Levo - range extender or upgrade to 700 WH battery?

[Max-E]

Upgrade to 700 wh battery seems to cost £700 (£1200 purchase less sale of 500 wh at approx £500).

The 252 wh bottle type range extenders appear to be £500.

I like the flexibility (ie only fit when needed) and lighter weight of the bottle type but struggle with the pricing given they appear to be just re-selling Ali-Express circa £175 bottle kits + a cable? Happy to be corrected with this and to see what the extra money charged gets you?

But you lose the bottle case which is a big negative.

The Levo 700 wh battery is fit and forget but you pays a weight penalty for sure.

Which did/would you choose?

And how are you finding your real world range.

I want to be able to do 50 miles but using the E-Bike as it was intended ie, not piddling about in Eco just to get the miles out of it.

 

[Mcharza]

I prefer fit and forget, so 700W Levo battery

 

[Andy A]

I prefer fit and forget, so 700W Levo battery

Totally agree we got the 700wh battery and it looks better, to me the range extenders with their wires here and velcro there just look a bit DIY although they are a great idea but not for me

 

[jonpress]

You could always get the 700w battery and the booster. I would love the bigger battery but the cost difference makes the booster attractive, I do struggle with the looks of the extra wires though.

 

[Andy A]

You could always get the 700w battery and the booster. I would love the bigger battery but the cost difference makes the booster attractive, I do struggle with the looks of the extra wires though.

I know what you mean I got my 700wh battery at a slightly reduced price and I am selling the 500wh battery for £500 so the swap over is around £500 which I think is worth it.

 

[Max-E]

What's your typical range guys? - I know it's hugely variable on this and that but there seems to be a consensus that the std 500 wh gets you maybe 20 to 30 miles in trail/eco and a bit of boost?

 

[Vilt]

700Wh. Sell the old 500Wh.

I'm 100kg. I can ride about 60-70km over 1500hm on 35% assistance with an occasional turbo boost.

 

[Swissrob]

Out of the box thinking, is 2 x 500w an option? Okay if you are 150cms/70kg loaded it will be uncomfortable to carry but if you are 190cms/100kg it will be easier or your riding area allows you to store it and change as required. I wish I could buy a 2018 battery for the price you can find 2019 500w batteries.

 

[jonpress]

Is there much of a market for the 2019 500wh? I’d definitely be keen to sell mine on to offset some of the cost of the 700.

 

[Max-E]

They seem to sell around £500 from looking at past sales.

What I don't get is where all these cheap 700's came from??

levo battery 700 | eBay

 

[Andy A]

They seem to sell around £500 from looking at past sales.

What I don't get is where all these cheap 700's came from??

levo battery 700 | eBay

Well there is no way I would pay just under £800 for a long battery and trust it to get to me in one piece from abroad!!!!

 

[jakeycov]

Well there is no way I would pay just under £800 for a long battery and trust it to get to me in one piece from abroad!!!!

Just use the eBay money back guarantee. If it doesn’t get to you in 100% condition then eBay will refund you. It’s easy. I had to use it for some roof bars that never turned up.

 

[Vilt]

I sold it on this forum for €600

 

[Andy A]

Just use the eBay money back guarantee. If it doesn’t get to you in 100% condition then eBay will refund you. It’s easy. I had to use it for some roof bars that never turned up.

That's great but what if it arrives ok and then fails after a few rides due to being bashed about

 

[jonpress]

They seem to sell around £500 from looking at past sales.

What I don't get is where all these cheap 700's came from??

levo battery 700 | eBay

I just looked at that ebay listing. the same seller has it shown as sold 3 times and relisted. there is now a new active listing for it,

Specialized Turbo Levo Generation 2 Akku Battery 700 wH Neuware | eBay

 

[jakeycov]

That's great but what if it arrives ok and then fails after a few rides due to being bashed about

I doubt it’ll be damaged being bashed in the post. They’ve already come from China anyway. Possibly worth the risk for such a discount.

 

[Max-E]

Out of the box thinking, is 2 x 500w an option? Okay if you are 150cms/70kg loaded it will be uncomfortable to carry but if you are 190cms/100kg it will be easier or your riding area allows you to store it and change as required. I wish I could buy a 2018 battery for the price you can find 2019 500w batteries.

