Cracking 10/10 review in the new MBR. Think it was a grouptest but not read how the competition fared as my mate sent me a photo of the page earlier
Vitus E-Sommet VR
- Thread starter Iain at the back
- Start date
Your right. Had moved down slightly towards the rim so just nipped it up back into position. See how it goes next ride....
I had this very same problem I thot was the battery connection as would get 010 error so I cleaned the connections and all would be ok for a few rides then happen again, anyway I noticed that there was some play in the battery so I adjusted the battery holder so it's a snug fit and it's been faultless for 400 miles. You have to take the plastic cover off the key lock and there are 2 cap head screws to adjust how tight the battery fits. Easy job.
You have to check the battery mounts from time to time as they can go out of position
Yes its in an Enduro EMTB group test against the Kenevo, Focus Sam2, and Canyon Spectral On, and they have the Vitus down as the winner.
Canyon 9/10
Focus 8/10
Kenevo 8/10
Vitus 10/10
HeatproofGenie
Active member
Dig that HT.
Too, too bad they don't ship to the states.
Too, too bad they don't ship to the states.
That's why it's a shame it's not a Bosch...
My original plan was to get a spare battery on C2W, then I heard about some ex-demo Cube HTs for £750 with under 1000km on the clock but they are in Ireland so that's out, and I do like the Vitus (evenb though the better colour scheme is on the worse specced, least discounted bike) and I'm sorely tempted.
My original plan was to get a spare battery on C2W, then I heard about some ex-demo Cube HTs for £750 with under 1000km on the clock but they are in Ireland so that's out, and I do like the Vitus (evenb though the better colour scheme is on the worse specced, least discounted bike) and I'm sorely tempted.
Hi all
I'm back. (Thanks @Rob Hancill for sorting out my log in issues)
Quick report on my E-Sommet.
It''s a little over 3 months old now.
Have now done around 800miles on it and somewhere around 230000ft of descending (and climbing, but who cares about that?
).
Still running the same chain and it's running abslutely fine. Chain measures pretty much exactly the same wear rate as the SRAM chain on my YT Capra which has done 500 miles (in very mixed conditions, The Sommet has seen more dry weather). So as I expected. Chain wear isn't the massive problem so many Ebikers told me it would be.
Still running the Minion 2.4 DHF/ 2.3 SS Exo tyre combo I fitted a week after getting the bike. pretty much zero wear on the front. a tiny bit worn on the centre tread of the rear SS. No punctures. So again there's no extra wear on tyres using an Ebike. and absolutely no need to go over a 2.5 tyre. (My DH times are slightly faster now on this bike than my Capra - mainly because I've been descending so much more on it)
I'm still on the original set of brake pads (about half way worn, and lever feel is still great with hardly any extra throw) . And can't fault the Guide REs. I have Guide RS on two other bikes and the REs are way better. I wished I'd had them out in the Alps on my DH bike a few weeks back. I hadn't realised until speaking with a mechanic over there that the RE is basically an RS lever mated with a Code caliper. Something a lot of DH riders used to do for ultimate stoping power and performance.
So again. Ebikes don't go through brake pads any more quickly than normal bikes.
Issues/non issues worth mentioning:
* During the first few weeks of ownership I'd get the E013 error and have to switch off/on. this was due to the wheel magnet rotating. it prety much always did it if I whiped a jump and landed a little too sideways. The magnet nut was tight. What was actuallt happening was the entire spoke was rotating under compression. (a problem with straight pull spokes. To fix this I removed the spoke, cleaned the eyelets and threadlocked the nipple and the head and re-tensioned the spoke. It seems to have worked fairly well. Still wish I could get hold of a Lapierre spoke magnet though (attaches between two spokes rather than one)
* the seat tube on the E-Somet is not reamed deep enough for me to fit a 170mm dropper. not an issuel for descending in the slightest but I do like my saddle as far out of the way while manualling as possible. (a hang up/old habit from riding BMX/Dirtjump bikes)
* The OEM Brand-X dropper developed a tiny bit of sag. CRC refunded me the cost of it and I fitted the 150mm Brand-X (I'd already bought from them) This one is working fine but has massive amounts of rotational and front to rear bushing play.
* The red paint/decals are hella ugly. so I got rid of it (blacked out) and removed the red battery decals on mine and it looks much nicer.
* Suspension is all running very smoothly. I removed all tokens from the Lyrik to run less sag (personal pref). Stuck with the two tokens in the shock and progressivity is spot on. (85psi f, 205psi r, not that it's going to be relivant to most). One thing about the SuperDeluxe though. It really doesn't have a lot of low range to the rebound damping. If you like your rear rebound on the fast side you're going to be running it wide open.
