Looking for tips on setting up different modes on Bosch Gen 5 with update

[big_scot_nanny]

Hi, I am new to Bosch, coming from Giant (a 2022 reign E+). On the giant, you could fiddle a bit with the modes, but it was basically 1-5 with a linear increase in power and pretty much on/off support.

Bosch feels V different, would love to know how folks have set their's up. can you share?

It doesn't help that I really don't understand what the 'plus' modes do over non-plus. e.g. if I set the torque and power to max in emtb+, will it feel any different to turbo?

Eco I get, but tour+ seems a bit overpowered for a 'normal riding range maximising' mode.

So many questions, so few ideas in my empty head.

Guidance, thoughts, tips all welcome

 

[Shark58]

For a first guidance I would strongly recommend reading through the Bosch site on riding modes. The site was completely overhauled last December and now gives some really good insight and recommendations.

Go to the site and scroll a bit down until you find the 14 modes short descriptions. Click on every "Read more" to open an overlay window giving a good summary on the type of support and what that mode is best suited for.
Learn the difference between constant, sporty and automatic modes.

Scroll further down until you find the heading "Riding mode comparison". This section is interactive. You can select any modes you're interested in to see a graph depicting the support curve(s) over rider input.

Go here: https://www.bosch-ebike.com/en/products/riding-modes

It doesn't help that I really don't understand what the 'plus' modes do over non-plus.

Generally speaking, the plus modes have a non-linear support curve or as Bosch initially called them, are progressive. You can easily see the differences in the graph mentioned above.

if I set the torque and power to max in emtb+, will it feel any different to turbo?

Yes, definitely. Turbo is a constant (linear) support mode and increases motor support gradually based on rider power. Emtb+ is the most powerful sporty (progressive) mode (putting Race mode aside as you need a Race motor for that), starting with lower motor support and then quickly advancing up to Turbo level. This gives you more control in technical terrain.

 

[maker]

Echo read Bosch site explanations. What others do might not suit you and your conditions e.g. I sometimes restart on slippy/crumbly 12% slope and wound eMTB torque down to grip on restart, you might not need that.

 

[Joecrow]

I recently took my wife' s Gen 3 Bosch E-bike to the LBS for a service, a really nice ride, the assist was smooth, always there and when you need more just go to the next mode! It reminded of how the assist has changed with the Smart System generations particularly in the lower modes, ECO, Tour and Tour+. I need to read up some more and further play with the settings but out of the box ECO and Tour modes seem to have assist dead spots when I reach a certain speed (under max.) or cadence and my feeling is that this became worse following the June 2025 100Nm update. Increasing the amount of assist and varying the dynamic settings for ECO has improved things somewhat but still nowhere near as smooth as the Gen 3 and improving the Tour modes has so far defeated me.
Can't help thinking its become all too complicated for its own good!

 

[Stin242]

This is how I have my tour mode setup… I customized it to have a bit more assistance. For me it’s a good balance of power but also still allows me to get a good workout in on hills. Also I get a decent amount of range using this setting rather than boost or eMTB mode…

 

[Plummet]

Emtb+ 100nm, 750w
Emtb 85nm, 650w
Tour+ 70nm, 500w
Eco+ 60nm, 500w

 

[big_scot_nanny]

Thanks all, really useful and interesting. Funnily enough, I've chosen the same 4 levels with settings pretty close to @Plummet (just a bit lower power and torque on the Eco+ and Tour+).

In addition, I think I have assistance only on +1 in the top 2, but dynamic on +1 for all (assuming that Dynamic is the thing that gives you the 'overrun')

That tiny bit of overrun is an absolute game changer compared to the sync drive on my old Giant. All those sections where you had to pause the pedals for just a mili-second avoid a strike, the giant would instantly stall. No more!

In general, I'llpost it here as I find it incredible - the + modes (eco, Tour, emtb) all feel absolutely glorious to pedal. It really does feel like it's amplifying in a dynamic way, rather than just On or Off as with the 2022 Reign E+. It feels fantastic.

it also gives a hell of a lot more traction. On V steep up up ups, with questionable grip, the at the critical moment the giant would just spin. Not any more. Amazing.

