IN BRIEF
Enve is renewing its road race bike. The Melee v2 claims a 791 g frame in size 56 and an aerodynamic gain of 17 W at 50 km/h across the rider + bike system, measured by the brand against the previous generation. To get there, Enve goes against the fashion for wide tyres: maximum clearance drops from 35 to 33 mm, optimised for 31 mm. The frameset is listed at €4,999 on the official store, the frame kit with handlebar, stem and seatpost at €5,999, and complete bikes range from €10,149 to €16,099. According to rennrad-news, the launch material does not specify availability for Germany; on the day of the announcement, US outlet Velo wrote that the complete bike was “available today via Enve dealers worldwide”.
| Frameset (official store) | 4 999,00 € |
| Frame kit (handlebar, stem, seatpost) | 5 999 € |
| Complete bikes | from €10,149 (Foundation Force AXS 2x with power meter) to €16,099 (Pro Dura-Ace Di2 with power meter) |
| Frame weight | 791 g in size 56, UL Black finish (claimed) |
| Chassis package | 1,442 g (frame, fork, headset, seatpost, axles, UDH hanger) |
| Weight of the complete bike shown | 6.82 kg in 56, 6.65 kg in 54 (Red AXS 2x, SES 4.5 Pro wheels) |
| Tyre clearance | 33 mm maximum, optimised for 31 mm |
| Derailleur hanger | UDH |
| Claimed aerodynamic gain | 17 W at 50 km/h, full rider + bike system |
Race road bikes have been widening their tyre clearances for several years: BikeRadar speaks of an “industry trend for wider tyres”, one that the first Melee, with its 35 mm, was at the forefront of. Enve has just done the opposite. The Melee v2, the second generation of its in-house race bike unveiled on 10 September 2026, narrows its rear end and gains in return, according to the brand, 17 watts at 50 km/h.
Enve Melee v2: 17 W claimed, and the detail of the calculation
Enve presents the 17 W as a system gain, the launch material states: frame, cockpit, bar tape and bottle cages included. According to the diagram published by the brand, the aerodynamic power dissipated at 50 km/h by the rider + bike system, bottles and cages included, drops to 507,71 W for the v2 prototype, against 524,71 W for the outgoing Melee — exactly 17 W apart.
The brand also publishes the breakdown: according to Enve, 11,4 W come from the frame, the fork and the seatpost, 3 W from the handlebar and the bar tape, and 2,6 W from the aero bottle cages and their bottles. In other words, close to a third of the claimed gain is played out somewhere other than the frame — on parts that a buyer of the frameset alone does not necessarily get.
33 mm of tyre: the against-the-grain bet
According to the launch material, the first Melee took 35 mm tyres and a T47 bottom bracket. The v2 brings maximum clearance back down to 33 mm, a figure Enve says it has optimised for 31 mm tyres. It is a deliberate choice: according to rennrad-news, the frame, front end and finishing kit are worked more firmly for weight and aerodynamics; Enve, on its product page, claims for its part a total frame surface area reduced by 7.5%. At the rear, the derailleur hanger moves to the UDH standard. The bottom bracket also drops the T47: Enve’s official spec sheet lists a threaded bottom bracket to the BSA standard, presented alongside UDH as a weight saving.
Weights, builds and prices
In size 56 and in UL Black finish, Enve claims a frame at 791 g. According to Enve, the chassis package — frame, fork, headset, seatpost, the two thru-axles and the derailleur hanger — weighs 1 442 g. In its detailed weight list, Enve gives the 56 in Red AXS 2x with SES 4.5 Pro wheels at 6.82 kg, including Dura-Ace pedals, sealant, bar tape and computer mount; the same build in 54 drops to 6.65 kg.
On pricing, Enve’s official store lists the Melee V2 frameset at €4,999.00 — checked in a browser from France, in euros, marked unavailable at the time of the check. The Frame Kit, announced at 5 999 €, includes handlebar, stem and seatpost; since the seatpost is already part of the €4,999 frameset, the €1,000 difference is down to the cockpit. According to the launch price list, complete bikes start at 10 149 € for a Foundation Force AXS 2x with power meter; on the Shimano side, the Ultegra Di2 in Foundation opens at €10,349 and the Dura-Ace Di2, supplied with a power meter, at €13,249. The top of the range, a Pro Dura-Ace Di2, is listed there at 16 099 €.
That leaves the question of timing. According to rennrad-news, which had access to the launch material, availability for Germany is still to be confirmed there. On the day of the announcement, US outlet Velo wrote for its part that the complete bike was “available today via Enve dealers worldwide”, while Enve’s official store showed the frameset out of stock in all seven sizes.
