Fara Cycling F/AR

The Fara Cycling F/AR is an absolute cracker – it feels like a race bike on the road, but can transfer that performance to hardpacked tracks and trails through its ability to swallow 38mm tyres. The ride quality is awesome, as is the handling, and for a bike shod with rubber that big, and a fully electronic groupset, it is impressively light too.

The AR part of F/AR stands for All-Road, and it's one very capable machine. It doesn't quite make the full jump to gravel (Fara has a range of bikes for that), but it does give you the flexibility to explore some of those byways you've seen out the corner of your eye as you are riding along. And on the asphalt sections in between, it feels pure roadie.

> Buy now: Fara Cycling F/AR for £4,644 from Fara Cycling

With the inclusion of hydraulic disc brakes and/or fully wireless electronic groupsets, it's no secret that road bikes have got heavier over the years. Throw in the wide tyres fitted here compared with a more typical 25mm, and I was expecting the F/AR to tip the scales north of 9kg, rather than the rather svelte 8.11kg it registered on our scales.

This is one of the biggest defining things about how the Fara rides: it's light enough to be fun on the road, behaving just like a responsive race bike that thrives on being ridden hard.

Acceleration is brisk, not only because of the lack of weight, but also thanks to the stiffness from the full carbon fibre frame, with the large bottom bracket shell and compact rear triangle keeping things tight. It doesn't feel like the Fara is wasting any of the power you are putting through the pedals.

This helps on the climbs, and it's a quick bike on the flat too. The gear ratios of the SRAM groupset adds to the efficiency and the relatively deep wheels bring a little aero advantage.

The geometry is similar to that found on an endurance road bike, with a front end that is balanced between quick handling for fun in the bends and on descents, and enough stability and poise that it inspires confidence on rough roads or riding on loose surfaces.

I spent the majority of the test period riding the F/AR on the road, both main and country lanes, and it was an absolute joy. I like to have my tyres pumped up hard and even with the 35mm Panaracer GravelKings feeling firm rolling along the tarmac, the Fara gives a great ride feel.

Alongside the tautness of the frame there is just a bit of forgiveness coming from the carbon lay-up, enough to take the edge off the road surface without reducing feedback to your contact points or taking away the involvement between rider and bike.

The fork matches the quality of the frame too. It's tight enough to cope with heavy cornering and braking loads, with enough flex in the legs to remove the chatter from ground.

Away from the road, riding hardpacked byways or gentle gravel tracks, the F/AR behaves well. The handling still doesn't become a handful even on a surface with a bit of movement, and with the give in the frame combined with dropping a bit of pressure out of the tyres, the ride remains comfortable.

Adding some weight to the front end, either a bar bag or one fitted to the fork, doesn't really affect the handling that much. The F/AR still feels confident and easy to control.

Chucking a large saddlepack on the rear doesn't affect the way the Fara rides, either, which means you can carry a decent amount of kit for a trip away.

The F/AR is a very capable machine, a great road bike focusing on speed and performance but with the versatility and comfort to take on the route less travelled.

Frame & fork

The F/AR's frame is full carbon fibre, although Fara doesn't divulge what grade or from which supplier, like some brands do. It looks and feels great, and I'm a big fan of this red paint job.

Weight-wise, you are looking at sub-1kg depending on size, and you get a five-year warranty too. Neat touches like the metal plate on the chainstay behind the crankset helps protect it from accidental damage, increasing longevity.

The fork comes in at around 410g, depending on the length of the steerer tube.

Designed for big miles, it is no surprise to find the frame adorned with mounting points. You get two bottle cage positions on the down tube and seat tube as usual, plus another set under the down tube for carrying a bottle or tool pack.

On the top tube you'll find mounts for a bento box, plus you get three mounting points on each fork leg, and the F/AR will take full mudguards too.

Fara also sells a range of bikepacking bags designed to suit the F/AR's geometry for a perfect fit. The fact that the F/AR has full internal routing through the frame and fork for any cables, wires or hoses means any bags or other mounted stuff won't impede shifting or braking. It makes it easier to attach everything, too.

In terms of tyre clearance the F/AR range sits between road and gravel, with a decent amount of room to accommodate up to 38mm slicks.

If you want something with tread on for gravel tracks or byways, there are plenty of 35mm gravel or cyclocross tyres on the market which should fit easily enough.

> Buyer’s Guide: 10 of the best gravel bike tyres

Fara has gone for a BB386 press-fit bottom bracket, 12mm thru-axles and flat mounts for the brake callipers. Their position is set up for 160/140mm rotors.

The seat tube accepts a round seatpost of 27.2mm in diameter which is standard off the shelf stuff, meaning that upgrades are possible. That allows a switch to a suspension seatpost, for instance, if you wanted one for long treks. The post clamp is external, too, none of this hidden widget stuff.

Geometry

The F/AR is available in four sizes, ranging from 49 to 59cm, with top tube lengths of 521mm through to 581mm.

As I mentioned earlier the geometry is similar to that found on most endurance style road bikes, which means our 56 has a stack and reach of 583mm and 386mm respectively. The head angle is 72 degrees, while the seat angle is a steeper 74 degrees.