Never thought an eMTB could feel this good, and give me a connection to the bike, rather than it being just an electrical product that isolated me from the ride. (Helps that XL Mondraker Crafty is actually an XL, and not more like an L as the Giant was far too small)

 

[rfgamaral]

Emtb+ 100nm, 750w
Emtb 85nm, 650w
Tour+ 70nm, 500w
Eco+ 60nm, 500w

Are these still your settings? I have a few questions, though:

1. Can you share the Assistance and Dynamic values for each?
2. Have you changed any of the modes to 120Nm?
3. Why exactly do you tune down Tour+ and Eco+?
4. Why did you choose Eco+ instead of Eco?
5. What's the difference between eMTB+ and eMTB for you?
6. When do you use each mode? Which mode do you pick for going downhill and why?

I know these are a lot of questions, sorry about that, but based on your comments around this forum, I'm really interested in hearing from you, if you are willing to share more in-depth details, of course.

 

[Suns_PSD]

I'm honestly just not that picky so I copied Alex's settings figuring he had more time to get it set up right.

 

[rfgamaral]

I'm honestly just not that picky so I copied Alex's settings figuring he had more time to get it set up right.

I'm not sure if I understand this "traction control" thing, and it's a bit weird to me that you have to set dynamic to -2 in turbo mode to get it. The way I see it turbo mode should be, well, "turbo", and I usually prefer a higher dynamic on such a mode to have higher acceleration, or going over tricky roots. Maybe I'm using this wrong?

 

[steve_sordy]

I'm not sure if I understand this "traction control" thing, and it's a bit weird to me that you have to set dynamic to -2 in turbo mode to get it. The way I see it turbo mode should be, well, "turbo", and I usually prefer a higher dynamic on such a mode to have higher acceleration, or going over tricky roots. Maybe I'm using this wrong?

I am a beginner at the Bosch gen 5 set up. (6 years Shimano before that) Currently, I have Turbo set to -2 in the Dynamic setting. But only because everywhere I read said to do so and called it the "traction control" setting.

After the grand total of three rides, I have an opinion. Moving from 0 to +2 in Dynamic transfomed EMTB it brought the bike alive. I noticed that in the app, the slider had "more powerful" at one end and (can't remember for certain, but probably) "less powerful" at the other end. So this unleashes the power more rapidly. For "more powerful", read "wheel skidding, traffic lights grand prix", for the other end, its your granma returning from collecting her pension.

My take on that is that in Turbo, with 750W and 120Nm and Assistance level 5, you have all the power you might possibly need. But if the trail surface is loose (dry sand, pebbles, soft soil....) then all that power and torque will just give you wheel spin. So dialling down the dynamic setting sounds right to me. But I am still setting up the bike and I haven't got around to testing Turbo yet.

In EMTB, I was getting over roots and rocks just fine.

 

[rfgamaral]

In EMTB, I was getting over roots and rocks just fine.

So, just to be clear, you use eMTB with dynamic +2, what about assistance, power and torque? And do you really use eMTB or eMTB+?

 

[Shark58]

I'm not sure if I understand this "traction control" thing, and it's a bit weird to me that you have to set dynamic to -2 in turbo mode to get it.

What Bosch calls dynamic control is a motor control function introduced with the Gen5 CX and CX-R motors. It's only available with those two motors and only in Turbo and eMTB+ riding modes.

These motors came with a completely new and high performance inertial measurement unit (IMU) providing high speed sensor input of all the forces, orientation and acceleration acting on the motor/bike.

In the above mentioned motors and modes Bosch utilizes that sensor input to help maintain optimal control and traction even on loose ground, steps or roots. So when the IMU finds the rear wheel slipping the dynamic control will quickly reduce torque, power or dynamic to help maintain traction and then return back to full power. This is very similar to a motor vehicle with traction control and Bosch has mentioned dynamic control working 'like traction control'.

In Bosch's descriptions of this feature there never was a mention one needed to set dynamic to -2 in order to enable dynamic control. I feel it's always enabled.

It does make sense to use the dynamic slider to control the extend of dynamic control. Whether -2 or any other value is the best to chose depends highly on the terrain you ride, your skills and your preference of using the brakes to control this over an automatic feature of the motor.

On my Vala the highest power mode I use is eMTB+ (I have disabled Turbo) with everything maxed out but dynamic set to -2 because I feel this is the sweet spot for my riding needs.

