Have any of you Orbea Rise owners come from a Levo SL? 2 big questions I have

[siciliano]

So I bought a 2021 Levo SL expert 10 days or so ago and rode it once so far, I like it and all but the motor is pretty damn loud going uphill, more so than I expected. I didn’t find out about the Rise until after I bought the SL and now I somewhat have buyers remorse. I actually was able to order one that will be here by end of week but I’m concerned about two things.

1. in terms of the range, it appears the SL is excellent in this (I know it has a smaller motor) but the mileage range I see for Rise owners varies greatly, I’ve even seen someone only get 13 miles out of it before being in the red <20% battery range. Can I expect anywhere near SL battery length with this on like for like motor settings?

2. There’s thousands of SL’s out there with minimal failures and I live in the US where there’s a lot of specialized dealers if anything went wrong in terms of warranty. I’m worried about long term reliability of the Rise and how few dealers there are here. There’s only 1 within 50 miles of me and I live in a big city. Can anyone vouch for reliability of this brand and how well the company is with customer issues?

I have to decide on which bike I’m keeping within a couple days because the shop I bought the SL at will let me return it minus 5% for restocking, or if I kept the SL I can cancel my Rise order. Again, the reasons I’m looking at the Rise are quieter motor going uphill, a bit more power (I heard steep tech climbs the rise is great),it’s more lively downhill, and better brakes, etc.

 

[paquo]

i use my sl @ 75% assist to blast around for a few hours, with range extender. For 20 miles and 25oo feet it uses 3/4 of the main battery and range extender. So just a guess but you probably want the orbea range extender to ensure maximum flexibility, but aren't those back ordered to eternity?

 

[GizmoSL]

So I bought a 2021 Levo SL expert 10 days or so ago and rode it once so far, I like it and all but the motor is pretty damn loud going uphill, more so than I expected. I didn’t find out about the Rise until after I bought the SL and now I somewhat have buyers remorse. I actually was able to order one that will be here by end of week but I’m concerned about two things.

1. in terms of the range, it appears the SL is excellent in this (I know it has a smaller motor) but the mileage range I see for Rise owners varies greatly, I’ve even seen someone only get 13 miles out of it before being in the red <20% battery range. Can I expect anywhere near SL battery length with this on like for like motor settings?

2. There’s thousands of SL’s out there with minimal failures and I live in the US where there’s a lot of specialized dealers if anything went wrong in terms of warranty. I’m worried about long term reliability of the Rise and how few dealers there are here. There’s only 1 within 50 miles of me and I live in a big city. Can anyone vouch for reliability of this brand and how well the company is with customer issues?

I have to decide on which bike I’m keeping within a couple days because the shop I bought the SL at will let me return it minus 5% for restocking, or if I kept the SL I can cancel my Rise order. Again, the reasons I’m looking at the Rise are quieter motor going uphill, a bit more power (I heard steep tech climbs the rise is great),it’s more lively downhill, and better brakes, etc.

I too, ordered and received an S-Works SL in September. I was trying to get a Mondraker Crafty RR SL, but had just about given up, so "settled" for an S-Works. It's a nice bike, no doubt, but the motor does leave a bit to be desired, IMO. Most of the climbing locally is not beyond my or the motor's ability, but I live in Central Texas, where there are fewer challenges ascent-wise. I just believe that to make a lighter ebike, Specialized used the smaller, lighter and less powerful Brose 1.1. Also, Specialized marketing focused on less power, more you, to appeal to those who were hesitant to make a switch to ebikes. Then, as if to prove my point, Specialized announced the brand new S-Works Turbo Levo SL with a motor 90nm of power, compared to the 35nm the previous model had. It also has a couple of other tweaks to justify the stunning price of $15000.
But to your dilemma, Orbea makes great bikes, and the Rise M-LTD has a Shimano motor that generates 60 nm of power, and for what it's worth, is several pounds lighter than the S-Works, according to Orbea. I think the weight thing may be getting out of hand. I've ridden a number of ebikes and they are tend to handle fairly well, and don't feel particularly heavy when you're riding them. I just want a bike that I can lift onto my rack without getting a hernia!
And yes, I ordered the Orbea, too. Expect it in April. I think that as long as the weight of an ebike is reasonable, focus on the motor and its claimed power. That way, you can go anywhere, ride anything,

 

[jka]

Just a slight clarification, Specialized just announced the new Turbo Levo models with 90nm of power, they are not the SL version of the bike.