Yes, interesting thought. Would give you 1000wh for £500 total over bike price against £700 for 700wh. Hate riding with even a lightweight rucksack though let alone a ton of lithium ion! And there’s the crash risk (for your own back and neck mostly).

In five or ten years we’ll laugh at the size/weight/wh/range we used to run when breakthrough battery tech comes along.....hopefully. But we are where we are.

 

[Andy A]

I doubt it’ll be damaged being bashed in the post. They’ve already come from China anyway. Possibly worth the risk for such a discount.

The choice is yours but I wouldn't buy one off ebay I would speak to a dealer and negotiate a discount and pick it up myself but you pay your money and take your chances ?

 

[Max-E]

The choice is yours but I wouldn't buy one off ebay I would speak to a dealer and negotiate a discount and pick it up myself but you pay your money and take your chances ?

Are they still available discounted Andy? I thought even Chris at BS wasn’t discounting them? Was your significantly cheaper?

 

[Andy A]

Are they still available discounted Andy? I thought even Chris at BS wasn’t discounting them? Was your significantly cheaper?

It wasn't significantly cheaper but I would rather buy this item from a proper dealer rather than off a seller on ebay but that's just me and I was happy to pay a bit more for that

 

[Frank_Denmark]

I would keep the 500w battery and buy a 700w spare
I have a spare for my Levo - and it's the best upgrade
Sometimes I take the battery with me in my rucksag and go looong rides.
It makes me completely forget about any range anxiety.
But most of the time I just keep the spare in my car, which make it possible for me to ride the trails one or two more times at the same day.
Recently I have gone for 2 different locations on the same day

 

[All Mountain Coaching]

£200 for a range extender seems the best option imo

 

[Swissrob]

£200 for a range extender seems the best option imo

But there are not a lot available for 200£ unless they are backyarder built so an eBay battery is probably not any more risky but I would say this is a bit country dependant. Here in Switzerland there are a few bricks and mortar bikeshops that clear old stock through Ricardo.
500 + 500 allows you to drop a kilo and double your range if you can store and swap in the field but I agree I wouldn't want it on my back all day.

 

[Max-E]

Yes, a few choice for sure and some good ideas here. It would be optimal if you could get hold of one of the warranty/duff 500 wh 2019 Levo batteries and pass them to one of those battery guru whizz kid companies to see just what they could pack inside into the same space in terms of the most up to date, ultra hi-capacity cells.

 

[Max-E]

I just looked at that ebay listing. the same seller has it shown as sold 3 times and relisted. there is now a new active listing for it,

Specialized Turbo Levo Generation 2 Akku Battery 700 wH Neuware | eBay

I think that's just because he re-lists every time he sold one - sometimes works out easier/quicker to sell one at a time than list all together with 20 available etc. I would not be concerned his FB pattern is good but caveat emptor as always.

He told me he had 30 of them with a couple left.

 

[jonpress]

I think that's just because he re-lists every time he sold one - sometimes works out easier/quicker to sell one at a time than list all together with 20 available etc. I would not be concerned his FB pattern is good but caveat emptor as always.

He told me he had 30 of them with a couple left.

I did wonder that, however looking at his feedback history not one is mentioned.

 

[Max-E]

I did wonder that, however looking at his feedback history not one is mentioned.

Yes, saw that too - a few 500s though. I have asked him if he sold them in other places (forums etc)...

 

[jakeycov]

I did wonder that, however looking at his feedback history not one is mentioned.

Not many people bother to give feedback nowadays so I wouldn’t look too much into that. If he’s got good feedback already then there is no point chasing people for feedback.

 

[Max-E]

This is the same guy but a different account as a German seller where he has sold most of them - see the FB for the 700's:

eBay Feedback profile for scalpel4ever2012

Anyway, he seems legit with it - seems he has contacts at Specz HQ down the road from him if anyone wants to take a punt on the last two (boxed).

 

[Rob Rides EMTB]

This is the same guy but a different account as a German seller where he has sold most of them - see the FB for the 700's:

eBay Feedback profile for scalpel4ever2012

Anyway, he seems legit with it seems contacts at Specz HQ down the road from him if anyone wants to take a punt on the last two (boxed).

Thats a great price. Weird that he's getting them so cheap though.