CO2: Cannondale Oversized and Optimized design. These hardtails are a starting point for appreciation. When a rider experiences the lightweight, efficient ride quality and beautiful craftsmanship of a Cannondale frame - there's no turning back!
Submitted by
Kyleh22
a Weekend Warrior
from kingsville, MD, US
Date Reviewed: March 17, 2010
Strengths: The price for what you get. Nothing on this bike is the "Best" but the combination of all the little parts work well together
Weaknesses: I broke the crank on the first ride but the shop told me that was their fault in assembling it but I don't know. The Dart 3 is just Ok but it is fine for what this bike is designed for.
Similar Products Used: Too many to mention! I test rode EVERYTHING before I settled on this bike. I tested every hard tail under $1050 and I like this <$700 bike the most.
Bike Setup: Stock...except:
Hollow Shimano Crank
Juicy threes
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
KennyLoy
a Cross Country Rider
from Singapore
Date Reviewed: January 2, 2010
Strengths: Frame is exceptional for a hardtail
Shifts wonderful with X7 setup
As with all Cannondales, welding at joints is wonderful
Kenda Nevegal performs well
Good Geometry
Weaknesses: Stock Crankset result in Chainsuck
Stock Seats result in soreness at crouch area
Bottom Line:
Bottom line is that the frame is a very good piece of engineering and with 1.5 headtube, it gives you that extra confidence.
Downside is the Crankset which is disappointing, resulting in Chainsuck.
I do recommend this bike for anyone starting out on the mountain biking journey. After some upgrades, it will be race worthy as this bike definitely up to the challenge.
Bike Setup: Fork upgraded to Fox F100 RLC (lowered to 80mm)
Crankset upgraded to Shimano XT
Chain upgraded to Shimano XT
Front D upgraded to Shimano XT
Rear D Sram X7
Shifter Sram X5
Brakes upgraded to Shimano XT Hydraulic
Rotors upgraded to Ashima 160mm
Wheelset upgraded to Hope Pro 2 Hubs with DT Swiss 4.2d
Grips Upgraded to ODI lockons
Stem Upgrade to Thomson X4
Seatpost Upgraded to Thomson Elite
Cables upgraded to Jagwire L3
Seat upgraded to WTB Vigo
Pedals upgraded to Wellgo with seal bearings
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
jeeperbrad
a Cross Country Rider
from spartanburg, SC, USA
Weaknesses: Rock shox Dart 3 this should be replaced with a decent tora or recon off ebay or online store after you really get into riding. grips are spongy, LOL that's it for me.
Bottom Line:
this is this best bike for the money without going used. it weight's around 29lbs for the large and with the x7's f&r you can't go wrong.
Planned upgrades~
Tires= Kenda Navegal 2.1 to same tire in 2.35 DTC $55 off ebay.
Fork= RS Dart 3 to RS tora or Recon $200 off ebay.
Brakes= Avid BB5's to BB7's $60 off ebay.
this is what I have decided to change after 1 year of hard use "2 12-14 mile
rides a week".
even with all this changed it's still cheaper than most any other bike in this range and will last forever. plus you can pass all your buddies on there F4's and full susp. bikes then laugh because your on a cheap 'ole F5
Similar Products Used: Cannondale F4 2010, trek 4300 and 6000 both 2009's, specialized rockhopper comp disk 2009, Gary fisher marlin disk 2009,
Bike Setup: stock 2009 w/ SPD's, 2010 Cdale F4 grips.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
drew0897
a Cross Country Rider
from Clarksville, TN
Date Reviewed: August 25, 2009
Strengths: Good components for the price paid. The frame is great.
Weaknesses: A little on the heavy side. Grips keep working their way off on longer rides.
Bottom Line:
This is a great bike for anyone getting into mountain biking. It has a lot of good components for the money and so far it has handled all the abuse I can throw at it. I've jumped it, raced it, and have taken it through the mud with no problems at all.
Bike Setup: Stock except for some clipless pedals.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
stewbomb
a Weekend Warrior
from Ontario, Canada
Date Reviewed: June 3, 2009
Strengths: Strong frame, great climber, balanced riding position
Weaknesses: a little heavy, but the strength makes up for it
Bottom Line:
Good bike so far, love the balance. I've been on 'better' bikes but favour the f5. I've used it very hard, over rocks, stumps, and jumps. Other than a few scrapes and paint chips, it rides like brand new. For the bang for the buck, i have to give it five chilis. (900 canadian)
Bike Setup: stock parts- Sram x-7 front and rear, rockshox Dart 3
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
valiant1974
a Weekend Warrior
from Norfolk, NE
Date Reviewed: May 27, 2009
Strengths: We own a 2008 F5 CO2 in BBQ. The fit and finish on the bike is gorgeous. The bike is fast and handles well. The components are decent for the price I paid. I especially like the Shimano mechanical disc brakes and SRAM shifters.
