Article 2026 Specialized Levo 4 S-Works makes a big leap

It comes across as a 121 interview with you, as we'd seen all the other sites at the time of the launch.

So it feels like they're pedalling the PR bandwagon again.

Maybe I'm overthinking it.
Nah it makes sense, I can see what you are saying - to be fair, I grabbed Marco and Buck for the interview last minute, they were not prepped beforehand at all. I did it on that day due to the bad weather ( ride was on that day was called off) because it was absolutely chucking it down in Madeira, so I tried to make the most of the time I had out there!
 
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Totally, but Specialized is probably going to do something daft like restricting the motor further to create sufficient "gap" between

That is a hard watch especially the side loading battery justification, the guy at 5:25 mark seems real excited to talk about "where to store things" yikes sales must be in the toilet.
Tbf
A lot of the launch reviews were along these lines, don’t forget Spec paid for the trip and event ?so it’s not surprising that they were not pushed on the competition. I did laugh at one review in which the highlight of his video was how quickly you could remove the Battery, lol. And only short time prior had tested the Amlflow on which he said had basically killed everything he had ridden up to that point. But not even a sniff of this in the Gen 4 review. lol.
 
But not even a sniff of this in the Gen 4 review
Sounds ridiculous but could the reason be it was a G4 review and not a G4 versus Amflow comparison review?

Yeah it's total stupidity to show how fast the battery could be removed since it was a new way to remove it compared to G3 especially since the new Rotwild R.EX with DJI and biggest battery at 864Wh which can be removed by the push of a button 2 seconds it took but I don't get why they mentioned it since it was a new way to do it.

I'm having an apples and banana for lunch today.
 
3.Why no wireless remote in 2025 ??
I am pretty sure this is because the new Levo has no back up methods of operating the bike outside of the controller. There is no longer any buttons on the TCU itself so if it had a wireless remote you would be up shit's creek if it died. Bosch and DJI bikes can still be operated without their wireless remotes.
 
Maybe I'm just weird, but I'm skeptical people were calling out for in-frame storage. Are people really so desperate for a harder to access bag to avoid having a frame bag, saddle bag, or hydration pack of some kind?
I was in a conversation on yt over this video with someone who claimed 99% of the people who came into his shop wanted a side loading battery 🤣. Yeah i don't believe him.
 
Sounds ridiculous but could the reason be it was a G4 review and not a G4 versus Amflow comparison review?

Yeah it's total stupidity to show how fast the battery could be removed since it was a new way to remove it compared to G3 especially since the new Rotwild R.EX with DJI and biggest battery at 864Wh which can be removed by the push of a button 2 seconds it took but I don't get why they mentioned it since it was a new way to do it.

I'm having an apples and banana for lunch today.

I was in a conversation on yt over this video with someone who claimed 99% of the people who came into his shop wanted a side loading battery 🤣. Yeah i don't believe him.
This and storage point were the bottom of my list, and yet they go on about it as they have re invented the wheel. lol.
 
I was in a conversation on yt over this video with someone who claimed 99% of the people who came into his shop wanted a side loading battery 🤣. Yeah i don't believe him.
At least an easy to replace battery is useful. Like, I wasn't fired up about it, but it is nice to have. Like I started keeping my battery indoors so it's not cooking in the summer. I might even start taking it out when the bike is on my rack so there's less weight to bounce around.

I'm not one that thinks the visible door is ugly. It really doesn't bother me at all.
 
I seriously only see this bike lasting 1 or 2 years at most before Specialized release a gen 5. I think Yamaha buying the Brose bike division will push Specialized to seek another motor partner for their next bikes.
 
I seriously only see this bike lasting 1 or 2 years at most before Specialized release a gen 5. I think Yamaha buying the Brose bike division will push Specialized to seek another motor partner for their next bikes.
I don’t if it’s true, but the shop who supplied my AMflow said that AMflow rep had told them that Spec had been try to get the DJI Motor and Battery system but so far no Joy.
 
I would image a company as large as Spec would be very demanding for quantity and pricing as well as a "most favored nation" clause.

Yamaha is a company that has the capabilities to meet the new era of motor tech. It will be interesting to see what shakes out with the future power plant companies.
 
I don’t if it’s true, but the shop who supplied my AMflow said that AMflow rep had told them that Spec had been try to get the DJI Motor and Battery system but so far no Joy.
If true I imagine Specialized wanted some autonomy on the system (their own firmware, app, etc.) and also some sort of exclusivity.

Could you imagine the difference in reaction if the Levo gen 4 had of been an updated Levo SL frame with a DJI system?
 
I would image a company as large as Spec would be very demanding for quantity and pricing as well as a "most favored nation" clause.

