Any experience with Moterra SL out there?

[GeordieDownSouth]

Hey Geordie, yeah, hopefully we can get some info on range extension options. I was following your posts here regarding your underperforming battery, and just wanted to mention that I was talking to my friend, who is a Cannondale dealer here in the US, and he just bought himself a Moterra SL 1. I was checking out his freshly built bike today, which passed my highly technical parking lot slalom test with flying colors and it "stuck" my rear wheel drop test! His bike, for the record, was about 45.5lbs in stock spec, and 48lbs with Doubledown tires, Cushcore, XT enduro pedals, and a fork swap from a Fox 36 to a 38. He happened to mention that the early models they'd received all had battery issues, but they were able to warranty the batteries and they've had no problems since then. He didn't know how or what they had changed, and I'm not sure what date your battery was made relative to any changes, but it might be worth perusing a warranty swap if you have one of the early ones off the production line.

Thanks man that’s very helpful, I’m ignoring it for now as it gets me around what i do at the moment and I’ll be interested to see if it just doesn’t like winter temps when the UK finally warms up, i know my wifes car is currently about 25% less on range due the temperature, it’s a great bike, i just want to be able to do big days out on it also!

 

[GeordieDownSouth]

Just a heads up, the last two rides i’d had a creaking develop so went around the bike with a Torque Wrench today for once i washed off all the slop, turns out my lower pivot was very loose, all torqued back up now but worth keeping an eye on.

 

[Rhitter]

I had a few suspension bolts that were very loose after 2 to 3 rides.

Worth checking.

 

[TheKaiser]

Do any of you guys know if the Moterra SL uses a standard Shimano battery mount/loom, or is it a custom one? I know it is a custom battery, but was unsure about if the custom battery was configured to use standard wiring. Here is a pic of what I believe is the standard battery mount and loom for comparison.

 

[GeordieDownSouth]

Do any of you guys know if the Moterra SL uses a standard Shimano battery mount/loom, or is it a custom one? I know it is a custom battery, but was unsure about if the custom battery was configured to use standard wiring. Here is a pic of what I believe is the standard battery mount and loom for comparison.

View attachment 155957

I don’t think it’s the same, i don’t recall seeing around connector inside

 

[GeordieDownSouth]

So last Wednesday i was out for a ride, went over some chunk and nothing, no assistance, no lights, nothing in an instance, i tried to sort it last week before a trip away this weekend but with no success to the point where i ended up hiring a Cube One44 (wow what a bike for the money but that’s a different story) anyway, today (with some great advice from Markus at Emax) i started the whole process over again. Dropped the motor, checked all the connections, connected Etube Pro to the motor and got a “firmware corrupted” message, so disconnected the battery and this time it allowed me to repair the firmware, repaired, reinstalled the battery cable, again corrupted firmware, so went around all the wires again and finally i got my battery back and all working with the battery cable installed into the motor, now i’m not 100% certain but i’m almost sure it was one of the cables into the back of the display…. Despite them looking clean and dry, and firmly clicked into place, i love this bike but god you have to learn every quirk, especially in UK winter…..

 

[TheKaiser]

So last Wednesday i was out for a ride, went over some chunk and nothing, no assistance, no lights, nothing in an instance, i tried to sort it last week before a trip away this weekend but with no success to the point where i ended up hiring a Cube One44 (wow what a bike for the money but that’s a different story) anyway, today (with some great advice from Markus at Emax) i started the whole process over again. Dropped the motor, checked all the connections, connected Etube Pro to the motor and got a “firmware corrupted” message, so disconnected the battery and this time it allowed me to repair the firmware, repaired, reinstalled the battery cable, again corrupted firmware, so went around all the wires again and finally i got my battery back and all working with the battery cable installed into the motor, now i’m not 100% certain but i’m almost sure it was one of the cables into the back of the display…. Despite them looking clean and dry, and firmly clicked into place, i love this bike but god you have to learn every quirk, especially in UK winter…..

Wow, that sucks, I'm sorry to hear about the hassles! It seems like e-bike manufacturers really need to step up in regard to reliability. I rented/hired a Turbo Levo for a week and, in that short time, I had several instances where the system shut off for no apparent reason, which required unhooking the battery connector cable, and reaffixing it, to get things running again. I couldn't find any problem that could be remedied, nor could the shop from which I rented it. It was just, as you say, a "quirk" to be learned and managed. I also had a total motor failure during that week, which required the rental shop doing an overnight motor swap. Luckily for me, it seems that motor failures of that type were common enough that they had extra motors on hand, and the motor failure happened near the end of my ride, so I didn't need to pedal the thing out of the deep woods unassisted, but it could have been a real nightmare. Its a weird paradox that there is an awkward middle ground where failures are less common (a good thing) but they become uncommon enough that they manufacturer doesn't stock the dealer with spares to have on hand (a bad thing), so you could actually end up with more downtime.

