All New 2019 Specialized Turbo Levo launched

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Will Ridealpine

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Sep 18, 2018
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It’s not the same bike. If it was the same S-works bike as last year with no Öhlins fork and 20% more expensive you would have a more compelling argument.
40% more range
Lighter frame
Stiffer frame
Better Geometry
90Nm of torque
And I would take Fox Factory suspension over any of that Öhlins stuff.
It came down to allocation. When there are only so many bikes available in the first shipment it comes down to a few factors. All of the first order of bikes were ordered before they were announced. Our shop sells plenty of Levos, but we are not a concept store. We are an old school independent shop. The concepts get the first crack at the new bikes and then they move on to the top elite dealers and it’s first come first served. Large is the most popular size, then medium, then extra large and finally small. Some shops don’t order every size in every model. Some shops will only pick one color over the other choice.
The shops that order later or are lower on the totem pole, get the leftovers. Its a huge commitment to order just 10. We ordered 30, that’s well over a couple hundred thousand dollars. Only 9 of those have shipped and I will get them Thursday. It’s also not certain how many of these bikes we will sell now that we are having trail access issues. But judging by the reaction and enthusiasm we have seen, I think we’ll be okay.
Would you get the XL if you were 6’2 tall with long torso and 33” inseam? Debating on weather to size up. Like you said, must not as many tall guys riding to have XL in 3rd highest demand.
 

Wiltshire Warrior

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Jul 3, 2018
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Those rear pivots are right in the firing line for muck and sh1t - so you they better come with rear mudhugger for the UK or its just a fair weather bike. Also L 18" WTF? are riders getting shorter?

I quite like the yellow colour - shame the forks dont match
 

Al Boneta

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Those rear pivots are right in the firing line for muck and sh1t - so you they better come with rear mudhugger for the UK or its just a fair weather bike. Also L 18" WTF? are riders getting shorter?

I quite like the yellow colour - shame the forks dont match
Or you could just buy a rear mudhugger yourself and it’s not a fair weather bike anymore, not that it was ever to begin with.

18” is just the center to center while the top tube grew an inch. The 18” center to center is to make more room for bigger dropper posts, wtf? Yeah they got bigger

The yellow color, something else we disagree on
 

Al Boneta

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Would you get the XL if you were 6’2 tall with long torso and 33” inseam? Debating on weather to size up. Like you said, must not as many tall guys riding to have XL in 3rd highest demand.
I should be on a extra large based on my dimensions, but I just prefer large.
 

Tamas

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Jan 22, 2018
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Those rear pivots are right in the firing line for muck and sh1t - so you they better come with rear mudhugger for the UK or its just a fair weather bike. Also L 18" WTF? are riders getting shorter?

I quite like the yellow colour - shame the forks dont match

Disregard 18" because the short seat tube is necessary for longer droppers, reach/stack/seat tube angle determines the fit. The previous Levo was short and with the new, they brought it up to today's 'standards'.
 

Wiltshire Warrior

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Jul 3, 2018
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NO!
You fall once - goodbye bike!

Yes fall once badly and the frame is a gonner - but surely Spesh with replace it Free of Charge for the bikes Lifetime to the origainal Purchaser.

Cannondale do this and I have claimed once on a Carbon Rush - which they replace no quible.
 

Wiltshire Warrior

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Jul 3, 2018
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Disregard 18" because the short seat tube is necessary for longer droppers, reach/stack/seat tube angle determines the fit. The previous Levo was short and with the new, they brought it up to today's 'standards'.

That might be the case for you - but to pedal uphill I need my saddle surface at 31" from the CBB (regardless of 165/175 cranks) so even with a 150mm dropper on the XL frame I have 5" left - say 2" for the saddle height - that means my dropper seat post will be extended 80MM from the seat post collar.

