Larry Ganz
Active Member
No problem. I usually just leave it in SPORT when off road (don't have eMTB update), because I see very small gains going up to TURBO mode from SPORT, and yet it's still quite powerful when I need it so I usually don't get stuck on easy and intermediate trails.
I can see where eMTB allowing up to 300% assist can come in handy at times if I was riding more difficult trails, while allowing the bike to throttle down the pedal assist when the rider isn't leaning hard on the pedals. When some people are riding difficult trails and leave it in TURBO the entire time, I can see where eMTB can save them some battery life when full power isn't needed.
On tarmac I'm usually okay with ECO and TOUR, unless I have a long steep climb ahead - then I bump it up for a short period until I can get my cadence up enough to maintain speed in TOUR if possible. If I had eMTB mode then I couldn't limit power assist to only 200% when 120% in TOUR isn't enough, so I'd worry about either losing range (vs SPORT) or about getting less of a workout because of the higher assist level.
I did notice recently that when I'm cruising on flat ground with the Powerfly 7, at 40rpm in top gear in ECO or TOUR mode, that I don't have to push very hard on the pedals - but then I encounter a mild climb where kicking the assist up to TURBO (from SPORT) can't always prevent me from having to shift down to a lower gear for a higher cadence.
Low-end power in top gear is pretty good, until I have to climb a grade that's more than 3-4%. Then I find it's required to down-shift from top gear to achieve a higher cadence to power through it, even in TURBO mode. The Bosche really sings at higher RPM (guessing 60-90RPM), regardless of assist level. But at 20MPH in top gear, sometimes the cadence isn't high enough to get max power for steep climbs.
For instance, at 20MPH in top gear I encounter many steep hills that are too difficult to maintain that speed in TURBO, even when standing and mashing on the pedals as hard as I can. I'll see my speed drop from 20 > 19 >18 > 16 and I'll have to downshift just to keep it going at 14-15MPH at 60-90RPM without losing even more speed.
On the other hand, in the lower gears the Bosche isn't very cadence sensitive, and it does fine with wide range of RPMS (maybe from 40-90 for me). In 1st gear I can still lug the bike down to 40rpm and crawl up a steep hill in TURBO like a tractor, because the lower gears are torque multipliers.
But in the highest gears it really seems to lose power when you climb a grade more than just a few degrees, no matter how much assist you select. I imagine these charts for measured power were in a lower torque multiplying gear ratio.