Levo Gen 3 Specialized Gen 3 2022 Levo Megathread!

[LosiSA]

Hi riders,

So got the S-Works S4 a weekago.
this bike rides like a demon compared to my 2019 Levo Expert but most things have already been covered.
I am however really disappointed!
I have never ridden a bike that makes so much noise.... at this price I'm really disappointed in Specialized quality control.

First thing, there is a distinct mechanical rattle coming from the motor or frame, they said there is a fix for for the battery sleeve by adding rubber on S4,S5 and S6 models, I added some rubber tape as the part never shipped with my S-Works. the additional rubber made no improvement what so ever, I believe the rattle is coming from the motor rather than battery, maybe a bearing maybe something else as when i rock the chainring back and forth I almost get the same sound. For reference it sounds more like a Shimano motor going down a trail, not as quiet as brose should be.
View attachment 58361

Another issue is the squeaking from the internal cable routing (obviously no cables inside as everything is AXS) they come together just behind the motor going to the chainstays. They squeak like a squirrel when moving through the rear suspension. I added some grease there but only lasts for a bit of the ride. Pic below show where they are held together.
View attachment 58362


The seatpost sleeve clicks and cracks through out the whole ride (this is AXS 30.9 dropper with a shim to 34.9 as stock from Specialized) , I have used carbon paste (before every ride) to silence it but only lasts a few minutes into the ride.. this is not sustainable.
I was worried about this when I had seen Specialized used a "Shim", this can only lead to cricking..... Why not use 34.9 for the start?

@Specialized Rider Care - any info on these fixes????
Very disappointing riding an S-Works flagship product from Specialized at this price point and it sounds like a 5 year old bike (only had 4 rides on it).

I'm eager to see if anyone else with an 2022 S-Works has had similar issues as I want a replacement bike. Why should I sit with these issues (and be the tester for Specialized) not being able to enjoy my bike while they sort out something that should have been tested before release.
I have dropper off my bike at Specialized (my local guys are really great but are at the mercy of Specialized), will keep you riders informed as to how things progress..

The local Specialized concept store I dropped my bike off with have been great, they called me a few times during the day to update me on the status and Specialized have also reached out. so far good service, they think the brake hose is causing the noise, lets hope so much easier fix i think than a motor...

 

[Rod2H]

Anyone paired a Garmin Fenix watch to the bike for heart rate? My chest strap works fine but would be neat if I could work out how to get the Garmin to send HR to the bike.

Which Fenix have you got Rob, and how do you rate it?

 

[LosiSA]

I just picked up 2 S-Works bikes yesterday, both size S4. I came to this forum looking for someone else who is experiencing the rattling and looks like I'm not the only one. I find it hard to believe that this would be acceptable as well in a $15k bike.

My take is that the brake cables are moving/rubbing inside the housing as the bike is moving through the rear suspension. I'm waiting to discuss this with the bike shop to see what can be done to fix this and remove the noise.

Yes, your are correct, seams that's where my noise is coming from too. Not sure how they will fix this but better than not knowing where the noise is coming from. I believe a cable tie around the brake hose at chainstay will keep the brake host from wanting to move through the frame tubing when cycling through the travel but not sure that will cure the noise.
Funny thing, this is the same issue i had with my Levo SL but the cable tie fixed it and no noise.

 

[Rob Rides EMTB]

Which Fenix have you got Rob, and how do you rate it?

Fenix 6 (middle sized one, Pro I think?)

Hmm - its OK. Coming from Apple, the UI and app integration is clunky. But battery life is excellent (3-6 days usually depending on GPS use) and the Strava / GPS feature is great. 3 clicks on the right hand side top button and Strava is started.

Nice and chunky, well built. Screen looks pretty budget and basic compared to the bright display of Apple Watch though.

Loads of customisable data fields that are useful to have on the face.

A couple of things I don't like.

1 - Strava is ALWAYS set as regular bike ride. There are crazy options for kayaking, bouldering, backcountry ski, surfing, but no Ebike Ride category. Every time I mention it to Garmin they're like ' Oh wow, great idea. How about you submit it as a requested future feature'... Like ebiking is this new thing they've never heard of.

It means I often forget to go back into Strava and change it into ebike ride.

2 - Notifications from iPhone are either all sent through or none at all. Cant customise which ones are sent. So when a new episode of Line of Duty is released, or BBC decide that there's some more breaking news, or Amazon recommend me a set of AAA batteries, my Garmin picks it up.

Overall, 8/10, for activity tracking, daily wearing and features, its pretty decent. Not cheap though.

 

[NoPro]

Not sure which one you have, but from a Fenix 5 :

From the heart rate widget, hold MENU.
Select Options > Broadcast Heart Rate.
The fēnix 5/5S device starts broadcasting your heart rate data, and Heart rate broadcast status appears.

