Converting Vado 4 to Mountain Bike

[Decho]

Having just taking delivery of my almost brand new 2022 Turbo Vado I am now wondering what to do with my 2020 Vado. It is such a fine bike as well. We have a place in Fuerteventura and I’d would quite like to have an ebike out there but the terrain is a little more rugged than the cycle paths and road I use in the UK. I have 2 choices, either ruggedise the Vado 4 to cope with rough tracks and sand, or sell it and buy en ETB. I‘ve looked at the Decathalon Rockrider EST 900 which gets very good reviews and I can get one in Lanzarote Decatahalon. I’ve also looked at a Trek Powderly 4 which I can buy in my local town, this also looks a good bike, but quite expensive.
Alternative is to ship my ebike out Ryanair (minus battery) and have the battery shipped out by a specialist courier, which costs about £150. I. Just wondering how I can adapt my Vado to be suitable for a More rugged type of terrain, best tyres, maybe replace the mudguards and anything else that needs done.
Interested to hear people’s views On my options.
thanks

 

[PedalUma]

Interesting. I customize electric bikes in Northern California, the birthplace of mountain bikes. Take a look at Schwalbe MTB tires that will fit your frame. Also look into perhaps an 11-50 tooth group set with a long cage derailleur that has a clutch. The Box Prime Nine, 11-50 is one option. This will give you and improved overall range of gear options. I would drop it to a nine-speed for a more robust, thicker, chain. Nylon fenders work great on my Specialized eMTB. It has gravel tires and an air fork with a flared riser drop bar for changing up positions on longer rides. Gravel tires are nice for traction and for broken pavements. They also look nice.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Are you staying in the UK Decho and only go to Fuerteventura for some time? It would be a pity to let the Vado go to waste if you can still ride it in Britain.
If you plan to stay in Fuerteventura only temporarily, the Decathlon e-bike could be a good idea.

No ideas how you could ruggedise your Vado for that Spanish island.

 

[Decho]

Are you staying in the UK Decho and only go to Fuerteventura for some time? It would be a pity to let the Vado go to waste if you can still ride it in Britain.
If you plan to stay in Fuerteventura only temporarily, the Decathlon e-bike could be a good idea.

No ideas how you could ruggedise your Vado for that Spanish island.

Hi Stefan,
sorry I should have explained …we live in the UK but have a place in Fuerteventura and go back and forward all the time. I think I am going to do as you suggested as finding someone even to ship an ebike battery within the UK is VERY a difficult. The other issue is if I take my Vado out there and something goes wrong with it,I would then or Have to bring it back to the UK to get fixed. Better to sell it here and let someone else enjoy this wonderful machine. I just hope my 2022 model is just as good in the lovely red colour. It had my LBS check it over just in case and they said it’s in perfect condition…they said they could put it in their showroom and sell it as new.. At £2500 I think I’ve bagged myself a bargain!

 

[Decho]

Well, after much deliberation and a trip to Fuerteventura we were all set to buy a Rockrider EST 900. I even had discussions with them about warranty issues as the nearest Decathlon is on Lanzarote.
we decided to look locally to see if there were any good dealers in our town and found one who were super friendly and the upshot is we bought 2 MMR Kore 10 bikes. I had never heard of that brand..they are Spanish and highly rated over here, they use quality components and the Bosch Performance CX system with a 625Wh battery. Really nice bikes but I hadn’t realised just HOW quiet the Brose motor was relative to the Bosch.
In the end, having an LBS who you can turn to easily when you have a problem outweighed the fantastic value of the Decathlon product.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Well, after much deliberation and a trip to Fuerteventura we were all set to buy a Rockrider EST 900. I even had discussions with them about warranty issues as the nearest Decathlon is on Lanzarote.
we decided to look locally to see if there were any good dealers in our town and found one who were super friendly and the upshot is we bought 2 MMR Kore 10 bikes. I had never heard of that brand..they are Spanish and highly rated over here, they use quality components and the Bosch Performance CX system with a 625Wh battery. Really nice bikes but I hadn’t realised just HOW quiet the Brose motor was relative to the Bosch.
In the end, having an LBS who you can turn to easily when you have a problem outweighed the fantastic value of the Decathlon product.

What a fantastic outcome! Congratulations Decho! Many happy kilometres on your new MMRs!