Canyon Commuter:ON 7 in review

The Canyon Commuter:ON 7 makes its intent clear with its name alone. We found out whether the lightweight ebike with its FAZUA motor masters the commute better than the competition in our big commuter bike group test. You can find out everything you need to know here!

Get an overview of the grouptest here: The best ebike of 2021 – The 19 most exciting concepts for everyday use

**Canyon** Commuter:ON 7 | FAZUA Ride 50 Evation/252 Wh
17.90 kg in size L | € 3,299 | Manufacturer’s website

You want to go to your language class straight from work but you get a message on your phone. Your climbing wall has reset the bouldering routes. You have an hour until your night class and have chalk and climbing shoes with you anyway. Challenge accepted. Where others see problems, you see challenges. You thrive on performance and you move through the city faster on your ebike than any sports car. Canyon might have something for you. Direct-to-consumer brand Canyon are a known quantity for performance fans in the road, mountain and gravel sectors. Now, Canyon want to gain a foothold in the urban mobility sector and are drawing the attention of commuters with futuristic concept studies. With the Commuter:ON 7, Canyon enter our group test as a performance brand, with the inspiration from their sportier sectors apparent here. Thanks to the almost completely removable FAZUA Ride 50 Evation motor, the bike can be transformed into an agile fitness machine.

The high level of integration of the Commuter:ON 7 results in a lot of pleasant surprises.

Canyon Commuter:ON 7 spec in detail

The Commuter:ON 7 is available in just one build for € 3,299. You’re only left with the choice between the Commuter:ON with a traditional diamond frame or the Commuter:ON WMN, with a trapeze frame and low standover height for easier (dis)mounting of the bike. The minimalist design of our diamond-frame test bike seduces you with its high level of integration. The one-tone paint of the high-quality aluminium frame is broken up by restrained Canyon branding. The brake hoses, gear cables and wires for the front light disappear into the one-piece aluminium cockpit quickly. That results in a tidy look, though at the cost of adjustability. Apart from one 10 mm spacer, the cockpit offers no further room for adjustments. Where other mid-motor ebikes usually out themselves by the size of the bottom bracket, the Commuter:ON’s isn’t wider than many traditional bikes, resulting in a comparatively narrow q-factor.

The Commuter:ON 7 is an ebike and fitness bike in one. When required, the battery and motor can simply be removed and replaced by a cover.

The practical spec includes solid aluminium mudguards, a luggage rack and front and rear lights, which increase your visibility but aren’t intended for nighttime rides on unlit roads. The rack can be loaded with up to 15 kg and adheres to the ORTLIEB QL3.1 standard, allowing numerous different stylish bags to be mounted to the bike. A stand is missing but the bike is equipped with the mounts to take one. The rest of the spec consists of a Shimano DEORE 12-speed shifter with a Shimano XT derailleur from the mountain bike sector. This allows steep ramps to be surmounted even without motor support thanks to the wide gear range. For the diamond-frame version, two bottle cages can be mounted in the frame triangle, fitting the concept of a fitness bike well.

**Worth it for city use**
The Commuter:ON 7 is delivered without a bike stand but has the mounts to take one.

**Out of control**
The controller for the Commuter:ON 7 is integrated into the down tube and hard to reach while riding. When the sun shines directly on it, it’s also very hard to read.

**Piece of art**
Thanks to the matching headset cap, the one-piece cockpit flows seamlessly into the head tube. The annoying creaking as a result of this construction isn’t as nice.

**Back to basics**
The motor-battery unit can be removed from the down tube, with only the gearbox left in the bottom bracket. The optional cover lets you create a small storage space.

Canyon Commuter:ON 7

€ 3,299

Specifications

Motor FAZUA Ride 50 Evation 55 Nm
Battery FAZUA Evation 252 Wh
Display -
Fork Canyon FK0085 CF Disc
Seatpost Iridium 30,9 mm
Brakes MT200 160/160 mm
Drivetrain Shimano DEORE M6100 1x12
Stem Canyon CP23 80 mm
Handlebar Canyon CP23 630 mm
Wheelset Alexrims GX26P
Tires Schwalbe G-One 27.5 x 1,5"

Technical Data

Size S M L XL
Weight 17.90 kg

Specific Features

Wingee rear rack w/ ORTLIEB QL3.1 standard
battery and motor Drivepack completely removable
one-piece cockpit

**Light and shadow**
All cables run through the cockpit and frame. This looks great but makes things awkward for home mechanics.

**Melted away**
The welds and transition at the front are flowing and result in a very high-end look.

**What you need, you’ll take**
The Wingee rear rack is approved for loads up to 15 kg. That’s enough for a laptop and a small shop.

**Fresh socks**
Thanks to the chainring guard and support from the motor, you won’t necessarily have to change clothes in the office, but you’ll definitely be warmed up. It might be worth changing into cycling shorts for the ride home.

