ShimanoUltegra PD-R8000 SPD-SL Pedals(Return to Product Page)

Like prior Ultegra pedals, these are great, highly functional, and of the authentic quality I've come to expect from Western!

I have three sets of these pedals on my three bikes. They are light and technically as good as the best, Dura Ace. It isn't a secret that Shimano uses the same technology in Ultegra as they do in Dura Ace. The major difference is the materials used, Ultegra being just a tiny bit heavier. It is the simple reason than most professional teams that use Shimano components use Ultegra on their bikes. The oldest set of my Ultegra pedals is on my BMC SLR O1 Team Machine. They have been on the bike for the last four years, and have accumulated somewhere north of 23,000 miles. I have never experienced a problem with them in all that time. They are a great pedal that holds the cleat well, but releases easily when they need to. I bought the third set a couple of months ago when I added a new bike to my stable. I have used a lot of different pedals over the years, but once I got the Ultegra pedal I decided that I had found something to stick with. I like the solidity of the platform and ease of entering and leaving the pedal. Cleats are reasonably priced and generally last a full season of hard cycling. What's not to like?

Fantastic value, excellent performance. These Ultegra pedals just keep getting better. The R8000 version has shorter distance by several millimeters between the spindle and top of the pedal.

If replacing older Ultegra pedals, you may need to adjust the seat height slightly lower to account for that, expecially if also putting on a bike with 172.5 mm cranks vs. prior bike of 170mm and older Ultegra pedals. The combon difference in height adjustment is 5-6 mm, which is noticeable. Ask me how I know this... lived it.

I have an older pair of these Ultegra and the Dura Ace version on another bike. The Dura Ace of course is a bit better build and a tiny bit lighter but unless you are racing or have the extra money to spend the Ultegra is perfect. Like the newer pedals better than my old ones but the 5 year old version is still in great shape after thousands of miles. Put the new ones on a new bike build. No complaints and recommended.

I�m really impressed with the precision of these petals and the quality of material they�re made of. I�m also super stoked to deal with Western Bike works. I bought these petals at an incredibly low price. They are very often offering really good deals. I�m also really impressed with the smoothness of the return process and clear communications in their emails. Thanks

This is my 2nd pair of pedals (I have a set on another bike). They are high quality and easy to use.

Switched from two-bolt cleat. Foot pain gone.

Power transfer is great. Easy clip in and out. Sturdy and efficient. Cant go wrong for the price.

I have Shimano for years and the Ultegra pedals are equal or better than the Dura Ace pedals Ive used for years.

These pedals are solidly made, have a very positive engagement mechanism, and are easy to flip with your toe before re-engaging. I have thousands of trouble free miles on previous generation Ultegra pedals, and I see no reason why these should be anything less than super reliable. I have no issue with weight as I don't think pedals are where you want a superlight component. You want a rock solid pedal that you never worry about. Other nice things - they look great and you can ride your bike in tennis shoes for short distances without discomfort or fear of slipping off. Just remember not to bunny hop.

Would buy again

I love it. Thanks to the reviews. It helped me to pick the R8000 SL Pedals.

Pro-level pedals, work great, just what I had expected

I have used Shimano Ultegra pedals for many years. These are a great replacement pedal.

What else can you say! Shimano has a great pedal at a very good price!

This is my third set of Ultegra pedals� all my road bikes have them. Oldest are ten years and still work well.

A bit stiffer than I�m used to, but great pedals.

I have been on the Look Keo 2 composite pedals for a season and a half now and I liked the weight and performance of those pedals but lacked any confidence in them when coming off of stops. The bearing grease and bearings were such that the pedal if not turned over very slowly to engage with the cleat the pedal would spin multiple times under my foot or be upside down. In almost every start I had to look down at my foot to prevent this from happening - it got very annoying. I decided to try and repack the pedal with a heavier grease to try and remedy this and in the process damaged the composite nut on the pedal. (super brittle) Having been on Shimano pedals prior to these and liking how they turned over and engaged - I decided to go back to Shimano because of my grease repack mishap in hopes that this issue would be solved, and it was. The Shimano pedal engages with the cleat correctly and without spinning almost every time without looking or creating the spinning pedal issue. I do notice a bit more lateral float in these that I don't particularly care for and could change cleat colors to see if it is better but its minimal enough that I won't bother. The Shimano cleats to me are also more slippery when walking in them over the Look, but that is neither here nor there as it relates to the performance of the system. Overall - the confidence I gain in not having to watch my foot engage the pedal to prevent it from spinning is worth the few issues I have with them.

I've ridden Shimano Ultegra pedals in the past and liked them. 25,000 trouble free miles so when I got my new Cervelo I figured I'd stay with what I was comfortable with. They are easier to get in and out of than the older pair and are very comfortable whether I'm going easy or out hammering a big climb

I really like the simplicity and so far the reliability of these pedals and cleats. After nearly 4,000 miles, and many rides through rain, these have held up extremely well. Once the cleat position is dialed in, they just work, and I don't have to think about them. I do regrease bearings every 700-1k miles or so because of the rain, but even that might be overkill. Simple to do. I'm also still on the first set of cleats - maybe because I try to avoid walking in them. At the current rate, I expect these pedals to last for many thousands of miles to come.

I'll note that coming from (now ancient) Speedplay X2s with huge, non-adjustable float, the first rides on the SPD-SLs felt very restrictive even with the yellow cleats. In fact, I hated them at first, but it honestly didn't take long to adjust and realize that I didn't need all of that float the Speedplays had. Afterwards even new Speedplays just felt sloppy. If I could change one thing on the shimanos, it might be just 1-2 more degrees of float and was one reason I considered Look Keos. But I'm happy with my choice and see no reason to switch. Also if the cleats get a little dirty, no big deal. I once stepped on a single raisin with my speedplays and had to dig a sandy mess out before I could even clip in.

I do recommend taking an allen wrench on the first couple rides to adjust the cleats on the fly. And once you get them dialed in, mark or spray paint the cleat position to make it easier when you replace them.