*All frame pivots are running smoothly and all hardware has stayed tight. No bushing wear yet.
Headset has come loose a couple of times and the bar/stem/steerer have had the odd creak. All good with a re-adjust and tighten though.
The bike has had a couple of fairly epic crashes. an taken them well. only damage has been bent controller levers. which bent back easily and a scratch bar.
*rims are ding free and straight. I never run low pressures so rarely ding a rim but I do land sideways a fair bit.
* BB height is great. for an Emtb I was pleasantly surprised at this. it's not quite as low as my Capra (I'm running 26" wheels in that specifically to lower it) but pretty close. Unlike a lot of folk on here I won't be going to super short cranks though. I'm already really used to low BBs and still ride lots of different normal bikes with either 170 or 65mm cranks a lot so switching crank lengths by any more just doesn't appeal.
Motor problems. This needs a whole paragraph to itself...
* About 3 week ago on one ride the motor kept giving the E010 fault and shutting off. A clean of all the contacts at the battery and under the motor case solved this. I also re-adjusted the top battery mount as there was a little bit of play/free movement there. Thanks for that tip @R120
The Shimano motor hasn't all been plain sailing though...
* A few weeks into ownership I started hearing a creak from the BB/crank area which turned out to be the chainring lockring not being tight enough and allowing the ring to move on the spline. Tightened and all fime again. not long after this my L/H crank loosened (while climbing) and came clean off the axle. I replaced it on the trail and torqued the pinch bolts up nice and tightly and it did it again. When home I replaced the plastic shimano preload bolt (it's threads had been damaged while it ejected) with an Alloy one. Thread locked everything and it's not budged since.
* Somewhere around the 5-600mile mark the BB started to have a little play. (lurking) here I read that a small amount of play is considered normal.
Well since then the play has worsened. and the BB creaks like hell when pedalling. I've stopped riding the bike and contacted CRC so will jut have to wait until they get back to me.
Here's the video I sent CRC showing the play and creaking. it's just a phone video so sound isn't great but you should hear it if you turn it up.
Range:
for me elevation (rather than mileage is the defining factor in battery range)
I'm still able to get somewhere between 4000-4700ft of (fireroad) climbing out of one battery depending on the gradients if I do the entire ride in boost. (steeper singletrack or soft conditions will take that down by as much as around 25-30%)
flatter rides range is massive. I tend to pedal above the 15mph (it's more like 14.3 TBF) assist quite a bit on the flat and if riding with non Ebike riders I switch the motor off completely. Recently did a 20mile (3500ft) mainly off-piste ride at Ae forest with a mate on a normal bike and finished the ride just as the first battery light went out. and that was because I boosted the last climbs (some of Ae is built/designed really badly when it comes to flow, and boost an Emtb sorts that out to some degree)
I have tried sticking to eco for whole rides and it still sort of defeats the purpose for me.
Emtb ownership.
I keep hearing that Ebikes get you fit, or even fitter than normal bikes. I suppose if you didn't ride bikes at all or rarely did before you bought an Ebike this might be true but If you're a fit rider who already rides a lot this is complete nonsense. In the first couple of months of owning mine I rode it way more than any of my other bikes and I put on half a stone (because I was still eating exactly the same, riding the same amount of time but burning far less calories while doing so on the climbs). since owning the Vitus I've also lost a little endurance fitness (from neglecting my roadbike) and also lost a little sprinting power. On the plus side. I became far stronger (upperbody and core). My DH bike actually felt far too light and kinda unstable for most of the first day out in the alps until I got back properly acquainted with it. After that it felt awesome and so easy to throw around compared to before spending so much time on the Ebike.
My Vitus has also now become my pub bike. I've always used a hardtail for going to the local and wobbling up the mile long hill home afterwards, arriving home a sweaty mess was never an enjoyable experience.
All in all it's The Vitus E-sommet is an absolutely awesome bike. and ridiculous value. I won't be riding mine for a wee while but I'm making up for it riding all my other normal bikes. Which are also all awesome.
I'm back. (Thanks @Rob Hancill for sorting out my log in issues)
Quick report on my E-Sommet.
It''s a little over 3 months old now.
Have now done around 800miles on it and somewhere around 230000ft of descending (and climbing, but who cares about that?
).Still running the same chain and it's running abslutely fine. Chain measures pretty much exactly the same wear rate as the SRAM chain on my YT Capra which has done 500 miles (in very mixed conditions, The Sommet has seen more dry weather). So as I expected. Chain wear isn't the massive problem so many Ebikers told me it would be.
