Serious about a first e-bike and a Levo!

[Skeggab]

Best probably to start with where i’m at & who I am... middle aged, family man whose expectation way out weighs his capability! Ride two times per week when poss. Often multiple weeks in between leaving me often panting for breath among my group but have to the determination to try and keep up! Ride in Hertfordshire which is relatively flat / small hills but beautiful trial and much more to explore then we generally achieve but the ambition is there.

Four things appeal about an e-bike 1. Every review/blog /vlog i’ve seen everyone had fun! 2. What they report is getting to the fun stuff quicker, 3. Going up hill is more fun and 4. You get to do more of it - that all appeals and motivates.

So... which e-bike? I’m into fast single / technical track with a few whoops and drops but tend to ride alot where that’s at a premium, mainly small inclines and down woodland tracks, forest road, fields and road. I currently ride a lapierre spicy, full sus, over kill possibly but as I said i’m ambious and like the comfort and recovery when I get it wrong! Plus it works well / at its best on the 3/4 times a year we take a boys tour to bike parks or well trodden MTB trails else where in our beautiful country.

Style wise I’m a fan of the verticale rear shock lines as opposed to horizontal and in this vein the Specalized Levo Comp or Expert appeals. That along with the reports on handling, battery power, battery life & fun feel appeal. I’d like to demo one but wondering a few things...

A) does the battery auto cut out and enable manual / free flow when you reach the 25mph limit?
B ) How relatively easy is it to cycle with no power assist?
C) how easy is it to bunny hop or wheelie?
D) how easy is it really to lift over gates / obstacles?

Genuinely interested and appreciative of feedback, after all there is no substitute for experience.

 

[UKPHOTO]

Welcome
I got a Levo after about 20 years of no bike ownership.
Here in Wiltshire we have similar type of train.
Currently I am riding average 40 miles a week.

The motor "disengages" after limit reached.
I have forgotten to turn battery on and on flat was fine.
It's a heavy bitch. I can lift above my head to go through Stiles/over gates but does get harder later in a heavy ride ?
Manuals and bunnyhops take practice and not mastered them yet. Wheelie's are more of a case of right gear/mode and hang on ?

Personally the stock Butcher tyres did not inspire me with confidence on terrain I ride so swapped for Maxxis minions now my confidence is absolute.
I also upgraded front shock to the debonair 160mm conversion and am loving the feel.

But to answer in general, it's a bit of a shock to the wallet but the fun soon makes you forget all that ?

 

[R120]

A: Yes - all motors cut out above 25kph, and in theory you just pedal like a normal bike with no assistance, in practice different motors have different levels of "drag" when the motor cuts out. The Brose motor in the specialised is known for having minimal/no drag past the cut off.

B: Doable, but you are cycling a 22kg bike so not much fun - in reality you never ride without the power unless you have a dead battery.

C: Just a question of adjusting to the extra weight, you get used to it. Balance point of a wheelie may be further back

D: Fine, just don't expect to throw them over!

There are a big range of very good e-bikes on the market, of which the Levo is one - they are very popular (about half the forum has them) beacause they are good, and because Specialised is a pretty safe bet to go with if you are confused by all the options.

You should by an e-bike based primarily on it being he best type of bike for you and your riding, as you would on any other bike, the brand/choice of motor is irrelevant if the bike is fundamentally wrong for you. A lot of E-Bikes have longer travel, and are quite enduro focused as the motor offsets the negative aspects of longer travel when climbing, so a lot of people go up in terms of travel compared to their normal bikes.

Remember e-bikes are great equalisers, not magic soloutions. In reality if you are out with a group riding normal bikes you wont be out pacing them, you will be able to climb faster and for longer, and go up stuff you wouldn't normally be able to do, but no faster in my experience on normal trails/single track.

An yes, they are enormous fun!

 

[Skeggab]

Gentleman - very useful insight and words of wisdom, thank you - and I’ll be sure to let you know how I get on

 

[Dax]

One of the great bits about having an ebike is it helps you explore, its suddenly not a lot of effort just to pop up something to have a look, or go explore looking for new trails.

I have a Kenevo, which is a touch heavier than a levo, but not much. I wouldnt want to lift it over too many obstacles, its heavy enough putting it in the car!

 

[eFat]

A, B ) You won't drain the battery over 25 km/h but the weight is here and you feel it!
C ) Not easy
D) It's heavy. A gate is not an issue but if you have to go through a section where it's only possible to walk it may be.

