Bike decison Canyon Ultimate or Bianchi Oltre

dan45a

Hi, I'm looking to change my 2010 Giant TCR Advanced this spring. I want another quick/race type bike, I have a budget of £2-3k.

I am down to 2 bikes:-

Bianchi Oltre XR1 Ultegra (without wheels cost is £2690) will use my own Fulcrum racing 3 wheels for now.
Canyon Ultimate CF SL 9.0 Aero (£2499)

Canyon seems to be getting lots of great reviews, build is good, cant see a reason not to get one, but wonder would I regret not getting the Binachi?

Can't find much feeback or reviews on the Oltre XR1 (lower grade carbon version), XR2 has amazing reviews but wondering if the XR1 is that much different.

Any advice or experiences appreciated.

ddraver

The one that fits best

(sorry)

supermurph09

ddraver wrote:

The one that fits best

(sorry)

That might be hard with a Canyon.

mfin

Supermurph09 wrote:

ddraver wrote:

The one that fits best

(sorry)

That might be hard with a Canyon.

You don't need to sit on a bike or see it in the flesh at all to know it fits, you just need to know your fit or to want the exact same position you have on your existing bike and be able to translate it over.

People who think you have to sit on a bike to know if it fits generally are those who know nothing about the above. Those who do know the above will always revert to these measurements when buying.

mfin

OP, only you will know what you will regret. Personally I'd regret buying either of those bikes if was spending that budget.

ddraver

Supermurph09 wrote:

ddraver wrote:

The one that fits best

(sorry)

That might be hard with a Canyon.

gives an indication then eh?

dan45a

mfin - do you have any recommendations for that budget?

t4tomo

The Oltre is a cracking looking bike and as far as I can gather the main difference between XR1 and XR2 is 200g and not being named after an early 80s hot Ford Fiesta.

I know which I'd buy, go with your heart as the Oltre will make you feel way more special than the canyon. You'll get far better sales / after sales support too.

supermurph09

mfin wrote:

Supermurph09 wrote:

ddraver wrote:

The one that fits best

(sorry)

That might be hard with a Canyon.

You don't need to sit on a bike or see it in the flesh at all to know it fits, you just need to know your fit or to want the exact same position you have on your existing bike and be able to translate it over.

People who think you have to sit on a bike to know if it fits generally are those who know nothing about the above. Those who do know the above will always revert to these measurements when buying.

fair point

dan45a

Thanks for the responses

Going to see an oltre xr1 Saturday, size it up. See how good it looks on the flesh..

cal_stewart

https://www.canyon.com/en/roadbikes/bike.html?b=3579 Alloy?

Yellow Peril

I own and love two Canyons but if I could afford an Oltre I'd have one in a heartbeat

TheHound

Not quite in the same price bracket but I went with my heart and bought a Bianchi Intenso over an Endurace.

I've not regretted it for a moment. I'm sure the Endurace would have been excellent, but I don't think I would have LOVED it.

I guess that could apply to your situation.

ddraver

In defence of Canyon, the italian that rides in our group rides a Bianchi and openly admits that, in Italy, they are considered the Fiat of Italian Bicycles

How Far is too Far

Think of it as a VW vs a Fiat then ;-)

I have a Canyon Ultimate as well as a Supersix Himod, The Canyon is a great bike comfy/quick not bad looking etc. I think people look at Italian bikes and think the are something special when often they do the same job as most other bikes. A Canyon with some nice wheels on it will do anything you need it to do. But so will a Binchi just it will cost more spec. for spec.

ddraver

I think that's quite a good analogy actually

The point I'm trying to make is that just becasue it's been painted blue and has an Italian Flag sticker on it doesnt mean that it's demonstrably any better/worse than anything else.

If I were you Dan, I'd print off or write down the geometry charts of both bikes and take them with you so you can at least compare the two together if the Bianchi doesnt float your boat.

Edit - and the chart of your current bike too, with a note of anything you might have changed - handlebar, stem length, layback post etc

noodleman

I have an oltre XR1 and love it. Wouldnt change it for anything. Personal choice but i'd choose it over a canyon everytime.

holiver

Bianchi's are usually attractive bikes, but I am not a huge fan of the celeste. Shoot me now.

gweeds

I understand the hero worship of Italian frames in the days they were a) shrouded in mystique and built by wizened old men in the back streets of a town people had never heard of, let alone visited and b) when they were ridden by hero riders and largely unaffordable to the average UK buyer.

