Santa Cruz’s 2022 Chameleon is a versatile trail thrasher

By Luke Marshall

Published: Tuesday, 05 October 2021 at 12:00 am

The Santa Cruz Chameleon has been updated for 2022, with new longer, slacker and lower geometry. The bike is also now available in a mullet wheel setup.

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The head tube on the new Santa Cruz Chameleon has slacked by 2.3 degrees to a capable 65 degrees.
Santa Cruz

The most significant change is the head tube angle, which shaves off 2.3 degrees and now sits at a shred-ready 65 degrees. The seat tube angle has been steepened to 74.3 degrees, an increase of 1.5 degrees over the outgoing model.

Reach has increased by 8mm on small, medium and large frames, while the extra-large gets a more subtle 3mm increase. 

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The changeable dropouts let you tune the rear-end geometry and set up the Chameleon single speed.
Santa Cruz

The Chameleon keeps its changeable dropouts and you can now alter the chainstay length to either 425mm or 437mm. That should give the bike more stability and help keep the weight distribution balanced with the subtly longer reach. This also allows you to run it in a singlespeed setup.

The seat tube on the bike has also been shortened, which means riders should be able to run a longer-travel dropper post. The size small loses 5mm and now measures 380mm. There’s 10mm taken off the medium, 20mm off the large and 30mm from the extra-large, measuring 405mm, 430mm and 460mm, respectively.

The Chameleon is now officially designed around a 29er front wheel only, but will be sold in a mullet setup, which Santa Cruz dubs MX.

More subtle changes see the bottom bracket on the 29er Chameleon drop by 1mm to 56mm. On the mullet version of the bike, that figure stands at 40mm.

The new Santa Cruz Chameleon is only available with an aluminium frame for now.

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The triple cargo mounts under the down tube add to the bike’s versatility, as do the chain guide mounts.
Santa Cruz

The bike features a standard water bottle cage mount inside the front triangle, which is matched with a triple boss cargo mount under the down tube. This gives you the option to attach an additional water bottle or strap on a bikepacking bag. 

The Chameleon features semi-internal cable routing and is designed specifically for 1× drivetrains. If you really want to get sendy, the bike also features ISGCO5 tabs to mount a chain guide.

2022 Santa Cruz Chameleon models and pricing

Three complete builds will be offered at launch – the Chameleon D, R and S. All of these are available in either ‘MX’ or 29in wheel options.

Santa Cruz Chameleon D MX/29

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Santa Cruz Chameleon D 29.
Santa Cruz
  • Frame: Aluminium 29/MX Hardtail
  • Fork: RockShox Recon RL, 130mm
  • Crankset: SRAM X1 Eagle DUB, 30t
  • Rear derailleur: SRAM SX Eagle
  • Shifter: SRAM NX Eagle
  • Cassette: SRAM PG1230
  • Dropper: SDG Tellis Dropper
  • Brakes: SRAM Level, 180mm rotors
  • Wheelset: WTB ST i30 TCS 2.0 rims, SRAM MTH hubs, Sapim Race spokes,
  • Front tyre: Maxxis Minion DHF 29 x 2.5in, 3C, MaxxGrip, EXO, TR
  • Rear tyre: Maxxis Aggressor, 29/27.5 x 2.5in WT, EXO, TR
  • Price: £2,399 / $2,399 / €2,449

Santa Cruz Chameleon R MX/29

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Santa Cruz Chameleon R MX.
Santa Cruz
  • Frame Aluminium 29/MX Hardtail
  • Fork Fox 34 Rhythm, 130mm
  • Crankset:SRAM Descendant Eagle DUB 30t
  • Rear derailleur: SRAM NX Eagle
  • Shifter: SRAM NX Eagle
  • Cassette: SRAM PG1230
  • Brakes: SRAM Guide T, 180mm rotors
  • Dropper: SDG Tellis Dropper
  • Wheelset: RaceFace AR Offset 30 rims, SRAM MTH hubs, Sapim Race spokes,
  • Front tyre: Maxxis Minion DHF 29×2.5in, 3C, MaxxGrip, EXO, TR
  • Rear tyre: Maxxis Aggressor, 29/27.5 x 2.5in WT, EXO, TR tyres
  • Price £2,999 / $2,949 / €3,099

Santa Cruz Chameleon S MX/29

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Santa Cruz Chameleon S 29.
Santa Cruz
  • Frame: Aluminium 29/MX Hardtail
  • Fork: Fox 34 Performance, 130mm
  • Crankset: SRAM GX Eagle DUB 30t
  • Rear derailleur: SRAM GX Eagle
  • Shifter: SRAM GX Eagle
  • Cassette: SRAM PG1230
  • Brakes: SRAM G2 R, 180mm rotors
  • Dropper: RockShox Reverb Stealth
  • Front tyre: Maxxis Minion DHF 29 x 2.5in, 3C, MaxxGrip, EXO, TR
  • Rear tyre: Maxxis Aggressor, 29/27.5 x 2.5in WT, EXO, TR
  • Price: £3,499 / $3,749 / €3,749