Yamaha is a company that has the capabilities to meet the new era of motor tech. It will be interesting to see what shakes out with the future power plant companies.
I agree, there is some Chi Gov tech behind the DJI system, it’s way more advanced than any other integration set up I have ridden.
 
If true I imagine Specialized wanted some autonomy on the system (their own firmware, app, etc.) and also some sort of exclusivity.

Could you imagine the difference in reaction if the Levo gen 4 had of been an updated Levo SL frame with a DJI system?
That’s the bike I was told repeatedly that this new Gen 4 was going to be. Okay no mention of the DJI motor, but light weight frame based around SL new motor and Battery. And what did they give us a “ Pack Horse” lol
 
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I agree, there is some Chi Gov tech behind the DJI system, it’s way more advanced than any other integration set up I have ridden.
All Chinese technology companies is required to give the authorities full access to the entire company if they ask for it, and it is not a conspiracy theory, but facts that China is open about, so therefore the communist country China allows someone to become a multi-billionaire who is a little different from a communist country.

Today political post 🤬
 
Nah it makes sense, I can see what you are saying - to be fair, I grabbed Marco and Buck for the interview last minute, they were not prepped beforehand at all. I did it on that day due to the bad weather ( ride was on that day was called off) because it was absolutely chucking it down in Madeira, so I tried to make the most of the time I had out there!
@Rob Rides EMTB Can I just say, the videography for this was fantastic with the shots of the Levo in the rain. Very creative.
Lol at the Spesh guys with DJI microphones though!
 
I don’t if it’s true, but the shop who supplied my AMflow said that AMflow rep had told them that Spec had been try to get the DJI Motor and Battery system but so far no Joy.

I should think Specialized would require serious volume, not sure the DJI bike motor division would have that sort of capacity just yet, or even want to do it.

Just my guess though, although I’d have thought Specialized would be drawn to Mahle again, given previous relationships.

It would have made for a bike that would have been more widely well received though I’m sure.

Mind you, as I keep saying, I’m sure one company will make a hash of their bike even with a great motor and battery system, only a matter of time!
 
Any Chinese company can meet volume demand if they want. That country is the best at manufacturing in the history of humanity.
 
The other day, out of curiosity, I repeated the same route I'd taken during the Gen. 4 test with my Gen. 3 to evaluate the differences, especially in terms of battery life. It was interesting because I noticed that the Gen. 3 consumes slightly less battery life with a setting as close as possible to the one I usually use. On the Gen. 3, I mainly use ECO mode set to 25/100, while for more challenging routes I use TRAIL 45/100. On the Gen. 4, instead of ECO, I used Dynamic Microtune at 10/100 and, instead of TRAIL, 50/100. It should also be said that my ebike's battery isn't as fresh and is approaching 200 charge cycles, so it's more of a 600 Wh than a 700 Wh... In any case, I felt like I was struggling less with the new one, and even though I chose a fairly low level of assistance, it still seemed high for my taste. Another feeling that stuck with me was that I had more fun with the new one, but it could simply be a placebo effect; I'll have to try it again. In conclusion, at least in terms of fuel consumption, the Gen. 4 doesn't seem to have made any great strides forward, and more generally, the Gen. 3 is still an excellent ebike with which you can do everything you can with the latest model.
 
The other day, out of curiosity, I repeated the same route I'd taken during the Gen. 4 test with my Gen. 3 to evaluate the differences, especially in terms of battery life.
Interesting data. It would be great to also see Garmin data — if you had it connected to the bikes, you could check cadence and rider power input in watts. Strava combined with heart rate, can also provide a very accurate insight into relative effort, which would be useful for comparison.
From what I see, the Gen 4 is a bit of a disappointment, considering the ride time was almost an hour longer maybe that’s why it felt like you were struggling less on the Gen 4 🤔
 
Interesting data. It would be great to also see Garmin data — if you had it connected to the bikes, you could check cadence and rider power input in watts. Strava combined with heart rate, can also provide a very accurate insight into relative effort, which would be useful for comparison.
From what I see, the Gen 4 is a bit of a disappointment, considering the ride time was almost an hour longer maybe that’s why it felt like you were struggling less on the Gen 4 🤔
The pedaling time is 10 minutes shorter on the Levo 4, probably due to the fact that I went slightly faster with it. Disappointing? I don't know, I'd say that with this new approach to the power of new e-bike motors, they've chosen to prioritize fun over fuel consumption. Indeed, I must say that the new Levo seemed more fun to me, especially on accelerations and technical climbs, as well as being less tiring. The price to pay is, obviously, increased fuel consumption. The fact remains that the new bike made a great impression on me overall; perhaps by adjusting the assist settings more carefully, you can achieve a longer range, but it's certainly not enough to change the rules of the game. From this perspective, the differences with the Gen 3 aren't striking. Yesterday I went for a ride with a friend who bought the amflow and, to myself, I thought: there's nothing different that these beefy bikes can do compared to mine except the possibility of riding forest roads at full speed, which doesn't interest me in the slightest...
 
