Levo Gen 3 My new Levo Expert 2022 has a broken carbob swing Thx Specialized

[hightower997]

My new Levo Expert 2022 has a broken carbon swing after 160km.
The swing is broken on a forst way no Trail or Jumps...............
Thank you Specialized for thix High Quality!

@Specialized Rider Care
Can you Help me?

 

[ebikerider]

Why do you need the help of Specialized on line? Any reason why you just don't take it back to the shop?

 

[escrs]

Just take it back to the shop you bought it from as its still under warranty

Worst case Spesh will provide a new rear end, best case a whole new frame

The carbon rear end's on Levo's have been known to snap since 2019, i was warned against buying a 2020 s-works for that reason so went with a 2020 Expert (alloy rear end)

Nothing flicked up and hit the rear seat stay as you were riding along? big stone etc....

What rear brake is that? i wonder if it could of contributed the the seat stay snapping? i had a Transition Scout (alloy frame) snap in roughly the same place just riding along, Transition said it was due to the rear brake i was running, they replaced the rear end quickly

 

[hightower997]

Hi,no stone etc.,the Brake is a Trickstuff Maxima with 203mm rotor strongest brake ever......
My other bike is a Levo Expert 2020 with Alu Seatstay and No Problem....

 

[Mikerb]

Standard rear shock?

 

[hightower997]

Yes

 

[Bencab]

Yes

Can you provide some facts/circumstances how did it break? Thanks.

 

[hightower997]

2km after a Trail,no braking at this moment only pedaling

 

[CjP]

Based of your name, are you tall/heavy?

 

[NewBeeEMTB]

I'm interested as to how this happened as well as I have the same bike.

 

[DtEW]

JRA beggars the imagination. There has to be more to the story.

 

[NewBeeEMTB]

JRA beggars the imagination. There has to be more to the story.

True, although I can say that I have been just sitting next to my bike before and had a tire just blow up. I mean that's weird right! lol Stupid tubeless sealant everywhere.

 

[CjP]

Based of your name, are you tall/heavy?

This wasn’t a joke. I was trying to work out if you are over the weight limit of the bike. I’ll be more transparent, are you fat?

 

[Zed]

Frankly I think that's pathetic on Specialized's part. Even if he was over the rated max weight, snapping the bike so quickly is scary. I would never be happy getting any sort of air on this model.
And brakes size? The standard brakes can lock the back wheel up easily. I'm not sure how a larger rotor creates more force than that?

 

[Mikerb]

I asked if the shock was standard...which the OP confirmed.....simply because the seat stays move in an arc with suspension travel and for them both to snap at the centre of their length it suggests the suspension bottomed out.
I am not sure a more powerful rear braking force would add much additional force unless combined with the suspension being bottomed out.
Carbon does not always fracture immediately. More often the laminate is damaged without any visible signs but then fails subsequently.

 

[CjP]

I asked if the shock was standard...which the OP confirmed.....simply because the seat stays move in an arc with suspension travel and for them both to snap at the centre of their length it suggests the suspension bottomed out.
I am not sure a more powerful rear braking force would add much additional force unless combined with the suspension being bottomed out.
Carbon does not always fracture immediately. More often the laminate is damaged without any visible signs but then fails subsequently.

This is the most likely cause, heavy rider and insufficient air pressure. Unless it was a Friday build.

 

[Tim1023]

Any idea of what the weight limit of the '22 Expert is? On my 2021 Alu Levo Comp it says 136 structural weight, which is Specialized speak for bike, and everything it has to carry. Looks like I'm right on the limit, despite the LBS saying I still had some good margin with my weight. I don't jump, though, so not too worried.

There's a sticker right underneath the frame that tells you the limit:

It mentions EN 15194, which is the only ebike standard for such things and assumes a total weight (everything!) of 120kg, but was written for road and touring bikes, which are rarely jumped. No standards exist for eMTBs as far as I know.

 

[hightower997]

Spare Parts only in BLACK!
Thank You Specialized this is the last Specialized Bike!

 

[lumpy]

Spare Parts only in BLACK!
Thank You Specialized this is the last Specialized Bike!

Really? Wow.
I had a big crash and bent the same part you broke. The replacement is black and I don't care as I can't see it when I ride.

I can't imagine yours breaking while just riding along unless there were some prior damage. It's plenty strong for how it's designed until it gets smacked on the side

 

[escrs]

Spare Parts only in BLACK!

Unfortunately its not cost effective to keep spare frames/swing arms in every available colour and every size that Specialized offer worldwide on the off chance someone breaks one in a particular colour and particular size

Spesh currently offer the Levo in 14 different colourways in the UK and in 6 different sizes

So they would have to hold stock of 84 swing arms (one of each colour in each size) on the off chance someone breaks one in that colour and size, now imagine 2 people broke a swingarm in the same colourway and size!

