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Trek Soho (09) | $1149.99
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BikeRadar verdict

35 out of 5 stars

"Would get an excellent four-and-a-half stars with better brakes"

By Warren Rossiter, Cycling Plus

Trek are the first of the major manufacturers to introduce belt-driven bikes into their range. Compared to the slick singlespeed District, the Soho is less of a funky looking street machine, with a potentially more usable and sensible specification.

  • Frame & fork: Great finish, plenty of luggage options and balance of comfort and speed is spot on (8/10)
  • Handling: Swoopy bars and sharp handling make this one of the best riding city bikes we’ve tried (9/10)
  • Equipment: Hub gear and belt drive work brilliantly together, contact points are great, but braking is substandard (7/10)
  • Wheels: Tough rims and great tyres but a bit hefty with the roller brake setup (8/10)

Classy chassis

The Gates belt drive system is combined with Shimano’s Nexus eight-speed hub gear, front and rear Nexave roller brakes slow things down, and all the contact points are from Bontrager’s Nebula range. Full colour co-ordinated mudguards and a belt cover keep the muck off your clothes.

The frame is built from Trek’s Alpha aluminium, with shaped tubing reminiscent of the company’s road bike frames. There are plenty of braze-ons should you wish to fit front and rear racks, as well as provision for a Dutch/nurse’s lock on the seatstays.

The top tube has a full length rubber strip embedded in it which protects it from scratches, and one neat accessory is an insulated aluminium coffee mug.

Although the frame is reasonably slender, the build with a hub gear and hefty roller brakes all adds up to the bike’s 30lb-plus weight. Once aboard though, the weight isn’t an issue. A combination of 700C wheels and fast-rolling 32mm tyres make it easy to propel the Soho up to a reasonable cruising speed.

Cruise control

Trek have moved away from the traditional sit-up-and-beg position commonly used for town bikes and have gone with a flatter, longer riding position, and a gently swept back bar – a cross between a mountain bike style riser and traditional moustache type.

The whole combination results in a bike that’s great to cruise around on yet deals easily with sprinting away from the lights.

For winter riding, weather protection is spot-on, the full-length guards keeping spray off your front and back, and although belt drives don’t get quite as grubby as bikes with an oily chain, the cover fitted is a good bit of insurance.

Shifting through the eight hub gears is marginally slower than a standard derailleur setup and requires a bit more anticipation, especially on the climbs. It’s not awkwardly slow, but it is noticeable.

Them's the brakes

One major issue, though, is the Nexave roller brakes. We like the idea of the enclosed mechanism that isn’t affected by wet weather, but that’s a small plus point compared to the drawback of a woeful lack of braking power on fast descents.

Initially nothing seems to be happening; complete inertia. Then the braking starts to ramp up a little. But even grabbing big fistfuls of lever and pulling them all the way to the bar still only slows you, never actually bringing you to a complete halt.

Pitting the Soho against a V-brake equipped mountain bike and doing emergency stops, the Soho’s stopping distance could be measured in metres more. Not good.

With a bit of adjustment and fettling we managed to improve them, but not by as much as we’d like, and we’d recommend a try before you buy. If you find the same issues we did, get your bike shop to sort it straightaway.

Commute in comfort

Luckily, the frame has provision for a standard long reach calliper front and rear, which we would suggest as an upgrade anyway, despite the fact that they’ll need more upkeep during the wet winter months.

We were happier with the contact points. The Nebula saddle is wider than standard and fairly flat but with deep cushioning; it’s comfortable over longer distances even when not wearing padded shorts. The ergonomic grips are supremely comfortable and the aforementioned bar is superb.

Braking issues aside, what Trek have achieved with the Soho is admirable, taking what could be quite a bland hybrid template and creating a bike that looks great and rides really well. With the brakes sorted it would be perfect for cruising around town and commuting on through the winter.

Trek soho: trek soho

User Reviews

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  • User review of Trek Soho (09)

    I've been riding this for a week now on my 1 hour round trip to work by road. My initial impression is very favourable, the bike is a real pleasure to ride. Compared to the machine I've been using for the past 14 months, a 2007 Dawes Kalahari Hybrid, the Soho feels much lighter - you almost feel like it's not there. You feel you can dart about on the Soho. The gear shift is pleasantly positive, and when negotiating traffic it's wonderful to be able to be pressing on at speed, come to a halt quickly, then set your preferred gear while stationary and head off again. The roller brakes took a little bedding in but are now effective enough. Durham where I live and work is reasonably hilly, my trip to work takes me from one side of the Wear river valley down to the river level then up the other side. In general topography it's more like North London and Birmingham than Cambridge, the other places where I've cycled extensively. There is a good selection of gears available for all conditions. First is quite low enough to negotiate some pretty steep and sustained hills and I've yet to find a location where I want any higher gear than 8th. The intervals in between are good as well, I've not found a location where I'd like a gear ratio that's not there. As it's light it feels much more at ease with a good tarmac surface. It will cope OK with a bit of chewed up and patched road but tends feel as though it will bounce over the surface a bit. It's very easy to weave around such imperfections in it. I took it out for a 2 hour ride one morning and it was perfectly comfortable for that as well. I've given it a 4 star rating because the real test for a commuting oriented bike like this is how it performs over the long term. It's been in the pouring rain a couple of times and there's no perceptable change to gear shift or braking efficiency, which is great. As brakes and gears are all internal and with the belt drive it should prove quite resistant to the typical British winter. If it's still performing well in six months time I could easily give it the final star.