But in the days of carbon? Not so much. The 'new world' likes of Cannondale,
Cervelo, Trek, Giant et al showed them a clean pair of heels and we still now see prices loaded onto Italian frames purely because they're 'Italian' (albeit made in the Far East like most today). The prices of some deeply average 'off the shelf' Italian bikes baffles me.

Given a blind test who here could tell the difference between a Bianchi, a Trek and a Scott? Not many I'd wager.

But then we all buy with hearts from time to time, so I understand choosing a Bianchi over a Canyon. As ever though the fit should drive the decision.

Dodger747

Agree fit comes first, but then value was a very close second for me.

My Super Record Canyon was cheaper than a much lower spec Bianchi [even though I love the Oltre], there just wasn't any value in the Bianchi for me.

Miles253

I see alot of the comment, which ever fits best, but what determines that? Surely with changes to seatpost, saddle, bars and stem any position can be acheived?

nibby

How Far is too Far wrote:

Think of it as a VW vs a Fiat then ;-)

I have a Canyon Ultimate as well as a Supersix Himod, The Canyon is a great bike comfy/quick not bad looking etc. I think people look at Italian bikes and think the are something special when often they do the same job as most other bikes. A Canyon with some nice wheels on it will do anything you need it to do. But so will a Binchi just it will cost more spec. for spec.

How do you find the supersize high mod compared to the Canyon?

dan45a

Went to see the oltre xr1 yesterday, had a quick spin out on it. Was a bit big for me as was 55cm but got the idea, very stiff and quick which is what I'm looking for.

Very nice looking bike, was in Celeste colour but I'd want the Matt black. I did really like it.

I get from the comments that its not as good value as the canyon, and to make my decision even harder I'm working in Germany not far from the canyon factory next month so have the option to pay in euros on collection saving another £400 on the ultimate sl cf 9.0.

It's definitely a heart vs head decision.

Thanks for all the comments so far. Still love to hear any comments from owners of either of these bikes. Cheers

gweeds

Go to Koblenz and test the canyon there?

How Far is too Far

nibby wrote:

How Far is too Far wrote:

Think of it as a VW vs a Fiat then ;-)

I have a Canyon Ultimate as well as a Supersix Himod, The Canyon is a great bike comfy/quick not bad looking etc. I think people look at Italian bikes and think the are something special when often they do the same job as most other bikes. A Canyon with some nice wheels on it will do anything you need it to do. But so will a Binchi just it will cost more spec. for spec.

How do you find the supersize high mod compared to the Canyon?

They are both very nice to ride and I have done 150+ miles rides on both and find the comfy, the Cannondale was 5k the Canyon 1.8k and there is not much difference to ride. The Dale is slightly stiffer and a touch lighter but that is more due to the groupset.

To the OP if you can get a Canyon in Euros you will get a lot of bike for your money with a Canyon. If you go to any local crits you will see a few Canyons normally and every rider I have spoken to with one has always praised it.

FransJacques

dan45a wrote:

It's definitely a heart vs head decision.

Exactly, and it's not that Canyon = head and Bianchi = heart. Both are as lust-worthy and/or technical as you want. It's not about Teutonic Vorsprung durch Technik or Italian cuore or dolce vita. It's about your head and your heart. I have 2 equally expensive road bikes and the one that gets ridden is the one that looks the best and motivates me to get out and ride it. The other one is a machine, a tool for riding. It doesn't motivate me nearly as much.

dan45a

Well I've finally decided and taken the plunge.

Ordered the bianchi xr1 ultegra. Should arrive last week of March or just into April. Will be fitting my fulcrum racing 3 wheels to start but will move onto a search for new wheels when funds allow.

Very excited, thanks for all the comments.

DKay

Lovely. Look forward to seeing pics.

dan45a

Got the bike last weekend, it's had a few outings now so thought I'd follow up with a picture and a short review for anyone else considering the decision between buying perhaps a canyon direct or a more traditional brand locally.

As you can probably guess I'm going to be totally biased, but this Oltre is a flyer. Much stiffer than my previous Giant TCR and a touch lighter, it's weighs in at 7.5kg on my scales as pictured so heavier than the Canyon Ultimate CF but still feels light and quick to me. Handling it very accurate with good control and grip off the schwable one tyres. So loving it at the moment.

It's cost me about £800 more than the canyon with the ffwd wheels.

No regrets here even if it is seen as the fiat of Italian bikes

DKay

Looks great. Get some better pics up in the Your Road Bikes section.

thehighroad

Lovely, I have one of these with Chorus on its way to funnily enough replace my Canyon Ultimate that I am going through a warranty claim with Canyon about at the moment. As nice as the Canyon was the Bianchi is definitely prettier.