Size	S	M	L	XL
Seat tube	400 mm	440 mm	485 mm	535 mm
Top tube	567 mm	588 mm	619 mm	656 mm
Head tube	155 mm	175 mm	210 mm	210 mm
Head angle	71.5°	71.5°	71.5°	72.5°
Seat angle	73.5°	73.5°	73.5°	73.5°
Chainstays	425 mm	425 mm	425 mm	433 mm
BB Drop	60 mm	60 mm	60 mm	73 mm
Wheelbase	1,032 mm	1,054 mm	1,086 mm	1,117 mm
Reach	402 mm	418 mm	439 mm	466 mm
Stack	555 mm	574 mm	607 mm	642 mm

Two bikes in one – The FAZUA Ride 50 Evation system

The Canyon Commuter:ON 7 carries the genes of a minimalistic fitness bike. As such, the motor concept needs to fit the overall bike both in terms of design and performance. Canyon have made the right choice with the FAZUA drive. The FAZUA Ride 50 Evation motor with its 252 Wh battery sits neatly integrated into the down tube. With 55 Nm torque output, it has distinctly more grunt than the SL 1.1 motor in the comparable Specialized Vado SL despite its low weight. Nonetheless, the power is less than that of a Bosch Performance Line CX or Shimano EP8 motor, meaning it won’t shuttle you up steep inclines effortlessly. The motor delivers its power very naturally in all three assistance modes making it particularly beginner-friendly. However, if you want to ride the Commuter:ON at 25 km/h, you’ll have to put in quite a lot of effort yourself. A motor remote is missing on the bars to let you quickly switch to Rocket mode for steep climbs, as is a push assist. That said, even without it, the comparatively lightweight 17.9 kg bike can be easily carried over steps. The motor is started and controlled via a minimalistic controller in the down tube. On top of that, all tech fans will be able to tune the assistance modes via a USB connection with the FAZUA Toolbox Software 2.0 to suit their personal preferences. You can maintain an overview of all your ride data with the FAZUA Rider app on your smartphone, which can also be used for navigation. The remote in the down tube is inconspicuous while riding and with its five, coloured status LEDs only provides rudimentary information on the remaining battery charge or current assistance mode.

The Commuter:ON has to thank the FAZUA Ride 50 Evation system for the trick that no other bike in the test is capable of: the 3.36 kg motor and battery can be removed from the underside of the down tube and replaced by a 500 g cover. That makes the already light bike a further 3 kg lighter, leaving it feeling like an analogue machine. The lockable motor-battery unit always has to be removed from the Canyon to be charged.

Canyon Commuter:ON 7 on test

From the first few metres, it’s clear that the Canyon Commuter:ON 7 benefits from the racing expertise of the Canyon development team. The Commuter:ON 7 manages the balance between stability and agility like no other bike in the test. While it’s intuitive and easy to control for ebike newbies, practised riders are rewarded with a lot of fun through tight corners aboard the Commuter:ON. On grippy ground, it precisely responds to all steering input. If you swap asphalt for loose ground, you have to treat the directness of the ebike carefully as it tolerates fewer mistakes here. Fit riders on the search for a commuting bike will find the transition to the Commuter:ON particularly easy. The sporty and somewhat stretched position on the ebike invites you to play, rather than scoring with high levels of comfort during leisurely tours.

Tuning tips: suspension seat post for increased comfort | order the FAZUA Ride 50 Downtube Cover for € 84.95 and the Hebie eFIX stand for € 29.99 with the bike

The high standover height of the diamond frame also limits comfort. You should only expect even snappier performance from the Cannondale Topstone in this group test. If you’re searching for a bike with which you can effortlessly commute to work, before working on your fitness on the way home without assistance, you will find a fitting partner in the Commuter:ON. Nonetheless, less fit riders will be pushed over every climb by the well-modulated electronic tailwind, which they might otherwise not have managed under their own steam. The narrow tires and rigid carbon fork contribute to the stiff and sporty handling – unfortunately they also ensure that comfort during rides away from asphalted surfaces leaves a lot to be desired. The Commuter:ON is an excellent tour guide for city escapes, but no boy scout for forest and gravel tracks.

Canyon Commuter:ON 7 conclusion

The Canyon Commuter:ON 7 is groundbreaking in its concept and stylish implementation. The integration of the motor and bike components is of the highest level and the riding performance impresses. For € 3,299, sporty riders will get the right bike for their commute and regular fitness sessions in one package. However, the stiff chassis limits comfort too much for more leisurely rides – that means the Commuter:ON missed out on our Best Buy by a whisker.

Tops

active and sporty handling
successful integration of motor and components
can be ridden as an analogue bike without the motor
tidy and pretty looks

Flops

battery has to be removed for charging
limited adjustment of the cockpit
comparatively low level of comfort

Rider Type

The trans-urban mile muncher 1

The stylish city explorer 2

The Transporter 3

The short distance whizz 4

The passionate recreational cyclist 5

You can find out more about at canyon.com

The testfield