Carbon electric gravel bike Trek Checkpoint+ SL 5 fjord blue: TQ HPR60 360 Wh, Shimano GRX 1x12, 13.81 kg in ML

Trek Checkpoint+ SL 5 Fjord Blue: the carbon electric gravel bike with Shimano GRX

The Trek Checkpoint+ SL 5 combines an OCLV Series 500 carbon frame with IsoSpeed, the 60 Nm TQ HPR60 motor, a 360 Wh TQ battery and a 12-speed single-chainring Shimano GRX drivetrain on an XT 10-51 cassette. Trek quotes 13.81 kg in size ML. Its Fjord Blue/Cobalt Blue paintwork slides from a light glacier blue to an intense cobalt blue.

Technical specifications

Who is it for?

For the rider who wants to discover electric gravel riding on a carbon frame, with a mechanical drivetrain that is easy to adjust and fix. It suits riders who alternate between quiet lanes and white gravel tracks, and want to hold a steady pace even when the trail kicks up.

The LVR workshop view

OCLV carbon, Trek's signature. The Checkpoint+ SL 5 gets an OCLV Series 500 carbon frame, Trek's first carbon level, moulded using the in-house process: the plies are compacted under pressure and heat to eliminate voids between the fibres. Trek fits in the TQ motor, the battery and all the wiring without giving up IsoSpeed or the luggage mounts. Like all OCLV frames, it benefits from Trek's lifetime warranty.

In short: the SL 5 shares the frame, carbon fork and motor of the more expensive Checkpoint+ SL models. The difference lies in the drivetrain, a cable-operated Shimano GRX derailleur instead of SRAM wireless, for almost the same weight as the SL 6 AXS.

The GRX RX822 derailleur takes up to 51 teeth: with the Shimano XT 10-51 cassette, you have a very low gear for stony ramps, with no chainring to change. On the tracks around Béziers and along the Canal du Midi, by contrast, you stay on the smaller sprockets and the assist fades into the background. A cable drivetrain can be adjusted at the side of the trail with a simple tool.

The 42 mm Bontrager Girona Pro tyres, tubeless ready with GR protection, roll well on tarmac and hold on dry gravel; the frame takes up to 50 mm for winter or loose ground. The TQ HPR60 motor delivers 250 W continuous and 350 W peak, and its help cuts out at 25 km/h as on any e-bike.

Which Checkpoint+ should you choose?

Our take: the SL 5 weighs 13.81 kg in ML, only 50 g more than the SL 6 AXS (13.76 kg). The difference between the two lies in moving from cable to SRAM wireless, not in weight; the SL 7 AXS (14.05 kg) adds a suspension fork and carbon wheels.

Your questions

Why buy from LVR Cycles? As a Trek dealer in Béziers, we adjust your GRX drivetrain, set the tyres up tubeless and update the TQ system on your Checkpoint+ before your first ride.