Levo Gen 3 Specialized Gen 3 2022 Levo Megathread!

[Rich the gasman]

Picked the beast up today, swapped some bits over, hope v4s, sram axs for now. Debating putting my carbon reserves on but need a different rear rim. Quick blasts while setting it up and it’s feels so nice, pretty same geo as my stumpy evo. after a while plan to go 170mm up front and swap out the tyres.

 

[ruppia]

What mudguards people using on the fox38?
anyone tried the new fox xl ?
have a RRp bolt on but clearance is poor, don’t want to Cable tie anything if I don’t need to.

Ordered now, really curious

2021 forcella FOX MUDGUARD 36/38 "XL" protezione LAMIERA Fender Factory Elite Grip 2 | eBay

RRP it's nice indeed also for the stickers

 

[Rich the gasman]

Ordered now, really curious

2021 forcella FOX MUDGUARD 36/38 "XL" protezione LAMIERA Fender Factory Elite Grip 2 | eBay

RRP it's nice indeed also for the stickers

Can’t get in uk yet, just ordered from Germany so should be here next week.

 

[Drewsuf]

Hi All,

New to the forum and the world of e-biking. I locked in a 22 Levo pro a few months back and its been a blast. Been riding mtb and dirtbikes for years and this is an amazing middle ground. Reading through some of this thread it looks like the motor compartment door getting ripped off is becoming a common occurrence and has actually happened to mine. Already have a replacement coming in but I did want to share that apparently Spec are aware of this and looking for a redesign but is not ready for market yet. Hopefully soon b/c its only going to continue to happen.

In the short term I'm trying to figure out a short term solution where the door stays secure beyond the magnetic latch....open to ideas but think either some safety wire or fabricate some type of hook/loop for inside the door that you have to manually disconnect when needed. Curious if anyone has done anything.

Thanks all,

Drewsuf

 

[Four Flusher]

Hi All,

New to the forum and the world of e-biking. I locked in a 22 Levo pro a few months back and its been a blast. Been riding mtb and dirtbikes for years and this is an amazing middle ground. Reading through some of this thread it looks like the motor compartment door getting ripped off is becoming a common occurrence and has actually happened to mine. Already have a replacement coming in but I did want to share that apparently Spec are aware of this and looking for a redesign but is not ready for market yet. Hopefully soon b/c its only going to continue to happen.

In the short term I'm trying to figure out a short term solution where the door stays secure beyond the magnetic latch....open to ideas but think either some safety wire or fabricate some type of hook/loop for inside the door that you have to manually disconnect when needed. Curious if anyone has done anything.

Thanks all,

Drewsuf

View attachment 75801

replacement doors are available, in the mean time I used 3m black tape for a temp fix, or a lot of folks have just run without it

 

[Rich-EMTB-UK]

2022 Specialized Levo Gen 3: Ultimate in Depth Look

What a bike!!

Rob, how does this compare with the Yeti 160E?

 

[Drewsuf]

replacement doors are available, in the mean time I used 3m black tape for a temp fix, or a lot of folks have just run without it

appreciate the response and have a new door coming in. My question is more to do w/ how to further secure when I put the new one on so it doesn't happen again.

 

[Kpecks]

Quick 5 miles across the street from my house in the natl park... this thing impresses me more and more every time I ride it.

 

[Ridewithoutcare]

I'm glad if no one here has problems with noisy Brose engines and apparently the question of engine generation and possible improvements are not interesting at all.
I have no problems at all with the engine compartment cover.
I think it is simply the question of how to open this door.
Why do you have partly the protection for the cassette still on?
Reminds me of my time as a child where you still needed such a limit for the chain.

Happy Trails to all of you!

 

[mike172]

Rattle improved greatly but still there after putting tape round the battery.

Going to try shim any movement in the headset and check for any loose cables (again)

Maybe it is the cable routing now I've got axs... I don't want to remove it for obvious reasons.

 

[Swissrob]

appreciate the response and have a new door coming in. My question is more to do w/ how to further secure when I put the new one on so it doesn't happen again.

