Other Looking at an old Levo... 2016 6Fattie Expert

[wannabe]

First of all, am I an idiot for looking at this old of a Levo?
A little about the bike: It has 1500 miles, the battery shows 100% health and 50 charge cycles. It still has the original tires, which makes me think it was used for commuting and not hard trail use. Cassette and chain are pretty worn. Aesthetically it still looks really nice.

What I can't seem to find anywhere is what motor does it have? Is it a 1.2 or 1.3? If it is the 1.2, can the motor be upgraded? Is the original motor known to have issues? Can the push buttons for the power modes be added to the bars? Any major issues this model is known to have?

Sorry for so many newb questions, it just seems like there isn't a lot of technical info on the early Levo, whereas I can find out everything about 2018+ models.
I can get the bike for around 3K, which is 2k less than used comps in my area.

 

[Miru]

I believe the first gen 2016 models had the 1.2 motor and no remote buttons on the handlebar

 

[Twvandoren]

I have a 2016 Levo Comp with about 5000 miles on it. The motor has been absolutely bulletproof, and is very quiet, especially compared to the Levo SL I bought last fall. The tuning of the motor is very good and feels natural like the SL The issues I have had are:
- The first battery lasted about 4 years before it went down to 90% life, but it started throwing error codes at the end of the charge cycle at that time. After sitting for an hour or so the error codes would disappear. I did get a new battery.
-The cable that runs from the battery to the motor developed a loose connection at about 4000 miles. $120 to replace it.
-The bottom of the motor housing (which is metal) drags over lots of obstacles, which Is fine, but the plastic covers on the side of the motor take a beating and get cracked.
- I think the power from the motor is a touch lower than the later Levos, but there is so much power available I don’t think you would ever feel you don’t have enough.
- I did purchase an aftermarket remote from Specialized because the buttons on the side of the downtube are a pain, but the remote had some connectivity issues.
- These Levos come with an 11 speed transmission with a 42 tooth low range gear in the cassette. This is absolutely fine. There is so much torque from the motor that a 50 or 52 tooth low gear is pointless. The 11 speed is easier to tune and cheaper to replace than a 12 speed.

Overall, the first generation Levos are great bikes. They were a fully baked design, not an experiment. The v1.2 motor is all you need and doesn’t have the issues that the later motors have. A new cassette, chain, and tires won’t cost you much.

If you can get a decent price I say go for it. Levos are crazy expensive right now, as I am sure you have noticed. 1500 miles is really low and you will get a great bike.

 

[Norange]

It will have a 1.2 motor, but you can swap in a 1.3 if you want i believe.

Garmin GPS with ant+ can show you the mode and battery level, as well as change mode.

Theres also an ant+ garmin remote, there might not be access to the walk mode using these methods though. My bar controller has failed and at £120 I won't be replacing it.

 

[Taffyteg]

If its 4 years old expect to fork out £540 for a motor due to water ingress and £540 on a battery due to water ingress at some point in the near future. You might get lucky and your battery may fall within the date range of the product recall and you will get a new one FOC.
Specialized are doing discounted replacement motors and batteries as part of the purchase assist scheme - not too sure how that works if you are not the original owner or if you don't have proof of purchase - otherwise you are looking at ~£800 for a motor and the same again for the battery.

 

[wannabe]

Thanks everyone for your input, especially @Twvandoren! I ended up passing on the 2016 because it wasn't nearly as clean as it was advertised. I ended up buying a 2018 Expert. Still an older bike, but it's really clean.

 

[Ingo Steinhage]

I have a 2016 Levo Comp with about 5000 miles on it. The motor has been absolutely bulletproof, and is very quiet, especially compared to the Levo SL I bought last fall. The tuning of the motor is very good and feels natural like the SL The issues I have had are:
- The first battery lasted about 4 years before it went down to 90% life, but it started throwing error codes at the end of the charge cycle at that time. After sitting for an hour or so the error codes would disappear. I did get a new battery.
-The cable that runs from the battery to the motor developed a loose connection at about 4000 miles. $120 to replace it.
-The bottom of the motor housing (which is metal) drags over lots of obstacles, which Is fine, but the plastic covers on the side of the motor take a beating and get cracked.
- I think the power from the motor is a touch lower than the later Levos, but there is so much power available I don’t think you would ever feel you don’t have enough.
- I did purchase an aftermarket remote from Specialized because the buttons on the side of the downtube are a pain, but the remote had some connectivity issues.
- These Levos come with an 11 speed transmission with a 42 tooth low range gear in the cassette. This is absolutely fine. There is so much torque from the motor that a 50 or 52 tooth low gear is pointless. The 11 speed is easier to tune and cheaper to replace than a 12 speed.

Overall, the first generation Levos are great bikes. They were a fully baked design, not an experiment. The v1.2 motor is all you need and doesn’t have the issues that the later motors have. A new cassette, chain, and tires won’t cost you much.

If you can get a decent price I say go for it. Levos are crazy expensive right now, as I am sure you have noticed. 1500 miles is really low and you will get a great bike.

I agree fully had one myself. One battery under warranty replaced all else lasted. The motor is quieter then my most recent Turbo Levo Pro model.