Levo SL Gen 1 Levo SL 2023 Megathread

Suns_PSD

Active member
Jul 12, 2022
516
421
Austin
Someone posted on another site that he bumped into a Spesh test rider, and they told him that the '23 was significantly delayed until Spring 2023 due to running changes.
 

gabryp

Member
Feb 17, 2021
11
6
Italy
Someone posted on another site that he bumped into a Spesh test rider, and they told him that the '23 was significantly delayed until Spring 2023 due to running changes.
Which would make sense... initially it was expected by Spring 2022, then delayed September, then end of the year and now they are talking about May 2023
I guess they realised that 45Nm with same battery won't be enough to compete with other manufacturers
 

p3eps

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
Subscriber
Dec 14, 2019
1,962
2,366
Scotland
Which would make sense... initially it was expected by Spring 2022, then delayed September, then end of the year and now they are talking about May 2023
I guess they realised that 45Nm with same battery won't be enough to compete with other manufacturers
Depends on what they're competing with...
A top spec Orbea Rise is listed as 19kg, and a top spec Trek Fuel EXE is 18.9kg.
An S-works Levo SL is listed as 17.4kg. I had mine under that with more burley components that Specialized put on it - in an XL with pedals on.

The current Levo SL is down on power... but is also down on weight.

To me (and a lot of other SL riders) the SL isn't about how much power it can produce - as we run it on Eco or low settings anyway. It's about a bit of assistance when needed to help with the mundane climbs.
 

Ou812

Well-known member
Jun 26, 2022
761
515
Inverness
Depends on what they're competing with...
A top spec Orbea Rise is listed as 19kg, and a top spec Trek Fuel EXE is 18.9kg.
An S-works Levo SL is listed as 17.4kg. I had mine under that with more burley components that Specialized put on it - in an XL with pedals on.

The current Levo SL is down on power... but is also down on weight.

To me (and a lot of other SL riders) the SL isn't about how much power it can produce - as we run it on Eco or low settings anyway. It's about a bit of assistance when needed to help with the mundane climbs.
Spesh doesn’t really care about current SL owners, they know that if you already own one then more than likely you’ll upgrade if you can. It’s the new buyers they have to win over and those buyers will be comparing it against its competition, if it doesn’t stack up on paper it will get overlooked.
 

smc_stefan

Active member
Oct 10, 2022
69
70
Austria
Someone posted on another site that he bumped into a Spesh test rider, and they told him that the '23 was significantly delayed until Spring 2023 due to running changes.
My LBS told me the same, they don't expect it to hit the market before May 2023
 

JayF

New Member
Nov 23, 2022
3
3
Germany
Just had a phone call with my dealer. The Spesh sales rep was there in the morning, unfortunatelly no news what so ever. The sales rep told them, maybe there will be some news in February, but that´s not for sure. And my dealer added to that, if they could order in February, at the moment you can expect an other 6 month for the first bikes to arrive. So it might be a long time before we see the first of the new SL´s. :( Not what I was hoping for.
 

Streddaz

Active member
Jul 7, 2022
297
424
Tasmania
Spesh doesn’t really care about current SL owners, they know that if you already own one then more than likely you’ll upgrade if you can. It’s the new buyers they have to win over and those buyers will be comparing it against its competition, if it doesn’t stack up on paper it will get overlooked.
I agree, as it's the way the market is driven, is that there has to be a gain in performance over the last model and the opposition, and in this case, that means more power. Unfortunately, there are only very small gains in motor efficiency and limited weigh savings in the frame to be had, so upping the power means reducing the range unless you increase the battery size and that increases the weight.
I'm in the same boat as p3eps that I prefer range over power, and I would expect that the new kids in town like the Trek Fuel EXe and new Fazua Ride 60 powered bikes won't have the range that the SL has. I'm sure the market pressure will win out and they will need to have more power and that will require a bigger battery. I'm interested to see if they have a quieter motor as this would be difficult to achieve with the current 1.1 motor.
I'd be happy with 35Nm and the silence of the TQ motor to be honest.
 

Suns_PSD

Active member
Jul 12, 2022
516
421
Austin
I don't mind the low power in exchange for a low weight, it's preferable in fact.

However the midpower motors nearly weigh the same, as do the battery's on a per wh basis.

Noise, reliability & seemlessness are other factors but are mostly seperate from the power/ range topic.

