Canyon unveils two shiny special edition Ultimate road bikes while we wait for the new one

With the last fully overhauled version of Canyon's Ultimate launching back in 2017, speculation about the new bike has been rife for years rather than months now... and while an announcement on its German website gave us the strongest hint yet of a revamp this year, Canyon continues to whet our appetite with fancy versions of the current Ultimate, the latest being this limited edition model with "a beautiful glittering effect" coming from the patented paintjob. 

> Canyon’s Ultimate is about to be updated and here’s what you can expect

Officially known as the Ultimate CF SLX LTD, the frameset is hand-finished in Germany and doused in what Canyon says is "patented glass pearl pigmentation" that gives the frame "exceptional colour saturation that creates constantly changing reflections and a beautiful glittering effect." 

This is apparently made possible by the structure of the pigmentation: aluminium oxide platelets with "perfectly flat surfaces, which are coated in highly refractive metal oxides." 

As mentioned before, the frameset is essentially the same as your less glittery Ultimate CF SLX. That means Canyon's Sport Pro geometry, and a bike that has been sat on for three Grand Tour and a couple of World Championship victories. 

It's not the first time Canyon has introduced new spins on the Ultimate - in 2020 we were treated to the Ultimate CFR (Canyon Factory Racing) with a 675g frame and total bike weight of 6.2kg, and the year before that the Ultimate CF Evo Disc was even lighter at under 6kg. The Ultimate CF SLX LTD weighs in at 7.52kg according to Canyon. 

The new bikes will set you back £5,999 in both colourways, featuring SRAM Force 12-speed electronic shifting with a power meter crankset, DT Swiss carbon wheels and carbon cockpit. Here's the full spec: 

Frame: Canyon Ultimate CF SLX Disc
Fork: Canyon F38 CF Disc (carbon)
Groupset: SRAM Force eTap AXS, SRAM Force AXS Powermeter
Bottom bracket: SRAM Pressfit RED DUB
Brakes: SRAM Force eTap AXS HRD 2s
Wheels: DT Swiss ARC 1400 Dicut db XDR, 50mm depth
Tyres: Continental Grand Prix 5000
Handlebars: Canyon CP30 Aerocockpit (carbon)
Bar tape: Canyon Ergospeed Gel
Seatpost: Canyon S13 VCLS CF (carbon)
Saddle: Selle Italia SLR Boost Superflow Titanium

Only 50 of each colourway will be made, so if you like your bikes sparkly (and in a size large, because that's the only one showing as in stock at the moment), head over to Canyon's website for more details and your buying options.