I went into my LBS to buy the 08 R3 and it had gone. However, I was offered an R3SL at cost but I'm not sure of the year. Can anyone help?

It has the CSC stickers on the seat tube which makes me think its an 08. The fork just says Funda on it rather than Funda Pro or Team. It has a Syntace 27.2 seat post not a Doric. It came into the shop November 08 so they think its an 09.

Is there any difference between the 08 and 09? Did Cervelo even change the colour scheme?

Finally, is it worth the extra money? The offer is a little over 33% reduction but its still quite a lot more than the R3 was.

 the 08 has CSC stickers and white decals, the 09 has silver decals and does not have the CSC stickers, no other differences in the frame. The SL is about 100 grams lighter than the R3, I love my R3-SL, but I can't really tell you if it's worth much more than the R3. I'd instead focus on the price difference between the 08 and the 2010 model.

 I'd go for it, I'm an R3 SL owner and it's a great bike.

 Going for the 2008 model you also get a Syntace post which is a better product than the 3T Doric.

 As for the Funda fork, all Cervélo OEM forks only say Funda, no additional Pro or Team marking is present.

 I wonder why there was such a huge price increase between 08 and 09 SL. The RS went up by only £100 but the R3 SL went up by £600! The R3 went up by about £200.00. Also, Is it normal for the SL to be very under finished in that you can clearly see all the joins and patches of carbon under a very thin coat of lacquer?

Hi again,

The R3 SL does sport a bit of an unfinished look at it does not have a lot of paint other than around the BB, chain stays and head tube. Furthermore the frame  lacks a layer of cosmetic carbon fibre ( cross-weave effect ) in order to keep the frame weight down.

In all honesty though the weight saving from the R3 SL over the R3 is pretty minimal and most of it arguably comes from the lack of paint on the R3 SL. If I'm being truthful I went for the R3 SL over the R3 mainly because I preferred the look of the nude black and white frame.

I don't think the R3SL is worth the retail price, but if you're getting a deal that is another matter. It all depends on what else is available. End of season deals don't last long - there are other educated buyers like you who are trolling for closeouts. if you wait 'til 2010 everything will be full price. And you can sell your RS to offset the cost.

Do it...you know you want to. You only live once, so what the heck.

How much more is the R3 SL compared to the R3? Any part upgrades?

the only difference btwn the '08 & '09 R3 SL is the paint and 3T components. i like the '08 paint just as much if not better.

they should give a discount if it's an '08 even if it's never been ridden. at least my shop does. i'd get a '08 R3 SL over a '09 R3.

Competive Cycle, R&A Cycle on year ending deals. I like both of these models. The R3 being so much a value and just as good a race proven pedigree as the new R3 SL. The 2010 paint scheme of the R3 looks awesome.

Now...The seat post on the 09 R3 SL in my opinion needs to have a setback. I need this setback over the pedals.

i got my 09 r3sl frameset for £1699

 

shop around, and haggle. bargins to be had.

Toms:

i got my 09 r3sl frameset for £1699

 

shop around, and haggle. bargins to be had.

 

How about £1550 for the 08?

thats a good price!