So given that the midpower motors all weigh 2kgs, a bit more powerful motor that has no weight penalty and can be turned up seems like common sense for fire road transfers.

The battery is where the weight gain is and this is reflected in the bit heavier 430 wh battery on the F60 motor.

I'm pretty weight weenie but I do think an extra .5 kg to be able to get a 3 hour ride in should be the goal on a low to midrange boost. Based on reviews I've read the current SLs, the Eondrive & the TQ Hp seem to be pretty much dead at about 2 - 2.5 hours.
 

Streddaz

Active member
Jul 7, 2022
297
424
Tasmania
I hope they keep the shuttle mode. I purchased a Powerplay two months ago and own a Kenevo since 2020. The powerplay 3.0 is good but I definitely want a shuttle mode on my next bike.
The SL models don't have Shuttle mode only the full power Levo and Kenevo models. It may be added but with the smaller batteries of the lightweight bikes, it would chew through the battery.
 

Suns_PSD

Active member
Jul 12, 2022
516
421
Austin
Still eagerly awaiting this one.

I've been heavily tempted by a frame only Kenevo listed for sale but between the price, the noise, and a pending update I'm going to keep waiting for this one.
 

paquo

Well-known member
Jul 31, 2018
463
283
usa
spec is getting nervous as they realize they can't show up with their usual suboptimal effort--in this case putting lipstick on a pig may not cut it as there is actually now competition in the space. The mahle motor is ridiculously loud and that's probably hard to change given its design. They can't afford another sales disaster that was the SL
 

head

Active member
Jul 2, 2020
124
119
Slovakia
spec is getting nervous as they realize they can't show up with their usual suboptimal effort--in this case putting lipstick on a pig may not cut it as there is actually now competition in the space. The mahle motor is ridiculously loud and that's probably hard to change given its design. They can't afford another sales disaster that was the SL

🙄

assumptions assumptions assumptions
 

Loamranger

Member
Dec 10, 2019
205
100
U.K.
spec is getting nervous as they realize they can't show up with their usual suboptimal effort--in this case putting lipstick on a pig may not cut it as there is actually now competition in the space. The mahle motor is ridiculously loud and that's probably hard to change given its design. They can't afford another sales disaster that was the SL
Very harsh. Levo SL has excellent kinematics and integration imo. Motor noise does not bother me personally and it’s still one of the lightest ebikes around. With the range extender, even using turbo, I get all the range I need.
 

paquo

Well-known member
Jul 31, 2018
463
283
usa
Very harsh. Levo SL has excellent kinematics and integration imo. Motor noise does not bother me personally and it’s still one of the lightest ebikes around. With the range extender, even using turbo, I get all the range I need.
don't get me wrong , i like doing tight singletrack on it now and then. but apparently now there are way better options
 

KnollyBro

E*POWAH Elite
Dec 3, 2020
994
2,335
Vancouver
spec is getting nervous as they realize they can't show up with their usual suboptimal effort--in this case putting lipstick on a pig may not cut it as there is actually now competition in the space. The mahle motor is ridiculously loud and that's probably hard to change given its design. They can't afford another sales disaster that was the SL
Ridiculously loud for anyone who is embarrassed to be riding an ebike maybe. Time will always bring improvements in measurable specs like power, range, durability, weight and even noise. Where are your stats for "the sales disaster that was the SL" I am in no way defending the stock Levo SL, but it was a pretty decent bike for what it was designed to do. What bike are you riding these days?
 

Suns_PSD

Active member
Jul 12, 2022
516
421
Austin
The SL response was a bit harsh, but I agree that the SL's are already a bit outdated.

Count me in the 'embarrassed to ride an e-bike' group. They are mostly illegal here so I'm just trying to be as stealth as possible.
 

grantini

E*POWAH Master
May 7, 2019
611
539
Delaware
So I gave up waiting....
unnamed (5).jpg
 

grantini

E*POWAH Master
May 7, 2019
611
539
Delaware
Looking at that bike makes the whole illegal eeb thing a bit ridiculous. I thought America was the land of the free . Ur aloud to shoot people dead . But can't ride an electric bike . 😕
I can assure you that we aren't allowed to shoot people, even a little bit, much less dead.... and I live in Pennsylvania and ride here and in Delaware, and in both states we are allowed to ride emtbs anywhere a bicycle can go.
 

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