Levo Gen 3 Levo vs Rail -2023

[zerofunds]

I have had the current trek rail for the last 2 years, (great bike) with DVO coil and Smashpot Zeb, the 23 rail has changed geo and the reviews aren't that great.
I really want a mullet. Levo seems to be the pick of all the mullets at the moment, has anybody ridden both? Is the levo playful? I would try a YT decoy if they had a decent battery but the 700w in the Levo is perfect for where I ride.
I only ride in turbo, I'm all about the downs, jumps, bike parks, and techy stuff.

 

[Jeff McD]

I have had the current trek rail for the last 2 years, (great bike) with DVO coil and Smashpot Zeb, the 23 rail has changed geo and the reviews aren't that great.
I really want a mullet. Levo seems to be the pick of all the mullets at the moment, has anybody ridden both? Is the levo playful? I would try a YT decoy if they had a decent battery but the 700w in the Levo is perfect for where I ride.
I only ride in turbo, I'm all about the downs, jumps, bike parks, and techy stuff.

Just like you, I only ride in Turbo as well and ride with the fast group here. I can verify that the levo comes alive at fast speeds and is extremely playful with the right geometry. For me that is the high setting in the rear and the steepest headset angle in the front. I love this bike. So intuitive. You think it, it just turns, no fighting the bike at all. My riding partner is faster than I am and was riding a marin ebike mullet also and was unable to drop me, with more mistakes made in tight technical turns at speed. It was obvious he was fighting the bike. He switched to a 22 levo pro and easily drops me on the climbs, never makes mistakes in tight turns. However, by all means try different geometry settings for yourself.

 

[zerofunds]

Tha ks for that, with the levo being 6 way adjustable is a huge selling point for me. Think I'm gonna pull the trigger on one soon. Will take the zebs and XTs off the rail and put them on the levo.

 

[mxengineer1]

I am a moto guy and really like riding E-MTB's. I have a '21 Trek Rail 9.7 and '22 Specialized Levo Expert. Both great bikes. The Rail has the smaller 625Wh battery and with 29's rolls so well...I call it my E-MTB that feels the most acoustic like. The Levo is more "moto" feeling with the mullet and the Brose motor is so smooth and tunable with the Mission Control app I give it a slight edge overall. My MTB riding buddies (4 of them) all like the '21 Rail better than the 22 Levo when I let them ride both back to back. The Levo is so adjustable you should be able to dial it in to your liking.

 

[Sofaboy73]

I had a 2020 rail 9 for a couple of years before it got stolen, then replaced it with a 2022 levo expert which I’ve been riding for the past 6 months. In pretty every way I prefer the levo. Climbs better, descends better, more playful and easier to through around. The rail was fast with the 29 front and rear, but I like techy trails and the levo is far better suited with its handling characteristics and mullet set up. All so find the e part of the bike better on the levo - better motor feel, system intergration, adjustability etc. Haven’t tried the new rail with the smart system and diff geo, but I think it would have to go a long way to beat the levo

 

[Paul Mac]

Guess this thread goes to show there is not one perfect EMTB, it's all preferance.
For me it's the Rail all day long, but again preferance and I wouldn't buy a bike without the Bosch motor.

 

[rzr]

I rode Rail 9.7 (2021) for a month, now I have a new Levo - night and day !
Levo is more aggressive (slacker HA, shorter cranks, BB can be lower) + BB height, HA adjustability.
It's quiet !!!
and system integration !!! (whereas Bosch engineers didn't see mountain biker from a mile) and customisations (you can customise all modes, smth that, again, is not available on Trek).

default power delivery is smoother, i don't feel it's a Emtb so much like on Rail (but maybe these are just my motor settings)