, the differences with the Gen 3 aren't striking. Yesterday I went for a ride with a friend who bought the amflow and, to myself
Do I see that you are in the Aosta area, how is the riding there? Curious if you had a chance to ride the Amflow and if you had any thoughts on the the way it rode.
 
Interesting data. It would be great to also see Garmin data — if you had it connected to the bikes, you could check cadence and rider power input in watts. Strava combined with heart rate, can also provide a very accurate insight into relative effort, which would be useful for comparison.
From what I see, the Gen 4 is a bit of a disappointment, considering the ride time was almost an hour longer maybe that’s why it felt like you were struggling less on the Gen 4 🤔
I've been blown away with the range on my gen4. Nothing scientific, but at least for me riding in Dynamic Microtune now rather than Turbo on my gen3, I'm getting more range per watt consumed. Clearly I'm using more leg power this way, but I like how it feels and how it has the power when I need it.
 
Do I see that you are in the Aosta area, how is the riding there? Curious if you had a chance to ride the Amflow and if you had any thoughts on the the way it rode.
The Aosta Valley is a wonderful place for mountain biking, with generally challenging trails, both in terms of elevation gain and technical difficulty. There's no shortage of high-altitude riding opportunities, and a look at my Strava routes will give you a good idea of the possibilities this region has to offer. As for amflow, I'll try it soon.
 
If you say so. I have a gen3 alloy and when I test rode the gen4 I bought it the next day. It handles way better for me.
It’s definitely a more stable bike due to its extra weight, yes get that. But not for me I’m afraid , I like a bike that’s lively and agile that you can feel what it’s doing.
 
The Aosta Valley is a wonderful place for mountain biking, with generally challenging trails, both in terms of elevation gain and technical difficulty. There's no shortage of high-altitude riding opportunities, and a look at my Strava routes will give you a good idea of the possibilities this region has to offer. As for amflow, I'll try it soon.
How can Strava routes be accessed. I am headed that way in a month or so after Lenzerheide area riding. It would be great to find some gps routes for the area.
 
find some gps routes for the area
Just use a laptop and at top click on maps, then locate the area of interest and zoom in, click the box for ebike trails only and only those segments will show up on heat map
 
The other day, out of curiosity, I repeated the same route I'd taken during the Gen. 4 test with my Gen. 3 to evaluate the differences, especially in terms of battery life. It was interesting because I noticed that the Gen. 3 consumes slightly less battery life with a setting as close as possible to the one I usually use. On the Gen. 3, I mainly use ECO mode set to 25/100, while for more challenging routes I use TRAIL 45/100. On the Gen. 4, instead of ECO, I used Dynamic Microtune at 10/100 and, instead of TRAIL, 50/100. It should also be said that my ebike's battery isn't as fresh and is approaching 200 charge cycles, so it's more of a 600 Wh than a 700 Wh... In any case, I felt like I was struggling less with the new one, and even though I chose a fairly low level of assistance, it still seemed high for my taste. Another feeling that stuck with me was that I had more fun with the new one, but it could simply be a placebo effect; I'll have to try it again. In conclusion, at least in terms of fuel consumption, the Gen. 4 doesn't seem to have made any great strides forward, and more generally, the Gen. 3 is still an excellent ebike with which you can do everything you can with the latest model.
Robikinkela: you aren't making a fair comparison, not that I am sure without cracking open the source code could you. But regardless setting the gen3 at xx/100 and the gen4 at xx/100 isn't a fair comparison. The second (XX/100) indicates what % of motor power you have access to. And since the gen4 has a more powerful motor its always going to use more juice, thats the fun factor you speak to on the gen4. Try a setting like 25/75 on the gen 4 and you will see the mileage get closer, or if you really want to suffer ride eco in 25/25 on the hills.
 
Robikinkela: you aren't making a fair comparison, not that I am sure without cracking open the source code could you. But regardless setting the gen3 at xx/100 and the gen4 at xx/100 isn't a fair comparison. The second (XX/100) indicates what % of motor power you have access to. And since the gen4 has a more powerful motor its always going to use more juice, thats the fun factor you speak to on the gen4. Try a setting like 25/75 on the gen 4 and you will see the mileage get closer, or if you really want to suffer ride eco in 25/25 on the hills.
Or maybe we Gen 4 users have to step up and buy that range extender or 2nd battery. This is what the brain wizards at Spesh probably wants us to do. (re: the quick change side door)
 
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