The titanium, carbon, ceramic pedal is the lightest on the market, but boy is it expensive
(Image credit: SRAM)
Time, founded in France in the late '80s, was once at the forefront of road pedal technology while also manufacturing frames and select other components. It has taken victories at the highest echelons of road cycling beneath the likes of Greg LeMond, Miguel Indurain, and in more recent years Tom Boonen and Anna van der Breggen.
But the brand had fallen out of favour and fallen behind the competition from Shimano and Look, and in 2021, the then-owners decided to split the business up and sell it. The pedal portion of the business found a promising buyer in SRAM.
SRAM's business with the brand in that time has been steadily growing, with increased WorldTour presence via sponsorships with teams such as Lidl-Trek and SD-Worx, but now the brand is renewing almost the entire range.
There are 13 new products, with five new road pedals, including three new XPro pedals and two new Xpresso models. There are three new gravel/XC pedals in the Atac lineup. On the mountain bike side, there are four new models, including two trail-focussed MX pedals and two downhill/enduro-rated Speciale models. There's also a single urban/commuter option called the Link.
Each pair has received varying degrees of update, but we'll focus on the road and gravel pedals here, such is our area of expertise and interest.
(Image credit: SRAM)
Road pedals
The flagship model in the new road range is the XPro SL, a product Time claims is the lightest on the market at 87.3 grams per side. This will replace the XPro 15 of old.
Its price is a frankly staggering £440.00 / $440.00 / €490.00, beating out the outgoing XPro 15 and almost doubling the price of Shimano's top-tier Dura-Ace model.
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For that outlay, Time says you'll get "the ultimate expression of pedal technology," with a carbon fibre body, a hollow-titanium spindle and ceramic bearings. It also boasts a reduced stack height and increased 725mm surface area for better power transfer.
It will come with three different spindle lengths to allow the rider to fine tune their stance width, as well as three spring positions for adjustable clip-in tension.
As usual, moving further down the range comes with concessions in return for a cost saving. The XPro 12 loses the ceramic bearings in favour of steel and uses a full titanium axle rather than the hollowed version. The XPro 10 also uses steel bearings and switches to a hollow steel axle. Both maintain the same carbon fibre body, aerodynamic form, 725mm surface area, 14.7mm stack height, and tension-adjustable spring.
Moving on to the Xpresso range, and the price comes down a little further while switching to a slightly different design. Both the Xpresso 6 and Xpresso 4 use a glass-fibre composite body, steel bearings and steel spindle. According to SRAM's details, they share the same weight despite the more expensive model adding a stainless steel plate to the platform. They also share the same 700mm contact area and 15.1mm stack height.
(Image credit: SRAM)
Gravel
Heading away from the smooth tarmac, Time's Atac range has long been revered by pros and amateurs, with the likes of five-time-world-champion Julien Absalon among its fans.
The new range includes the top-tier Atac XC 12, as well as the 10 and the 6. All three use steel bearings and share an 18.3mm stack height, but material choice and weight all vary depending on how much you're willing to spend.
The Atac XC 12 and 10 both get injected carbon fibre composite bodies. The 12 benefits from an oversized hollow titanium spindle for a weight of 120g per pedal (total system weight for both pedals with cleats is 285g). The 10 uses an oversized hollow steel spindle, which adds 20g to each pedal.
The cheapest Atac XC 6 uses a standard steel spindle and glass-fibre composite body for a weight of 150g per pedal, hitting a total weight of 345g.
Pricing and availability
All pedals are available as of today, April 18th. Pricing is broken down as follows:
Josh is Associate Editor of Cyclingnews – leading our content on the best bikes, kit and the latest breaking tech stories from the pro peloton. He has been with us since the summer of 2019 and throughout that time he's covered everything from buyer's guides and deals to the latest tech news and reviews.
On the bike, Josh has been riding and racing for over 15 years. He started out racing cross country in his teens back when 26-inch wheels and triple chainsets were still mainstream, but he found favour in road racing in his early 20s, racing at a local and national level for Somerset-based Team Tor 2000. These days he rides indoors for convenience and fitness, and outdoors for fun on road, gravel, 'cross and cross-country bikes, the latter usually with his two dogs in tow.