NOTE: You can view only the heart rate widget while broadcasting heart rate data from the heart rate widget.
Pair your fēnix 5/5S device with your Garmin ANT‍+® compatible device.
NOTE: The pairing instructions differ for each Garmin compatible device. See your owner's manual.
TIP: To stop broadcasting your heart rate data, select any key, and select Yes.

The instructions there contradict themselves a bit .. they say you can only see the heart rate widget if you're broadcasting - so you wouldn't in theory be able to set it to broadcast because you couldn't see it unless you already were

The the video in the Mastermind guides shows you how to link the ant+ output to the Mastermind:

Other - Mastermind (TCU 2) "How to" guides

The New TCU is here. I was going to try to grab video sections and take screen prints, but I've just found these which make a perfect thread start. These are all really short and clear, so even if you have the attention span of a goldfish like me, they're all watchable in a couple of minutes...

www.emtbforums.com

Direct link :

On the Fenix 6 there is also an option to "send Heartrate during Activity"

 

[Lightme]

Fenix 6 (middle sized one, Pro I think?)

Hmm - its OK. Coming from Apple, the UI and app integration is clunky. But battery life is excellent (3-6 days usually depending on GPS use) and the Strava / GPS feature is great. 3 clicks on the right hand side top button and Strava is started.

Nice and chunky, well built. Screen looks pretty budget and basic compared to the bright display of Apple Watch though.

Loads of customisable data fields that are useful to have on the face.

A couple of things I don't like.

1 - Strava is ALWAYS set as regular bike ride. There are crazy options for kayaking, bouldering, backcountry ski, surfing, but no Ebike Ride category. Every time I mention it to Garmin they're like ' Oh wow, great idea. How about you submit it as a requested future feature'... Like ebiking is this new thing they've never heard of.

It means I often forget to go back into Strava and change it into ebike ride.

2 - Notifications from iPhone are either all sent through or none at all. Cant customise which ones are sent. So when a new episode of Line of Duty is released, or BBC decide that there's some more breaking news, or Amazon recommend me a set of AAA batteries, my Garmin picks it up.

Overall, 8/10, for activity tracking, daily wearing and features, its pretty decent. Not cheap though.

I feel your pain. I have the 6X. I kept the notifications but got rid of the lights and vibration, so deliver silently. It was driving me crazy.

 

[Rob Rides EMTB]

2022 Levo Gen 3 User Manual also added to second post...

 

[Rob Rides EMTB]

On the Fenix 6 there is also an option to "send Heartrate during Activity"

Yeah, this doesn't seem to work in any configuration I have tried (both Ant+ and BLE)

 

[Rob Rides EMTB]

Not sure which one you have, but from a Fenix 5 :

From the heart rate widget, hold MENU.
Select Options > Broadcast Heart Rate.
The fēnix 5/5S device starts broadcasting your heart rate data, and Heart rate broadcast status appears.

NOTE: You can view only the heart rate widget while broadcasting heart rate data from the heart rate widget.
Pair your fēnix 5/5S device with your Garmin ANT‍+® compatible device.
NOTE: The pairing instructions differ for each Garmin compatible device. See your owner's manual.
TIP: To stop broadcasting your heart rate data, select any key, and select Yes.

The instructions there contradict themselves a bit .. they say you can only see the heart rate widget if you're broadcasting - so you wouldn't in theory be able to set it to broadcast because you couldn't see it unless you already were

The the video in the Mastermind guides shows you how to link the ant+ output to the Mastermind:

Other - Mastermind (TCU 2) "How to" guides

The New TCU is here. I was going to try to grab video sections and take screen prints, but I've just found these which make a perfect thread start. These are all really short and clear, so even if you have the attention span of a goldfish like me, they're all watchable in a couple of minutes...

www.emtbforums.com

Direct link :

Thanks. Can pair my heart rate strap no issues. Connects straight away and works well.

I cant get the Garmin to connect. I can broadcast HR / start virtual activity, but it just won't pair with the bike. I'll have a bit more of a fiddle...

 

[NoPro]

2022 Levo Gen 3 User Manual also added to second post...

skimming through that I cant help but notice the prominent feature of the old TCU which makes me think that the "cheaper" bikes will not geht the new one...

 

[Rod2H]

Fenix 6 (middle sized one, Pro I think?)

Hmm - its OK. Coming from Apple, the UI and app integration is clunky. But battery life is excellent (3-6 days usually depending on GPS use) and the Strava / GPS feature is great. 3 clicks on the right hand side top button and Strava is started.

Nice and chunky, well built. Screen looks pretty budget and basic compared to the bright display of Apple Watch though.

