Norway’s Fara has announced its fourth-generation gravel bike, the GR4.
The GR4 is designed for the rigours of gravel racing and ultra-racing events with huge 57mm tyre clearances, and brings valuable tech to the everyday rider.
Fara has a successful history in gravel racing, with wins at the Traka along with top results at the Badlands, Atlas Mountain and Transcontinental races.
All of this racing experience has informed the design of the GR4, according to Fara.
The GR4 is one bike for all gravel
The new GR4 has huge 57mm tyre clearances. FARA
Most major brands have adopted a multi-gravel bike approach, offering one for racing and another for adventure.
Fara has taken the approach of creating a single bike – a Goldilocks design that’s just right.
That means the GR4 is designed around shorter chainstays to make the bike more responsive, with the huge 2.2in (57mm) tyre clearances giving you plenty of choice.
Up front, the new modular cockpit is available in a multitude of sizes to suit individual riders’ fit and preferences.
The dropped chainstays help keep the back end short, while maximising tyre clearance. FARA
Jeff Webb, Fara’s founder, explains: “We didn’t want to force riders to choose between a bike that’s built for racing and one that’s built for exploration.
“With the GR4, we worked with our athletes and designers to create something that excels at both. A lightweight, responsive frame with huge tyre clearance and refined ergonomics makes it perfect for modern gravel racing, exploration and everyday riding alike.”
The GR4 offers ample rear tyre clearance. FARA
The new GR4 frame embraces aerodynamics, while being lighter than the previous-generation bike, taking more than 200g out of the frame with a claimed weight down to 970g (medium).
The new system weight – that’s the frame, fork, seatpost and cockpit – savings are even greater, coming in nearly half a kilo lighter.
GR4 details
High-modulus Torayca T1000 and M40X carbon fibre frame (970g medium)
57mm/2.2in tyre clearances
Modular cockpit with adjustable reach, 360-440mm widths and stem lengths from 80 to 130mm
In-frame storage, cargo mounts, hidden fender mounts and magnets for Fara’s integrated bikepacking system
UDH dropout
The weight losses haven’t come at the expense of practical features; the GR4 frame has a threaded T47 bottom bracket shell, and it has improved the in-frame storage too.
Modular cockpit
The new modular cockpit is very adaptable. FARA
The most distinctive element of the design is the new cockpit. This is said to improve ergonomics over a standard bar, while being far more adaptable.
Fara claims the large backsweep from the drops and the vertical drop from the stem neutrally aligns your wrists, elbows and shoulders. The shape of the bar’s top is said to offer multiple defined hand positions, too.
The bar’s vertical drop is claimed to help give the cockpit a neutral fit. FARA
The flare at the drops increases across the size range, from 8 degrees on the smallest up to 12 degrees on the widest bar.
The interface between the bar and stem section allows for 10mm of fore-aft reach adjustment. These multiple bolt positions also serve as anchors for the accessory aerobar (sold separately) to adapt the GR4 to a long-distance setup.
The cockpit can be accessorised with a dedicated aero bar for long-distance racing. FARA
The cockpit is available in widths from 360mm to 440mm, and three adjustable stem lengths: 80-90mm, 100-110mm and 120-130mm.
GR4 builds and pricing
The range-topping GR4 comes with SRAM Red XPLR AXS and Zipp’s 303 SW XPLR wheels. FARA
Fara offers customers the option to choose handlebar width, stem length and crank length for a bespoke fit on every build.
Fara GR4 Red XPLR
SRAM Red XPLR AXS
Zipp 303 SW XPLR
Schwalbe Thunder Burt 2.1in tyres
Fara modular cockpit
Fara 27.2mm carbon seatpost
CeramicSpeed bottom bracket & SLT headset bearings
Price: €9,900 / $10,500 (UK price is linked to current exchange rate)
Fara GR4 Force XPLR
SRAM Force XPLR AXS
Zipp 303 S XPLR
Schwalbe Thunder Burt 2.1in tyres
Fara modular cockpit
Fara 27.2mm carbon seatpost
CeramicSpeed bottom bracket & SLT headset bearings
Price: €8,000 / $8,500 (UK price is linked to current exchange rate)
Fara GR4 Rival XPLR
SRAM Rival XPLR AXS
Fulcrum RapidRed300
Schwalbe Thunder Burt 2.1in tyres
Fara modular cockpit
Fara 27.2mm carbon seatpost
CeramicSpeed bottom bracket & SLT headset bearings
Price: €6,200 / $6,500 (UK price is linked to current exchange rate)
Frameset
Fara GR4 frame
Fara modular cockpit
Fara 27.2mm carbon seatpost
CeramicSpeed bottom bracket & SLT headset bearings