The Kiron Scandium may look cheap and cost little, but its performance will blow you away.

Kiron is very much the new kid on the block, but it has put its best foot forward with the Scandium, a wallet-friendly road bike that does a brilliant job of mixing the benefits of aluminium and carbon.

You could be forgiven for thinking you had straddled an old fashioned steel road frame when you climb aboard the Scandium, such is its forgiving nature.

But this really is a special ride, starting at the base with the super sturdy Pariba tyres and through to the excellent Easton forks.

In fact the forks are a great case in point to reveal this bike’s qualities; with only a little bit of torsional flex at the higher end of the fork blades, you can push the Scandium to the limit.

That is to say, you can throw what you want at this bike, because it will respond with strength, comfort and style.

Cruising up hills is a dream, thanks largely to the light front end and the firm bottom bracket.

And because of the aluminium frame, you can expect to ride to the sound of an enjoyable hum when on smooth roads. Anytime you pick up speed just listen; that’s the sound of the bike doing its best work.

Considering the jump in price to get to a sub-kilogram carbon frame, you can be very pleased that the Scandium weighs in at only 1163 grams. The Easton EC90 fork mentioned earlier is also light, coming in at just 334 grams.

The spec is mostly Easton – that’s a good thing – and is quality all the way down to the bar tape. You would think that to sell a bike for such a low price the manufacturer would have to take a shortcut somewhere, but that doesn’t appear to be the case.

The EA50 aero-section wheelset is great, using traditional round stainless steel spokes but staying firm and light.

The groupset is mostly Shimano 105 – a tried and true gruppo that will last a lifetime and provides quality, no-nonsense shifting. You get a nice little boost with the Ultegra mech at the rear and the Dura-Ace derailleur at the front. Although it would look a bit nicer if the cabling was routed internally, you can hardly expect such a perk on a low cost bike.

If there is a downside to the bike it is only slight: the handlebars could be wider. You may wish to upgrade after riding yourself, but some have found a lack of leverage when out of the saddle due to the lack of width of the bars.