Specialized Turbo Vado SL: An Incredible E-Bike (User Club)

[Stefan Mikes]

My wife says she can hear me coming into the street from 30 yards away.

And that is when she is inside the house.

It's good to have a wife

 

[Darth_Vado]

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Love the battle scars. That's a bike that gets used!

(grammar edit)

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

My wife says she can hear me coming into the street from 30 yards away.

And that is when she is inside the house.

Wow, never thought of my SL as that loud!

Sure, I notice when I ride, but only half the time. Not welcome, and another reason to ride in OFF when that makes sense otherwise. But hardly oppressive.

The noise seems a small price to pay for a bike that's perfect for me in every other respect. Plan to ride it as long as my hills and knees will let me.

 

[BEC111]

I did it. I’m trading in my Vado SL1 Model 4EQ for a new Vado SL2 5. Got a really good trade in value making the purchase a no brainer and as many can attest, that’s my normal state. It”ll take a week and a half or two for delivery and assembly. Very exciting for this old man.

 

[Rás Cnoic]

I did it. I’m trading in my Vado SL1 Model 4EQ for a new Vado SL2 5. Got a really good trade in value making the purchase a no brainer and as many can attest, that’s my normal state. It”ll take a week and a half or two for delivery and assembly. Very exciting for this old man.

Wonderful. And it's such a great feeling.

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

I did it. I’m trading in my Vado SL1 Model 4EQ for a new Vado SL2 5. Got a really good trade in value making the purchase a no brainer and as many can attest, that’s my normal state. It”ll take a week and a half or two for delivery and assembly. Very exciting for this old man.

Congrats — very exciting indeed! If I may,

Q1. Is the SL 2 quieter?

Q2. You got that trade-in from a local Specialized dealer?

 

[BEC111]

Congrats — very exciting indeed! If I may,

Q1. Is the SL 2 quieter!

Q2. You got that trade-in from a local Specialized dealer?

I don’t have the bike yet. About two weeks for delivery and assembly at the LBS. I will share my impressions when I’ve gotten the bike. I think I’ll provide details then.

I bought it through a local Specialized dealer - Al’s Bike in Herndon VA - who arranged the trade-in through a partner dealer. (They’re an excellent shop, BTW.)

 

[Watana Bob]

My own observation: I have rented an SL5.0 in Hawaii on three different occasions and own and ride a turbo creo 2, I cannot discern a lot of difference in the motor wine when riding. The most noticeable in both motors to me was at lower cadence in eco mode. I don't use turbo enough to really remember well, but I don't recall it being exceptionally noisy. I never had both bikes side by side to do a comparison; I am just going off of memory from when I rented. I'm sure all motors probably are a little different and make slightly different wining noises.

 

[PedalUma]

FYI, Some bikes do not look electric, are open source, lighterweight, and outlast and out climb anything from Specialized.
Just saying. Oh, and non-proprietary external batteries are the only way to go. When the tech changes, so can you, easily. All for half the money. For San Francisco climbs she could pull 864 watts when needed, speed limited to 45 Kmph. On what is stamped a 500W motor.

Jane Dunlap
1 review


 Five Stars

4 months ago

PedalUma is wonderful. He created a fantastic custom e-bike for me.A few years ago,I decided to move on from a lot of my regular biking to e-biking due to some health issues,so I bought an off the racks e-bike. (Specialized) That e-bike was mostly a city & around town bike. But,I missed getting in to the dirt & wilds which mountain bike riding provides. After looking at the high price tags for a decent electric mountain bike, I decided to investigate transforming one of my old mountain bikes to an e-mtb. My search came up with him @ Pedaluma Bikes. He put together an amazing e-bike from a gravel bike he had, which fit me much better than my old mountain bike would have. He looked at every possible way to tweak the fit for my exact needs - for my body (which is a little less pliable these days) and for the terrain/environment I intend to use it. The display is very user friendly and gear changes are quite intuitive. It’s also very lightweight in comparison to my store bought city e-bike. So much easier for me to put on my rack! Oh,and it’s aesthetically a really nice looking bike,too. I highly recommend getting in touch with him for an all around great bike! He’s also very responsive and super oriented to his customer’s needs.

 

[PedalUma]

Why anger? Some bike alternatives are better than others. That is the way it is.

 

[stompandgo]

I don’t have the bike yet. About two weeks for delivery and assembly at the LBS. I will share my impressions when I’ve gotten the bike. I think I’ll provide details then.

I bought it through a local Specialized dealer - Al’s Bike in Herndon VA - who arranged the trade-in through a partner dealer. (They’re an excellent shop, BTW.)

I am happy to hear that your dealer takes trade-ins. Ebay has made selling used e-bikes impossible. There are other outlets that we use at our shop, but many shops have chosen to not take trade-ins at all.

 

[PedalUma]

Bicycle Blue Book allows for trades and buying used bikes. They also give evacuations. https://www.bicyclebluebook.com/?srsltid=AfmBOopCqYifkoxvE8fKs7lv4imn9MK2Eu76QqoPL6YYnEl6RKVIL9pa

 

[Darth_Vado]

Bicycle Blue Book allows for trades and buying used bikes. They also give evacuations. https://www.bicyclebluebook.com/?srsltid=AfmBOopCqYifkoxvE8fKs7lv4imn9MK2Eu76QqoPL6YYnEl6RKVIL9pa

I'll remember this the next time a chemical tank near me is on the verge of exploding.