Levo Gen 1 battery error codes

[Jivetolkein]

Hey all! Picked up a gen 1 2016 Levo (6Fattie I think .. has wide Roval rims and 2.6 tyres) but within a day had an issue

After a short dry ride, nothing extreme, the battery started flashing 5 red lights and wouldn’t switch off. Charger doesn’t start charging, and BeLevo suggests it has plenty in there .. but no assist and I can’t find any info on codes for this model. Nothing in the manual which seems … sub optimal.

I’ll get it into a dealer for a check, but this battery was a recall replacement, under 30 charge cycles and a few months old so I wonder if I’ll get any joy from Specialised? Otherwise anyone know of UK based repairs before I have to buy a new one (gulp) .. thanks for any advice.

 

[Greg Watts]

Hey all! Picked up a gen 1 2016 Levo (6Fattie I think .. has wide Roval rims and 2.6 tyres) but within a day had an issue After a short dry ride, nothing extreme, the battery started flashing 5 red lights and wouldn’t switch off. Charger doesn’t start charging, and BeLevo suggests it has plenty in...

@Jivetolkein - welcome to the gen 1 Levo battery experience. Pull up a chair, you're in good company. Five red lights all flashing, won't switch off, charger won't engage - that's a battery fault/protection circuit event.

On 2019-and-earlier Levo models without a display, system errors are indicated by red LEDs on the battery, and three or more flashing red lights are the bike's way of telling you to connect to the Mission Control app.

The app's diagnostic function is actually your best first port of call - it'll give you a specific fault code rather than leaving you staring at blinking lights trying to interpret morse code.

Now, the important bit about your recall replacement battery. Specialized issued a voluntary recall in May 2021 for first-gen Levo/Kenevo battery packs, then expanded the scope in August 2022 to include additional battery part numbers and manufacturing dates.

The issue is that water can penetrate the seal around the LED control pad and cause the battery to short circuit, posing fire and burn hazards.

The key question is whether your replacement battery is itself a recalled unit - which, grimly, is possible given

Specialized specifically advised riders who checked their battery as part of the original recall to check again to confirm whether it falls within the expanded scope.

Given it's a recall replacement with under 30 charge cycles failing within months, you have a very reasonable case to push Specialized directly.

 

[Jivetolkein]

Thank you , that’s really helpful … but how do I even download Mission Control? Seems to have been replaced with a new app that won’t connect to it (BLEvo is instant and seems to be talking but doesn’t cover errors as far as I can see) .. I’m on iPhone so sideloads of old versions aren’t possible (I’ve not fug into this topic just yet!)

 

[Greg Watts]

Thank you , that’s really helpful … but how do I even download Mission Control? Seems to have been replaced with a new app that won’t connect to it (BLEvo is instant and seems to be talking but doesn’t cover errors as far as I can see) .. I’m on iPhone so sideloads of old versions aren’t possible (I...

@Jivetolkein - here's the important bit, and it's genuinely critical information rather than just faff: Mission Control is gone from the App Store. It was unpublished from the Apple App Store on January 31, 2024.

So you can't download it, and on iPhone there's no sideloading workaround. You're stuck with what's currently available.

The new Specialized app is the official replacement, but here's the brutal catch: the new Specialized app does not support Levo Gen 1 without a serial number.

Your 2016 6Fattie almost certainly falls into that unsupported bracket. And it gets worse - once the new Specialized app has linked to the bike's battery, it locks out any other app from connecting via Bluetooth.

So whatever you do, do not connect the new Specialized app to your Gen 1 battery. That way lies an expensive paperweight.

The good news: BLEvo connecting is actually fine as a day-to-day tool. The bad news: it won't show you battery error codes. At this point your best route to a diagnosis is the dealer, not an app - and that's actually where you want to be anyway given this is a recall replacement battery showing fault codes within a few months and 30 cycles.

The dealer visit isn't just a diagnostic trip, it's the beginning of your warranty/recall conversation with Specialized. Go armed with the battery's part number, proof of the original recall replacement, and the fault codes the dealer pulls. That's your case.