    0.3
  • User review of Trek Soho (09)

    It is true that the brakes are wimpy, but they are adequate- just require a firm squeeze that is an unusual demand in this age of highly developed rim and disk brake modulation. For a commuter the brakes are fine. I have had the bike since mid summer '09 and commute 20 miles to work. My bigger complaint, which is easily overcome, are the heavy tires. I am looking into some lighter rubber to give a more responsive ride. I do want good puncture protection, but the 500gram per tire OEM tires are sloggers. I am looking at 700-28 instead of the 700-32 OEM size, and a kevlar bead instead of the wire.

    So the real reason I am only giving 4 stars is the decision by Trek to put the rack mounts on the moving split dropout out back. This is enough of a pain if you have to fix a flat, that although I don't like the heavy armored OEM tire out back- I may only change the front to a lighter replacement.

    The bike is otherwise brilliant! It is well built, has good components, and I love the belt drive. Some say it actually is noisy (clicking/ squeeky). Mine clicked for the first 50 miles or so, but is now whisper quiet. It is a no fuss commuter, and a great around-town bike.

    0.3
  • User review of Trek Soho (09)

    I've had the soho since July'09 and have put on about 750miles in that time. In general, I love it. It's a bit heavy, but cruises really well on gentle undulations. I did take it on a hilly ride once, where it showed itself to be too heavy and the gears inadequate.

    With respect to the gears, 5-8 are really smooth and well spread - ideal for commuting. Gears 1-4 however offer much more resistance, so when you drop from gear 5 to 4, the ratio might have dropped, but it feels like you've got a brake on ! This onlt really shows itself when you need to climb steep hills.

    The brakes are just about adequate. They are nowhere near as powerful as V-brakes or discs, but can stop you reasonably well if you pull in really hard. That said, I would prefer discs that roller brakes. The article suggests that you could fit a caliper (by which I presume it means rim brakes, rather than a disc caliper), but the rims are specifically designed for roller brakes, so I'm not sure this would be advisable.

    The belt drive is beautifully smooth, but it has already had to go back to the bike shop. The splines on the rear sprocket, that engage it with the hub had sheared, resulting in a complete loss of drive (as I accelerated away from some traffic lights....). New parts were obtained and the bike fixed within 4 days, so I was quite impressed with that. Let's hope it doesn't happen again.....

    0.3

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Specification

Name:
Soho (09)
Built by:
Trek
Price:
$1149.99

Available Sizes:
15 Inches, 17.5 Inches, 20 Inches, 22.5Inches, 25 Inches
Available Colours:
Grey
Weight (kg):
13.29
Weight (lb):
29.3

Frame & Fork:

 
Frame Material:
Alpha hydroformed aluminium, replaceable rear adjustable dropouts, 1 1/8in head-tube.
Frame Weight (g):
1990 g
Fork Brand:
Bontrager
Fork Model:
Alloy with chromoly 1 1/8in steerer, forged dropouts
Fork Weight:
880 g
Headset Brand:
Aheadset
Headset Type:
Semi integrated steel cups with integral sealed bearings, 1/1/8in aheadset

Geometry:

 
Seat Angle:
73 Degrees
Head Angle:
71 Degrees

Brakes:

 
Brakes Model:
Shimano Nexave roller f/r, Tektro levers

Transmission:

 
Cranks Brand:
Bontrager
Cranks Model:
Nebula, forged alloy, square taper, 175mm arms, Gates carbon chainring, 130mm bcd
Bottom Bracket Model:
Sealed cartridge square taper spindle, steel cups
Rear Derailleur Model:
Shimano Nexus 8-speed
Front Derailleur Model:
Shimano Nexus 8-speed
Shifters Brand:
Shimano
Shifters Model:
Shimano Nexus 8-speed
Cassette:
24T alloy cog
Pedals Model:
Soho

Wheels:

 
Wheels Brand:
Shimano
Wheels Model:
IM70
Front Wheel Weight:
2640 g
Rear Wheel Weight:
3910 g
Rims Brand:
Bontrager
Rims Model:
Satellite Nebula
Front Hub Model:
Shimano Nexave roller clutch front hub,
Rear Hub Model:
Shimano Nexus 8
Tyres Brand:
Bontrager

Contact Points:

 
Saddle Brand:
Bontrager
Saddle Model:
Nebula
Seatpost Brand:
Bontrager
Stem Brand:
Bontrager
Stem Model:
Soho
Handlebar Brand:
Trek
Handlebar Model:
North Road alloy, standard clamp, 61cm wide

:

 
Description:
Includes Chainguard, belt drive, nylon cage, Soho mug
Bottom Bracket Height (cm):
28.5 cm
Chainstays (cm):
45 cm
Seat Tube (cm):
45.5 cm
Standover Height (cm):
79 cm
Top Tube (cm):
56 cm
Wheelbase (cm):
105.5 cm

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