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Is the Canyon VCLS 2.0 seatpost any good?

Hello all,

I'm currently dithering between a Canyon Ultimate and an Endurace for my N+1-1. What's swaying me a little towards the Endurace is that neat-looking split VCLS seatpost it comes with. Potholes are my nemesis where I live so it looks just the job... but I'm have visions of it bouncing around and sapping my power up the hills.

What are your thoughts about the VCLS post? Any positive or negative experiences? (For that matter, any experiences with the Endurace versus the Ultimate?).

For reference I'm 68kg and mostly cycle up and down the hills and small lanes of Kent, Surrey and Sussex at a decent whack. I'll probably have a crack at my first sportive this year on aformentioned bike so I'm guessing comfort's pretty important?

Cheers as always!

P.R.

If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.

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13 comments

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Canyon48 | 6 years ago
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I bought the seat post with no setback at all, it was in the sale and I figured that my saddle had enough room to not need the setback.

It doesn't get rid of bumps, but it massively takes the edge off. I cycled over some traffic calming rumble strips and could barely feel them through the seatpost (still shock the hell out of my hands and feet). On my road bike, without the VCLS, I struggle to even control the bike over these bumps!

What I've REALLY noticed is that on my commute, when I have to tackle some of the more rubbish stuff, there's no sharp jarring, which really improves the comfort.

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Bikeylikey | 7 years ago
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I had this seatpost, with the short setback, on my new Endurace. It was excellent, you can just feel the spring but it doesn't detract in any way (in my experience. I'm 12 stone). I did have to have the saddle set right back at the limit of travel, however, which I considered not a good thing. So I bought another post with the longer setback, which is perfect. The shorter setback one has gone on to another bike with a longer top tube. Be sure to get the right one for you if ordering a new bike - the short one comes as standard but they will swap it for the longer one if you request it.

Or at least they would when I bought the bike. What they'll  swap and what they won't seems to change over time. My mate has just bought an Ultimate: they wouldn't swap the chainset, or rings, from 36/62 to 34/50. They said they produce these builds in such quantities and for such a low price that they can't be spending time changing bits here and there.

Also, re. the interesting sizing comments above, note that the medium Ulitimate has about the same length top tube as the large Endurace (1mm difference). If you consider this measurement to be the most significant, perhaps this is worth taking this into account in making your choice. I've ridden both medium Ulitmate and large Endurace:  reach was the same, but obviously the Ultimate was lower at the front - shorter head tube and without the fork crown build-up on the Endurace. Speaking as a creaky old git, I prefer the Endurace.

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part_robot | 7 years ago
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Slightly off-topic, if you run the numbers the geometries of the two bikes are almost identical; to produce the Medium Endurace frame from the Medium Ultimate you need only move the entire front back 10mm, change the head tube angle by 0.25deg and increase the head tube height by 10mm. You still have identical trail and, presumably, handling. In fact, if you run a 110mm stem and a 20mm spacer on an Endurace and a 100mm stem and 30mm spacer on the Ultimate the bar is at almost spot on the same position. Assuming the layup is very similar (which is an unknown) my theory is that the only reason reviewers think they handle differently is that the Endurace coming with 28mm tyres versus the 25mm of the Ultimate....

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bauchlebastart replied to part_robot | 7 years ago
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part_robot wrote:

Slightly off-topic, if you run the numbers the geometries of the two bikes are almost identical; to produce the Medium Endurace frame from the Medium Ultimate you need only move the entire front back 10mm, change the head tube angle by 0.25deg and increase the head tube height by 10mm. You still have identical trail and, presumably, handling. In fact, if you run a 110mm stem and a 20mm spacer on an Endurace and a 100mm stem and 30mm spacer on the Ultimate the bar is at almost spot on the same position. Assuming the layup is very similar (which is an unknown) my theory is that the only reason reviewers think they handle differently is that the Endurace coming with 28mm tyres versus the 25mm of the Ultimate....

