2018 Sequoia Elite

HAD THE BIKE SINCE 2017 AND STILL GOING STRONG!

2018 Great steel ride comfortable for long rides . The 105 group is good . The wheels are junk The rear died like 2k miles. The bike is 25lbs pounds but I am a big guy so its 8lbs heavier than my carbon Madone and you feel the difference on climbs .the stock tires are stupid slow . I really like this bike crash it a couple times and frame still in good condition despite having to pull chain stay back to specs something I would never do on an aluminum bike if it was carbon the frame would been trashed .STEEL IS REAL HOW CARES ABOUT 8LBS

I got the Sequoia in 2017, Red Shift Suspension seatpost/stem, Axis Sport wheels from a Crux, flat bar 640 Specialized 50mm rise, EST Chunky grips, Barr Mitts in winter, Large Specialized Burra Burra top tube bag, I ride all year in Michigan, great bike to personalize. Flat bar I should have done long ago, rs 505 11 sp shifter didn't make it to 4000 miles, trigger shifters are great. mostly a gravel bike, snowpacked gravel in winter, the Sawtooth tires grip snowpack like they are made from Octopi..

This bike has done everything. Its been used as a commuter, a grocery getter, a weekend gravel bike, a zippy road bike, a touring bike, a bikepacking bike, and even used to help conduct an experiment for my thesis. With city slicks it can take off on the road, with gravel tires it will bomb down forestry roads. Its dependable, comfortable, (a little heavy but) solid, -- and beautiful. I love this bike, and it loves me. 30,000km down, 100s of 1000s to go. One note is that the stock wheel hubs were pretty shit, and I had quite a bit of trouble with those initially. Sealed cartridge bearings should be a given on a gravel bike at this price, c'mon Specialized.

Two broken spokes in the first year . . . then seam split on rim at 27 months. Only rode bicycle on paved roads and hard-pack bicycle trails - never more than 40-pounds in the paniers. Warranty wasn't honored, although LBS sold me a new Trek Wheel at reduced cost. Took Specialized 8-months to decline my warranty appeal.

I have had the 2017 model since July of 2017. I've ridden it over 11,000 miles over a variety of surfaces. In times when my road bike was in the shop, I've used it on group rides and centuries. The Sequoia excels as a light touring bike, bike packer or commuter/grocery getter. The wide tires makes it very forgiving and comfortable. I agree with earlier reviews that the wheels aren't great. I replaced mine with DT Swiss CR 1600 and went tubeless. This was a huge improvement. The seat cover tore and the right shifter failed. The shifter was replaced under Shimano warranty. I may switch to 650b because I think I'm going to dedicate this bike more towards gravel, bike packing/camping. I prefer steel bikes and this met my needs at the price I could afford. I'd give it 5 stars if the wheels were better.

The bike is a tad heavy. I'd like to see the geometry in carbon or aluminum, but the geometry is very comfortable for gravel and touring. I like the 105 group, much, much better than the 2019 SRAM Apex 1, better breaking and faster gearing. The wheels need more like 700x35-38 rubber and be 3 lbs. lighter with sealed bearings. The bearings are pretty poor for $2k bikee. My first upgrades where a new wheelset, tyres, carbon seat post and Brooks C17 saddle. Should be a great commuter and long range gravel bike. Replacing my Spec. Globe Comp with same comfort level. PS. the matte paint jobs in the 2017 & 2019 bikes need a gloss upgrade, everything sticks to it. New wheels and thicker gloss paint it's 5 stars. aka. a Sequoia Expert like ride.

I bought an AWOL (base model) two years ago (I know they longer make them, but it's similar to the Sequoia) and have been super happy with it. I've ridden it on dirt, gravel and commuting. Even with the truly horrible winter we just had in Iowa City, I was able to ride to work all but a couple of days. I'm hoping to take it on a longer, multi-day excursion this summer.

bought elite model in '17. I enjoy that I can ride it almost anywhere but: 1. seatpost clamp kept slipping-replaced at my cost with heavier clamp 2. wheels heavy and repeated broken spokes and cracked rims-replaced wheels at my cost 3. front mech cable frayed inside shifter-replaced at my cost 4. rear cassette is for MB and rear mech for road bike-very difficult to get into adjustment-replaced with road cassette at my cost 5. seat came apart-replaced with brooks at my cost 6. and finally frame cracked and specialized is sending new bike-under warranty-I'm holding my breath......... believe it or not I still enjoy the bike-it is comfortable, stable and fun to ride. with the wheels upgraded I can keep up easily if I ride it with my friends on their road bikes.

