Mission Control-Smart Control, my experience (today)

[GuruUno]

I look at their Website and they offer lifetime warranty and support and they have awesome ebikes in their line up that will give Specialized a run for their money.
Just switch brand to stop your complaints on Specialized. If they offered to buy your ebikes, take the money and run.
Bulls never offered to buy my bike back, I'm on my 2nd Brose motor and this one developed a squeak the dealer has made a ticket for a new motor.

Unfortunately, to me, there are no better bikes, it's just that the parent company has horrible support.

 

[GuruUno]

For those who wish to be up to speed regarding an initial Rider Care request placed on 6/19 via phone call as well as an online submittal.
The key point here is nobody knows the answer, nobody cares, nobody has a clue and that is all I am attempting to do here.....make the public aware that although the Specialized brand is a great brand, the associated support sucks.
Regardless, this is the unanswered request placed almost 2 weeks ago: (I'll make a video and post it next time it occurs)
Support reps open a "chat window" and do not get any solutions from others who are supposed to be knowledgeable.
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Does anyone have familiarity with why Smart Control won't "lock-in" with a pre-planned distance and slider control keeps springing back to 10%?
(bike on a full charge, 100%, prior to departure, seatbelt fastened )

(IF I were to open a request via Specialized Rider Care, you continue to have no clue, as I've asked similar questions in the past regarding Mission Control, then you say to contact the local bike shop, and then the local bike shop has no clue and do their own research and if they have an answer that works, great, but normally, nobody has any clues, we are on this journey together with only our firsthand experiences that others can share and contribute. Sad situation. Therefore, Rider Care wishes to "dismiss" me as a customer, because I’m told I ask too many questions and when faced with the inability to get a proper answer, I'm not supposed to complain. Now we all know that this is the reality of the way it is.) (sucky support)

HISTORY of past experiences proves that your support responses do not work. Nobody cares to follow up, not assist in resolving the issues.

I’m continuing to be a good customer and point out the issues./deficiencies that are evident, looking for solutions, not BS crap that does not resolve problems.

I’ve invested well over $25,000 in many models of the Specialized bikes……because I’m happy with the performance and in comparison, to the competition, it is by far the best.

However, my continued need to interface with the “in place” support system seems to be not acceptable by your ‘team’ because Nathan informs me that I ask too many questions.

Life dear sirs, life. You sell a product, you support it, and you don’t ignore the customer.

In conclusion, the question remains, why does Mission Control Smart Control not “lock in” when a distance is an input, it springs back to 10 miles.

 

[GuruUno]

OK, so Sunday my wife and I did a 28-mile ride on the D&R Canal from Frenchtown to Stockton and back.
We both have been experimenting with "Smart Control", and love it.
I use it exclusively now.
One caveat, as an example, is if I set the ride for say 25 miles and while riding I reach the 25-mile mark, the Smart Contol kicks out of its preset mode and drops to ECO. Even with 60+% remaining on the battery.
Not sure how to deal with that but learning.

 

[rayray]

All this talk about the new app and Smart Control motivated me to try the latter yesterday (with the Mission Control app, of course). I had tried the heart rate piece a year ago, and didn’t care for it, but this time I thought I’d try the distance setting.

I set it to 45 miles, 500 foot elevation gain (it was actually 900+, but I didn’t bother to check) and 40% battery remaining. It worked well in terms of assistance, though I did have to work harder at times than I would have using the assist modes freely. Unfortunately, the app disconnected at about 30 miles into the ride, due to a phone issue. However, it did appear to be on track to hit somewhere close to the targeted battery percentage.

I will say that I can stretch my battery out similarly without Smart Control, but only until I start getting tired. What Smart Control did was push me to work harder, as opposed to cranking up the assist. It was kind of like having a personal trainer along for the ride. Speaking of which, yesterday was leg day at the gym, so riding 40+ miles might not have been the smartest thing, but I’ll recover.

I’ll definitely try it again, as I want to determine if I can make a 100 mile ride with just one range extender. I expect it will require that I turn off the assistance at times, but I think I can do that with enough training.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I’ll definitely try it again, as I want to determine if I can make a 100 mile ride with just one range extender.

An SL e-bike? I think you might venture an 80-miler unless you plan riding unassisted for a long stretch of your trip.

The thing with the SC is as follows:
Smart Control uses a conservative range estimate first by providing too little assistance. As the Range Trend increases, Smart Control provides more and more assistance. However, whenever the Range Trend becomes negative, SC will reduce the assistance significantly.

In a scenario of one way trip with constant wind from a single direction, SC is predictable and trustworthy. On a loop ride with tailwind and headwind involved, one might get badly surprised if the return way were upwind.

I have found the SC unpredictable for long high mountain road trips when you need tons of assistance uphill but no assistance on descents.

For me, Smart Control is only useful in emergency situations such as I am on a limited battery charge but am confronted by a sudden need of a ride for a known distance.

 

[rayray]

An SL e-bike? I think you might venture an 80-miler unless you plan riding unassisted for a long stretch of your trip.

The thing with the SC is as follows:
Smart Control uses a conservative range estimate first by providing too little assistance. As the Range Trend increases, Smart Control provides more and more assistance. However, whenever the Range Trend becomes negative, SC will reduce the assistance significantly.

In a scenario of one way trip with constant wind from a single direction, SC is predictable and trustworthy. On a loop ride with tailwind and headwind involved, one might get badly surprised if the return way were upwind.

I have found the SC unpredictable for long high mountain road trips when you need tons of assistance uphill but no assistance on descents.

For me, Smart Control is only useful in emergency situations such as I am on a limited battery charge but am confronted by a sudden need of a ride for a known distance.

Yes, I’m probably being overly optimistic in even considering the possibility. But, I have to try! I’m working very hard at improving my fitness level (weight lifting with a trainer 4x weekly, along with either indoor cardio, hiking steep trails, or cycling, 4-5x per week), so maybe I’ll be able to do it. My goal is to get there by next July, so I have some time.

Riding an imperial century, maybe even twice on concurrent days, has been on my bucket list for a long time, and I’ll be 70 soon, so it may be now or never. In the end, I may abandon Smart Control, but I want to see how it compares to managing the battery on my own. The thing is, I think Smart Control might force some battery discipline, as it is otherwise quite easy to bump up the assist level when it gets difficult.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

All the best, Ray! Make your dream come true!