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review

Giant Gavia Course 1 tubeless tyre

7
£39.99

VERDICT:

7
10
Good fit-and-forget tubeless tyre for winter road miles
Excellent grip
Puncture resistance
A little heavy
Not the most supple
Weight: 
412g

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Giant's Gavia Course 1 is a good choice of tubeless tyre for all-season riding. It's pretty hardy and provides excellent grip in dry and wet conditions. It's not especially light or supple, and it's not really the 'Premium Road Race tyre' Giant says it is, but the ride feel and rolling resistance are good for an all-rounder.

The Gavia Course 1 is built around a 60 threads per inch (tpi) casing, and sandwiched between it and the RR-S outer compound is an R-Shield puncture strip. Our 28mm test rubber weighs in at 412g, a bit over Giant's 395g claimed weight.

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Add in 40ml of sealant to bung up the thorn holes and you're looking at 450g a wheel for these tyres, which is okay for a 28mm all-season tyre, but not especially light. There's a 25mm version available too.

2020 Giant Gavia Course 1 tubeless tyre - detail.jpg

Fitting the Gavia Course 1 tyres isn't especially difficult. Ours sealed first time on a set of Hunt Superdura and later a pair of Mavic Aksium Elite wheels, and I didn't even have to break out the Airshot – a track pump did the job just fine. It's a fairly tight fit on the rim, which helps, but not so tight it's an issue getting them in place.

Giant Gavia Course 1 (1 of 2).jpg

The tread pattern on the Gavia Course 1 is fairly minimal, with a flat centre section and small ribs on the shoulders. I found the RR-S compound very good in terms of grip; running these 28mm tyres tubeless I was happy to drop as low as 55/60psi (front/rear), and found the ride feel sweet spot at around 65/70psi (I'm 92kg).

The 60tpi casing isn't especially supple – the pricier Gavia Course 0 gets a lighter 170tpi casing – but even so, they feel fairly quick on the road, and on loose or wet climbs the grab from the rear is above average. It's confident-feeling tyre.

Giant Gavia Course 1 (2 of 2).jpg

Wear rate looks reasonably good: I've put about 1,000km into the review set and there's a difference between front and rear just beginning to appear, but there's plenty of life in them yet. I've had no punctures either; close inspection of the carcass reveals a few minor cuts, but I can't see anything that's obviously punctured and sealed.

> 45 of the best road bike tyres - rubber for speed, durability and puncture resistance

They need topping up from time to time, but that's par for the course with tubeless and they're no worse than other options in that regard.

Value

At £39.99 an end, the Gavia Course 1 is midrange in the overall scheme of things, but reasonably cheap for a tubeless road tyre. It's on a par with the 5p cheaper Hutchinson Fusion 5, which is considerably lighter and has a higher thread-count carcass.

That tyre probably edges it in terms of performance, but I'd expect this Gavia Course 1 to be a bit more hardy over winter thanks to its extra bulk. Overall, it's a good fit-and-forget choice for winter miles.

Verdict

Good fit-and-forget tubeless tyre for winter road miles

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road.cc test report

Make and model: Giant Gavia Course 1 tubeless tyre

Size tested: 700x28mm

Tell us what the product is for and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

Giant says: "Premium road race tyre offering the ultimate combination of speed, traction and puncture resistance."

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?

RR-S compound provides ultimate low rolling resistance and excellent all-round grip

Optimized compound profile provides better tire shoulder grip for outstanding cornering capability

Fast all-round tread pattern for maximum speed on the road

R-Shield Puncture Protection ensures a high level of puncture protection

Carbon/Kevlar Composite Bead keeps the tire secured to the rim and provides greater strength to withstand the higher pressures needed for road tires

Casing: 60TPI

Bead: Folding

Puncture Protection: R-Shield

Compound: RR-S

700x25C/25-622, 85-125 psi/5.8-8.6 bar, approximate weight 375g

700x28C/28-622, 80-105 psi/5.5-7.2 bar, approximate weight 395g

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
8/10
Rate the product for performance:
 
7/10
Rate the product for durability:
 
9/10
Rate the product for weight (if applicable)
 
5/10
Rate the product for comfort (if applicable)
 
6/10
Rate the product for value:
 
7/10

Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose

They're good as all-year all rounders.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

Grip is excellent, no punctures.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

Fairly heavy and not the most supple.

How does the price compare to that of similar products in the market, including ones recently tested on road.cc?

Pretty good – a lot of tubeless tyres are a lot more, though you can get some, such as the Hutchinson Fusion 5, for the same kind of money.

Did you enjoy using the product? Yes

Would you consider buying the product? Maybe

Would you recommend the product to a friend? Maybe

Use this box to explain your overall score

These tyres are good all rounders, ideal for a winter bike or even year-round if ultimate performance isn't your key aim.

Overall rating: 7/10

About the tester

Age: 47  Height: 189cm  Weight: 94kg

I usually ride: whatever I'm testing...  My best bike is: Kinesis Tripster ATR, Merida Scultura, Dward Design fixed

I've been riding for: Over 20 years  I ride: Every day  I would class myself as: Experienced

I regularly do the following types of riding: road racing, time trialling, cyclo cross, commuting, touring, club rides, sportives, general fitness riding, fixed/singlespeed, mtb, Mountain Bike Bog Snorkelling, track

Dave is a founding father of road.cc, having previously worked on Cycling Plus and What Mountain Bike magazines back in the day. He also writes about e-bikes for our sister publication ebiketips. He's won three mountain bike bog snorkelling World Championships, and races at the back of the third cats.

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2 comments

Avatar
Gun68 | 1 year ago
0 likes

Giant Gavia Course 1... worst tire even seen

Avatar
RedRocket | 3 years ago
0 likes

Pirelli Cinturato is the better choice.

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