 

[Lazy Biker 84]

I received my new Levo yesterday and literally just got back from a ride on it, mainly roads but a few off road bits as my time today is limited. I have to say though, its an incredible machine. I did 20km and me and the bike hardly broke a sweat. You do feel the weight of the bike when you push it over the 25kmh limit but the motor disengages seamlessly.
All Levo's run a Horizontal rear shock, so if you're a fan of the vertical shock, maybe its not for you. Possibly you've got your Horizontals and verticals mixed up?

 

[Skeggab]

Thank you for the feedback, very encouraging! And you’re right, I mixed up the horizontal and verticle - the Levo looks are standout.

 

[James_MTB]

B) It's a bitch and best avoided

C)
D) The downside to owning an ebike!

 

[Donnie797]

I have to hook on this thread cause i'm on the very same edge of decisions right now. Going to get my first e-mtb and i'm pretty much focused on the Levo... it's so sexy and i like the motor concept pretty much (without a test-ride yet).

Just a little bit of feedback i've gained from my wifes brand new e-mtb this weekend:
My wife recently got an e-mtb hardtail with 27,5+ wheels and a Bosch CX motor which is very powerful but not known for decoupling very well over 25km/h and it's said it's a pain to ride it with motor "off". But she did exactly that... riding alongside with me with motor OFF and in ECO mode over 25km/h (both in the flats) was no problem - and she's a lightweight of 50kg, riding a 20kg bike!

I myself tested a Shimano E8000 motor two weeks ago and it was also possible to ride it with motor "off" in the flats and even on easy uphills. But of course, even if the motor is decoupling 100% you can definitely feel the extra 10kg of bike weight. It's like riding with or without a very heavy backpack.

I pretty much look forward to my first Levo test-ride - from all the reviews and videos out there, the Specialized/Brose motor should decouple as far the best and riding that bike should feel very "natural" compared to other e-mtbs. Can't await it....

 

[R120]

All of them ride fine with the motors off, its just the sensation of them decoupling past the limit is different between brands. There is a difference between riding with the motor totally off, and the decoupling over the limit, as when going over the limit the motor is cutting out, but if the bike off it should in theory just pedal like a normal bike.The reality is you will only ride with the motor off if looking to preserve, or having run out of battery.

When you get an e-bike, you will spend the first couple of weeks mucking around with the modes, but most people find they mainly use it in a mix of eco and trail, with some rides perfectly doable in Eco.

 

[Lazy Biker 84]

I have to hook on this thread cause i'm on the very same edge of decisions right now. Going to get my first e-mtb and i'm pretty much focused on the Levo... it's so sexy and i like the motor concept pretty much (without a test-ride yet).

Just a little bit of feedback i've gained from my wifes brand new e-mtb this weekend:
My wife recently got an e-mtb hardtail with 27,5+ wheels and a Bosch CX motor which is very powerful but not known for decoupling very well over 25km/h and it's said it's a pain to ride it with motor "off". But she did exactly that... riding alongside with me with motor OFF and in ECO mode over 25km/h (both in the flats) was no problem - and she's a lightweight of 50kg, riding a 20kg bike!

I myself tested a Shimano E8000 motor two weeks ago and it was also possible to ride it with motor "off" in the flats and even on easy uphills. But of course, even if the motor is decoupling 100% you can definitely feel the extra 10kg of bike weight. It's like riding with or without a very heavy backpack.

I pretty much look forward to my first Levo test-ride - from all the reviews and videos out there, the Specialized/Brose motor should decouple as far the best and riding that bike should feel very "natural" compared to other e-mtbs. Can't await it....

Take the leap of faith, I did and I can quite happily say ill never go back. I struggle to get back on my road bike! In years to come, that'll be upgraded to an e bike too. Riding is a pleasure when you have that assist at your fingertips.

I went back home to visit my parents last weekend and took my Levo up the Malvern hills, I went for all the hardest climbs, and did them laughing!
You will not regret to day you turned to the dark side!

 

[Skeggab]

That’s very useful, thanks for sharing. I took a Levo demo bike out a few days a go for the first time - it was amazing! The ground I covered and the pace I covered it in was serious fun, more than double what i’d usuallly do on my current bike.

The biggest difference I found was adapting my riding style to the motor de-coupling at the 15mph range. I found it easy to reach on flat surfaces and had to back off my pedalling cadence to avoid what felt like a ‘drag’ at the point the motor assist stopped and you’re carrying the extra weight of the bike. Uphill was a joy though.

The other big difference was the stopping distance when going downhill at pace, the extra weight giving much more momentum and that takes a bit more stopping. I found that I neeed to control my pace when entering corners, couldn’t go quite so flat out and break late but this was more than compensated for with a faster exit as you pedal out and get back up to speed quicker.