 

[ccrdave]

my wife has a rise, she can do a 26m ride and come back with about 23% battery left. (shes 62kgs) the motor is not quiet compared to our turbo levos but i would say compared to my limited experience on an sl its quieter than the sl but there is an annoying rattle from the motor when going downhill, its miles more powerful. than the sl but for me 96kgs not powerful enough but im old and unfit lol. the rise is built to a very high standard, quality is superb
hope that helps

 

[RickBullotta]

Like any eMTB, range is totally terrain, rider, and condition specific. I finished a technical 13 mile ride with 1500 feet of climbing the other day with 80% battery left. I worked hard on that ride. On another flowy 11 mile ride with 1000 feet of climbing, I finished with 40% battery. I didn't work as hard that day.

In terms of motor reliability and access to service, the Orbea dealer network is indeed smaller, but I would suspect that EP8 motors will be far more prevalent than the SL's motor in terms of total units sold.

 

[mheher]

I have a Rise and can easily do 12miles with 3K vert on it in a 60% powered mode and I’d hope so because that’s a ride that takes a little over an hour.

Riding in full turbo will suck the battery, but I can still probably do the same 3K.

Max NM in your power setting is one thing, but the assist level is what really kills the battery because it helps you earlier.

No matter what power level I’m using, I’m still typically pedaling as hard as I can or as hard as I would on my regular bike, so that obviously makes a huge difference, but I love to pedal.

I guess this comment has nothing to do with the initial feed about this bike versus SL, I bought the Rise for the slight bit of extra power and I liked the M10 build. Motor noise while pedaling seems great, but this is my first e bike, I had some other noises initially, but now just the downhill clunk, but it doesn’t really seem to bother me.

I do max out the specs on this bike constantly and blow through the travel, rear shock especially on every ride, but am hitting some medium sized jumps and drops and most certainly wish this was a 160/150 bike.

 

[mheher]

I guess you did ask about range... as everyone will tell you, such a tricky question. How hard do you pedal and how much power are you asking for from the battery.

I can do 2K in turbo without worry, 3K in trail without worry and 4K in eco without worry.

Otherwise you just have to get the bike and run out of battery and figure it out.

Battery light going to red at 20% is the dumbest thing Orbea did on this bike, I’d prefer anything else, just the standard 5 bars or other lights so you aren’t required to get a garmin type accessory.

Ive had a few ride ends with an “Ah crap” as my light goes red, and I’ve definitely run out of battery.

 

[Bigtuna00]

I just believe that to make a lighter ebike, Specialized used the smaller, lighter and less powerful Brose 1.1.

Levo SL motor is from Mahle, not Brose.

 

[Bigtuna00]

1. I feel like everyone is overcomplicating the answer. Range is a function of power consumption, not bike design, between the SL and Rise. Of course you can expect the same range with the same settings. However I would argue, if you're using the same settings, what's the point of having a the Rise? The Rise has double the power of the SL, are you not going to use it?

EDIT: one other thing to keep in mind is you can add a range extender to the Rise, which will give you 617Wh vs 485 for the SL.

2. Look at the reliability of Shimano, not Orbea. Orbea doesn't make the motor. That being said, there's really no way to compare the Specialized warranty experience to a small brand like Orbea in the US. No matter how good Orbea is, it's not going to be the same experience. E.g. I have 3 Spesh dealers near me with spare parts in stock. As you probably know, if you're a Spesh store you have to stock all the Spesh products. The Orbea dealer is an hour away and sells 15 different brands. It's just not really comparable.

Again, the reasons I’m looking at the Rise are quieter motor going uphill, a bit more power (I heard steep tech climbs the rise is great),it’s more lively downhill, and better brakes, etc.