If I were to write a prescription for improvement in the e-bike industry, I would say that they should: 1. Really properly test their systems to prevent these rookie mistakes like battery connections that vibrate loose in rough terrain (I'm looking at you Santa Cruz, in addition to the aforementioned Specialized). 2. Make the motors serviceable, even if in a very basic way to address contamination that works it's way into the BB spindle area. 3. Extend the motor warranty to a minimum of 5yrs, and offer factory service for failures after that point, rather than making it a throwaway item.

As it stands now, the reliability of a lot of these bikes is pretty embarrassing, when compared to the car or motorcycle industries, and they only get away with it because we all love MTB so much that we're willing to tolerate a lot of hassles in exchange for the fun times.

 

[TheKaiser]

Has anyone weighed a Moterra SL 2? I am curious how much more it weighs than the higher end ones.

 

[hajpr]

Has anyone weighed a Moterra SL 2? I am curious how much more it weighs than the higher end ones.

I'm a new owner of a custom SL2 which I'll show later on but on my scale it was 22.5 kg = 49.6 lbs (XL, full 29er, DT swiss alloy wheels, Conti DH Argotal+DH Kryptotal 2.4 tires with no inserts - tubeless, 200mm SDG dropper, alloy Renthal cockpit, T-Type GX, handguards, muckynuts front fender, old Codes RSCs on 200mm centerlines, nukeproof flat pedals, bottle cage)

 

[edgell22]

Thinking about picking up a SL1 or SL2. Do they run big or small? Im right on the border between a small and medium on the size chart and cant decide which to order. None local to throw a leg over. Thanks.

 

[TheKaiser]

I'm a new owner of a custom SL2 which I'll show later on but on my scale it was 22.5 kg = 49.6 lbs (XL, full 29er, DT swiss alloy wheels, Conti DH Argotal+DH Kryptotal 2.4 tires with no inserts - tubeless, 200mm SDG dropper, alloy Renthal cockpit, T-Type GX, handguards, muckynuts front fender, old Codes RSCs on 200mm centerlines, nukeproof flat pedals, bottle cage)

Wow, that is great to hear. A couple of your parts customizations may have saved a few hundred grams, but overall you were adding capability and weight to the bike (DH tires, handguards, fender etc...) so it's great to hear it's still under 50lbs even with those swaps. That's scarcely more than a couple pounds over the higher end ones, for substantially less money.

 

[TheKaiser]

Thinking about picking up a SL1 or SL2. Do they run big or small? Im right on the border between a small and medium on the size chart and cant decide which to order. None local to throw a leg over. Thanks.

You've probably already thought of this, but I would suggest you only use the size chart as a rough guide to get in the ballpark, and then go by reach and stack. Even if there aren't any Moterras locally available, you can find other bikes with similar reach and stack measurements and then see how they feel, and then apply that knowledge to your Moterra purchase.

I've seen a couple people claiming that, all else being equal, if they are right on the line size wise, they will size up on a regular analog bike, but size down on the e-bike, as the extra weight of the e-bike adds stability that the shorter wheelbase of the smaller bike wouldn't normally offer. I personally don't really buy that argument, in particular because analog bikes have been getting heavier and heavier, while e-bikes are getting lighter and lighter, so the delta between them is not that much any more. Personally, I'd be buying the one that gave me a comfortable fit for several hour rides, while still allowing the use of a normal 35-55mm stem.

 

[hajpr]

Wow, that is great to hear. A couple of your parts customizations may have saved a few hundred grams, but overall you were adding capability and weight to the bike (DH tires, handguards, fender etc...) so it's great to hear it's still under 50lbs even with those swaps. That's scarcely more than a couple pounds over the higher end ones, for substantially less money.

Yes, it is mainly weight in the tires. Stock EXO tires are a joke. The set weighs around 1800g whereas mine is 2500-2600g. And 29er wheelset is around 100g heavier too I guess.

 

[BouncyCornetto]

Thinking about picking up a SL1 or SL2. Do they run big or small? Im right on the border between a small and medium on the size chart and cant decide which to order. None local to throw a leg over. Thanks.

