Here’s one for you XC racers, or for anyone with a soft spot for lightweight and racy full-suspension bikes. This all-new Canyon Lux arrived in the office last week and ever since it was unboxed we’ve been waiting for David Soul or Paul Glaser to slide across it at some point.
Canyon has sent us the Lux CF SL 8.0 Pro Race model in Radical Red, which actually sounds like the name Huggy Bear would have given it. The £3,399 bike comes with the same super light carbon fibre frame as the slightly more expensive SL 8.0 Race Team but is fitted with RockShox suspension front and rear rather than the Fox kit found on the £4,199 Team model.
Just as we’ve seen on the Sender, Torque and Spectral, Canyon has moved the Lux over to the new Triple Phase Suspension platform which is tuned to give sensitivity to the start of the stroke, a stable platform for pedalling and a progressive ramp up towards the end of the stroke.
We found when testing the Canyon Spectral this year that Triple Phase Suspension makes for a very playful ride, with a nice stable mid-stroke when sprinting. These are the same characteristics that Canyon promises with the Lux, only this time there is just 100mm of travel at play.
While making the move to its new platform, Canyon also took the time to create a sleek new linkage that they claim is 38% lighter than the previous design, yet offers better strength and durability. The low profile link is extremely neat and leaves plenty of room in the front triangle to fit an 800ml water bottle.
Building the Lux frame from carbon has allowed Canyon to create a very lightweight bike, but the German brand has also gone to town on all of the metal frame components too, to ensure further weight savings.
This very minimal chain guide, for example, weighs just 4.6g while the metal chainstay protector comes in at just 8.2g.
Other features that we first saw on the Canyon Spectral that also appear on the new Lux are the Quixle rear wheel axle and the IPU “Impact Protection Unit” which prevents the fork and bars spinning in the event of a crash.
Canyon is also touting a “Modern Race Geometry” for the Lux, which actually doesn’t mean what you might expect. While we’ve seen XC bikes from other brands become slacker and more aggressive, Canyon has actual moved in the opposite direction.
Canyon has given the Lux a steeper 69.5º head angle so that the geometry matches the Exceed hardtail when measured at sag, an important detail for racers who swap between bikes to suit course conditions.
The Lux also runs an 80mm stem on top of the already longer reach, while the chainstay length has been reduced to 435mm to keep the ride playful.
Canyon has carefully built this bike up with a nice mix of componentry that would suit XC racers, or weekend warriors planning to snatch their next KOM.
The suspension is handled by a RockShox SID RLC fork with 110mm of travel up front, and RockShox Deluxe RLR on the back. A bar mounted remote is set up to flick both suspension units into the closed position when needed, or opened up for when the going gets rough.
Being a modern XC bike, a dropper post comes as standard. This model is a Kind Shock Lev SL boasting 100mm of drop, plenty for riding steep XC courses.
SRAM takes complete control of the drivetrain and braking systems. X01 12 speed Eagle pushes the chain around to get you up to speed while SRAM Level TLM disc brakes bring you back to a stop again.
SRAM’s Stylo carbon cranks are fitted to the Lux frame via a DUB standard press-fit bottom bracket.
Rather than opting for a set of SRAM wheels, Canyon has built the Lux CF SL 8.0 Pro Race up with DT Swiss XR 1501 Spline One wheels shod with fast rolling Maxxis Ikon rubber.
Canyon’s own in-house componentry provides the 80mm stem and 720mm alloy bar while the ergonomic Egron GA20 grips keep your hands where they should be.
Eagle-eyed readers will have also noticed that Canyon hasn’t used a trigger shifter on this Lux, but rather an SRAM X01 Eagle Grip Shift shifter, we just hope we can remember how to use one while testing!
2019 Canyon Lux CF SL 8.0 Pro Race
- Frame // SL Carbon Fibre, 100mm Travel
- Fork // ROCKSHOX SID RLC, Remote Lockout, 51mm Offset, 100mm Travel
- Shock // RockShox Deluxe RLR, 210x55mm
- Hubs // DT Swiss 240, 110x15mm Front & 148x12mm Rear
- Rims // DT Swiss XR 1501 SPLINE ONE
- Tyres // Maxxis Ikon 2.2in Front & Ikon EXO 2.2in Rear
- Chainset // SRAM Stylo Carbon DUB, 34t Chainring
- Rear Mech // SRAM X01 Eagle, 12-Speed
- Shifter // SRAM X01 Eagle Grip Shift, 12-Speed
- Cassette // SRAM XG-1275, 10-50t, 12-Speed
- Brakes // SRAM Level TLM, 180mm Front & 160m Rear
- Bar // Canyon H20 Carbon Flatbar, 720mm Wide
- Stem // Canyon V14 Alloy, 80mm Long
- Grips // Ergon GA20
- Seatpost // KS LEV Si, 100mm Travel
- Saddle // Selle Italia SLR Lite
- Sizes available // Small, Medium, Large & Extra Large
- RRP // £3,399
If you think that the Canyon Lux could be your next bike but don’t want to wait for our full in-depth review then you could read Wil’s first ride impressions from back in July.
Also feel free to leave any questions about the Canyon Lux below and we’ll do our best to answer them ASAP.
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