I would suggest some self adhesive Velcro so you can make a band to go over the door and remove when the new design comes, I have some which I got at a sewing store!! which seems to work. Mine arrives in January!

 

[Four Flusher]

appreciate the response and have a new door coming in. My question is more to do w/ how to further secure when I put the new one on so it doesn't happen again.

Nothing, shitty design, supposedly we'll get a new design someday

 

[Jamo]

2 rides in on my 22 Levo, early days but initial thoughts so far:

The not so good
- power/torque. I also have a trek rail and would say the motor is noticeably shorter on torque than the gen 4 bosch. Not a problem for most riding conditions but noticed a few specific climbs and areas where it lacks a little.

- motor noise. Not nearly as quiet as i’d hoped and seems to get proportionally noisier as the motor works harder, also as the battery runs down (which i guess in effect are one and the same).

- magura brakes. Just cannot seem to get the MT7’s that came on it to feel comfortable. Spent way too much time on ride today constantly fettling the lever position. Either pulling to bar if too close or locking up if i wound the lever out too far.

- not quite as composed over rough ground. Seems a bit unfair to state this so early, as no doubt i still have lots of fettling to do to get the shock and forks in the sweet spot, but i’m already pretty sure it will not quite have the sure footed and planted ride the trek has.

the good

- weight. Doesn't ride like an e-bike, easy to handle, easier to maneouvre, more nimble. This was something i wanted over the trek and in this regard it’s a definite win

- motor. Power delivery feels more natural and intuitive. Subjective, but i’m enjoying this.

- looks/build quality/integration. Absolutely superb (except the charging port door!), great finish and the controls/integration of the display etc are excellent having used the bosch system up until now.

- cornering.This was lacking in the trek, which is the first gen rail and the geometry is a little squat and the battery weight a bit high, made it feel like it could get stood up easily in corners but the levo has none of this. I sized up to a S5 so perhaps an unfair comparison to the large rail, but i’m liking the extra reach, the steeper seat angle and the longer, lower feel.

conscious that many of the pros and cons are actually two sides of the same coin (ie less power = a more natural feel), but in general i’m liking the bike and feel there’s enough there to build on. The current dilemma is to see if different levers resolve the brake issues or if I should just change them for something more familiar.

 

[mike172]

Jamo stick with the MT7s. They take some time to get used to I think. Oddly I think they sit between a sram and a shimano in terms of lever feel. If you over extend the standard levers half a turn they work like a shimano though. Require careful bleeding



Still hunting the knocking for those interested.

Dreadful ride today. Got my first motor cut out and motor error too. Yay. This is a brand new bike I got on 1st Oct. 2021.

I have two problems with the knocking I think

One is the fox 38 is knocking slightly. Almost like stiction is responsible for the noise but there's a video on YouTube here


My knock is less pronounced than that and only in the upper section of the travel. The fork feels pretty poor at 100psi+. At 95psi it's reasonably good but lacks bottom out support for my weight even with 1 token.

Second is I think there is play in the headset. Specifically the lower bearing cup that sits in the frame so I've either cracked my frame which I can't see or it's just defective (or maybe this is normal?) Going to try and shim this with something to prevent the movement and go from there. I've swapped out my bearings already and there's no bearing play in the cups. Pretty certain the race/compression bearings are snug too.

I swapped my 38s for Pikes (27.5 if anyone's interested in what a 27.5 converted Gen3 looks like) to investigate the fork and headset play. 38s still have the knock and the Levo still has the headset movement.

If you've ridden with even an slightly loose headset before you'll know how much chatter comes through

I wish I had never bought this bike. I swore I'd never buy carbon again after the very same problems with the stumpjumper and swore I'd never buy specialized again. Yet here I am with a levo.

 

[Christox]

There is no headset play when tightened correctly sothat the bearings are
compressed axially.

The radial gap you observed is normal at bearings with a cone seat.



Best regards,

Chris

 

[mike172]

There is no headset play when tightened correctly sothat the bearings are
compressed axially.

The radial gap you observed is normal at bearings with a cone seat.



