Santa Cruz Vala

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Is there a difference between kiox 400 and kiox 400C displays?
There is no Kiox 400. Do you mean a Purion 400?
Those are completely different components.

The Purion 400 is a small display that mounts behind the handlebar, has no intelligence and can only show the typical Bosch ride info. It needs another device that acts as the controller for the Bosch motor.
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The Kiox 400C is a controller with integrated display that mounts in the top tube. It acts as controller and display in one unit. Can only be mounted on bikes with the correct size cutout in the top tube.
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I did a "full tank" ride this morning, eMTB+ mode, 100nm, 750w, on my local trails (steep fire road climbs, fast steep downhills). 2 hours elapsed time, ended with 8% charge (no range extender), and did 4,970' vert / 15.7 miles. Compared to the old Turbo and 85nm/600w, I lost about 200' of vert with the added power drain. (Nearest comparison I have in my Strava history a 6% left ride that was 5,080' almost all Turbo but a few hundred ft of Eco with a couple analog guys.) I'm honestly surprised at how little impact the added juice made on range, and will probably leave it enabled in Turbo and eMTB+ modes.
 
I did a "full tank" ride this morning, eMTB+ mode, 100nm, 750w, on my local trails (steep fire road climbs, fast steep downhills). 2 hours elapsed time, ended with 8% charge (no range extender), and did 4,970' vert / 15.7 miles. Compared to the old Turbo and 85nm/600w, I lost about 200' of vert with the added power drain. (Nearest comparison I have in my Strava history a 6% left ride that was 5,080' almost all Turbo but a few hundred ft of Eco with a couple analog guys.) I'm honestly surprised at how little impact the added juice made on range, and will probably leave it enabled in Turbo and eMTB+ modes.
How much do you weigh (with Kit)?
 
Got my Vala last week. Anyone else think that the charging port cover is not up to the job? Mine doesn't even make a seal. Dreading the winter as the rain/mud etc is gonna go straight in there.
 
Got my Vala last week. Anyone else think that the charging port cover is not up to the job? Mine doesn't even make a seal. Dreading the winter as the rain/mud etc is gonna go straight in there.
Several times I have failed to put the cover back on after charging and have ridden in water and very light mud and never had a problem. Non-salt water is not conductive enough to bridge the connections I guess. If I were to find mud caked in there I would I would just lightly spray it out with plain water and probably try to blow dry it, since I know it well-tolerates water. After all you can wash off car batteries and golf cart batteries with plain water, tap water, when the tops are dirty or if the electrolyte has leaked out and is doing some shorting and current loss. I agree the charging port cover does not fit well, and is difficult to apply, but in my experience it doesn't really matter
 
It’s been 15 years since I’ve been into MTB- things have changed!

This bike is amazing; first couple rides this weekend. I’m 260 without gear and the bike feels great.

IMG_2897.jpeg
 
New Vala Aluminium is out - starting at £4899 in UK here Vala AL Deore with weight 53.11lbs / 24.09kg
Interesting couple of spec options for the AL version.

"The new Vala AL comes in two builds, one with Deore for 4,899 and one with Eagle 70 at £5,599, meaning both e-bikes are half the price of the top end carbon builds. And while £5k definitely isn’t cheap, these bikes are by far the cheapest e-bikes on the Santa Cruz books right now, making them a great option for riders after that premium badge."
 
With the Alloy version of the Vala released, what would be the difference in ride characteristics form the carbon version. I am having problems sourcing a carbon Vala in Ireland as there is only one LBS that stocks them. They have told me they have alloy versions arriving in mid August. I could buy online but concerned about warranty work if there is a fault.
 
I still don't understand why in 2025 - 2026, i can't buy a VPP santa cruz EMTB, with a light and powerfull motor, slim battery / downtube.
Where is the 'vision' and the 'innovation' when a bike manufacturer enslave itself to an equipement supplier ?

This has to be a nightmare... I'm going to wake up, aren't I?
 
I still don't understand why in 2025 - 2026, i can't buy a VPP santa cruz EMTB, with a light and powerfull motor, slim battery / downtube.
Where is the 'vision' and the 'innovation' when a bike manufacturer enslave itself to an equipement supplier ?

This has to be a nightmare... I'm going to wake up, aren't I?

Heckler SL?
 
In case anyone's curious about range extender cable lengths, I recently purchased a kit with a separate 150mm cable because the shop said it would fit (despite Santa Cruz saying you definitely need 250mm). The 150 will only fit if you mount the bracket in the water bottle holes, and even then, your shock reservoir will make contact with the battery very early in travel. So get the 250 and do it right. Also, the Bosch "away from" nomenclature refers to the cable pointing up away from the bracket side of the battery, while "towards" refers to angled down towards the bracket side.
150mm (too short)
IMG_7028.jpg

250mm with SC supplied cable clip
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With the range extender should you use the higher set of screw holes or the lower set?
 
