Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
Specialized Test Days (Specialized Warsaw): Turbo Tero X 4.0
As I was waiting for my turn to get the Tero X, my close friend Jerzy arrived with his bike. We needed to ride together at a rather low speed but I asked my friend for forgiveness twice and accelerated the Tero X to the Euro limit of 25 km/h to discover the e-bike property properly. Note: Tero X is fully equipped: Fenders, rear rack, and lighting.
'Jerzy, find me a singletrack in this Forest. The best full of tree roots!' and he found one
Turbo Tero X 4.0. Full air suspension (Rock Shox), 12-speed drivetrain, SRAM brakes, a dropper seat-post, Ground Control T7 tyres. Even if it is the least expensive model of Tero X, it was missing nothing except the smallish 530 Wh battery. Even the weakest 2.0E motor was giving me too much power in the forest located in the flatland!
With Jerzy on a singletrack that soon became winding between the trees, full of tree-roots, and more and more complicated
Impressions
Drive-train and brakes
The drivetrain was perfect with crisp shifting, only I had to get used to the SRAM "push the lever" concept of upshifting
The brakes had immense stopping power. At some moment, I braked hard, and the Tero X just stopped immediately! (I had to dismount it to not fall over as I am not used to the instant dropping my body with the dropper seat-post).
Ride Comfort and Handling
Nothing short of! The e-bike was totally isolating me from the riding surface. Riding through tree-roots was just a pleasure! The e-bike was extremely responsive and handled well. Once, I rode into something that looked as a shallow dry ditch, and the Tero X brought me through the obstacle as any e-MTB would!
Tyres
The Ground Control T7 tyres felt as if they were giving me the perfect command of the e-bike on rough surfaces. I was tempted to ride onto a tree-root parallel to the ride direction to test the tyre property but why to take the risk?
Surprisingly, the tyres were not too loud on the pavement but of course audible.
Electronics
I was just delighted with the information I was getting on the Mastermind display!
Motor performance
The 2.0E motor is just 50 Nm. As the ride was almost on the flat (with one harder and several delicate climbs on the outwards leg of the trip), I was never missing the motor power. On contrary, I felt the 35/35% assistance was too strong for my needs!
Of course, I might need a stronger motor for mountain climbs but given the mountain 10-51T gearing and a 38T chainring, even that might not be necessary! The motor was almost totally silent!
On two occasions, I just pedalled harder (saying 'Forgive me...' to Jerzy!) and instantly was at 25 km/h speed limit in the forest!
Weight
I'm sorry but that is the single deal breaker for me. The e-bike with only 530 Wh battery was as heavy as I barely could lift it off the ground! Fancy you meet a fallen tree on your trail. How do you carry your Tero X over the obstacle?
The Verdict
An excellent SUV e-bike for anyone who wants to ride in the city and often visit easier offroad trails. Certainly not a technical singletrack thing! I have doubt as to the maximum speed on the pavement. While no issue with 25 km/h, do not think you could pedal the thing at Class 3 speed! And that heavy weight...
P.S. 11 km ridden.
As I was waiting for my turn to get the Tero X, my close friend Jerzy arrived with his bike. We needed to ride together at a rather low speed but I asked my friend for forgiveness twice and accelerated the Tero X to the Euro limit of 25 km/h to discover the e-bike property properly. Note: Tero X is fully equipped: Fenders, rear rack, and lighting.
'Jerzy, find me a singletrack in this Forest. The best full of tree roots!' and he found one
Turbo Tero X 4.0. Full air suspension (Rock Shox), 12-speed drivetrain, SRAM brakes, a dropper seat-post, Ground Control T7 tyres. Even if it is the least expensive model of Tero X, it was missing nothing except the smallish 530 Wh battery. Even the weakest 2.0E motor was giving me too much power in the forest located in the flatland!
With Jerzy on a singletrack that soon became winding between the trees, full of tree-roots, and more and more complicated
Impressions
Drive-train and brakes
The drivetrain was perfect with crisp shifting, only I had to get used to the SRAM "push the lever" concept of upshifting
Ride Comfort and Handling
Nothing short of! The e-bike was totally isolating me from the riding surface. Riding through tree-roots was just a pleasure! The e-bike was extremely responsive and handled well. Once, I rode into something that looked as a shallow dry ditch, and the Tero X brought me through the obstacle as any e-MTB would!
Tyres
The Ground Control T7 tyres felt as if they were giving me the perfect command of the e-bike on rough surfaces. I was tempted to ride onto a tree-root parallel to the ride direction to test the tyre property but why to take the risk?
Electronics
I was just delighted with the information I was getting on the Mastermind display!
Motor performance
The 2.0E motor is just 50 Nm. As the ride was almost on the flat (with one harder and several delicate climbs on the outwards leg of the trip), I was never missing the motor power. On contrary, I felt the 35/35% assistance was too strong for my needs!
On two occasions, I just pedalled harder (saying 'Forgive me...' to Jerzy!) and instantly was at 25 km/h speed limit in the forest!
Weight
I'm sorry but that is the single deal breaker for me. The e-bike with only 530 Wh battery was as heavy as I barely could lift it off the ground! Fancy you meet a fallen tree on your trail. How do you carry your Tero X over the obstacle?
The Verdict
An excellent SUV e-bike for anyone who wants to ride in the city and often visit easier offroad trails. Certainly not a technical singletrack thing! I have doubt as to the maximum speed on the pavement. While no issue with 25 km/h, do not think you could pedal the thing at Class 3 speed! And that heavy weight...
P.S. 11 km ridden.
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