CANYON TORQUE AL8 REVIEW

October 18, 2026

The sub-£3000 price tag of the Canyon Torque AL 8 is rarely seen on a performance mountain bike these days, even less so with its quality build kit. With 180mm travel on both ends and a burly alloy frame, the Torque is technically a bike park or freeride bike, but Canyon did their best to ensure it was climb-friendly for those rides that don’t involve a chairlift or shuttle. Could the Canyon Torque serve as a big-hitting enduro bike for the everyday rides?

We’d like to extend a huge thanks to the supporting brands who kitted us out and made this series possible. Without their financial support, this eight-bike comparison test would not have happened. Go and show them some love!

Fidlock covered our hydration needs with their excellent TWIST bottle system and neat hip packs. The system allowed us to maximize the hydration capacity on each bike, which was helpful for those long testing days.

Peaty’s provided their Monarch Pro Mushroom Thin grips and new Monarch saddles to give consistent touch points across the bikes. Their cleaning and lubrication products helped to keep the bikes running smoothly throughout the testing.

iXS kitted out our testers with their gear and protection. The Trigger X helmet is amongst our favorites here at TLW, so we were glad to have the opportunity to wear it as we attacked the trails, and their apparel was comfortable and helped us look good.

Pirelli equipped all of our bikes with their new Emperor Hardwall Super Soft and Black Sting DH Wall Soft tire combo. These burly tires offered excellent traction and control to help us push these bikes to the limit.

ABOUT THE CANYON TORQUE AL

Canyon build the Torque to offer a capable bikepark and freeride bike at an accessible price point. During its development, they worked on giving it suitable geometry and componentry to get it back up the hill under its own power, and the result is a big-hitting enduro and bike park hybrid.

CANYON TORQUE AL FRAME & SUSPENSION

Continuing the lineage of the Canyon Torque as a bikepark and freeride bike, Canyon has brought it up to modern standards by increasing the adjustability and providing the ingredients to make it capable of climbing. With 180mm travel on both ends and a burly component package, it is clear that this is a bike that prioritizes downhill performance. A six-year guarantee gives peace of mind for seasons of abuse.

The Canyon Torque is compatible exclusively with a mixed-wheel setup, but Canyon gave this bike adjustability that is unheard of at its price point. Not only is there a two-position geometry flip chip to tune the head tube angle and BB height, but two sets of rear dropouts are provided to provide a 10mm chainstay length adjustment. This is done in favor of size-specific geometry, letting each rider obtain the handling characteristics they desire.

Canyon is well-versed in bringing quality bikes at reasonable price points, and the Torque is no exception. The internal cable routing is simple yet effective. There is generous protection on the downtube and rear end to keep noise and damage to a minimum. An upper chain guide with BB-mounted bash guard adds further security.

There is no internal storage to be found. However, there is room for the 450ml Fidlock TWIST compact bottle, and a tool mount on the underside of the top tube. Dropper post insertion is solid, with the size medium coming equipped with a 200mm post as standard, and fully slamming the 230mm Ascend Components Adapt dropper post we fitted.

Canyon backs the Torque AL with their 6-year guarantee, for peace of mind on the trail.

CANYON TORQUE AL GEOMETRY

The Canyon Torque AL is offered in sizes XS to XL, spanning Reach lengths from 420mm to 520mm to give most riders a comfortable fit. However, Reach lengths per sticker size are fairly long, with the Large coming in at 495mm – longer than our 5’10” to 6’2” test crews’ preferences. As such, we found ourselves testing yet another Canyon in size medium. It wasn’t an issue, but we have concerns that many riders ordering online are likely to receive an excessively long bike if ordering their typical sticker size.

The 430mm or 440mm rear end length gives the Canyon Torque the option of the shortest chainstay on test, or in the lower midpack. As a result, the Front Center : Rear Center ratios are 1.92 or 1.87 – the highest, or amongst the highest, delivering one of the more rearward weight biases on test. This is not a surprise when you consider the intentions of the Canyon Torque. It would only be exacerbated on the larger frame sizes.

The 63.5° Head Tube angle and 78.5° effective seat tube angle are in a good place, as is the mid-height 643mm Stack. Overall, Canyon gave the Torque appropriate geometry for its intended use case, but it won’t suit every rider.

CANYON TORQUE AL BUILD KITS

Canyon offers the Torque AL in a choice of three build kits for the UK and Europe. Build kits range from the Torque AL 7 at £2,399 / €2,499 to the AL 9 at £3,799 / €3,999. Sadly, the North American market has not received the new Torque, and that is unlikely to change. The Canyon Torque AL 8 spec we tested retails for £2,849 / €2,999, and the componentry is nothing short of incredible for the money.

A Select + RockShox Zeb and Vivid Air give impressive adjustability and performance. SRAM’s Maven Base brakes and Eagle 70 drivetrain deliver performance without the frills. Canyon’s in-house G5 bar, stem, and dropper post do the job while helping to keep the price down.

We swapped the G5 dropper for an Ascend Components Adapt 230mm dropper to increase clearance for confidence on the descents. The grips were switched to the Peaty’s Monarch Pro Mushroom thin, and the saddle to the Peaty’s Monarch.

The DT Swiss F1900 wheelset is a pleasure to see at this price point, giving solid durability. The 18T hub engagement was one of the only nods to the cheaper spec fitted to the AL 8. These came wrapped in a solid Maxxis Assegai and DHR 2 Double Down tire combination, which were well suited to the bike’s intentions. However, as with all of the bikes in this year’s Enduro bike shootout, we replaced them with control tires from Pirelli. The new Pirelli Emperor Hardwall Super Soft front tire and Blacksting DH Wall Soft rear tire offered dependable performance across all of the test bikes.