Hello guys!
I will buy a Vala in the next 1 or 2 months.
I live in Azores Portugal so there aren't to many Valas to try before i buy it, and i'm having some issues regarding the sizing of this bike.

I have 5'6'' (167,5cm) ,an inseam of 29,52 inches (75cm) and a wingspan of 167,5cm , so an ape index of 1.

My analogic enduro bike is a Specialized Enduro (size S2) with 437mm of reach and i feel confortable with it, not only in flowy trails, but also at enduro and dh racing. I sized down in the Specialized acording with their site, and with the Vala i really don't know what to do.

According with the Santa Cruz size guide i should get a Medium, but the 460mm reach is scaring me.
Do you have any advice on this?
Are you or have you any friends between sizes, or in the lower spectrum of one size that sized down?

Its easy to gain some reach with a bigger stem than reduce the reach on a bike...
Can you help me?
I will try to test the two sizes, but i'm not sure if they are available anytime soon.

Thanks in advance
 
Hello guys!
I will buy a Vala in the next 1 or 2 months.
I live in Azores Portugal so there aren't to many Valas to try before i buy it, and i'm having some issues regarding the sizing of this bike.

I have 5'6'' (167,5cm) ,an inseam of 29,52 inches (75cm) and a wingspan of 167,5cm , so an ape index of 1.

My analogic enduro bike is a Specialized Enduro (size S2) with 437mm of reach and i feel confortable with it, not only in flowy trails, but also at enduro and dh racing. I sized down in the Specialized acording with their site, and with the Vala i really don't know what to do.

According with the Santa Cruz size guide i should get a Medium, but the 460mm reach is scaring me.
Do you have any advice on this?
Are you or have you any friends between sizes, or in the lower spectrum of one size that sized down?

Its easy to gain some reach with a bigger stem than reduce the reach on a bike...
Can you help me?
I will try to test the two sizes, but i'm not sure if they are available anytime soon.

Thanks in advance
I'm 5'8" and I think I'm just about at the top end for my medium.
 
Hello guys!
I will buy a Vala in the next 1 or 2 months.
I live in Azores Portugal so there aren't to many Valas to try before i buy it, and i'm having some issues regarding the sizing of this bike.

I have 5'6'' (167,5cm) ,an inseam of 29,52 inches (75cm) and a wingspan of 167,5cm , so an ape index of 1.

My analogic enduro bike is a Specialized Enduro (size S2) with 437mm of reach and i feel confortable with it, not only in flowy trails, but also at enduro and dh racing. I sized down in the Specialized acording with their site, and with the Vala i really don't know what to do.

According with the Santa Cruz size guide i should get a Medium, but the 460mm reach is scaring me.
Do you have any advice on this?
Are you or have you any friends between sizes, or in the lower spectrum of one size that sized down?

Its easy to gain some reach with a bigger stem than reduce the reach on a bike...
Can you help me?
I will try to test the two sizes, but i'm not sure if they are available anytime soon.

Thanks in advance

I’m about the same build as you and also ride a S2 Levo, I’d buy a small Vala. I rode my mate’s medium Vala and I felt it was too big, IMO Santa Cruz’s sizing chart is a bit off. I’ve owned a few SC bikes and I’ve always sized down from what their chart says.

Another thing you can do is go to a site like Geometry Geeks and compare the bikes geometry wise. If you’re comfortable on your current bike then I’d try to stick to something similar in sizing.

 
Hello guys!
I will buy a Vala in the next 1 or 2 months.
I live in Azores Portugal so there aren't to many Valas to try before i buy it, and i'm having some issues regarding the sizing of this bike.

I have 5'6'' (167,5cm) ,an inseam of 29,52 inches (75cm) and a wingspan of 167,5cm , so an ape index of 1.

My analogic enduro bike is a Specialized Enduro (size S2) with 437mm of reach and i feel confortable with it, not only in flowy trails, but also at enduro and dh racing. I sized down in the Specialized acording with their site, and with the Vala i really don't know what to do.

According with the Santa Cruz size guide i should get a Medium, but the 460mm reach is scaring me.
Do you have any advice on this?
Are you or have you any friends between sizes, or in the lower spectrum of one size that sized down?

Its easy to gain some reach with a bigger stem than reduce the reach on a bike...
Can you help me?
I will try to test the two sizes, but i'm not sure if they are available anytime soon.

Thanks in advance

I‘m 170cm and rode the Medium Vala. I think it was Perfect…
 
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