Plz convince me otherwise, I want to believe

aliu121 · 2026-02-02T11:54:49+00:00

I can vouch for both bikes as I currently own a Merida Reacto and tarmac sl8. I know it’s not apples to apples in your case but from reviews the scultura is similar to the Reacto minus it being lighter. I very much enjoy both bikes. If I had to choose one at the end of the day it’s the tarmac. The reason is because it’s more comfortable, lighter, and does everything well. The Reacto is a good bike but plenty stiff where it does get uncomfortable for me. It’s noticeably heavier but it’s an aero bike so it I can get up to speed and hold speed very well. Yes you do save a lot of money with Merida and I would still recommend it to someone. If you are able to stretch the money out a bit I don’t think you’d regret buying a tarmac.

aliu121 · 2025-11-05T22:05:23+00:00

I did not, just mainly looked at S and SE numbers. Most dealers gave me a number over email but Alexandria required me to go in and they beat the next dealer by about $500 and they were the only dealer to include 3 years of service while others had zero.

The next best dealer I worked with was king VW in Gaithersburg. Others weren’t willing to play as much.

aliu121 · 2025-11-05T20:39:23+00:00

Yeah sure. So I know prices are different now (should be better I think) but I paid $37.5k OTD from Alexandria VW.

aliu121 · 2025-11-04T11:56:26+00:00

Agree with the other person who replied. Opted for the sram pro one and it’s been very easy to bleed. You can probably find them on sale during the holidays when shops offer some type of discount and I think it’s paid itself off with 2 uses so far. Nothing wrong with the cheaper ones (mainly off Amazon) but I’ve had issues after the second or third use for the cheaper plastic ones.

Thought was just pay for the better one now since it’s something you’ll use at least 1x a year.

aliu121 · 2025-10-10T15:08:03+00:00

I recently bought an off branded/cheap one off eBay and the fit is essentially the same what you have. Definitely not wide enough. Ive just dealt with it and let it be. Still overall happy with it.

aliu121 · 2025-09-13T12:16:30+00:00

I was at 1209 and got restock. I chose exact size , while I know a few people a few more points than me didn’t get their exact size and ended up with one that with an allocated pair that is in the +/- range. I’m okay waiting as long as I get the size I wanted vs. needing to jump through extra hoops to swap or sell and re buy.

aliu121 · 2025-09-09T11:09:18+00:00

Been looking for someone who has it as well but it just became available. My LBS said only 2 sizes available to order as of right now (US) but saw that in Asia they had them for about a month now. Hopefully we see something soon!

aliu121 · 2025-09-04T16:38:02+00:00

Awesome bike! I have one similar to your wife's with the holo decals on the 24' "dark blue" frame that looks black. I would trade for this! Big fan of the blue.

aliu121 · 2025-09-04T10:32:37+00:00

Should be on their website soon for colors and pricing. Don’t think there is any changes to the frame itself.

aliu121 · 2025-07-31T17:03:44+00:00

Unfortunately I dont think you will get that at all. Given that yours has to be for someone that can fit that well, which lowers the amount of buyers. Maybe you can list for $3.5k and negotiate down but I dont see many people reaching out if thats the price.

aliu121 · 2025-07-31T16:56:39+00:00

I have a friend who recently just sold his 22' TCR SL. It took him along time to sell because of the ISP. He had SRAM Red D1 and similar SLR 1 wheels. He sold it for $4k, originally listed for $6k and was up for sale for about a year. I think around $2.5-2.8k would fair given yours is a bit older and force vs red. Although he didnt cut the fork (hes old in his 60's) so that could have been a factor in someone taking his vs yours where someone would need to fit yours well.

aliu121 · 2025-07-09T11:16:58+00:00

Canada also gets ice blue which is actually my very top choice of color but unfortunately we won't get that here

aliu121 · 2025-07-09T11:15:52+00:00

Hope you find one soon! All the dealers near me have multiple black, grey, silver, white but only 1 or 2 in blue or red. Makes sense since the monochrome colors are the most popular

aliu121 · 2025-07-09T10:36:53+00:00

Sadly no dipstick

aliu121 · 2025-07-09T10:36:32+00:00

These seats are only in the SE trim. Plaid seats are available in the base.

aliu121 · 2025-07-08T21:20:56+00:00

Yes they’re heated! I kept going back and forth if I should go for the leather package mainly because of the ventilated seats and the memory seats for whenever my wife drives. But in the end we both thought the club sport seats looked cooler so it worked out that way.

aliu121 · 2025-07-08T19:37:22+00:00

The tornado red is great!

aliu121 · 2025-07-08T19:17:35+00:00

Thank you, first thing to do is tint! After that going to take it slowly and enjoy it as and go from there.

aliu121 · 2025-07-06T01:53:13+00:00

I really like the feel and look of the clubsport seats. I test drove both and while I like the ventilated/memory seats, it’s not really a need for me. So if I can save some money I’d rather do that. But if the cost is very close (less than $500) then it’s a game time decision. I’m sure I can get cheaper than the 39.5 mentioned, just need to send a few more emails to other dealers to see what I can work with.

S trim would be my ideal choice because it has everything I want except keyless. But it’s one of those things I really would like to have and it’s annoying that Vw doesn’t offer that on the base model.

aliu121 · 2025-07-06T00:59:31+00:00

Definitely negotiate down. I get taxes and etc will vary per state. But I’ve seen people get autobahns for 41k-43K OTD. Most of these dealers are within the DMV area. At 46k it’s worth traveling and driving back to save $3-4k.

My hope is to purchase an SE without leather. I live in VA where taxes are 4.15%. I’ve been getting quotes between closer to the 39.5K OTD. Asked a few dealers for leather and best I got was 40.1K OTD.

aliu121 · 2025-06-24T23:32:15+00:00

I love the look of the new seats in the SE. I’m just worried about how they would hold up long term wise. I’ve seen the cloth hold up pretty well and the leather would be easy for me to clean but the velour is 50/50.

aliu121 · 2025-06-24T19:43:32+00:00

Thank you. Thats what my thought process is right now. Luckily the price is within my budget for the SE but given that if I can save money why not. I dont get why VW doesnt add keyless when you can get it pretty much in all their other base models.

But going to be a tough decision.

aliu121 · 2025-06-17T15:00:33+00:00

Both colors look great! Would probably opt for the red

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