And I am not tall for the South of England I pity anyone over 6'2" - the size charts look like they are aimed at the Korean Market no the Western World - Maybe they are planning an XXL
 

Thomas

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Aug 29, 2018
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In this video they tested real power output of the old 1.3 motor.
They measured it has 660W-700W peak watts power, much more than the claim numbers.

I was wondering, did any one do some calculation, how much average power would this bike put out, for example, on a 1 hour climb, old or new doesn't matter?
Let's say combine power bike+average rider maybe 400W+200W(average rider) or more? I know this is more based Watts-per-kilo of a rider.
Prot Tour rider puts out around 450W average on 5 minute short climb.
Froome regularly exceeds a 30-minute power output of 419W (6.25W/kg) and for 60 minutes he would expect to ride at or above 366W (5.46W/kg).
 

Tamas

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That might be the case for you - but to pedal uphill I need my saddle surface at 31" from the CBB (regardless of 165/175 cranks) so even with a 150mm dropper on the XL frame I have 5" left - say 2" for the saddle height - that means my dropper seat post will be extended 80MM from the seat post collar.

And I am not tall for the South of England I pity anyone over 6'2" - the size charts look like they are aimed at the Korean Market no the Western World - Maybe they are planning an XXL

Sizing is OK on these bikes they are not smaller than any of the other brands' bikes. If the dropper is below the minimum insertion I don't see the problem.
The XL has 505mm seat tube and the 160mm dropper with collar is out ~210mm from the frame to the rails. Put a saddle on it and you are at ~755mm so with your 31"/790mm saddle surface height it will only be extended 35mm from the seat post collar.
 

Kiwi in Wales

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Yes thanks...
If BLEvo is able to connect to the bike, please, check also the software version of the battery...
Thanks again..
Hi,
Sorry for the slow response, lots of driving yesterday.

Unfortunately I could not connect to the new bike using Blevo.

I tried scanning for the bike a number of times and had no luck sorry.

The bike is more secure now as it requires you to input a Bluetooth PIN number when you first connect to it. This 6 digit numerical PIN comes with the bike documentation.
I presume you may need to adjust your software now to take this extra step into account?

Do any shops near you have the new Levo in stock? Maybe its worth you taking a trip to visit and see first hand what the issue is?

Hope the above helps you.
 

knut7

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Look who showed up!
20180919_085449.jpg
 

Kimmoi

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Jul 6, 2018
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One point with batterys, with the new and older Levo's; why there is no lock? Battery is veeeery easy to steal. Just screw the bolt off and take it with you.
And the 2019 model's battery bolt is in very scary place. Just there where that big rock is going to hit...
 

PaoloBLEvo

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Hi,
Sorry for the slow response, lots of driving yesterday.

Unfortunately I could not connect to the new bike using Blevo.

I tried scanning for the bike a number of times and had no luck sorry.

The bike is more secure now as it requires you to input a Bluetooth PIN number when you first connect to it. This 6 digit numerical PIN comes with the bike documentation.
I presume you may need to adjust your software now to take this extra step into account?

Do any shops near you have the new Levo in stock? Maybe its worth you taking a trip to visit and see first hand what the issue is?

Hope the above helps you.

Thanks for the tests.. I will do a test as soon as I can.. sorry but I have to wait a friend with the new bike..
 

Will Ridealpine

New Member
Sep 18, 2018
146
79
Idaho
That might be the case for you - but to pedal uphill I need my saddle surface at 31" from the CBB (regardless of 165/175 cranks) so even with a 150mm dropper on the XL frame I have 5" left - say 2" for the saddle height - that means my dropper seat post will be extended 80MM from the seat post collar.