Most bike manufactures just keep spares in every size just in black as black goes with most other colours

If your that bothered by it then speak to a carbon spray painter and get it repainted to match the rest of the frame

You could even speak to Specialized and see if they would help towards the cost of this and maybe able to help with the paint

 

[hightower997]

They will send it off to be painted if you tell them to. Its a brand new bike....

No!

 

[aarfeldt]

Just brake the main frame also, then the color will match.

 

[j.e.]

The back swing of the new levo is the same in all sizes. So there would be only four colours atm

 

[Mikerb]

I use a lot of carbon components for windsurfing. 100% carbon masts and booms and a mix of UD and matrix carbon board layup. All are put under enormous stress in strong winds and rough seas but get rinsed in a shore break and a broken mast is likely.........and any solid impact will likely lead to failure sooner or later. The thing being on each component the type of carbon and the layup is designed to resist forces in a specific direction and to a specified degree. Regardless of composite no carbon layup except one using kevlar, is able to resist hard impacts.....and including kevlar in a composite is a very specialist job.
Personally I would never buy a mtb with a carbon frame.....road bike certainly....mtb no way!

 

[DtEW]

In all fairness, even tubular metal frames are very directional in the loads that they can bear. But fiber layups (including carbon) aping the form of tubular metal frames are more so, to the n-th degree.

I think some early carbon monocoque designs (eg. Trek Y) were on a better track in terms of how to use carbon (not to imply that they were good bikes) by not trying to ape the form of tubular metal frames. And some components were either better left as metal structures (eg. rear triangles), or by going monocoque (eg. '95 Cannondale Super V, again not implying that the particular implementation was at all good)

I'm not totally averse to carbon on a MTB, but for the higher forces an eMTB can be subject-to on impact in a crash just by virtue of its own mass... I'd be a little wary. Maybe on something like a Levo/Kenevo SL.

I still think there's a lot left untold about this particular story, though.

 

[Pdoz]

Spare Parts only in BLACK!
Thank You Specialized this is the last Specialized Bike!

Can you post pictures when it's assembled? I reckon the black replacement will look better - highlighting the different moving parts of the rear .

 

[rodomotion]

Can you post pictures when it's assembled? I reckon the black replacement will look better - highlighting the different moving parts of the rear .

a friend had the epic in white. he break the rear part, and the replacement in black made the bike look way better than the full white original.

 

[Mikerb]

In all fairness, even tubular metal frames are very directional in the loads that they can bear. But fiber layups (including carbon) aping the form of tubular metal frames are more so, to the n-th degree.

I think some early carbon monocoque designs (eg. Trek Y) were on a better track in terms of how to use carbon (not to imply that they were good bikes) by not trying to ape the form of tubular metal frames. And some components were either better left as metal structures (eg. rear triangles), or by going monocoque (eg. '95 Cannondale Super V, again not implying that the particular implementation was at all good)

I'm not totally averse to carbon on a MTB, but for the higher forces an eMTB can be subject-to on impact in a crash just by virtue of its own mass... I'd be a little wary. Maybe on something like a Levo/Kenevo SL.

I still think there's a lot left untold about this particular story, though.

If you take a look about the only tubular part of a mtb frame is the seat tube........because it has to accomodate the tubular seat post. All the other parts of the frame including the rear triangle are square/rectangular sections. It is the "box" shape that enables the stiffness to be bi directional. The rear triangle is subject to forces both vertical ( suspension travel) and horizontal ( cornering etc). Carbon composites are strongest when laid flat or wound in a helix on a circular tube. The former can be made incredibly stiff and the latter incredibly flexible. Making square section in carbon does not play to the strengths of woven carbon and is not a good idea in my opinion!!

 

[Rosemount]

Unfortunately its not cost effective to keep spare frames/swing arms in every available colour and every size that Specialized offer worldwide on the off chance someone breaks one in a particular colour and particular size

Spesh currently offer the Levo in 14 different colourways in the UK and in 6 different sizes

So they would have to hold stock of 84 swing arms (one of each colour in each size) on the off chance someone breaks one in that colour and size, now imagine 2 people broke a swingarm in the same colourway and size!

Most bike manufactures just keep spares in every size just in black as black goes with most other colours

If your that bothered by it then speak to a carbon spray painter and get it repainted to match the rest of the frame

You could even speak to Specialized and see if they would help towards the cost of this and maybe able to help with the paint

I think the swing arms are all the same . The front triangle gets bigger the rear triangle stays the same .

 

[ghost48]

My new Levo Expert 2022 has a broken carbon swing after 160km.
The swing is broken on a forst way no Trail or Jumps...............
Thank you Specialized for thix High Quality!

@Specialized Rider Care
Can you Help me?

View attachment 66756

Keep in mind to switch brakes back to the original SRAM Code brakes. Otherwise Specialized might decline warranty replacement. In a German forum somebody reported that warrant was denied with a Magura MT7 mounted on an Expert. Specialized declined warranty with the words: Not original. No approvement.

Ridiculous. SWorks comes with MT7. ?