 

[Rob_S]

Didn’t like -2 dynamic. Sluggish response.
Running 750, 120, +5 assistance, +3 dynamic currently and it’s pretty good for tight & techy

Testing video if you’re interested in a back to back comparison of a few settings on my local trails

 

[Plummet]

Are these still your settings? I have a few questions, though:

1. Can you share the Assistance and Dynamic values for each?
2. Have you changed any of the modes to 120Nm?
3. Why exactly do you tune down Tour+ and Eco+?
4. Why did you choose Eco+ instead of Eco?
5. What's the difference between eMTB+ and eMTB for you?
6. When do you use each mode? Which mode do you pick for going downhill and why?

I know these are a lot of questions, sorry about that, but based on your comments around this forum, I'm really interested in hearing from you, if you are willing to share more in-depth details, of course.

1, As below
2, yes emtb+ 120nm, plus i bumped emtb up to 90nm
3, To get the most efficient assistance settings for my riding style
4, Eco+ turns off to zero assistance with light pedal pressure, so its providing less assistance until you pound on the pedals then it kicks in.
5, I use emtb+ as my turbo feature with all the settings on max. EMTB+ has the extra run on feature which is good for tech climbing over roots.
6, Emtb+, tech climbing, enduro racing.
Emtb, tech climbing and descending
Tour +, The best battery range to assistance ratio. This is my go to for longer rides. Super steep tech gets this setting also.
Eco, When im running out of battery or riding with non e guys, or on an E ride with the missis. As i'm 50/50 mtb to E. If the ride is going at slow mtb speeds i'll take the mtb instead. So dont use this setting much

 

[rfgamaral]

Thank you, @Plummet, for the details.

6, Emtb+, tech climbing, enduro racing.
Emtb, tech climbing and descending

These are the most interesting to me because I also do enduro racing (not often) and descends (most of the time), of course, and I've been trying to figure out the "best 2 top modes" for me. Do you have uphill stages during enduro racing? Asking because you have +5 dynamic for that mode, and I found that because of that it didn't give me the best traction (the wheel spun a lot), and I'm considering turning it down for a more controlled climbing.

Super steep tech gets this setting also.

You use Tour+ for "super steep tech"? How is that feasible?

 

[RustyIron]

everywhere I read said to do so and called it the "traction control" setting.

You're on to something there, Steve. Folks read all sorts of mumbo jumbo on the interwebs, parrot the nonsense, and then the gibberish appears factual just because there seems to be a consensus.

It might be helpful to think of "assistance" as you would think of "gain" in any other amplifier circuit. Consider it a multiplier of your own input at the cranks. Think of "dynamic" as you would think of "jerk" in any other motor controller. It's like the rate of the rate of acceleration.

There are no "traction control" or "overrun" settings, no matter what the tick-tockers say.

I'll share with you my four settings.
RACE is set as it is to give me 600% gain. It's too snappy for most riding. For working hard and shredding, it's a lot of fun.
EMTB+ is my baseline for most riding. It will get moving nicely, and allows for good control.
EMTB is dialed back for epic journeys where I need to conserve juice.
TOUR+ is really dialed back for when I'm worried about making it back. Lower settings than this are too grueling.

 

[Plummet]

Thank you, @Plummet, for the details.

These are the most interesting to me because I also do enduro racing (not often) and descends (most of the time), of course, and I've been trying to figure out the "best 2 top modes" for me. Do you have uphill stages during enduro racing? Asking because you have +5 dynamic for that mode, and I found that because of that it didn't give me the best traction (the wheel spun a lot), and I'm considering turning it down for a more controlled climbing.


You use Tour+ for "super steep tech"? How is that feasible?

The enduro racing I've done has been mixed with E and mtb. There are some short uphill sections in some stages and no specific uphill stages. The tech climbing i do is much harder than racing as its steep rooty hike a bike and we just keep charging up until its too steep and the bike loops out.

Regarding +5 in emtb + mode. Yes you can get wheel spin, but there are techniques to be used to counteract that.