Weaknesses: The bike is a bit heavy (stock with exception of Terry Butterfly saddle for fiance). I've heard the OEM Rock Shock Dart 3 fork has a tendency to leak.
Bottom Line:
For the price I paid, this was a great purchase. I would recommend the F4 over this bike because of the Headshock however.
Strengths: Stiff Frame
Wheels
Feels like a tank
Excellent handeling
Weaknesses: Forks leak oil.
Cranks keep binding the chain into the frame and the chainrings.
Bottom Line:
I have had nothing but problems with my F5. First the forks started leaking oil, and now the chain keeps getting jammed up into the frame and the chainrings. My frame is heavily damaged now, and in the process of trying to get CDale to warranty the frame and crankset. In the meantime, I have changed out the Dart 3 with the Dart 2 and replaced the FSA cranks with Race Face Evolve. The bike is currently working fine, but I am sure something will go out on it soon...
Bike Setup: replaced forks with Dart 2 & cranks with Race Face evolve XC.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Digger
a Weekend Warrior
from Roanoke, VA USA
Date Reviewed: October 9, 2008
Strengths: Price, looks
Weaknesses: Very weak components, especially chain
Bottom Line:
Very disappointed in this bike. The price was very good compared with other bikes.
My first trip on the trail resulted in a broken chain. I was riding and the chain came off unexpectedly. I wasn't shifting. The chain broke. I was less than 100 yards on the trail and had to push it back to my truck.
Cheap components and the SRAM shifters suck. I would not recomend this bike. I'm going back to Specialized.
Submitted by
zbankk
a Weekend Warrior
from New London, PA
Date Reviewed: September 13, 2008
Strengths: -Light weight
-Strong frame
-Tires(bigger than older models)
-Looks great
-Shifters
-BB5 Avid disc brakes, though they could be better
Weaknesses: -Stock tubes might as well be plastic bags
-Stock pedals, hit a root with on and completely bent it in half
-Grips are good but feel "spongy"
Bottom Line:
This is the best bike for the money hands down. I did my research and rode all sorts of bikes in this price braket for 5 weeks and then came across this bike at a LBS I hadent been to yet and fell in love. It doesn't sacrifice components for a better frame or vice-versa, its a great package and rides amazingly. This a great bike for anyone wanting to push themselves to the next level.
(Note: This is the 2009 model)
Bike Setup: My Cannondale F5 I have changed over a couple parts so..
C3 Bars
C4 Seatpost
Cannondale seat
SRAM X5 shifters
SRAM Back derailer
Avid Leavers
Promax 6" Disk Brakes
Sun Rims
Presta Tubes
Titaimium Back Sprocket 8 speed
Truvativ Crank
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Team Blueeyes
a Weekend Warrior
from NC
Date Reviewed: July 23, 2008
Strengths: 2009 F5 - Great setup out of the box. X-7, RS Dart3, BB5's and all for six bills.
Weaknesses: Morse grips could use some rework. Too "sponge like" for me
Bottom Line:
I did my homework and searched around for 3 weeks in the $600-$700 price range for a good hardtail with decent components. Bottom line, Cannondale went all out for 09 on this one and didn't break the bank doing so. Unlike most who sacrifice a good frame for cheap components or the other way around, you can't go wrong with this bike. The simple fact most shops can't keep them on the shelf long enough to collect dust should tell you something.
Similar Products Used: Fisher Wahoo Disc, DB Response Comp, Rockhopper Disc, Avalanche 2.0
Bike Setup: Stock for now except SPD's. Grips are going soon.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
ca7erham
a Cross Country Rider
from C'ville, Ohio
Date Reviewed: July 1, 2008
Strengths: Great value, light weight, better drive train than other bikes of the same aprox. cost, has had no problem doing what I ask of it, and most importantly: it feels great on tecnical and flowy singletrack alike!
