Levo SL Gen 1 Levo SL motor problems

[Zerograv80]

Been riding my Levo SL since new in Feb’21 once or twice a week averaging 25-35km distance 800m climb rides each time, so no excessive wear and tear. The motor has developed some problems this week… back pedalling of the cranks is now reversing the motor and the drivetrain - great for oiling my chain but not a sign of a healthy motor I expect! Also the motor overrun when you stop pedalling has become more pronounced and actually puts some light force into the cranks trying to make you pedal half a revolution before cutting out. Very strange! I’m based in the uk, so probably going to do the the two hour journey to Chris at Berkshire Cycles (well practiced in this procedure having owned a v1 Kenevo for two years), but just wondered if this was the first of its kind or lots of other forum members have experienced something similar with the SL Mahle motor???

 

[brizi2003]

Been riding my Levo SL since new in Feb’21 once or twice a week averaging 25-35km distance 800m climb rides each time, so no excessive wear and tear. The motor has developed some problems this week… back pedalling of the cranks is now reversing the motor and the drivetrain - great for oiling my chain but not a sign of a healthy motor I expect! Also the motor overrun when you stop pedalling has become more pronounced and actually puts some light force into the cranks trying to make you pedal half a revolution before cutting out. Very strange! I’m based in the uk, so probably going to do the the two hour journey to Chris at Berkshire Cycles (well practiced in this procedure having owned a v1 Kenevo for two years), but just wondered if this was the first of its kind or lots of other forum members have experienced something similar with the SL Mahle motor???

Hi @Zerograv80, did you get to the bottom of this problem? I think I might have a problem with my Creo SL motor. There seems to be excessive play in the crank bearings, noticeable when rocking the crank arms, with a regular, once per crank rev, 'knock' when pedaling out of the seat.

Cheers Brian

 

[brizi2003]

Hi @Zerograv80, did you get to the bottom of this problem? I think I might have a problem with my Creo SL motor. There seems to be excessive play in the crank bearings, noticeable when rocking the crank arms, with a regular, once per crank rev, 'knock' when pedaling out of the seat.

Cheers Brian

Follow up on my previous post. I've had my 1300mile/3 month old Creo SL Mahle motor replaced under warranty due to excessive play in the crank bearings. That mileage is nothing for a road bike. Very disappointing. I've owned a Kenevo since Nov 2018 and it's had 3 motors under warranty and has just been repaired outside warranty by Performance Line Bearings. I really thought the new Mahle motor was Specialized's "solution" to previous motor reliability problems. I'm hoping that the Mahle motor failure is a one off but the local dealer didn't fill me with confidence when they said they'd replaced several motors with similar problems! I really feel that Specialized should be trying to address these issues beyond the warranty period. It's all well and good that motors are replaced throughout the generous 2 year warranty period but there seems to be no provision beyond then except for replacement or repair by specialist 3rd party repairers. Why don't Specialized offer repair/servicing of these expensive parts via the dealers after the warranty expires? Or maybe restart the warranty period when a faulted motor is replaced? Surely customers can expect their ebikes to last beyond the 2 year warranty period?

 

[Semmelrocc]

Count me in, I'm in for a new SL motor as well. After 11 months and 3.600 km I brought my Levo SL to the dealer for a new chain and cassette. They put it on the bike stand and first thing they did is rotate the crank backwards. The chain slightly rotated a littlebit backwards and he immediately said they would replace the motor. He explained to me that a bearing in the motor, which is not serviceable, runs dry and causes this (alongside emitting a slight whinging noise when pedaling without motor assistance). Let's hope Specialized have improved the motor's design by now so that I won't need another one next year...

 

[boBE]

Count me in, I'm in for a new SL motor as well. After 11 months and 3.600 km I brought my Levo SL to the dealer for a new chain and cassette. They put it on the bike stand and first thing they did is rotate the crank backwards. The chain slightly rotated a littlebit backwards and he immediately said they would replace the motor. He explained to me that a bearing in the motor, which is not serviceable, runs dry and causes this (alongside emitting a slight whinging noise when pedaling without motor assistance). Let's hope Specialized have improved the motor's design by now so that I won't need another one next year...

My SL will sometimes turn the chain backwards, sometimes not, sometimes only for a half rotation or so. It has done this since I got it over two years and 2200 miles ago. Maybe it is a sign of a problem, nothing seems to be wrong with it.

 

[Semmelrocc]

Same here – apart from the noise the motor feels fine and works just as it always did. Anyway, if they replace it while it's still under warranty, I won't say no.