At what point does a gravel bike become a mountain bike? I’ve been pondering that question a lot lately, and though I don’t quite have the answer, I can say that the Specialized Diverge 4 — despite having front suspension and clearance for wide, 2.2-inch tires — is a gravel bike in the best way. It’s fast, comfortable, and lighter than any of my mountain bikes, even with its budget-friendly aluminum alloy frame.
Specialized Diverge 4 Comp Alloy key specs
- Weight: 11.3kg (24.9lb) as tested
- Price: $2,699.99
- Buy from Specialized
On the trail… and on gravel and asphalt, too
The Specialized Diverge is the more adventure-oriented gravel bike in the brand’s lineup, so naturally, I was keen to test it on singletrack trails right off the bat. Though the stock, 45mm-wide Specialized Tracer TLR All Terrain tires don’t offer a lot of grip in loose conditions, there’s enough volume to absorb hits from rocks and roots that would otherwise kick the wheels off line. The geometry, as upright as it is compared to even a cross-country race bike, leaves the rider in a position that’s just short of sketchy when riding green and light-blue trails. It’s thrilling.
With 20mm of front suspension travel, I found I could push the Diverge faster than other gravel bikes I’ve tested with rigid front ends. And this wasn’t just limited to riding singletrack; on gravel roads, even with such a minimal amount of suspension travel, the Diverge connects seamlessly to the surface. Though the Future Shock on the alloy Diverge is coil-only with no hydraulic damping, it’s surprisingly effective at keeping the front wheel tracking the ground in a variety of conditions.
I was concerned that the Future Shock front end would detract from the responsive, efficient gravel-bike feel I’ve come to expect when riding drop-bar bikes on pavement. In fact, there’s very little movement from the shock, even pedaling out of the saddle. I only noticed the suspension when I hopped off the tarmac onto chunky cut-throughs — and when I finished the ride with noticeably fresher-feeling arms. Vibration damping from the suspension is a real benefit.
Share your Specialized Diverge 4 Comp Alloy review
Over three months of testing, I realized the Diverge 4 is a bike that easily covers all of the riding I do outside of mountain biking. It feels fast and efficient on the road for my Wandrer rides. It’s absolutely perfect for riding gravel roads. I’d love to take it bikepacking. And it’s a fun bike — albiet sometimes silly — for singletrack trail rides. In short, it’s a quiver killer for my drop-bar collection.
The Specialized Diverge 4 alloy frame is feature-rich
The Diverge 4 alloy frame boasts a number of modern features that make for a versatile gravel bike. For starters, the frame is UDH-compatible, which not only gives buyers a wide range of drivetrain choices, it also makes sourcing replacement derailleur hangers a breeze.
Like the carbon Diverge frames, the alloy version features SWAT internal frame storage in the downtube. There’s room inside to store a flat repair kit, a rain jacket, and a snack, and the secure door latch can be released with one hand. Unfortunately, unlike some of the Specialized mountain bikes I’ve tested, this gravel bike doesn’t ship with any SWAT tools or accessories included.
The Diverge 4 alloy has six mounting points, allowing for pretty much whatever bottle cage, bag, and fender combination you can think of. Or you could just put bottle cages on every mount as shown in the screen grab above. 😂 My test bike shipped with two water bottle cages already attached to the frame.
All the cables and hoses on the Diverge 4 are internally routed. The dropper post routing on this alloy frame is a little different compared to the carbon model, with the dropper cable exiting the downtube briefly before re-entering at the back side of the seat tube. The upshot is that this promises to make installing the cable slightly easier.
One thing I find annoying is the use of internal brake hose routing on the included FACT carbon fork. The hose is only inside the fork for eight inches, so in my opinion, there’s not a lot being gained aesthetically or aerodynamically. And the downside is the need to re-bleed and futz with hose routing anytime you swap the front brake.
For an alloy frame, there’s actually a lot of cheap-looking plastic on this bike, notably the Future Shock headset cover and the large SWAT door. I suppose those bits would stand out less against a darker frame color.
Some were disappointed when Specialized discontinued the Diverge STR, which featured 30mm of rear Future Shock suspension. Personally, I didn’t miss having rear suspension, even when riding the chunky stuff, and I like the look of the Diverge 4 better than the old STR.
The Specialized Diverge 4 frame has room for tires up to 50mm wide. That’s just shy of two inches, though Specialized says the frame will also fit their 29×2.2″ Air Trak mountain bike tire.
The colorway shown here is known as Gloss Pistachio. The Diverge 4 alloy bike is also available in dark purple and silver finishes.
The geometry is pretty standard for a gravel bike
Specialized tweaked the Diverge geometry slightly when moving from the third generation to this current fourth generation model, and the end result is a bike that measures pretty close to the average gravel bike on most key dimensions. My 62cm test bike has a 71° head tube angle, 74° seat tube angle, and 430mm-long chainstays.
The only measurement that really stands out is the 85mm bottom bracket drop. The Diverge 3 already had a lower bottom bracket (BB) height than the average gravel bike, and the Diverge 4 pushed the BB another 5mm lower for improved handling. The downside of a lower BB, particularly when riding technical trails, is the potential for more rock strikes and hangups. Of course, this is a gravel bike and not a mountain bike, so most riders won’t find the low BB to be much of a hindrance.
The Comp build is solid — but there’s one thing missing for me
The Specialized Diverge 4 Comp Alloy is the highest-spec aluminum alloy build the brand offers, giving riders a mix of quality components that won’t beg an immediate upgrade. Buyers get a SRAM Apex drivetrain, hydraulic disc brake set, and DT Swiss G540 alloy wheels.
The mostly Specialized cockpit features the brand’s Adventure Gear Hover handlebar, which has just enough flare without feeling uncomfortable on long rides. Pricier carbon builds include the carbon-fiber Roval Terra seatpost, offering 18mm of deflection to smooth out bumps at the rear wheel; the Comp alloy build just comes with a basic alloy seatpost.
The 700x45c Specialized Tracer TLR All Terrain tires are tubeless. I decided to run mine at about 40psi, which balances rolling efficiency with a decent ride feel through the rougher stuff. I didn’t have any issues with flats or loss of pressure during my testing.
The only thing that I would add to this gravel bike build is a dropper post, and since it doesn’t come with the fancy Roval Terra seatpost anyway, I wouldn’t feel bad about it at all. Still, this addition would put the Diverge 4 dangerously close to drop-bar mountain bike territory. I’m ok with that, but if I’m honest, I only want a dropper post on this bike so I can ride singletrack more confidently.
Actually, I wouldn’t use a dropper post all that much, if at all, riding gravel roads, and certainly not on tarmac. Hmmm. Now that I think about it, perhaps it’s the dropper post that separates a gravel bike from a mountain bike? Even so, I’d still put one on the Diverge.
My test bike weighs 11.3kg, not including pedals, which is more than a lot of gravel bikes, but also lighter than the mountain bikes I usually ride. Priced at $2,699, the Diverge 4 Comp alloy strikes a good balance between utility and value.
Pros and cons of Specialized Diverge 4 Comp Alloy
Pros
- Plenty of room for on-bike (and in-bike) storage
- Future Shock works surprisingly well for such a simple design. It will be hard to go back to riding gravel without some form of front suspension after riding the Diverge 4.
Cons
- Unnecessary in-fork brake hose routing
- The colors offered on the Diverge 4 alloy frames are blah compared to the colors on the carbon frames
Bottom line
The Specialized Diverge 4 alloy gravel bike gives riders everything they need to ride a variety of surfaces, from tarmac to singletrack, in a ready-to-ride package.
0 Comments