Discussion
I have been looking for a full sus 120mm-140mm bike for some time now and been quite overwhelmed by the amount available. Anyway, I have become very keen on the Canyon Nerve AL. It appears to offer everything I am after, a great spec and a keen price. However they aren't a brand I am familiar with and I just wanted to gauge some other peoples experiences. The 30 day return policy appears to be quite re-assuring, but just not 100% comfortable buying something so expensive without seeing it in the flesh.
jimmyVX said:
I have been looking for a full sus 120mm-140mm bike for some time now and been quite overwhelmed by the amount available. Anyway, I have become very keen on the Canyon Nerve AL. It appears to offer everything I am after, a great spec and a keen price. However they aren't a brand I am familiar with and I just wanted to gauge some other peoples experiences. The 30 day return policy appears to be quite re-assuring, but just not 100% comfortable buying something so expensive without seeing it in the flesh.
Big on the continent, growing presence in the UK... Honestly I've never heard a bad thing about them that hasnt been rectified through their returns etc and even then its a one off not a regular fault. Although their minor UK presence is an issue but that itself is testament to their growing popularity as there wasnt one that long ago. the 30 day money back guarantee is a nice reassurance but then do all the geo research online, compare to other brands etc and you shouldnt get the size wrong. I have a friend with an Ultimate CF SLX who really likes it, comfy on 6 hour rides and still nice and rigid. Sure its a high end model but I dont believe their lower end stuff gets anything other than good reviews either.
The factory/shop is six hours drive from Dover which would eat into the savings somewhat but I'd still think a mini road trip out there would represent better value for money if you are spending a fair amount compared to buying something here to say nothing of the increased confidence, you might decide on a different model if you have sight of them all under one roof? Whats two tanks of petrol and a ferry crossing? might even be some others here tempted?!...
Edited by anonymous-user on Friday 31st January 12:25
Had 2 mountain bikes from them about 14 months ago after ours were nicked. Excellent bikes no complaints at all.
Since bought 2 road bikes from them as well again all perfect, ordered wife's road bike with the no cost optional ladies saddle, received a phone call from Germany to say they had no ladies saddles in stock so they would send it out with a gents saddle so as not to delay the order then send the ladies saddle when they came in and we could keep the gents saddle. Great service.
Buy it you won't be disappointed.
They apparently have a stand at the excel bike show in a couple of weeks. Might be worth a trip.
Since bought 2 road bikes from them as well again all perfect, ordered wife's road bike with the no cost optional ladies saddle, received a phone call from Germany to say they had no ladies saddles in stock so they would send it out with a gents saddle so as not to delay the order then send the ladies saddle when they came in and we could keep the gents saddle. Great service.
Buy it you won't be disappointed.
They apparently have a stand at the excel bike show in a couple of weeks. Might be worth a trip.
Edited by jfdi on Friday 31st January 17:28
I looked at getting an SLX last year. This was my conclusions...
Pros:
Great bikes, well specc'd, light.
Cons:
No LBS if minor things go wrong, it has to be sent back if major things go wrong, long waiting lists for SLX models, bendy SLX back end causes brake pad rub when climbing, unusual sizing numbers.
In short they are not as stiff as some magazine reviews would have you believe but are still excellent value for money, especially considering the spec you get. If you can get a test ride on a friend's one, that's the best way to tell if it is for you.
Their MTBs look really nice too.
Pros:
Great bikes, well specc'd, light.
Cons:
No LBS if minor things go wrong, it has to be sent back if major things go wrong, long waiting lists for SLX models, bendy SLX back end causes brake pad rub when climbing, unusual sizing numbers.
In short they are not as stiff as some magazine reviews would have you believe but are still excellent value for money, especially considering the spec you get. If you can get a test ride on a friend's one, that's the best way to tell if it is for you.
Their MTBs look really nice too.
A mate of mine spent north of 4k at Canyon unseen on a roadbike .
Stunning. Light. Fab. Build and delivery took a while.
BUT the frame cracked around the BB within the first few months.
They replaced the frame and paid for LBS reassembly without quibble though.
Mate summed it up by saying, yes, buy if you can work with published geometry and are handy with a spanner.
Stunning. Light. Fab. Build and delivery took a while.
BUT the frame cracked around the BB within the first few months.
They replaced the frame and paid for LBS reassembly without quibble though.
Mate summed it up by saying, yes, buy if you can work with published geometry and are handy with a spanner.
I've got a 2 year old Nerve AL (Nerve XC when I got it). Awesome bike. It's the one below the top of the range so Fork fork/shock, full X0 running gear and almost everything but the frame is carbon (bars, seatpost, cranks etc). Great value for money at around £1900. Not much can touch it at the price. It's now prices at £2300 with XT all round and a bit heavier but still a bargain
The bike is so light and chuckable - well under 12kg. Suits my riding which is 50:50 cross country and singletrack trails. Nothing more heavy duty than the red trails at Swinley but it could certainly handle more.
Have had 2 small problems with it : the X0 jockey wheels are crap - the top one keeps seizing and the bottom one is spiky (I've s set of KCNC ones just arrived in the post today) and the bolt from one of the pivots worked loose. Screwed back in with threadlock and its been fine for the past 6 months.
The bike is so light and chuckable - well under 12kg. Suits my riding which is 50:50 cross country and singletrack trails. Nothing more heavy duty than the red trails at Swinley but it could certainly handle more.