With the Pirelli control tires fitted, the total weight of the Canyon Torque AL 8 in size medium came in at 38.6lbs (17.6 kg).

THE DIRT

The Canyon Torque AL 8 arrived with us a few months before the Enduro Bike Group Test kicked off, giving us plenty of time to shake it down and to establish an optimized setup.

SETUP AND FINISH | It can be tricky to tune bikes with a pointed use case, and the Canyon Torque was no exception. Though we have some solid bikepark runs in the UK, we demanded that the Torque would work well on our local rough, tight and technical enduro trails, and so were seeking a more rounded setup. In the bikepark, you can get away with a progressive, firm setup due to the bigger hits, but in slower pace tight and tech trails, you seek more active suspension.

At 28% sag and set to the high setting of the geometry flip chip, we found our preferred compromise of handling characteristics. The 70mm shock stroke demanded a lower shock pressure than we were accustomed to, but this didn’t come with any notable drawbacks. We removed the volume reducer from the shock to reduce overall system progression, and were left in a relatively comfortable space, but the Torque never quite offered the sensitivity in the rough that we would have dreamed of.

The size Medium selected was a compact but still relatively comfortable fit for our 5’10” to 6’2” test crew. We were divided on which size we would choose, with the medium clearly a better fit for our tight local tech trails, but the increased stability of the Large perhaps offering an improved experience for the widest open high-speed bikepark flow trails.

As with all of the test bikes, Robert set the front Pirelli Emperor Hardwall Super Soft tires to 25psi and the Blacksting DH Wall Softs in the rear to 27.5psi for his 220lbs (98kg) kitted mass, whereas Graham opted for 21psi front and 23psi rear for his 155lbs (70kg). The Pirelli tires arrived with our crew only a couple of weeks before the Enduro Group Test kicked off, so we were relieved to find that their performance was genuinely impressive. They offered familiarity from the get-go, with consistent and reliable performance across the spectrum of test conditions encountered at the end of the Scottish Summer.

We weren’t able to subject the Canyon Torque AL to anything close to a full season of bikepark thrashing, however, our feelings from testing and the component spec sheet both point to a highly durable package that should stand the test of time. Canyon didn’t skimp on any elements of the spec to make weight, and the result should be a dependable machine for all. The finish struck a balance of utilitarian and clean, far exceeding what you might expect for the price point. It ran fairly quietly and remained creak-free.

CLIMBING | The Canyon Torque AL was never designed with uphill performance as a priority, and while it didn’t excel going up, it did enough to tick the box. The climbing geometry was solid; the gear range was wide, and the shock lockout was available to boost efficiency up the smoother slogs and help to manage the long suspension travel. There was no denying the weight, though, and while it wasn’t the heaviest bike on test, it felt like it.

If you’re seeking an energetic bike for the uphills, you will be best served looking elsewhere. However, if all that matters is the ability to reach the top of your favorite bikepark trail at a leisurely pace, then the Canyon Torque will get you there.

DESCENDING | The Canyon Torque’s intentions sat at the extreme end of the enduro-to-bikepark spectrum that we focused on for this group test. As an unapologetic freeride machine, the Torque was happiest on faster runs with bigger hits. It dispatched big jumps and drops with impressive confidence, and was a riot when gravity was on its side. Playful from a freeride aspect, it urged our crew to attack the trail, with the rear end keen to slash and slide.

When the trail flattened or required user input to generate speed, the Torque was more sluggish than the rest of the field. Its design also favored big-hit performance over pure sensitivity in the rough, and so it didn’t quite hold speed through the rough like the best of them. The combination of these factors led to it being taxing in mellower terrain and when trying to set down a heater on technical enduro trails. But if speed is your main goal, then you’re likely looking elsewhere already.

We didn’t dare to test the Torque in the short chainstay configuration, immediately switching to the 440mm setup to obtain improved balance and stability. The short setting is likely to be appreciated by riders on the most aggressive end of the spectrum, but the majority of riders are likely to benefit from the longer setting. Even in the long setting, it wasn’t the easiest bike to navigate flatter corners, requiring purposeful front-end weighting to ensure there was sufficient front tire traction.

The Torque packed a reassuringly solid feeling on trail, absent of excessive flex or any notions of vulnerability. Whether it was landing deep, sideways, or in a braking bump, there was sufficient chassis stability without being overly harsh. Combined with the solid build kit, you’re left with a bike that’s not afraid of anything you can throw at it.

THE CANYON TORQUE AL PERSONALITY

The Canyon Torque AL is a bikepark brute, providing a worry-free machine on which to attack your local freeride lines, but still offering competence uphill. It sits squarely in a rearward-biased, freeride-inspired spot with purposeful geometry giving a balance of stability and agility. The suspension is geared more towards support and pop than ultimate bump-eating ability, and it sits in the middle of the scale for precision and forgiveness.

WHO IS THE CANYON TORQUE AL FOR?

The ideal Canyon Torque AL rider is someone seeking highly capable bikepark rig on a budget, but who still might want to take on the occasional pedal-fed ride in challenging terrain.

Buy this bike if you prioritize big hit performance and value for money.

Consider another bike if you are looking for a bike that prioritizes covering miles over airmiles.

The Wolf’s Last Word

Better clocking air miles than going against the clock, the Canyon Torque AL provides an incredible bikepark machine with excellent value proposition. It felt like the kind of bike you want to be on for lap after lap of a bikepark, so long as there was a chairlift involved. While it will get up the hill under rider power, its high weight and suspension platform don’t make it the most efficient, so it’s best for cruising up rather than setting uphill PR’s.

Price: £2,849 / Not In USA (AL 8)
Weight: 38.6lbs | 17.6 kg
Website: Canyon.com

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