• Drag the rear brake when you might wheel spin.
• Hook into a harder gear with lower cadence to clean the obstacle
• Use less leg power for to meter the +600% down
• Back off just before the feature and use trailing off over run to get over the feature.
• Using the extra power for extra speed before the feature. Once up to speed then wheel spin is less of an issue.
• Back of to emtb momentarily for a starting on steep wheel when emtb+ might wheelspin.

Personally for racing i want everything to max in my top mode and if that setting will be too brutal for a section of the race track I toggle down to emtb mode then toggle back into fire breathing dragon....

 

[Ndanger]

I am not familiar to the racing dynamics for ebikes but curious how they manage the different power levels for the different motors. Is battery conservation the way to level the playing field. This is what I have found for battery limitations as follows: And if so how do full power settings effect the ability to stretch the battery capacity for the full distance.

In E-Enduro racing, riders are typically limited to two batteries total for an entire race weekend, and they must carry them or swap them only at designated, tightly timed zones. If a rider leaves their motor in maximum boost mode to blast up the climbs, they risk running out of juice before the final stages. Managing heat buildup and battery consumption introduces a massive tactical element where raw power becomes a liability if mismanaged.

 

[Dave238]

The slider on my 2025 santa cruz bullit gen 5 bosch won't go beyond 19 mph. How are you guys getting 20mph?
I've done the 120nm update.
Pic: From a previous post

 

[rfgamaral]

how they manage the different power levels for the different motors.

I'm sure rules are slightly different from place to place, but IMO, I don't think it matters much unless you have power stages (usually a short uphill timed section). For the other stages, you go downhill like 90-95% of the time with very short uphill sections (which the speed from the previous downhill section carries you forward), and the motor power level does not really come into play.

In E-Enduro racing, riders are typically limited to two batteries total for an entire race weekend

To the one I've been, there was no such limitation. But the race was just one morning (free practice the day before), not an entire race weekend. That said, swapping a battery on my Orbea Wild M10 wouldn't be feasible for me (I ride solo, for fun, not in a team).

 

[steve_sordy]

So, just to be clear, you use eMTB with dynamic +2, what about assistance, power and torque? And do you really use eMTB or eMTB+?

eMTB, not eMTB+

Assistance +2​

Dynamic +2​

Power 625 W max​

Torque 105 Nm max​

To be equally clear. That is after 3 rides as a Bosch newbie. My first ride had Turbo and eMTB at max torque and power, other settings all over the place. Understandably, I found the bike difficult to control. Don't forget that I'm in the UK, so my max assisted speed is 15mph (not even 25kph or 15.5mph).

I am certain that in a month or so, I will have different settings across the board to what I have currently. But for now, I'm OK with the eMTB settings.

 

[steve_sordy]

What Bosch calls dynamic control is a motor control function introduced with the Gen5 CX and CX-R motors. It's only available with those two motors and only in Turbo and eMTB+ riding modes.

These motors came with a completely new and high performance inertial measurement unit (IMU) providing high speed sensor input of all the forces, orientation and acceleration acting on the motor/bike.

In the above mentioned motors and modes Bosch utilizes that sensor input to help maintain optimal control and traction even on loose ground, steps or roots. So when the IMU finds the rear wheel slipping the dynamic control will quickly reduce torque, power or dynamic to help maintain traction and then return back to full power. This is very similar to a motor vehicle with traction control and Bosch has mentioned dynamic control working 'like traction control'.

In Bosch's descriptions of this feature there never was a mention one needed to set dynamic to -2 in order to enable dynamic control. I feel it's always enabled.

It does make sense to use the dynamic slider to control the extend of dynamic control. Whether -2 or any other value is the best to chose depends highly on the terrain you ride, your skills and your preference of using the brakes to control this over an automatic feature of the motor.

On my Vala the highest power mode I use is eMTB+ (I have disabled Turbo) with everything maxed out but dynamic set to -2 because I feel this is the sweet spot for my riding needs.

I have the Bosch Performance CX BDU384Y (Gen 5) and it came with the Bosch upgrade 2.0. It is the first Bosch motor of any generation that I have ridden for more than a test ride and that was in 2018.

I found your psot absolutely fascinating! There are three new things in your post for me.

No1: The presence of inertial sensors. That would explain how the bike knows it is climbing, descending or on the flat (but why the screen has to tell me that I have no idea).