Depends what you are comparing them to, different bikes and manufacturers are all over the place.

The reach I would say is a bit smaller than some other bikes equivalent frame sizes, but the longer chain stay and slacker head angle do add up to a pretty long wheelbase in spite of that.

If I were you, I would pick a medium and run a 35mm or shorter stem. It could create the same cockpit size as a small with a longer stem, but have more desirable handling characteristics on the shorter stem. The slower steering of the slack head angle pairs well with a shorter stem in my experience.

 

[Bladin]

Is it possible to disconnect the display without any negatives? Will the mode switch work as usually without the display?

 

[Rhitter]

Yes, you can disconnect the display and just use the mode switch on the bike tt. You cannot use walk mode without the display connected ( at least I don't think so).

First thing I did, before I rode the bike was disconnect the display and walk mode. However, the display is what allows it to connect to a Garmin. I have since wrapped the display in foam and shoved it into the tt / HT junction so I can connect my Garmin.

On the fit. They feel a tad smaller than similar bikes. I had a large Jekyl before and this bike is a little smaller. But with a higher stack.


Note: for anyone consistently getting the 914 error I got earlier in this thread - Shimano has issued a notice and will replace the battery and motor if you are getting those connection errors. Contact your dealer for details.

 

[Bladin]

Yes, you can disconnect the display and just use the mode switch on the bike tt. You cannot use walk mode without the display connected ( at least I don't think so).

First thing I did, before I rode the bike was disconnect the display and walk mode. However, the display is what allows it to connect to a Garmin. I have since wrapped the display in foam and shoved it into the tt / HT junction so I can connect my Garmin.

On the fit. They feel a tad smaller than similar bikes. I had a large Jekyl before and this bike is a little smaller. But with a higher stack.


Note: for anyone consistently getting the 914 error I got earlier in this thread - Shimano has issued a notice and will replace the battery and motor if you are getting those connection errors. Contact your dealer for details.

Thanks for the info So the switch on the handlebar (to the left) wont work without the display?

 

[Rhitter]

You will have to play with it. It might work if you connect it directly to the ports in the bike. I didn't check that. The current routing is motor to TT mounted display, TT to handlebar mounted display. Display to walk switch.

I don't know where the logic for the walk switch resides.

 

[Bladin]

Thanks alot for the clearifiction

 

[Rockhopper70]

I'm a new owner of a custom SL2 which I'll show later on but on my scale it was 22.5 kg = 49.6 lbs (XL, full 29er, DT swiss alloy wheels, Conti DH Argotal+DH Kryptotal 2.4 tires with no inserts - tubeless, 200mm SDG dropper, alloy Renthal cockpit, T-Type GX, handguards, muckynuts front fender, old Codes RSCs on 200mm centerlines, nukeproof flat pedals, bottle cage)

Do you know what it weighed stock? What size is yours?

 

[hajpr]

Do you know what it weighed stock? What size is yours?

Nope, I didn't check. But when I compare the components I put there I assume it is around 21kg mark for my size XL w/o pedals.

 

[hajpr]

Is it possible to disconnect the display without any negatives? Will the mode switch work as usually without the display?

I have done it. There is one comm cable running from the motor to the main I/O switch on the top tube. From there one goes to the display unit via the headset and from the display one goes back thru the headset, coming from the other side to the handlebar mount switch. I ditched the display unit and took the longer comm cable from the two to connect the bar switch directly to the top tube one. I used the cable port in the headtube instead of the headset. The main negative I see is the lack of bluetooth (or any) connectivity. Otherwise there is not much useful data to see on it anyways. One day maybe Shimano adds rider Watts...?

 

[Bladin]

I have done it. There is one comm cable running from the motor to the main I/O switch on the top tube. From there one goes to the display unit via the headset and from the display one goes back thru the headset, coming from the other side to the handlebar mount switch. I ditched the display unit and took the longer comm cable from the two to connect the bar switch directly to the top tube one. I used the cable port in the headtube instead of the headset. The main negative I see is the lack of bluetooth (or any) connectivity. Otherwise there is not much useful data to see on it anyways. One day maybe Shimano adds rider Watts...?

Thanks for the info So this means the connection to mobile apps wont work?

 

[hajpr]

Thanks for the info So this means the connection to mobile apps wont work?

Yes, correct. The display unit serves as a comm bridge via bluetooth.

 

[Bladin]

Yes, correct. The display unit serves as a comm bridge via bluetooth.

Thanks Then I will keep my display after all.