The head tube length is 166mm and the top tube 564mm, with an overall wheelbase length of 1,013mm.

Groupset

The F/AR is available as a frameset only option for £2,519 direct from Fara in Norway. Norway has a free trade agreement with the UK so that's inclusive of VAT, so no hidden charges when it arrives at our shores.

Other than that, the F/AR comes in a couple of 'ready to go' builds using SRAM's eTap AXS groupsets. A Rival AXS build costs £3,329, and the Force AXS is £4,589, or you can spec up a build for yourself from a range of Shimano groupsets as well as SRAM.

You can select wheelsets and various finishing kit, too. The prices on this part of the website at the moment are in euros so you'll just need to work out the exchange rate when you order. Fara is working on getting all of these prices into sterling.

Builds start at around £3,200 with Shimano Ultegra mechanical and an alloy wheelset.

Our build is based around the Force AXS eTap groupset (we tested the Wide version here), with a 46/33-tooth chainset and a 10-36 12-speed cassette.

I like the eTap groupsets, especially the efficiency achieved by the use of the smaller chainrings and wide-ranging cassette.

With the largest chainring being just 46T, for the majority of riding I barely needed to use the smaller one. Going down to 10T for the smallest sprocket on the cassette means you still have plenty of top-end gear to push for the downhills, and the middle part of the cassette is still reasonably close in ratio sizes, so cadence isn't affected.

Things get a bit 'gappier' at the higher end of the cassette, but as these gears are mostly used for climbing it isn't a big deal.

The gear shifts are crisp and quick, and with just one button on each shifter the chances of a mis-shift are remote.

Should you ever need to touch anything, setting up the gearshifts and mechs is simple thanks to it being a fully wireless system. SRAM's app is good at getting everything talking to each other and you can set up the shifter button to work how you want it to.

The brakes also deliver top-notch performance, with the combination of SRAM's hydraulic callipers and 160mm Paceline rotors offering all the power you'll need and plenty of modulation, with plenty of bite at the lever.

Finishing kit

As for the rest of the kit, ours has a Ritchey WCS handlebar, a 3T Apto Stealth stem, Fara full carbon fibre seatpost and Fizik Tempo Argo saddle.

It's all the kind of kit you'd expect on a bike of this price and quality, although, as I said, you can spec it exactly how you want it.

Wheels and tyres

This bike is fitted with a set of Fulcrum's Airbeat 400 wheels, an OEM wheelset only available to manufacturers, and there is a lot to like here: 40mm-deep carbon fibre rims that measure 28mm externally, 21mm internally.

Fulcrum claims a weight of 1,640g which is decent for wheels of this depth.

With 24 spokes front and rear paired to aluminium alloy hubs, the build is strong, and I found them to be durable on and off the road.

The majority of the test period was dry, so they didn't see a huge amount of wet weather, but the bearings are still running smoothly and quietly.

There is a weight limit of 120kg which includes you and your bike, which is worth thinking about if you are planning on loading the F/AR up with kit.

Wrapped around the Fulcrum wheels are a pair of Panaracer GravelKing Slicks in a 35mm width. They are tubeless compatible.

They scored highly in Hollis's review, as they offer good rolling resistance, plenty of grip and also give a good ride feel.

Their width means they are able to cope with light gravel work too, and for such a lightweight tyre they are pretty robust.

Value

The build we have works out at €5353, which at the time of writing equates to around £4,644.

A similar bike to the F/AR is the Merida Scultura Endurance. I tested the Endurance 7000-e a couple of years back and was really impressed.

The geometry is similar, and it can take full mudguards and has decent tyre clearance at 35mm. It's available in a SRAM Rival eTap build for £3,400 with alloy Fulcrum wheels, which is comparable to the build in Fara's line-up at £3,329.

Canyon updated its Endurace framesets to be able to accept 35mm tyres at the beginning of the year, to bring a bit more versatility. It actually sells an All-Road version of the Endurace CF 7, which comes with a Rival eTap groupset and DT Swiss wheels, for £2,999. It lacks the mounts of the Fara, though, and the tyre clearance is a little tighter. Virtually all sizes are out of stock too.

> Best endurance road bikes 2022 – perfect for sportives, audax and mile-munching

Cannondale's latest Synapse Carbon range allows for bigger tyres than its predecessor, also up to 35mm for a bit of all-road capability. Most models come with 30mm tyres fitted as standard, but they also get the new SmartSense electronics including lights, app connectivity, and the option of Garmin's rear-facing radar.

When I rode the Synapse 2 RL model I thought its ride quality was brilliant. The SmartSense stuff isn't necessary, though, just adding weight and cost. The 3 L model costs £3,200 and comes with mechanical Shimano 105.

Conclusion

The F/AR gives a stunning ride, both in terms of comfort and the way it behaves thanks to the lay-up of the carbon fibre and the geometry. I enjoyed getting on it every single time I rode it, and having the versatility to explore a byway instead of just riding past is a big bonus to the fun factor.

The F/AR isn't the only all-road bike out there, but it does have more tyre clearance than most, and even with wide boots on it still delivers performance on the road that others struggle to match.

Verdict

High-speed road bike that can tackle some rough stuff, with an awesome ride quality wherever you take it