No2: Yes, I swallowed the "-2 dynamic for traction control" internet guff and not TikTok (don't have it, or any of the others), it was the older guy on EMTBN. I thought that if was saying so, it must be true. He was quite definite about it. I never did understand why only "-2". If -2 was good, why wouldn't -3 or even -5 be better? I rationalised it to myself as a compromise setting. But your view, and that of others on here, is that it is bollocks. I am happy to hear that.

No 3: I am intrigued that you say that "dynamic control is only available in .... turbo and emtb+ modes...." I don't have emtb+ but I do have the Dynamic slider across the board (Turbo to Eco). On my last ride I started with eMTB dynamic set to "standard" ie 0. It felt a bit dull, so I increased the dynamic setting to +2, "Assistance" was already at +2. The effect was dramatic and the bike came alive. I may increase it later, but I am still playing around with settings trying to get the whole set of modes workable and predictable. I can fine tune later.

Or is "Dynamic" on the app, different to the "Dynamic Control" that you quote Bosch as saying in your post?

You wrote: "In Bosch's descriptions of this feature there never was a mention one needed to set dynamic to -2 in order to enable dynamic control. I feel it's always enabled." That sentence refers to "dynamic" and "dynamic control" as two different things. It reinforces the view that there is no need to set the dynamic slider to -2 to get "traction control", because it is always there.

Very helpful post, thanks.

 

[RustyIron]

The slider on my 2025 santa cruz bullit gen 5 bosch won't go beyond 19 mph. How are you guys getting 20mph?

When I first got my Gen 4, the top speed was 19 mph. I complained to either Pivot or Bosch, and was told that the actual limit was just under 32 kph, so it showed up as 19 mph. In a subsequent update, the parameter changed to 20 kph, but the actual limit speed was still down around 19.2 mph. Even with the latest software on the Gen 5, the limit speed is about 19.5 mph. I doubt you're missing out, it's just the way the number is displayed in your region.

 

[RustyIron]

No 3: I am intrigued that you say that "dynamic control is only available in .... turbo and emtb+ modes...." I don't have emtb+

I'm not trying to be pedantic, but you mentioned you're new to the Bosch ecosystem. They allow you to run four modes from a greater number of available modes. You can select modes from the app. I'm sitting at my desk, so I can't tell you exactly how to do it. Select eBike from the lower menu, then at Custom Riding Modes there might be an i to click to get to the list of modes. If the list of modes does not include EMTB+, your bike store can add it by plugging in their laptop.

 

[steve_sordy]

I'm not trying to be pedantic, but you mentioned you're new to the Bosch ecosystem. They allow you to run four modes from a greater number of available modes. You can select modes from the app. I'm sitting at my desk, so I can't tell you exactly how to do it. Select eBike from the lower menu, then at Custom Riding Modes there might be an i to click to get to the list of modes. If the list of modes does not include EMTB+, your bike store can add it by plugging in their laptop.

Not pedantic at all. At my level of knowledge, I need leading by the hand.

I am aware that I can call up different modes and have to remove one to make room for another. What I was trying to draw attention to was a mismatch between what @Shark58 quoted from a Bosch website to my own experience.

I quote below one of my responses to Shark58's post

"No 3: I am intrigued that you say that "dynamic control is only available in .... turbo and emtb+ modes...." I don't have emtb+ but I do have the Dynamic slider across the board (Turbo to Eco). On my last ride I started with eMTB dynamic set to "standard" ie 0. It felt a bit dull, so I increased the dynamic setting to +2, "Assistance" was already at +2. The effect was dramatic and the bike came alive............................"

What I suspect is that the "dynamic control" quoted in the Bosch extract is not the same as the "Dynamic" in the app with the slider from+5 to -5. My current thoughts are that all modes have a dynamic slider, but that only Turbo and eMTB+ have "dynamic control". Also that dynamic contyrol is automatic and operates all the time and is a competely separate thing to the slider entitled Dynamic on the app.

What I believe I need is access to a link that takes me to all the Bosch stuff that describes all these things, what the different modes do, their power & torque curves etc. The more detail the better.
I assume that if I set Turbo and eMTB to max power, max torque, max assistance, max dynamic etc. Then despite being on the same settings, they will still behave differently because of the software Bosch has written for each mode. Is that true?