My thoughts exactly. This was the reason I opted for the Endurace CF SLX disc instead of waiting for the release of the Ultimate disc. I run a 110mm ergocockpit (kindly swapped by Canyon) and minimal spacers.

An added bonus was that once the Ultimate disc came out, prices increased across the board. If I were buying my bike today it would cost me £1000 more

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Stef Marazzi | 7 years ago
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Wife has an Ultimate, Mate has an Endurace. The Endurace is an awesome bike for the money. Personally I think wife should have gone for an Endurace after seeing it in the flesh. Frame is just as nice, but more comfy geometry for all day riding.

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bauchlebastart | 7 years ago
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The saddle clamps are mounted onto bushes, so when the post flexes the saddle stays level. The instructions tell you to set your saddle height a little higher than you need to allow for the intial flex. As mentioned earlier the initial set up can take a while, but you only have to go through this once.

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part_robot | 7 years ago
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Given that it flexes slightly when you first sit on it, how do you ensure the saddle is level and in the right position (i.e. When loaded)?

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bauchlebastart | 7 years ago
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I have a VCLS2.0 on my Endurace CFSLX and think it is great. You only notice the movement when you first sit on the bike, after that it just disappears. Some have commented that it deflects too much under heavier riders, but at 85kg I havent noticed this as an issue.  Bear in mind that the Ultimate has the same seatpost clamp design which allows flex of its rigid VCLS post, but just not as much as with the leafspring VCLS2.0

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part_robot | 7 years ago
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Brilliant feedback - thanks all! Very helpful. Endurace with springy post it is then!

The only thing I need to decide on now is whether or not I'm willing to trade down to Ultegra mech disc versus my current Ultegra Di2 disc... Unfortunately, I gather, I can't upgrade the Endurace mech frameset to Di2 later as the battery won't fit internally without quite some hacking  7

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upinthehills | 7 years ago
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Can give you an opinion on both I think.

I have an Ultimate and a mate has the Endurace. His bike is a slightly lower spec than mine but weight is very similar. Only around half a kilo between the two. 

He prefers a slightly more comfy position and that is about all the difference if you discount the weight. If you don't like an aggressive position then go for the Endurace.

The seat post is ace though. I have one on the Ultimate and I rate it. I will be putting one onto my cross bike as they really do take the buzz out of the road. The Canyon is really smooth and I dare say that you could request a build on either bike that included the VCLS post.

Hope that helps.

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paulrattew | 7 years ago
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Canyon VCLS post is essentially a rebranded Ergon seatpost. I have one (ergon) and frankly its amazing. Bit of an arse to adjust (adjusting seat angle requires removing the seatpost) but once you've got your set up dialed in it really is good. I"ve tried a number of other 'comfort' seatposts, including the specialized cg-r, but this really does provide a different level of comfort while not making you feel disconnected from what is going on with the bike. 

If you can get it on a bike as original equipment (and not have to pay a premium for it) then that is great. Would I buy one as an aftermarket addition - well, its a hell of a lot of money for a seatpost. Yes, I love it, but I'm not sure I love it that much. 

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ClubSmed | 7 years ago
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I have a copy of the seat post that I bought to put on my Pinnacle Arkose. If my version is the same as the original VCLS 2.0 then I would say it is the perfect balance between comfort and power. It gives just enough to ease impacts from pot holes but not so much to lose significant power.
As I say though, I only have a copy, not the original and not on a Canyon bike.

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Penny_Lane_Cyclist | 7 years ago
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I've just been wrestling with the same dilemma and 2 days ago clicked buy on the Endurace. I admit that I preferred the look and blue/white paint job of the ultimate but in the end a bit of extra comfort (VCLS seat post & 28mm tyres), wider cassette (for the Yorkshire hills) and the sensible realisation that I really don't race anyway made me go for the Endurace. Hope I made the right choice..

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