Levo 2018 or 19?

[Kiwi in Wales]

Decisions decisions, Alright guys my guy called me back today with some pricing.. 2018 levo comp alum.. $4400 shipped to my door and has been converted to tubeless. Am about to pull the trigger on this one.. What yall think?

Go for it!

 

[Mike Smith]

Snap his hand off

 

[clay walker]

Go for it!

Update . They guy didn't have the comp he thought he had in stock, So he called me this morning and gave me an option for a 18 levo expert carbon for $4800. I couldn't turn that down. owners bike with 10 miles it. Any of you guys in the states need a deal on a levo call . steve brunton @ 386-843-3762. Great guy and his shop is good people ! his guy jeff at the shop is awesome!. I cant wait to give you guys a ride report whoop whoop

 

[Mike Smith]

Happy Days !!!

 

[Levo Lution]

As promised a little comparison from my ride yesterday on the new 2019 Levo FSR Base and my prior 2018 Levo FSR Base.

About me 52 years old, 5"7.5" with shorter inseam 29" (171.45 cm/73.66cm for my friends across the pond and up north) 185 lbs (83.91 kg). Not a pro rider by any stretch of the imagination but have rode/raced BMX (years ago), motocross and got my first mountain bike in 1986. I love bikes, either riding or wrenching. I have had 5 surgeries/surgical procedures in the last 4 years. I typically work 50 to 52 hrs a week (so limited riding time) I have jumped on the eBike bandwagon as it allows me to keep up with my riding buddies (who are quite a bit younger).

Both are mediums
18 had 60mm stem
19 has 45mm stem

Both bikes are stock with the exception of my ENVE riser and Lizard Skins Grips. I replaced the Q/R axles with bolt-on axles front and rear (18 had rear bolt-on 19 came with rear Q/R)

Tire Pressure:
2018 Plus PSI 16 Front 18 Rear
2019 29er PSI 26 Front 28 Rear (those will come down on next ride)

The first thing that stands out is on the 2019 you have that "in the bike" feeling. 2018 feels more "on the bike". Very noticeable for me.

Cornering on the 2019 was strange at first as the bike wanted to go to the outside of the berm/corner. I am sure it is the difference from the 27.5 Plus to 29. About 5 miles into the ride I was just weighting the inside grip more and it became very "point and shoot". Eventually I was going faster into the turns and trusting the tires. Never washed out/slide out once.

The bike is a little longer now but is easier to wheelie/manual (but still tricky on any eBike).

The 2019 is the most mountain bike feeling eBike I have ever ridden. It really disguises it's weight well.

The new display on the top tube is awesome. I only used Turbo mode for a short section of trail (just to try it) otherwise the whole ride was in the middle setting.

Waterbottle fits better on the 2019 vs the 2018 (important to me because not a huge fan of backpack hydration). Still tight for the large bottle but an improvement.

This is a biggie for me on the 2018 I would get some really nasty pedal strikes about 6 times a ride (normally up-hill on a rocky section). Riding the 2019 yesterday with same pedals and same trails I had 0.

The cable/brake hose routing on the 2019 is superb. This bike is very dialed in. No clutter on the handlebars. 2018 was also nice compared to the competition but the 19 is next level. No key lock for the battery but where I live they would just take the whole bike anyway.

Now the bad...Front Fork...come'on man. The Sektor 32mm fork is garbage/rubbish. The REBA RL that was on the 2018 was super quiet but a little flexy. This thing is so noisy it will make a huge squish noise if you run over a cigarette butt. I figured it would break-in but not yet. I was running 10 psi less than recommended and only getting half travel. I will take out some bottomless tokens, adjust air and try again.

Now for the motor it has two different noises; one that is kind of a low droning sound and the other noise is where you are spinning and need to click a higher gear (the 2018 had the 2nd noise to a certain extent also). In a different thread I was bragging about how quiet the 2018 was and not so much with the 2019. It is not at the level the Shimano Steps8000 was where it reminded me of the wind-up Evel Knievel toy for the 1970's (I had a Scott eSpark 730 for a short period of time).

Overall the motor in the 2019 is much more responsive and had just a great ride. 1st time I put over 20 miles/32.18 km on any bike in one ride. My average ride is 15 miles/24.14 km whether on eBike or standard. I use Strava on private just to record miles and did 35 segments with 21 achievements (9 PRs). Pretty awesome for a first ride with too much air in the tires and fork not dialed.

It might be new bike honeymoon phase but riding what seems like everything over the years this is a hands-down the funniest eBike and maybe my favorite bike of all-time for fit. The noise in the motor kinda sucks and fork does not belong on a 48 lbs/21.77 kg eBike. I will fiddle with the fork but will probably get a Pike for next spring.

Sorry for the long winded review but other than a couple niggles I think the 2019 is head and shoulders above the 2018. Great job Specialized.

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How you feel about the new bike after couple of weeks of riding it. Still very happy, or found some downsides comparing to the older one?