Best regards,

Chris

You're right

Just can't work out where else the play would be coming from

My stumper had play in the headset like that but wouldnt tighten up without play in the headset and I got a load of chatter coming through. Only way I ever stopped it was by jamming some card between the bearing and the frame to stop any movement. Was absolutely fine from then on.

Edit...

As a test I've just put electrical tape round the bearing Cup to prevent it from moving atall in in frame. Its a snug fit. Headset movement is now gone. I can already feel the suspension operates more smoothly on my driveway.

What on earth do I do now?

 

[AdmChr]

You're right

Just can't work out where else the play would be coming from

My stumper had play in the headset like that but wouldnt tighten up without play in the headset and I got a load of chatter coming through. Only way I ever stopped it was by jamming some card between the bearing and the frame to stop any movement. Was absolutely fine from then on.

Edit...

As a test I've just put electrical tape round the bearing Cup to prevent it from moving atall in in frame. Its a snug fit. Headset movement is now gone. I can already feel the suspension operates more smoothly on my driveway.

What on earth do I do now?

I would use Loctite 641 retaining compound and slap in a brand new bearing just in case that one may be worn from the loose tolerance.

Edit: use it with the Loctite Activator Primer

 

[Christox]

Why those workarounds ?
There's nothing wrong with loose bearings getting centered in the cone with axial force.

Check if the tension comes to the bearings. Sometimes the fork shaft is not shortened enough, sothat the tension from the setbolt from topcap or miltitool spanner doesn't clamp the bearings.

Best regards,

Chris

 

[mike172]

Why those workarounds ?
There's nothing wrong with loose bearings getting centered in the cone with axial force.

Check if the tension comes to the bearings. Sometimes the fork shaft is not shortened enough, sothat the tension from the setbolt from topcap or miltitool spanner doesn't clamp the bearings.

Best regards,

Chris

Cheers Chris

The workaround is the only way I can get the headset movement to stop that I can see.

Two forks now. The Pikes with a star nut and the 38s with the headset tool, neither seem to have a problem compressing the bearings. I have tried different bolts for the swat tool too as I have long and short ones. Tried multiple shims above the compression ring. There just seems to be some play (guess 1mm if that) with both forks and I can feel a load of chatter through the bars on the trail. The tape removes that.

 

[mike172]

I would use Loctite 641 retaining compound and slap in a brand new bearing just in case that one may be worn from the loose tolerance.

Edit: use it with the Loctite Activator Primer

Heard of this before I'll give it a try if the tape works.

 

[Christox]

Hi !

OK, i see you tried nearly everything
Have you checked the bearing seat in the disassembled bearing cup ? when the cup is machined wrong, the bearing could reach the axial stop in the cup before the cone surfaces are getting into presscontact.

Best regards,

Chris

 

[mike172]

Hi !

OK, i see you tried nearly everything
Have you checked the bearing seat in the disassembled bearing cup ? when the cup is machined wrong, the bearing could reach the axial stop in the cup before the cone surfaces are getting into presscontact.

Best regards,

Chris

Yeah tried that too all good

Only thing I haven't tried is a different crown race. I now have hope upper and lower bearings with the original FSA crown and compression but the fsa bearings still have that play. Needs the electrical tape as a shim to snug that bearing cup in place.

 

[maramouse]

Hello everyone, yesterday, at the end of the day of riding, I realized that I had broken and lost the cover of the battery plug of the Levo expert 2022, the thing that perplexes me is that I have not fallen or bumped into something, I took pictures and I sent them to the shopkeeper. I wait for an answer, if they have the spare part, if they pass it under warranty or not.

 

[Kiwi in Wales]

I know @Specialized Rider Care have not responded on this forum regarding the battery charge door breaking........
However,
I contacted them directly on their website and this was their response.

The new doors are in production and should be available early next year. And like I said if you have any trouble with the door we can replace them under warranty.

Happy riding!

 

[mike172]

Further testing for my headset fiasco.