 

[RustyIron]

I assume that if I set Turbo and eMTB to max power, max torque, max assistance, max dynamic etc. Then despite being on the same settings, they will still behave differently because of the software Bosch has written for each mode. Is that true?

Yes, they will behave differently. If you imagine a graph showing motor output as a function of rider input, Turbo will look more linear, where EMTB will look more like a stretched out S. I've not seen a graph from Bosch for the latest motors and software. This web page might answer some of your questions:

https://www.bosch-ebike.com/us/news/newfeatures-2026-05

 

[Shark58]

No 3: I am intrigued that you say that "dynamic control is only available in .... turbo and emtb+ modes...." I don't have emtb+ but I do have the Dynamic slider across the board (Turbo to Eco).

This info is from the footnotes section of the detail description for Turbo and eMTB+ riding modes, I highlighted some parts in bold:
"With the built-in dynamic control you ride with full control in eMTB+ and Turbo mode, even if you've increased your performance values. In steep, bumpy riding situations, you have superior propulsion and on loose or damp surfaces it functions like traction control. If the trail and your riding style change dynamically, the sensor technology recognizes this and the software intelligently compensates for it. This maintains the dynamics, while the handling of the drive unit is confident and lively – and still fully controllable. This allows you to overcome challenging sections with ease. Dynamic control works optimally with the built-in sensors – without having to install additional cables, sensors, or sensor discs on the swing arm and rear wheel. Dynamic control is only available for the Performance Line CX (BDU384Y) and Performance Line CX-R."

Or is "Dynamic" on the app, different to the "Dynamic Control" that you quote Bosch as saying in your post?

Yes, "dynamic" and "dynamic control" are two different things. The dynamic from the app slider is controlling how quickly the motor reacts to you pushing on the pedals. From an older OEM technical manual I have from Bosch I know that with all motors available in 2018 (including the CX gen4 non-smart) Bosch stated an average of 300 milliseconds reaction time. This might have improved slightly for the newest generation motors. The dynamic slider controls these 300 milliseconds to make the response to pedal input faster or slower.
The dynamic control feature was introduced with the performance update 1.0 that brought us 100 Nm, 750 W and the eMTB+ mode in late 2025.
As I mentioned before it does make sense to include this sort of traction control to the two highest powered modes which can easily get the rear wheel spinning in technical uphills. With modes like Eco or Tour this won't happen because they simply don't add enough motor power.

What I believe I need is access to a link that takes me to all the Bosch stuff that describes all these things, what the different modes do, their power & torque curves etc. The more detail the better.

The best collection you will find is on the Bosch website under Products-> Riding Modes.

https://www.bosch-ebike.com/us/products/riding-modes

This page received a complete overhaul at the end of 2025 taking all the new features and performance options into account.
You will find all 12 riding modes, plus Off at the top of the page with their max. support, battery consumption and type of support curve (constant, dynamic or automatic). Tap the "read more" link on each one to open an overlay with more details about intended purpose, features and important footnotes about any restrictions.
After reading through these scroll further down the page until you see the header "Riding Modes Compared". Below that is an interactive line graph showing the motor power on the Y-Axis and rider input power on the X-Axis for any mode you choose. Comparing the different lines quickly shows how different the various modes react to rider power and give you a good starting point selecting the max. four modes (plus Off) to activate on your bike.
Keep in mind that the power curves shown are based on the slider for support in the default (0) position.

 

[wolfbane1967]

Thanks for good reading, also find -2 in turbo a bit low in Dynamic. Mabe on rainy days and slipper .

 

[steve_sordy]

Thanks for good reading, also find -2 in turbo a bit low in Dynamic. Mabe on rainy days and slipper .

As has been made clear if you read all the good stuff in the posts and the links (I have just done so). You are wasting your time listening to "-2 in "dynamic for traction control" as all it does is sap the vitality from the bike.

If it's traction control you are after, you already have it in Turbo. If you want traction control in other modes too, then the only other one that will give you it is emtb+. This traction control, or "Dynamic Control" in Bosch terms, is automatic and it operates 100% of the time.

I have just removed Eco and Tour and replaced with emtb+ and Tour+ (my get to the trail centre mode).
I have never used Eco and if necessary, I can always reduce power & torque in another mode to extend my range.