New Balance FuelCell Propel v4 Review

New Balance FuelCell Propel v4 Introduction

When you privation to marque a moving footwear exciting, you can’t conscionable enactment a sheet successful it and anticipation for the best: the Hoka Bondi X is impervious of this. The Bondi X simply doesn’t marque consciousness due to the fact that it’s a max-cushioned, easy-day footwear with a stiff c plate. Plates are designed to summation the shoe’s rigidity to assistance you summation your velocity and the Bondi was designed for moving astatine dilatory paces truthful the Bondi X felt truly awkward.

A sheet successful the New Balance Propel makes a batch of sense. The Propel, which was launched alongside the Rebel backmost successful 2019 has been mostly overshadowed by the faster, lighter, and much flashy Rebel.

I purchased the Propel v1 and I loved however brushed and comfy its thrust was. It was softer than astir max-cushioned trainers astatine the clip but determination wasn’t overmuch vigor instrumentality from the midsole foam, adjacent though it was FuelCell truthful I utilized it for betterment runs only.

The Propel was designed to beryllium the regular trainer portion the Rebel was designed to beryllium the velocity footwear successful this FuelCell grooming range. In the past 4 years, the Rebel has go much and much similar a regular trainer: with each update, it has received much cushioning, a much durable outsole, and a much robust build. This has cannibalized
income of the Propel.

The 2023 Propel v4’s main, header diagnostic is simply a brand-new TPU sheet successful its midsole. It has a caller formulation of FuelCell, which is the aforesaid density that’s successful the overmuch higher-priced New Balance SC Trainer. The precocious and outsole person besides been redesigned.

It’s listed incorrectly arsenic being 10.7 oz (303 g) connected some the New Balance website and the Running Warehouse website. I weighed my US9 and it came successful astatine lone 9.7 oz (275 g). This is simply a value summation of 0.8 oz (23 g) from the Propel v3. Like astir moving shoes this year, the terms has gone up by $10 and it volition present outgo you $110.

New Balance FuelCell Propel v4 First Impressions

My archetypal tally was 9 km astatine my casual pace. I was truly impressed with however dynamic the thrust of the Propel v4 felt. Transitions were smooth, the forefoot felt snappy and it had pleasant, brushed landings with each ft onslaught without being mushy.

The shoes that it reminded maine of astir were the Saucony Endorphin Speed 1 and the New Balance SC Pacer which are besides plated but flexible moving shoes. The sheet successful the Propel v4 was the astir flexible of each 3 shoes.

The precocious was truly comfy but I had to usage a runner’s knot to get a unafraid bottommost lockdown. Compared to the erstwhile Propel mentation that I had tested, the Propel v4’s cushioning felt much substantial, portion the thrust felt much unchangeable and faster owed to the TPU plate.

New Balance FuelCell Propel v4 Upper

The Propel has a cushioned precocious which you would find connected a emblematic regular trainer. It’s padded capable to marque agelong runs comfy and it has nary large flaws.

It fits existent to size and should beryllium good for astir ft shapes but highly wide feet. I find that determination is capable forefoot and toed container country adjacent with heavy socks. The collar has the cleanable magnitude of padding and there’s an interior bottommost antagonistic for structure. Heel lockdown is bully but I had to usage a runner’s knot.

The padded lingua is not gusseted truthful it slides astir during runs. The precocious is besides not that breathable truthful it’s connected the lukewarm side. Those are the lone things I don’t similar astir the upper.

New Balance FuelCell Propel v4 Sole Unit

What makes the Propel v4 truthful versatile is that it feels unchangeable and cushioned during casual paces portion it feels energetic and agile astatine faster paces. This is simply a jack of each trades moving footwear which tin beryllium an casual day, dependable day, tempo oregon adjacent contention time shoe.

While the TPU sheet is not stiff and it doesn’t springiness arsenic overmuch propulsion arsenic a ace shoe, it has much popular than your mean regular trainer. The TPU sheet of the Propel v4 takes inspiration from the Endorphin Speed 3’s nylon plate. The Propel’s sheet has a midfoot helping which extends outwards, nether the arch.

The sheet reminds maine of the sheet that’s successful the ASICS GlideRide 3– it’s precise flexible truthful it doesn’t marque dilatory moving successful the Propel v4 consciousness awkward. The downside of this is that it doesn’t connection arsenic overmuch propulsion arsenic a stiffer plate. If you privation thing stiffer/faster, I urge the Magic Speed 2 oregon the Puma Deviate Nitro 2.

At 31 mm, the bottommost stack tallness isn’t arsenic precocious arsenic a ace footwear oregon adjacent the Endorphin Speed 3 truthful your ft sits little to the crushed and stableness is precise good. When moving successful the Propel v4, my ft strikes consciousness precise planted which makes it an fantabulous agelong tally shoe. It besides has capable cushioning for a afloat marathon. The longest tally I did successful it was 35 km and it felt truly protective passim the run.

I bask utilizing the Propel v4 astir connected steady-paced oregon fartlek runs. Its sheet combined with its lively midsole foam marque it truly casual to prime up the pace. Another 1 of the factors which marque the Propel v4 consciousness similar a nimble footwear is its 6 mm drop. This makes it easier to midfoot oregon forefoot onslaught erstwhile you request to summation your speed.

The midsole of the Propel v4 has a ample cavity oregon void underneath it, akin to the size of the 1 successful the NB SC Pacer. This diagnostic is designed to instrumentality much vigor arsenic the midsole foam and sheet deform during footstrikes. This is thing which I tin consciousness during runs and it makes a quality to the ride, making it much energetic.

There’s capable rubber sum connected each the precocious deterioration areas truthful durability is decent. The rubber has a level plan which is receded into the midsole truthful transitions are truly smooth. There are nary lugs which protrude outwards truthful grip is lone average.

New Balance FuelCell Propel v4 Conclusions

The champion happening astir the Propel v4 is that it doesn’t consciousness similar a $110 shoe. If you told maine that it costs $140, I’d accidental that it’s a just price, truthful $110 for specified a versatile, plated footwear is simply a steal.

When you comparison it to different regular trainers, it outshines accepted stalwarts similar the Ghost, Pegasus and Clifton which are successful the $130-$145 terms range.

As a plated velocity trainer, it besides outshines competitors similar the Endorphin Speed 3. I precocious ran successful the Endorphin Speed 3 to comparison and I really similar the thrust of the Propel v4 for the other stableness and its transitions. I consciousness that the 6 mm driblet of the Propel is amended suited to maine than the 8 mm of the Speed. The Speed 3 has much cushioning but there’s thing astir its precocious toe-spring rocker which feels disconnected to me.

Compared to the NB Rebel v3, the Propel v4 isn’t arsenic brushed oregon amusive connected abbreviated distances but it has much cushioning extent and amended stableness truthful it’s amended for agelong runs. It’s a much versatile trainer and it costs $20 little than the Rebel v3.

Version 4 of the Propel is decidedly an betterment implicit erstwhile versions. The caller TPU sheet has made it a overmuch much breathtaking shoe, adding stability, snappiness and all-round versatility to a trainer which was excessively dilatory to beryllium a regular trainer.