Have had 2 small problems with it : the X0 jockey wheels are crap - the top one keeps seizing and the bottom one is spiky (I've s set of KCNC ones just arrived in the post today) and the bolt from one of the pivots worked loose. Screwed back in with threadlock and its been fine for the past 6 months.
Some good feedback, generally it would seem.
To be honest my reservations were much as stated above, the difficulty with after-sales if needed and the absence of a trial. I don't know anyone who has one to try but having spoken to their UK office, I do feel a bit more re-assured that the returns policy is in place to exchange sizes etc if required.
I have been looking at 2nd hand alternatives so will just have to see what comes up. But like anything, its nice to be able to choose from new and have the security of the warranty.
To be honest my reservations were much as stated above, the difficulty with after-sales if needed and the absence of a trial. I don't know anyone who has one to try but having spoken to their UK office, I do feel a bit more re-assured that the returns policy is in place to exchange sizes etc if required.
I have been looking at 2nd hand alternatives so will just have to see what comes up. But like anything, its nice to be able to choose from new and have the security of the warranty.
The pictures on the website don't really do the bikes justice - they are better looking in the flesh.
I had a Nerve AL9.0 a couple of years ago. If you have a bike already, use that to figure out the size, don't rely on their calculator for sizing! The bike was great, very solid and a great spec for the price. After a few months use I discovered a crack on the drive side seat stay. Sent the pics to Canyon and they agreed to warranty it, saying it would take approx 6 weeks! It was a hassle boxing the bike up and sending it back (courier lost it for a couple of days) but I got it back in 5 weeks. As I didn't want to be without a bike for that long I saw it as a good excuse to buy a new bike (yeti sb95) so sold the Canyon.
My friend bought an ultimate SLX with no problems at all so far. You won't get better vfm and I love the looks, just be careful on sizing (check the actual geometry charts for each bike) and if you want the support of a lbs then Canyon probably isn't for you.
I had a Nerve AL9.0 a couple of years ago. If you have a bike already, use that to figure out the size, don't rely on their calculator for sizing! The bike was great, very solid and a great spec for the price. After a few months use I discovered a crack on the drive side seat stay. Sent the pics to Canyon and they agreed to warranty it, saying it would take approx 6 weeks! It was a hassle boxing the bike up and sending it back (courier lost it for a couple of days) but I got it back in 5 weeks. As I didn't want to be without a bike for that long I saw it as a good excuse to buy a new bike (yeti sb95) so sold the Canyon.
My friend bought an ultimate SLX with no problems at all so far. You won't get better vfm and I love the looks, just be careful on sizing (check the actual geometry charts for each bike) and if you want the support of a lbs then Canyon probably isn't for you.
I have no experience of Canyon, but I did buy a different cheap German brand in Ghost. It was the spec that sold it too me over a Trek. My experience was it was pretty poorly made as the rear swing arm snapped on a smooth bit of trail, also almost everytime I crashed it something broke, I'll put that down to Avid & SRAM components, also the Alex wheels were pony too!
My new bike is all Shimano and Hope and it's been through much tougher times than the Ghost and has yet to fail me, yes it was more expensive but I find British quality a price well worth paying.
My new bike is all Shimano and Hope and it's been through much tougher times than the Ghost and has yet to fail me, yes it was more expensive but I find British quality a price well worth paying.
there are a couple on eBay at the moment, might be worth a look if only to see one in the metal http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=1...
Another Nerve here - not the CF one unfortunately. Its been unstoppable. 3 Canyons of various specs in our MTB group and not one has had a problem in 3 years that wasn't caused by normal wear and tear.
Probably my only criticism is a slightly low BB height, few pedal strikes until I got used to it, but it was/is my first Full Suss.
Probably my only criticism is a slightly low BB height, few pedal strikes until I got used to it, but it was/is my first Full Suss.
Look around and there are customer service horrors for most big brands to be fair. The thread on bike radar RE Canyons sums it up I think. Personally, the HUGE discount on the big brands was worth a punt. The big guys are taking the pi$$ with prices and we all know it. They know they have middle aged men with deep pockets buying their bikes and are milking it.
I bought mine second hand off a mate so am by no means a fanboy...
I bought mine second hand off a mate so am by no means a fanboy...
dienamic said:
there are a couple on eBay at the moment, might be worth a look if only to see one in the metal http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=1...
I had spotted this one but its not that close to me and it isnt a 2014 bike as far as I can tell. The top tube looks different on the current bike.
In all honesty I cannot make my mind up which way to go. I think it is a great looking bike, reviews seem excellent but just a bit of an unknown quantity. For the same spec elsewhere probably looking at another £1k to the price. I had always wanted an Orange 5, but having sat on one this weekend I feel a bit in-between sizes. Im going to try to arrange a ride to find out for certain.
Edited by jimmyVX on Monday 3rd February 08:46
My experience of Canyon isn't entirely brilliant. While I love my Ultimate Al Di2, I was made to wait a long, long time since I'd originally ordered a CF Ultimate SLX which due to manufacturing constraints was delayed several times by a couple of months. UK customer services were friendly and helpful, but the communication between them and the German factory was poor. Very good value for money, but you still expect some form of customer service (from the parent factory) when parting with 3 bags. In the end I cancelled the CF SLX order for the Al, and it's an excellent bike IMO.
Gassing Station | Pedal Powered | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff