New Vado 4.0

Sefutau2020

Sefutau2020

Well-Known Member
Region
USA
City
Northern VA
I picked up my 2022 Specialized Vado 4 the other day, and was immediately stunned by the color. The red shown on the website does not do it justice. It is just a beautiful bike. I am not a fan of reflective (visible white line) stripping on the stock tires, so I had the LBS swap the stock tires for my go to favorite, Schwalbe Super Moto X. For a full powered ebike, this bike is easier to ride without assist, more so than my Trek 8s. The Mission control app and the new Mastermind TCD are spectacular. I even like the touch screen. Honestly, Specialized just does so many things right. With this bike, as with any bike that costs north of 3,000.00 dollars US, you should be able to tune your motor the way you want, easily see the odometer, turn off your lights (without taking it to the shop), and updating the firmware. Even storing your rides is easy with the Mission Control app. I love the Bosch motor, but if I could only have one bike, and my choices were between the Treks 8s ($4500.00 US) vs the Specialized Vado 4 ($4,000.00 US)…..give me the Specialized bike. Even with the less powerful motor, you still get more for your money, if that makes sense. Specialized provides a nice case for your charger, instead of a flimsy cardboard box…..the little things. I even received a lanyard for the provided battery keys…nice touch. One last thing….the hype around Specialized bikes is not just hype…they are really that good.
 

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Congratulations! Now you know what the "quality" and "premium" really mean!
Sefutau2020 said:
The red shown on the website does not do it justice. It is just a beautiful bike.
Click to expand...
The website pictures never do justice to Specialized e-bikes seen live :)
1654885107511.png

My Vado as seen in the website photo...

1654885193870.png

...and in real life.
 
I've had my 2022 Vado 4 for five months now and it's been a dream. After a year (and 3800 miles) with my Aventon Level, which is a fantastic bike for the price, I decided to move up to a mid-drive bike with a more interactive and versatile user interface. I particularly like the continuous cadence display on the main screen as that's my primary metric for getting the most out of my rides. I've put on about 1900 miles since last March and I've had no warranty-related issues at all, but several flat tires. I've recently installed Tannus Tire Armour as I ride alone in pretty remote areas, so hopefully that one issue will be mostly resolved (fingers crossed!). I did upgrade the saddle to another Specialized model that's a bit more padded. I also swapped out the grips for more ergonomic ones with larger flanges for palm support. Finally, I added an MIK-compatible trunk bag from Basil. While the Specialized literature says the rear rack is MIK-ready, I still had to buy the extra mounting adapter plate to mount the bag securely. I do ride frequently in auto traffic and have added a rear view mirror and clamp-on lights that have flashing capabilities. I do wish the lights provided by Specialized had the capability to operate in a flashing mode for more visibility during the day. I will note that the recent Mission Control app update caused some issues but they seem to have worked out. Specifically, when viewing My Rides the maps did not appear after the update. After fiddling around several times with Location permissions on my phone, the maps started to appear again. Not really sure if it was something I did or if another update came through automatically. In any case all is well and I'm looking forward to many more miles of great rides. Here's a pic overlooking the South Platte River north of Denver along one of my favorite routes.

Vado bridge.jpg
 
Sefutau2020 said:
I picked up my 2022 Specialized Vado 4 the other day, and was immediately stunned by the color. The red shown on the website does not do it justice. It is just a beautiful bike. I am not a fan of reflective (visible white line) stripping on the stock tires, so I had the LBS swap the stock tires for my go to favorite, Schwalbe Super Moto X. For a full powered ebike, this bike is easier to ride without assist, more so than my Trek 8s. The Mission control app and the new Mastermind TCD are spectacular. I even like the touch screen. Honestly, Specialized just does so many things right. With this bike, as with any bike that costs north of 3,000.00 dollars US, you should be able to tune your motor the way you want, easily see the odometer, turn off your lights (without taking it to the shop), and updating the firmware. Even storing your rides is easy with the Mission Control app. I love the Bosch motor, but if I could only have one bike, and my choices were between the Treks 8s ($4500.00 US) vs the Specialized Vado 4 ($4,000.00 US)…..give me the Specialized bike. Even with the less powerful motor, you still get more for your money, if that makes sense. Specialized provides a nice case for your charger, instead of a flimsy cardboard box…..the little things. I even received a lanyard for the provided battery keys…nice touch. One last thing….the hype around Specialized bikes is not just hype…they are really that good.
Click to expand...
I agree...the red Vado is gorgeous. When I was shopping for my Vado last spring, I saw a red one in the shop but it was not in my size. In the end, when placed my order I decided on the Mountain White and love it. Both are beautiful!
 
The white does look awesome. I added Super Moto X tires for the puncture protection I need, and a Basil Trunk bag. The Vado 4 is a great bike, and fast. I ride in ECO mostly, yielding roughly 80 to 90 miles per charge.
 

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I love to see all the red colors, the tint isn't done justice unless it's viewed in the sunshine. I picked up mine last Thursday and unfortunately I haven't had a proper ability to put more than 50 or 60 miles on it so far with my schedule. Tomorrow I'm hoping to put a lot more miles on it before I go on a 2 weeks vacation without it. The tuning, the motor (the Brose on the Specialized), and the general Quality of Life and setup is really awesome. Everything came great and it is a treat to ride.
Thanks for the insight on the Basil bag, I was actually looking at that exact one. I have ordered some of the colored side panniers for now, and I think those, with the tote bags will work great. We have several stores around us that are only a couple miles away, so I'm excited to start doing some more commuting without a car.
 
That Basil trunk bag pictured on my white Vado actually has minimal panniers that unfold out of the side pockets. I didn't see that in the online description when I ordered it. I only have rare occasions to use them but it was a pleasant surprise.
 
JVD said:
That Basil trunk bag pictured on my white Vado actually has minimal panniers that unfold out of the side pockets. I didn't see that in the online description when I ordered it. I only have rare occasions to use them but it was a pleasant surprise.
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Some sites are better at listing them than others. I thought I saw the $160 ish bag had the panniers, while the <$100 bag did not come with them. I might still get that down the road for stuffing a cooler or some other goodies for. I have some koki panniers that are pretty poor quality in size and fitment, and I'm anxious to be rid of them.
 
Alpha Ice said:
Some sites are better at listing them than others. I thought I saw the $160 ish bag had the panniers, while the <$100 bag did not come with them. I might still get that down the road for stuffing a cooler or some other goodies for. I have some koki panniers that are pretty poor quality in size and fitment, and I'm anxious to be rid of them.
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Mine is the $100 model so that's why they were a surprise. I haven't actually used them yet as all of my riding is recreational 2-3 hour trips on paved urban trails and roads. They are simple nylon pouches so I'm not sure how useful they would be on a longer road trip. I like knowing they're available if I need them though.
 
After waiting about a year or more for an Allant+ 8, then watching Trek cancel it in Canada, I purchased a Turbo Vado 5.0 IGH. I couldn't be happier. It is such a superior bike to the Allant+ 8 and I am so glad I didn't purchase the Trek earlier. I've got to say that as someone who has been a Trek rider for over 20 years, Trek really disappointed me with their lack of stock and lack of responsiveness when inquiring about future product availability. Their commuter ebike options are also outdated by several years now, and Specialized has blown them out of the water with their 2022 offerings.
 
Nonlinear said:
After waiting about a year or more for an Allant+ 8, then watching Trek cancel it in Canada, I purchased a Turbo Vado 5.0 IGH. I couldn't be happier. It is such a superior bike to the Allant+ 8 and I am so glad I didn't purchase the Trek earlier. I've got to say that as someone who has been a Trek rider for over 20 years, Trek really disappointed me with their lack of stock and lack of responsiveness when inquiring about future product availability. Their commuter ebike options are also outdated by several years now, and Specialized has blown them out of the water with their 2022 offerings.
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I guess Trek is preparing to release a new series of commuter e-bikes based on the new Bosch Smart System. I might be wrong but that could explain the unavailability of the Allant+ and a long gap filled in by Specialized offerings (the new Mastermind or Gen 2 e-bikes released in Autumn 2021, just when Bosch announced the advent of the Smart System).
 
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