Carbon aero road bike Trek Madone SL 6 AXS: wireless SRAM Rival AXS, 10-36 cassette, carbon wheels, 8.11 kg

Trek Madone SL 6 AXS era white: the aero bike that isn't afraid of the cols

The Trek Madone SL 6 AXS Gen 8 combines an aerodynamic OCLV Series 500 carbon frame, wireless SRAM Rival AXS 2x12 and Bontrager Aeolus Elite 48 carbon wheels, for 8.11 kg in size ML. With its 48/35 chainset and 10-36 cassette, it is the easiest Madone to take up long climbs. The Era White colourway, a clean, bright solid white, highlights the tube shapes and stands out clearly in the summer sun.

Technical specifications

Who is it for?

For the sportive rider who wants a modern race bike without giving up low gears, for the light rider who climbs a lot but also loves riding fast on the flat, or for someone moving from an endurance bike to a sportier position. It is aimed at riders who count metres of climbing rather than kilometres.

The LVR workshop view

OCLV carbon, Trek's signature. Since 1992, Trek has compacted its carbon plies under heat and pressure to drive out micro-voids, and the series number reflects the refinement of the layup. On this Madone SL, OCLV 500 gives a painted frame of 1,054 g in ML, plus a 363 g fork: around 270 g more than the SLR frameset, for a far more affordable bike. The frame is still covered by Trek's lifetime warranty.

Put simply: on the scales, the gap between OCLV 500 and OCLV 900 is roughly a full bottle. The SL 6 AXS keeps the Full System Foil silhouette, the IsoFlow and the tyre clearance of the SLR models; what an SLR adds is mainly a few grams saved and a one-piece bar and stem.

A 35x36 is a gear rarely seen on an aero road bike: it lets you keep a decent cadence on 10 % ramps without redlining. At the other end, the 48x10 gives the same top gear as a classic 53x11, so there is no frustration on fast descents.

On the climb of the Caroux via Douch or the hairpins of the Col de Fontfroide, this Madone feels at ease despite its 8.11 kg, as the IsoFlow soaks up the bumps and relieves the lower back on long ascents. In the workshop, we adjust the AXS derailleur and update its firmware before handover; the removable battery is then recharged on the charger supplied.

Which Madone should you choose?

Our take: compared with the SL 6 with Shimano 105 Di2, the SL 6 AXS saves 50 g and gains an easier 36-tooth sprocket. The SL 7 saves 240 g; you need the OCLV 900 carbon of the SLR 7 AXS to get down to 7.22 kg.

Your questions

Why buy from LVR Cycles? In Béziers, our workshop prepares your Madone SL 6 AXS, updates the AXS drivetrain and fine-tunes your position during a bike fit before your first mountain ride.

Please note that the specifications may be changed without prior notice by the manufacturer, based on the availability of components and other factors.