Weaknesses: 1. The grips: the grips are almost painful(which has given me very tough hands, also grips are cheap and easy to replace)
2. The brakes: the rotors are very weak and bend easly so I got an adapter and put on some thicker rotors, also, the brakes offer very little actual stopping power in my oppinion; however, they do have fairly good modulation and have been able to stop me and control my speed on the tecky stuff most of the time (and yes I have broken them in and have them adjusted for the most stopping power)
3. The Wheel set: the wheels are already out of true, though I am hard on them and did not tighten up the spokes when I got the bike (And I do know that things tend to go haywire during break in)
Bottom Line:
I love this bike. It feels great on singletrack and handles very during low speed tecky riding. Also this thing feels way more agile than even my old super light weight rigid. Also as I said above, this thing is durable. It's had no problem with any of the things that I've done to it from 4 foot flat jumps to a crash at 25ish mph (Hey, see that dirt there on the frame? Yeah, um, thats not dirt; its blood). I absolutly love this bike! It would have a 5 for overall value, but there is no excuse for puting these brakes on this bike (my old Vs had better stopping power, and the bb5s on the other bikes in this price range have way more stopping power). The brakes are a point that I'm prolly getting to held up. In all other aspects this is a outstanding bike that I have no regrets about.
Similar Products Used: Other than test rides of the Trek 6000 in parking lots not much. My last MTB was a rigid built on a Jamis frame, the F5 blows it away!
Bike Setup: Stock other than the removal of the reflectors, SPDs, shorter stem, Different rotors, a cycle computer and due to my last crash I have some new brake levers that I'll install soon.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Jim Rissi
a Cross Country Rider
from Marshall, Mi, USA
Date Reviewed: June 3, 2008
Strengths: Frame. The geometry feels right for me. All components are low end, but solid.
Weaknesses: Gear selection hardware is low-end and you can tell. You need to plan your shifts ahead of time. When you buy a sub-$1000 bike I think you can expect this. And weight wise, this thing is a tank. Grow some muscles and drop a few pounds and you wont notice it.
Bottom Line:
I love this bike. It is exactly what I hoped it would be.
I started mountain biking in the early 90’s. I started off on an old chromoly frame Trek. Back then, standard bike geometry really laid you over the front wheel. You were more in a superman position almost parallel to the ground. I find this more comfortable and faster than the upright position (which is more common on bikes today). Cannondales are the only bikes I can find that still have this feel. So that’s why I chose this bike. (I like the fit… its not for everybody)
I also like a bike that doesn’t have a lot of fancy bells and whistles. Like I said above, the hardware is low-end, but not bottom of the barrel. And the frame is top of the line c-dale.
I also enjoy passing people on $1,500 bikes. Yesterday I tore it up on some guy on a beautiful new c-dale rush. I’m not saying the F5 is as nice as a pricey bike, but 90% of a bike’s performance is the rider and this one will do the job at an attractive price. If you go to an F4 you get the head shock. Is it better than a dart 3? Yes. Is it $200 better? NO! Buy a $200 gym membership and grow some arm muscle to deal with the bumps.
I get so sick of people bragging about their awesome bikes that have titanium water bottle cage bolts but then they are crappy athletes that can’t ride.
Another nice thing about the F5 is that it has a large head. It can accept any aftermarket fork including the odd size c-dale forks. I know the lower model c-dales are now using a standard size head.
My philosophy is go with a known name, find one that fits, don’t fall for gimmicks. Overcome the less expensive bike’s shortcomings by being a more fit and practiced rider.
If you want a good solid bike with no frills, go with F5 CO2
Similar Products Used: My old bike was full hard frame Trek that was older than dirt… but fast and fun. I have tried out and test driven lots of bikes in the $1000 + range. Mostly c-dales.
Bike Setup: Time pedals (came with demo platforms) other than that, stock
Why isnt there any info about this bike on here? I guess no one has picked one up from the bike shop. I went into the LBS and they showed it to me, thought i would take a look he Read More »
Does anyone know if the lefty/headshok equipment works with the CO2 (F5-F9) frames? Sorry, I am a noob and couldn't figure it out on the Cannondale site. Read More »
i currently have a 2009 Specialized P.1 AM Disc + RS Recon SL fork. i'm looking to upgrade to the latest (2009 or 2010?) Cannondale CO2 F4 and install my Recon SL on it.
Do you Read More »
i currently have a 2009 Specialized P.1 AM Disc + RS Recon SL fork. i'm looking to upgrade to the latest (2009 or 2010?) Cannondale CO2 F4 and install my Recon SL on it.
Do you Read More »