I think you need to reevaluate a little. The Rise has *double* the power of the SL. It sounds like you're not using it. You should, that's the point (but if you prefer less power, the SL is a great bike too with a lighter motor and battery)

 

[jaselikebikes]

So I bought a 2021 Levo SL expert 10 days or so ago and rode it once so far, I like it and all but the motor is pretty damn loud going uphill, more so than I expected. I didn’t find out about the Rise until after I bought the SL and now I somewhat have buyers remorse. I actually was able to order one that will be here by end of week but I’m concerned about two things.

1. in terms of the range, it appears the SL is excellent in this (I know it has a smaller motor) but the mileage range I see for Rise owners varies greatly, I’ve even seen someone only get 13 miles out of it before being in the red <20% battery range. Can I expect anywhere near SL battery length with this on like for like motor settings?

2. There’s thousands of SL’s out there with minimal failures and I live in the US where there’s a lot of specialized dealers if anything went wrong in terms of warranty. I’m worried about long term reliability of the Rise and how few dealers there are here. There’s only 1 within 50 miles of me and I live in a big city. Can anyone vouch for reliability of this brand and how well the company is with customer issues?

I have to decide on which bike I’m keeping within a couple days because the shop I bought the SL at will let me return it minus 5% for restocking, or if I kept the SL I can cancel my Rise order. Again, the reasons I’m looking at the Rise are quieter motor going uphill, a bit more power (I heard steep tech climbs the rise is great),it’s more lively downhill, and better brakes, etc.

I was in the same boat, my Expert SL arrived this week and it is sweet, first ride on Trail mode and got 20km (1hr 45) 650 metres (2100 feet) of climbing and had 45% battery left so I was quite impressed. Yes I agree about the winey motor. The Orbea was not available until next year for me!

 

[carlbiker]

seems typical query over and over, battery anxiety, it’s a shame the bosch nyon idea of working out your power required for the journey isn’t implemented more, but then hey it’s a lighter bike, peddle and stop being lazy if anyone runs out ?.

SL is great for the actually fit normal mountain bikers who want to get further (and most his mates are probably normal riders), rise is great for the normal guy who is actually aiming to get fit but needs a little get out of jail card from time to time, full fat bikes are great for those who are content with not having that chance of full freedom due to have weighty shackles and the reduced exercise regime within the prison yard ?

Im the middle guy (should be the first but im plagued by a slipped disc), I suspect you might be too so get the rise, there will be times where you might be out with normal riders (anyone who says analogue or acoustic please shoot yourself in the genitals) in which case you can power down but with FF riders you’ll be buggered trying to power up with an SL whereas the rise will come to your rescue...

I too can cancel my Rise order due in July and I suspect I’ll be ordering an actual LW FF Forestal | Siryon instead! I prefer the idea of getting a proper enduro over a trail bike personally

 

[Ducman71]

@carlbiker The Siryon looks very interesting indeed! Please do let us know how you get on with it if you end up getting one. It looks like a really compelling alternative to the Spec Kenevo SL.

For anyone that is concerned about dealer support and parts/service availability of Orbea or Shimano, Forestal would be an even bigger leap of faith though...

 

[carlbiker]

@carlbiker The Siryon looks very interesting indeed! Please do let us know how you get on with it if you end up getting one. It looks like a really compelling alternative to the Spec Kenevo SL.

For anyone that is concerned about dealer support and parts/service availability of Orbea or Shimano, Forestal would be an even bigger leap of faith though...

Forestal allow transfer of warranty....that’s a good start! They also advise they have built the bikes with servicing in mind and as of July the UK dealers will start to pop up and any decent lbs will be permitted to fix any issues.

before I cancel the Orbea I’ll get to see some reviews hopefully so I’ll wait until then at least

 

[Ducman71]

That is a good start. DTC is certainly the way things are going, and the companies that can best figure out how to manage the aftersales support will have a big advantage. Forestal certainly seems to be on the right track.

I'm also waiting on a Rise that I have on order, and am using that time to do more research, test ride bikes, and whatever else to make sure that when it does arrive I'm making a solid and well informed decision. I think that is a really constructive way to look at the time spent waiting for the bike to arrive after ordering it...