I purchased this bike for some light bike packing and credit card camping trips. It was perfect for those with tons of mounting points (three water bottles, fork mounts for bags, etc.) and super reliable components. What I didn't expect was the plush ride. This bike is the smoothest I have ridden and as a result it has become by daily ride unless I'm racing (though I did see one being raced at an Ironman 70.3 this Spring). The adventure gearing is perfect for anything with a super wide gear range and I love the Sawtooth tires...they last forever and have tons of grip on pavement or gravel. I also have become a believer again in steel (steel is real!) though this is not an old school design but rather the newest frame building technology that just happens to use steel as the material. I think this is what makes for such a great ride. Yes, the bike is a tiny bit heavy (the wheel set could go on a little diet) but the tradeoff is a super planted stable ride. I honestly never notice the weight unless it is a super steep climb greater than 10%. There are also great touches on this bike...like the hover bars with their subtle flare of the drops. I have put a ton of miles on this bike and encourage everyone to give it look. It is a bargain for a sophisticated do-it-all bike. I love mine.

I currently have over 2,600 miles on my sage Sequoia Elite. Factory hubs were gone at 2,000 miles. LBS replaced hubs with no hassle under warranty with SRAM 900's. Factory wheels need to go on a diet, they are nice & wide but heavy! Currently using Stan's Arch Mk.3 wheel-set, with 38mm Sawtooth tires, great combo with a big weight savings. Other modifications include an Easton carbon seat post and a 50/34 Shimano 105 crankset. I also love my Specialized Power seat! Great bike! I ride it mostly on the road with occasional single track & gravel mixed in. Extremely comfortable for all day touring and light trail riding. This is the bike I grab the most just to take off and ride on! Not the lightest but steel is real!

I've probably put around 2k miles on my Sequoia Elite since I bought it. It's the most comfortable ride I've ever had and I've enjoyed having it. Been using it as intended on on gravel and road rides with no real touring, but lots of long weekend rides. Everything has held out pretty well and I'm happy overall. But, the hubs on these wheels generally suck. Specialized were good enough to provide a replacement wheel on the third month after taking it to my store of purchase and going through the warranty process after it started making clicking noises and being generally rough to ride on. Then when it happened again, the warranty amounted to getting a credit towards a wheel rebuild which ended up costing quite a bit more than the credit. Now that I have non-specialized hub on the rear wheel, I expect to have this bike last forever. Depending on your use of this bike, then I would consider the expert version which has better components but is double the price.

It has met my expectations for the most part except for the wheels. They're just too heavy for gravel riding however they're awesome for bikepacking or long distance touring. The Sequoia has been a very comfortable bike for long distance gravel riding, absorbing washboards well, stays stable whenever I start falling apart. When things gets a bit rough, the Sequoia feels quite sure footed and holds its line very well. To make the bike a bit more comfortable and lighter, I've added a carbon seatpost and different tires and the tires alone has helped make the Sequoia a bit more lively. Am looking forward to doing more adventures with the Sequoia!

I absolutely love this bike (base model) BUT, rust after 1 ride??? I am really disappointed... Seemed like a waste of money and time. Top riding quality, great feel, gears and cranks do their job, but oh the rust... I don't understand why Specialized would put out such a bad rust protection on this great product. I had a steel bike for years before and never had a problem with rust... I'm not even sure if I should demand a new one on guarantee, because rust seems to be a problem across all Sequoia models. I'm torn... I love the bike and the brand. But I'll write more comprehensively about on my blog. I would recommend the bike to a friend, but a rich one with money to redo the paint job and pay for rust protection.

Bought my Sequoia Elite in April 2017 to ride dirt roads and occasional commuting. I really enjoy dirt roads on this bike. The wheels are heavy but they are supposed to be durable except the rear hub started grinding after 1 month and dealer ordered a new one which took a month. Also, watch out for rust. Mine never sees water except when I wash it and I already noticed rust on seat post when I pulled it out.

In 2017 I drove from Switzerland to Athens on my Sequoia Elite. Everything was wonderful and the only troubles I encountered were a broken spoke and one (!) puncture after almost 3'800 km / 2360 miles. And I had to change the handle bar tape to a softer one. The default one is way too thin for long distance cycling on gravel roads. Having four panniers with gear and a tent I thought the seat stays could have been built a bit more stable to prevent from being bent in winding downhills.

I use 52mm dry tech specialized fenders on this bike with the stock 42mm sawtooth tires. Ride on road primary and gravel dirt 2nd. Also do fast bunch rides on this in the rain with great stop power in the hydro brakes. Doing long centuries, and exploration rides. Paint grabs oil/grease easy, needs clean off with simple green frequently. Sub compact gearing is A+ for fast sprints and uphill loaded climbing. Fork with 2 cages or jacket strapped to it or food is great. Would buy again. Cg-r seatpost upgrade. Elite with California sage is my color/ model. Be sure to retune spokes after break in period of about 250 mi, as well as retune cables/ shifters at that time too. Then you're golden! Have about 420 miles on elite as of January 2018. My go to festive 500 hh foul weather machine.