I’m taking the demo bike back out again this weekend with the group of mates I usually ride with. They are all on non assist bikes still, expecting get plenty of stick but fascinated to see how that goes. - I’ll report back!

 

[Donnie797]

All of them ride fine with the motors off, its just the sensation of them decoupling past the limit is different between brands. There is a difference between riding with the motor totally off, and the decoupling over the limit, as when going over the limit the motor is cutting out, but if the bike off it should in theory just pedal like a normal bike.The reality is you will only ride with the motor off if looking to preserve, or having run out of battery.

When you get an e-bike, you will spend the first couple of weeks mucking around with the modes, but most people find they mainly use it in a mix of eco and trail, with some rides perfectly doable in Eco.

Yes indeed, guess that's totally true

Another thing is that the Bosch CX motor in ECO always runs on 50% - no possibility to change that (the new dynamic "e-mtb" mode is just dynamically acting between the trail and boost mode between 120 and 300%). And 50% is already pretty strong - i personally would run ECO at a lower assistance level and therefore i like the possibility to change and fine-tune the assistance via the app on the Specialized bikes.

 

[Lazy Biker 84]

The biggest change for me was actually stopping peddling when changing gear. You really do feel the weight come on when the motor uncouples but you do learn quite quickly what the optimum cadence is and when to use it. I went for a ride the other day, just a quick one down the road, Strava indicated that my average speed was 24.9kmh so keeping in mind that 25kmh motor limit, I think ive got that cadence down! lol

Breaking earlier is just part and parcel to owning an e bike due to its weight, but where you'll have to break earlier, you'll also be back up to speed quicker out of the corners.

Enjoy your test ride...…...what am I saying??? You're going to love it!

 

[Donnie797]

The other big difference was the stopping distance when going downhill at pace, the extra weight giving much more momentum and that takes a bit more stopping. I found that I neeed to control my pace when entering corners, couldn’t go quite so flat out and break late but this was more than compensated for with a faster exit as you pedal out and get back up to speed quicker.

Oh yes, i've noticed that too - on my "non-E" Enduro bike i've upgraded to Shimano Zee brakes and 203mm discs, so i'm used to good stopping power even when i'm not a lightweight myself. On my e-mtb test ride i had a bike with undersized brakes and it took a while to get that thing to a full stop...

 

[Lazy Biker 84]

Yes indeed, guess that's totally true

Another thing is that the Bosch CX motor in ECO always runs on 50% - no possibility to change that (the new dynamic "e-mtb" mode is just dynamically acting between the trail and boost mode between 120 and 300%). And 50% is already pretty strong - i personally would run ECO at a lower assistance level and therefore i like the possibility to change and fine-tune the assistance via the app on the Specialized bikes.

Donnie, tuning your modes is so useful and great for adapting for you style of riding. Ive slightly upped. Turbo is turbo 300% and only gets used on the hardest of climbs, Trails been slightly upped and a general purpose mode and ECO, ive dropped down to 30% and use as a limp mode to get me back when running low. Its not going to be for everyone, but it works well for me.

 

[Blackbird]

You can make custom riding modes on a bosch, but you need a nyon display. The downside of that is, well the big nyon display. I really like my purion and would be worried about the nyon on the trails.

 

[Donnie797]

Yes indeed, the Nyon display is big as hell - in my eyes not the right thing on an e-mtb. Sadly without that big screen TV it's not possible to tune the modes, which is a bit of a bugger. But maybe they enable this possibility via software-update in future.

I personally prefer the Shimano solution, the small display is well protected, has a good quality color screen, and they use a normal shifter to change the modes. That's very sexy.

And on top of that, i do like the Specialized "no display" approach even more. Good is, you can connect other products via Ant+ (like some Garmin devices) to display the battery percentage on them - sadly the Garmin Fenix 3HR watch i own (which also has Ant+) seems not to be compatible. Asked the app developer about it, but didn't get an answer.

 

[R120]

Shimano definitely have the display nailed. It gives you a lot of info on the go (though only bike related, not HR etc). I miss it when riding a Specialize as you become accustomed to a quick glance giving you the info you want.

The shifter style switch for changing modes is actually its biggest downside IMO - it works really well but buggers up placement of the other controls, especially the dropper post remote. A lot of us have swapped it out for the E6000 controller which is similar in size and looks to the Specialized one, and enable you to properly get the other controls where you want them

 

[Doomanic]

You can make custom riding modes on a bosch, but you need a nyon display. The downside of that is, well the big nyon display. I really like my purion and would be worried about the nyon on the trails.

Bosch have a new display coming; the Kiox.

It has Bluetooth and can be linked to a HRM. Hopefully more customisation will follow.