Doesn't have any movement with the middle/normal headset cup (tape removed). So this angled headset is an issue for me

Ordered a whole hope headset to go in I'll see if I can get anywhere with that. I can probably live with the middle headset

Hope this is of some use to someone

 

[Rich the gasman]

Further testing for my headset fiasco.

Doesn't have any movement with the middle/normal headset cup (tape removed). So this angled headset is an issue for me

Ordered a whole hope headset to go in I'll see if I can get anywhere with that. I can probably live with the middle headset

Hope this is of some use to someone

these fsa headsets are poor I think, had them in a few bikes and all caused me trouble, just stripped my stumpy down and what a mess they are and we’re only cleaned few weeks ago.

regarding your knocking, mate in shop was telling me lost count how many Zebs and fox 36/38 forks they’ve sent of in last few months because of noises, those that come back with a new csu all been perfect and how they should have been from day 1.
hope you get the issues sorted bud as the bike is an absolute beast .

 

[mike172]

these fsa headsets are poor I think, had them in a few bikes and all caused me trouble, just stripped my stumpy down and what a mess they are and we’re only cleaned few weeks ago.

regarding your knocking, mate in shop was telling me lost count how many Zebs and fox 36/38 forks they’ve sent of in last few months because of noises, those that come back with a new csu all been perfect and how they should have been from day 1.
hope you get the issues sorted bud as the bike is an absolute beast .

It doesn't sound like the csu snap. May well just be stiction from the air shaft or something. Does not sound right though

FSA bearing from my levo after 1 month attached. Fused to the bearing cup.

 

[Motoxfreak]

I’ve got about 400 miles on my ‘22 expert and when peddling a long uphill it’s very loud. In addition, it doesn’t feel as powerful as the previous gen. I really thought that something was wrong but I rode my bike and a ‘20 levo back to back and yup the previous gen was quieter and more powerful but the difference wasn’t huge. Problem is that although the bike is awesome, you just don’t expect on a $11-15K bike to have a motor that’s not as good as the previous gen. If specialized “fixed” the motor to make it more reliable and made it louder and less powerful, I doubt folks will be happy.

Strange. I have a 2019 which is really loud, a 2020 which is very quiet and just got the 2022 Expert which is nearly silent. As far as power, my 2022 feels the strongest, but pretty close to the 2020 for sure.

 

[mike172]

More rattle hunting updates (just in case it helps anyone not looking for a response)

Pikes fitted and went for a ride. Huge improvement (although 27.5 feels just like my old stumpjumper did) but still a small rattle over roots and rough chatter. This has improved since last time

I am convinced its a battery rattle which i am slowly improving with gorilla tape on the sides of the battery. I'm up to about 6 layers at the top of the battery about level with the spacer. I'll keep adding more until it goes. If I remove the battery and the rattle goes. I think the rattle is side to side rather than up and down the rubber battery cover spacer thing is supposed to stop.

Could be the internal routing. Not sure how to address that other than removing it. Also the rattle feels 'heavier' than cable routing to me. Plus the added tape seems to have improved this rattle.

My 38s are definitely harsh. I wonder if the damper is shimmed to hell with the tune we have on the levo. I may buy some new ones or an ohlins fork. See what happens with black Friday

My mode selector button no longer works. Why???

I'm regretting buying the bike. Total garbage in terms of build quality. Was utterly Smitten a few weeks into ownership until these problems started cropping up

Next step is to put the 170mm into the 38s and try eliminating any rattles or movement with electrical tape to shim the bearing cups plus more tape on the battery.

Might then be in a position to go to a bike shop like Berkshire or the concept stores and ask for help

 

[sometimesjoe]

Further testing for my headset fiasco.

Doesn't have any movement with the middle/normal headset cup (tape removed). So this angled headset is an issue for me

Ordered a whole hope headset to go in I'll see if I can get anywhere with that. I can probably live with the middle headset

Hope this is of some use to someone

This is exactly what I was getting on my Expert. The slackest cup gave the play, no matter how tight the stem and top cap were. Putting tension on the setup while tightening it all down sort of helped. Switching back 0 degree cup had no play at all.