Still running the Minion 2.4 DHF/ 2.3 SS Exo tyre combo I fitted a week after getting the bike. pretty much zero wear on the front. a tiny bit worn on the centre tread of the rear SS. No punctures. So again there's no extra wear on tyres using an Ebike. and absolutely no need to go over a 2.5 tyre. (My DH times are slightly faster now on this bike than my Capra - mainly because I've been descending so much more on it)
I'm still on the original set of brake pads (about half way worn, and lever feel is still great with hardly any extra throw) . And can't fault the Guide REs. I have Guide RS on two other bikes and the REs are way better. I wished I'd had them out in the Alps on my DH bike a few weeks back. I hadn't realised until speaking with a mechanic over there that the RE is basically an RS lever mated with a Code caliper. Something a lot of DH riders used to do for ultimate stoping power and performance.
So again. Ebikes don't go through brake pads any more quickly than normal bikes.
Issues/non issues worth mentioning:
* During the first few weeks of ownership I'd get the E013 error and have to switch off/on. this was due to the wheel magnet rotating. it prety much always did it if I whiped a jump and landed a little too sideways. The magnet nut was tight. What was actuallt happening was the entire spoke was rotating under compression. (a problem with straight pull spokes. To fix this I removed the spoke, cleaned the eyelets and threadlocked the nipple and the head and re-tensioned the spoke. It seems to have worked fairly well. Still wish I could get hold of a Lapierre spoke magnet though (attaches between two spokes rather than one)
* the seat tube on the E-Somet is not reamed deep enough for me to fit a 170mm dropper. not an issuel for descending in the slightest but I do like my saddle as far out of the way while manualling as possible. (a hang up/old habit from riding BMX/Dirtjump bikes)
* The OEM Brand-X dropper developed a tiny bit of sag. CRC refunded me the cost of it and I fitted the 150mm Brand-X (I'd already bought from them) This one is working fine but has massive amounts of rotational and front to rear bushing play.
* The red paint/decals are hella ugly. so I got rid of it (blacked out) and removed the red battery decals on mine and it looks much nicer.
* Suspension is all running very smoothly. I removed all tokens from the Lyrik to run less sag (personal pref). Stuck with the two tokens in the shock and progressivity is spot on. (85psi f, 205psi r, not that it's going to be relivant to most). One thing about the SuperDeluxe though. It really doesn't have a lot of low range to the rebound damping. If you like your rear rebound on the fast side you're going to be running it wide open.
*All frame pivots are running smoothly and all hardware has stayed tight. No bushing wear yet.
Headset has come loose a couple of times and the bar/stem/steerer have had the odd creak. All good with a re-adjust and tighten though.
The bike has had a couple of fairly epic crashes. an taken them well. only damage has been bent controller levers. which bent back easily and a scratch bar.
*rims are ding free and straight. I never run low pressures so rarely ding a rim but I do land sideways a fair bit.
* BB height is great. for an Emtb I was pleasantly surprised at this. it's not quite as low as my Capra (I'm running 26" wheels in that specifically to lower it) but pretty close. Unlike a lot of folk on here I won't be going to super short cranks though. I'm already really used to low BBs and still ride lots of different normal bikes with either 170 or 65mm cranks a lot so switching crank lengths by any more just doesn't appeal.
Motor problems. This needs a whole paragraph to itself...
* About 3 week ago on one ride the motor kept giving the E010 fault and shutting off. A clean of all the contacts at the battery and under the motor case solved this. I also re-adjusted the top battery mount as there was a little bit of play/free movement there. Thanks for that tip @R120
The Shimano motor hasn't all been plain sailing though...
* A few weeks into ownership I started hearing a creak from the BB/crank area which turned out to be the chainring lockring not being tight enough and allowing the ring to move on the spline. Tightened and all fime again. not long after this my L/H crank loosened (while climbing) and came clean off the axle. I replaced it on the trail and torqued the pinch bolts up nice and tightly and it did it again. When home I replaced the plastic shimano preload bolt (it's threads had been damaged while it ejected) with an Alloy one. Thread locked everything and it's not budged since.
* Somewhere around the 5-600mile mark the BB started to have a little play. (lurking) here I read that a small amount of play is considered normal.
Well since then the play has worsened. and the BB creaks like hell when pedalling. I've stopped riding the bike and contacted CRC so will jut have to wait until they get back to me.
Here's the video I sent CRC showing the play and creaking. it's just a phone video so sound isn't great but you should hear it if you turn it up.
