Endura Pro SL Roadsuit review

The Pro SL Road Suit gives you the advantages of a single piece – no bib straps, lighter weight and better airflow, but unlike many road suits doesn’t look like a one piece or zip you up uncomfortably. It uses Endura’s excellent seatpad, available in three widths, and its fabric reflects heat to keep you cooler. It’s a one piece that we’d be happy to ride in all day, which is why it features in our Editor’s Choice selection of the best kit we’ve used in 2018.

The Endura Pro SL Roadsuit combines Endura’s excellent, top-of-the-line Pro SL II bibshorts with a Pro SL jersey into a single garment.

Having an all-in-one shorts and jersey combo has a few advantages: you dispense with the bibs from the shorts and save a bit of weight, while still having a full-length zip for ventilation and to take the Pro SL Roadsuit off and on.

The in-built jersey does a good job of keeping the shorts in place, without the extra layer of fabric and the shoulder straps of standard bibshorts. There’s an elastic front to the shorts that is significantly lower on the torso than standard bibs; the extra airflow over the stomach is immediately noticeable.

The bottom half of the Endura Pro SL Roadsuit is the same as the brand’s Pro SL II bibshorts and comes with the same features. So there are internal leg grippers, a stealth black-on-black Endura logo on the legs and effective internal leg grippers. And as with the bibshorts, you can choose from three different widths of the top-notch 700 series pad to fit your sitbone anatomy. Endura dealers will measure you up or you can make your own estimate of which seatpad is likely to fit.

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The top half of the Pro SL Roadsuit is Endura’s Pro SL jersey. Whereas that piece comes in five different colours, the Roadsuit is black only. You still get three well sized open rear pockets plus a zipped one and a reflective tab built in.

Both the Pro SL bibshorts and jersey are Coldblack treated, as is the Pro SL Roadsuit. Coldblack reflects non-visible light from the sun in the UV and IR wavebands, reducing heat build-up as well as providing SPF 50 sun protection. I certainly found the Pro SL Roadsuit comfortable in hot conditions, with the full length zip allowing you to adjust airflow yet more. You’re not so stitched in that you can’t take a rest stop either.

As with the Pro SL II bibshorts, the fit of the Pro SL Roadsuit is not as close as many makers’ bottom halves and there’s a bit of extra room in the jersey part too. Although I was fine in a medium, which is my normal size, I could have almost certainly dropped down to a size small and still felt comfortable.

At £180, the Pro SL Roadsuit is not cheap. But it undercuts the price of the two separate garments by £15, is lighter and is more comfortable for high intensity activities like crit racing too. If you’re self-conscious, the design doesn’t make it obvious that you’re wearing a onesie.

The disadvantage is that it’s black only. And if you wash out, you’ll quite likely need to replace the whole lot rather than just the top or bottom of a two piece ensemble.