Loads of customisable data fields that are useful to have on the face.

A couple of things I don't like.

1 - Strava is ALWAYS set as regular bike ride. There are crazy options for kayaking, bouldering, backcountry ski, surfing, but no Ebike Ride category. Every time I mention it to Garmin they're like ' Oh wow, great idea. How about you submit it as a requested future feature'... Like ebiking is this new thing they've never heard of.

It means I often forget to go back into Strava and change it into ebike ride.

2 - Notifications from iPhone are either all sent through or none at all. Cant customise which ones are sent. So when a new episode of Line of Duty is released, or BBC decide that there's some more breaking news, or Amazon recommend me a set of AAA batteries, my Garmin picks it up.

Overall, 8/10, for activity tracking, daily wearing and features, its pretty decent. Not cheap though.

Thanks Rob, great insight. I am using Apple Watch at the moment, and was deliberating pro's and con's. Previously, I had both Polar and Garmin. The support (apps, software, OS etc) for AW has a lot going for it.

 

[Rob Rides EMTB]

Alright, just had word that the Garmin integration is not yet working but possibly it'll come at some point in a future update...

 

[Zimmerframe]

Just read the manual .. It's a nice manual ! Lots of useful information.

For the TCU's I guess they need some additional specification change between the lower models and the higher models.

From everything I'd read in the manual, there was no mention of anything being different for Alloy or Carbon models - so I was concluding that even the base models were going to be carbon - however on the last page there's this :

 

[rydeezie]

Just read the manual .. It's a nice manual ! Lots of useful information.

For the TCU's I guess they need some additional specification change between the lower models and the higher models.

From everything I'd read in the manual, there was no mention of anything being different for Alloy or Carbon models - so I was concluding that even the base models were going to be carbon - however on the last page there's this :

View attachment 58489

wow s-works limited

 

[Zimmerframe]

wow s-works limited

That will probably come with the TCU 1 for the people who don't like the TCU 2/Mastermind - but be $2000 more

 

[neiloxford]

Just read the manual .. It's a nice manual ! Lots of useful information.

For the TCU's I guess they need some additional specification change between the lower models and the higher models.

From everything I'd read in the manual, there was no mention of anything being different for Alloy or Carbon models - so I was concluding that even the base models were going to be carbon - however on the last page there's this :

View attachment 58489

Good to know about the alloy versions. I will be interested in finding out how they compare with my Trek Rail.

 

[LosiSA]

@LosiSA Does your squeeking noise sound like this....Skip to 6:23min / Specialized told them that this was an Test Bike Issue....sure....

Hi Bushkila, nope. The motor is super quiet when peddling.

 

[giumik]

Do you think this recommendation present in the manual , is also valid for the Deity Copperhead mounted on the PRO version?
There is nothing written on the Deity website.

 

[rydeezie]

Pro's just became available today on US Specialized site. They only had S4 size when i checked
Placed one in my shopping cart just for fun lol

 

[sometimesjoe]

Do you think this recommendation present in the manual , is also valid for the Deity Copperhead mounted on the PRO version?
There is nothing written on the Deity website.

View attachment 58516

Both my Deity and Raceface Turbine R stems have the gap on the bottom and no gap on top.

 

[sometimesjoe]

Pro's just became available today on US Specialized site. They only had S4 size when i checked
Placed one in my shopping cart just for fun lol

Out of stock for me and they removed the Expert now. Was there yesterday but not today.

 

[Mcharza]

Do you think this recommendation present in the manual , is also valid for the Deity Copperhead mounted on the PRO version?
There is nothing written on the Deity website.

View attachment 58516

I think it's correct. I have Nukeproof stem and same instructions.

 

[giumik]

it's actually not very pretty to look at.

 

[sometimesjoe]

I think if there are no gaps, the bar wouldn’t fit or you’ll crush it. For reference:

 

[giumik]

I think if there are no gaps, the bar wouldn’t fit or you’ll crush it. For reference:

View attachment 58527

Yes of course, but I usually leave the same space above and below, not all below.

 

[nasamorpheus]

Gap should have been same up and down.

 

[CjP]

Gap is usually one side only on all the aftermarket stems I’ve ever used.

 

[rydeezie]

Gap should have been same up and down.

you are correct

 

[rydeezie]

Gap is usually one side only on all the aftermarket stems I’ve ever used.

not for deity copperhead

 

[CjP]

That will probably come with the TCU 1 for the people who don't like the TCU 2/Mastermind - but be $2000 more

I heard Sworks Ltd is full alloy for all the people who think carbon is shit but want that trail cred!
It cost $5k more due to the them having to smooth out all the welds to keep that slick look going.