Range:
for me elevation (rather than mileage is the defining factor in battery range)
I'm still able to get somewhere between 4000-4700ft of (fireroad) climbing out of one battery depending on the gradients if I do the entire ride in boost. (steeper singletrack or soft conditions will take that down by as much as around 25-30%)
flatter rides range is massive. I tend to pedal above the 15mph (it's more like 14.3 TBF) assist quite a bit on the flat and if riding with non Ebike riders I switch the motor off completely. Recently did a 20mile (3500ft) mainly off-piste ride at Ae forest with a mate on a normal bike and finished the ride just as the first battery light went out. and that was because I boosted the last climbs (some of Ae is built/designed really badly when it comes to flow, and boost an Emtb sorts that out to some degree)
I have tried sticking to eco for whole rides and it still sort of defeats the purpose for me.
Emtb ownership.
I keep hearing that Ebikes get you fit, or even fitter than normal bikes. I suppose if you didn't ride bikes at all or rarely did before you bought an Ebike this might be true but If you're a fit rider who already rides a lot this is complete nonsense. In the first couple of months of owning mine I rode it way more than any of my other bikes and I put on half a stone (because I was still eating exactly the same, riding the same amount of time but burning far less calories while doing so on the climbs). since owning the Vitus I've also lost a little endurance fitness (from neglecting my roadbike) and also lost a little sprinting power. On the plus side. I became far stronger (upperbody and core). My DH bike actually felt far too light and kinda unstable for most of the first day out in the alps until I got back properly acquainted with it. After that it felt awesome and so easy to throw around compared to before spending so much time on the Ebike.
My Vitus has also now become my pub bike. I've always used a hardtail for going to the local and wobbling up the mile long hill home afterwards, arriving home a sweaty mess was never an enjoyable experience.
All in all it's The Vitus E-sommet is an absolutely awesome bike. and ridiculous value. I won't be riding mine for a wee while but I'm making up for it riding all my other normal bikes. Which are also all awesome.
inwoods
Active member
Hi all, ordered the poverty spec one yesterday (is that our unofficial name for it? ), looking forward to it arriving and I see a few people are local (I'm near Blackpool) so we will have to meet up for a ride, love all the info here.
), looking forward to it arriving and I see a few people are local (I'm near Blackpool) so we will have to meet up for a ride, love all the info here.Hi all, ordered the poverty spec one yesterday (is that our unofficial name for it?
Poverty spec? How dare you sir!!
inwoods
Active member
Mine came so some thoughts for anyone who reads this before purchasing like I did.
It took 7 days from ordering to arriving, the tracking number didnt work until a few hours before delivery.
The 20" is a perfect size for me at 6ft2", it says it will fit up to 6ft7" but I'm not sure about that, the dropper post goes all the way down on the 20".
Order some pedals while ordering the bike if you don't have any, the included ones are 50p shop quality, I knew they wouldn't be good but couldn't believe how bad they are, probably the cheapest pedals I've ever seen, I didnt have any spare so had to use them, there already bent and outta shape after a few hours and they hold no grip at all.
If your a big guy like me (18 stone) and are worried about how well the motor will pull dont be, it pulls like a train, real strong motor.
I went straight out on mine while the battery was charging to see what it was like without the motor, it rides like a normal bike, if there is any extra drag I don't notice it (something that worried me), I cant feel the extra weight of the bike either its really well balanced.
I did 14 mile in 2 hours yesterday at Gisburn forest (the 8 red), half eco half boost and had around half a battery left when I got back, it took 2 hours to top back up, apparently a full charge from empty is 5 hours.
I've never really had any top end bikes so cant really say how good the bike is, I come from a voodoo canzo so that's all I can compare it too, its obviously a lot better, the extra travel is awesome, while flying through Gisburn forest, it just plows through or over everything, it jumps like a normal bike and feels so stable and strong, cant wait to get out on it again now, worth every penny and then some.
It took 7 days from ordering to arriving, the tracking number didnt work until a few hours before delivery.
The 20" is a perfect size for me at 6ft2", it says it will fit up to 6ft7" but I'm not sure about that, the dropper post goes all the way down on the 20".
Order some pedals while ordering the bike if you don't have any, the included ones are 50p shop quality, I knew they wouldn't be good but couldn't believe how bad they are, probably the cheapest pedals I've ever seen, I didnt have any spare so had to use them, there already bent and outta shape after a few hours and they hold no grip at all.
If your a big guy like me (18 stone) and are worried about how well the motor will pull dont be, it pulls like a train, real strong motor.
I went straight out on mine while the battery was charging to see what it was like without the motor, it rides like a normal bike, if there is any extra drag I don't notice it (something that worried me), I cant feel the extra weight of the bike either its really well balanced.
