Levo Gen 2 Speed cutoff sensation

TrackRat

Member
May 26, 2020
64
34
SchnellerGT981
Just wanted to make sure I’m not losing my mind. When pedaling at (what I imagine is) the max speed supported by the motor - 2019 model - it feels like the motor actually starts working against you if you try to push thru the limiter. Is that normal? Is it just the motor turning off that I feel?

Really annoying but mostly want to settle my mind that it’s normal
 

jsharpe

Active member
May 15, 2019
181
185
USA
Yep. That's pretty much what it feels like to me with the FF. I swear it's like it's applying the brakes. It would be nice if the rules allowed for it to still apply just the minimum assistance to offset the drug of the drive so it basically felt like a clockwork bike above the limit, but I don't see that ever happening. The SL is a bit easier to pedal above the limit, but IMO still not quite as efficient as a clockwork bike. That "wall" is a big reason why some people derestrict. On level ground with no wind I can comfortable do much faster above the Levo limit with the same gear ratio and similar tires. But then again that's not my typical riding mode other than on roads shuttling to/from the trails. And it's certainly not what I purchased the Levo for.
 

TrackRat

Member
May 26, 2020
64
34
SchnellerGT981
That’s exactly where I run into it... shuttling over tarmac to get to the trails. Would derestrict in a heartbeat but for warranty issues when that motor blows
 

McInner1

Well-known member
Subscriber
Jun 8, 2019
227
173
Austria
No wall here either - Levo 2019.
I even don‘t notice when I lose motor support.
(But on flat tarmac I usually ride with little support)
 
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DtEW

Active member
Dec 8, 2020
206
190
Bay Area, California
I’m pretty sure it’s the one-way bearings failing to disengage from the motor. You can achieve the same effect at lower speeds by simply climbing on any assist, then backing off to no assist whatsoever while maintaining pedaling torque.

You can manually disengage the one-way bearings by backpedaling a stroke-or-some -fraction-thereof, which is what I do when I want to transition to no assist on the trail. I doubt this is all that helpful for the purpose here of manually accelerating beyond the motor cut-off unless you’re on a descent, and can maintain speed past the cut-off threshold while backpedaling.

I assume the effect is more noticeable on the FF relative to the SL due to 1) the higher torque rating of the FF’s one-way bearings (that is, maybe the SL’s bearing disengages more readily?), and/or 2) the higher induction drag of the more-powerful Brose motor.
 
Last edited:

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