluggish, but the SL9 had this noticeably instant, snappy response when getting on the pedals. It just seemed to launch into an effort that little bit more eagerly.
On general rolling terrain, both were fantastic. Get them up to a decent pace and they just eat up the road. The only other difference I noticed was that the SL9 seemed slightly more compliant over rougher surfaces, although that could easily have come down to differences in wheels, tyres or setup rather than the frame itself.

WOULD I MAKE THE CHANGE?

For me, that’s the biggest takeaway. If I already owned an SL8, unless I was racing at a level where marginal aero gains really mattered, why change? The SL8 is already an exceptional bike. For me, the SL9 is the better bike overall, but the differences I felt were small.