I did 14 mile in 2 hours yesterday at Gisburn forest (the 8 red), half eco half boost and had around half a battery left when I got back, it took 2 hours to top back up, apparently a full charge from empty is 5 hours.
I've never really had any top end bikes so cant really say how good the bike is, I come from a voodoo canzo so that's all I can compare it too, its obviously a lot better, the extra travel is awesome, while flying through Gisburn forest, it just plows through or over everything, it jumps like a normal bike and feels so stable and strong, cant wait to get out on it again now, worth every penny and then some.
Good lad, welcome to the club! That's my local trail centre too and it's great to be able to smash it round in 2 hours.
Once I dialled my suspension in it flew round there no probs on eco and boost.
No major issue with mine apart from the magnet moving down the spoke so the motor turned itself off.
It's a really great bike and is more stable on the rough stuff thanks to the added weight.
Just make sure everything is tightened up correctly on it though.
Martin who has one had his right hand crank arm fall off mid ride, night mare!
Once I dialled my suspension in it flew round there no probs on eco and boost.
No major issue with mine apart from the magnet moving down the spoke so the motor turned itself off.
It's a really great bike and is more stable on the rough stuff thanks to the added weight.
Just make sure everything is tightened up correctly on it though.
Martin who has one had his right hand crank arm fall off mid ride, night mare!
inwoods
Active member
Cheers Pete, Ill make sure I have a good check over it before my next outing, I haven't been punished for not carrying tools yet but saw a lad with a snapped chain up there yesterday which made me start thinking about putting a small kit together.
My magnet kept on twisting around, I remember reading on here about putting some thread lock on the spoke so I need to do that, also my bars did end up been slightly off centre half way around but I only tightened them up with the included multi tool which fell apart while doing it so that reminds me to do that.
A mate took me to Gisburn a few years ago and I loved it but just didnt have the stamina to enjoy it properly so never went back, soon as I ordered this I knew it would be first place Id be going, thats the beauty of ebikes you can still enjoy the tougher stuff with a bit of help and get the stamina built up.
My magnet kept on twisting around, I remember reading on here about putting some thread lock on the spoke so I need to do that, also my bars did end up been slightly off centre half way around but I only tightened them up with the included multi tool which fell apart while doing it
so that reminds me to do that.A mate took me to Gisburn a few years ago and I loved it but just didnt have the stamina to enjoy it properly so never went back, soon as I ordered this I knew it would be first place Id be going, thats the beauty of ebikes you can still enjoy the tougher stuff with a bit of help and get the stamina built up.
Any idea if/when a new batch of Vitus are going to be released for sale?
I emailed them about this and I got a reply saying they don't have anymore of the 2018 stock available. The 2019 stock is coming out in September time....
thanks Mate
That would have been me.
It's not a fool proof fix.The hub is straight pull so the spoke can rotate under compression at the rim eyelets and the hub flange independently of the spoke threads.
I put threadlock on the spoke threads, inside the nipple, on the base of the nipple AND around the head of the spoke inside the hub spoke hole.
something stronger than loctite 242 would be better, but it's all I had to hand at the time.
inwoods
Active member
Any update on the crank problems you have been having Gary ?
Hi @inwoods It's now been over 2 weeks since I contacted CRC about the problem and my bike is still here boxed awaiting collection.
I waited in yesterday for the courier arranged by email with CRC only to be told late in the afternoon that because of the Lithium ion battery they are now using a specialist courier to collect it on Monday. I still have no confirmation from the courier of this.
What's really annoying is that they shouldn't need the battery and this should have been realised from the start.I offered to remove the motor and just send that but CRC insist they need the whole bike. to "test" *sigh*
I've spoken to 2 local Shimano service centres in Edinburgh and a mechanic from CRC and we all agree the main BB bearing is most likely to be the problem. Unfortunately this means the motor unit has to go back to Shimano.
Communication on the whole from CRC has been pretty terrible.Let's hope Shimano are slightly better.
I waited in yesterday for the courier arranged by email with CRC only to be told late in the afternoon that because of the Lithium ion battery they are now using a specialist courier to collect it on Monday. I still have no confirmation from the courier of this.
What's really annoying is that they shouldn't need the battery and this should have been realised from the start.I offered to remove the motor and just send that but CRC insist they need the whole bike. to "test" *sigh*
I've spoken to 2 local Shimano service centres in Edinburgh and a mechanic from CRC and we all agree the main BB bearing is most likely to be the problem. Unfortunately this means the motor unit has to go back to Shimano.
Communication on the whole from CRC has been pretty terrible.Let's hope Shimano are slightly better.
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