You'll Have To Wait Until Fall 2022 To Grab a Ravishing Carbon Fiber Exceed CF 5 for $2K

Folks, the bike we'll be taking a look at today is known as the Exceed CF 5. It's a hardtail mountain bike (MTB) completed out of carbon fiber, and is created with technology borrowed from some of its higher-grade brethren. Oh, and then there's that price tag I mentioned.

Just to start things off, let's familiarize ourselves with Canyon, just in case you aren't sure who this team may be. This cycle manufacturer entered the market back in 1985, and by that time, companies like Bianchi, Trek, and Specialized were already at the top of the industry. Nonetheless, this German team rose to the challenge and is now seen riding alongside the previously mentioned manufacturers.

You should consider that the CF 5 features the same frame design as another bike from Canyon, their fresh flagship, Exceed CFR, a cross-country machine with a frame that only weighs 835 g (1.85 lbs). That frame is built using "extremely rare" Toray M40X carbon fiber sheets. Overall, the CFR is priced at 7,600 USD (6,831 EUR at current exchange rates).

As for the CF 5, at a fraction of the price, you'll be receiving a frame geometry the likes of the CFR, also carbon fiber. Sure, the words "extremely rare" no longer apply, but with a weight of 1,319 grams (2.89 lbs), it's still a featherweight trinket to be flying down single tracks on. It's also been designed to rock 29 in wheels.

Since you now have a better grasp of what's happening with this bike, let me point out a few geometry specs to imagine how you'll be sitting on it. You'll find a head tube angle set at 69 degrees for the medium-size frame and a seat tube at 75 degrees. There's a reach of 43.5 cm (17.1 in), a stand-over of 82.8 cm (32.6 in), and the chain stay is 42.5 cm (16.7 in). Your wheelbase is 112.3 cm (44.2 in) long: an XC geometry indeed.

A couple of other features you need to know about is the integrated seat clamp found where the top tube meets the seat tube. Above all, Canyon is showcasing their Impact Protection Unit, a system that keeps your handlebar and fork from hitting the frame in the eventuality of a tumble, very similarly to Trek's Knock Block. Speaking of the fork, a RockShox Recon RL with 100 mm (3.94 in) of travel and Motion Control can be modified directly from a handlebar-mounted unit.

Continuing with the drivetrain, this is where you'll start to notice what was sacrificed to offer the price tag CF 5 carries. Stock, this bike is equipped with a more budget-friendly Shimano Deore cassette boasting 10-51T and a Deore derailleur and lever. All of it is tuned to 12 speeds. Brakes are also Shimano with a pair of SLX with 160 mm (6.3 in) and 180 mm (7.1 in) rotors.

But, as affordable the remaining components on the frame may be, with some sales techniques helping you get rid of stock gear, you could then drop whatever you want on that pretty little frame and still be looking at a solid MTB. Sure, it won't weigh 11.74 kg (25.9 lbs), but maybe it'll weigh less.

At the end of the day, it seems like carbon fiber bikes no longer carry the insane prices they used to. Take the CF 5 as the perfect example of what you could never purchase 20 years ago, a carbon fiber MTB for 2,000 USD (1,800 EUR). Oh, and in case you missed the title of the article, this puppy will be available in Fall of 2022, so sit tight.