And I am not tall for the South of England I pity anyone over 6'2" - the size charts look like they are aimed at the Korean Market no the Western World - Maybe they are planning an XXL
So how tall are you? Is Xl the way to go for me at 6’2?
 

knut7

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One point with batterys, with the new and older Levo's; why there is no lock? Battery is veeeery easy to steal. Just screw the bolt off and take it with you.
And the 2019 model's battery bolt is in very scary place. Just there where that big rock is going to hit...
Yeah, there are pros and cons to the different battery mounting solutions. What's positive about Specialized's solution is that the key won't ever be lost, and I'm pretty sure they're saving a bit of weight compared to using a battery mount with a lock cylinder. Quite a few people won't be leaving a bike like this unattended outdoors anyway. I haven't done a proper ride on the bike yet, but I have taken out the battery. It was a bit cumbersome aligning the battery so the bolt would enter when reinstalling the battery. Not a big deal though, owning this bike one would probably learn the technique soon enough.
 

Tamas

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Yeah, there are pros and cons to the different battery mounting solutions. What's positive about Specialized's solution is that the key won't ever be lost, and I'm pretty sure they're saving a bit of weight compared to using a battery mount with a lock cylinder. Quite a few people won't be leaving a bike like this unattended outdoors anyway. I haven't done a proper ride on the bike yet, but I have taken out the battery. It was a bit cumbersome aligning the battery so the bolt would enter when reinstalling the battery. Not a big deal though, owning this bike one would probably learn the technique soon enough.

It's something to consider for sure but I think the $ saving was a more important factor when they decided to go with the bolt instead of the lock. :)
 

Rob Rides EMTB

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It's something to consider for sure but I think the $ saving was a more important factor when they decided to go with the bolt instead of the lock. :)
I doubt it.

I’d hate a lock. More to lose, break and carry.

Realistically who is going to come armed with the correct size Allen bolt, turn the bike upside down and managed to remove the battery without you noticing?
 

Tamas

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I doubt it.

I’d hate a lock. More to lose, break and carry.

Realistically who is going to come armed with the correct size Allen bolt, turn the bike upside down and managed to remove the battery without you noticing?

For some, it's an issue for you it's not... There is a lock on my bike which doesn't cause any troubles and the key is lighter than an Allen key. It wasn't a preference when I bought my bike and the bolt mounted battery is not the reason why I won't buy a new Levo... :)
 

R120

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You would get through the lock on my Shimano e8000 battery in less time than it would take to get an Allen key out your backpack!
 

CryptoBiker

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Sep 17, 2018
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SW UK
Pretty cool looking bikes, but basically style over substance till the S works, and it seems to be about 30% over the price it should be, but it you've got the cash, why not?

Personally, I think its a bit of a cheek to offer a 500wh battery on any 2019 models. I bought my bike in 2016 and 500wh was an option then.. 650/750w should be on all models in this price range by now, its a bit of a liberty to charge more imo.

Think waiting till next year, or possibly even longer is going to be a good idea, the rapid rate of development means if you can just resist temptation for a few years, some bargains are going to be had..

Is anyone here waiting til say 2020 for a new bike?
 

paquo

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Jul 31, 2018
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usa
Think waiting till next year, or possibly even longer is going to be a good idea, the rapid rate of development means if you can just resist temptation for a few years, some bargains are going to be had..

Kind of , but i have already waiting for a year for something with better range and good dynamics and this is acceptable on those fronts. I guess this bike will be outdated soon enough but it should still be suitable for me. It is expensive though, no getting around that.
 

Kiwi in Wales

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For some, it's an issue for you it's not... There is a lock on my bike which doesn't cause any troubles and the key is lighter than an Allen key. It wasn't a preference when I bought my bike and the bolt mounted battery is not the reason why I won't buy a new Levo... :)

I prefer it as it is but as you say, others may want a key.

What happens if you lose the key or break the lock?

I have found in the long term, locks exposed to the outside elements tend to seize up and fail. For instance bike rack locks, I have had a few fail on me lately and they are not cheap to replace. I had a key break inside the lock again, a painful experience.

When I am out riding I never leave my bike unattended or out of sight so I do not need a key to secure my battery. For me, it just another thing to remember or....... forget :eek:
 
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