Specialized Turbo Creo 28mph Electric Road Bike

[SwiftySanders]

The Garmin is clearly superior in terms of features and function compared to the bare bones Mission Control App. I just prefer the simplicity of the phone app.

For me the only reason I am using a Garmin is to give my phone battery a break.

 

[FlatSix911]

I use a Click Stand. It can be custom fit for virtually any bike and is particularly great for carbon frames. I stow mine alongside the bottle cage in a modified ToPeak side mount bracket purchased from the vendor. Tom Nostrant is the principal behind the company and is really good to work with. A better view of the stand can be seen in the second image. Depending on the camera angle, one can create the illusion that the bike is standing on its own.

http://www.click-stand.com/

Great idea on the Click Stand... thanks for sharing.

 

[abercrombie]

I have a similar carbon fiber kick stand called the "Corki kick stand" but only for my 18lb analog bike. It also has a holder that attaches to the cup holder but the weight of a 30lb Creo would be a risky endeavour.

 

[Prairie Dog]

Great idea on the Click Stand... thanks for sharing.

Glad to share. Being fabricated from aircraft aluminum, the stands are strong and quite sturdy. Two bungee brake bands are also included with each stand and are used to depress either front/rear or both brakes so as to prevent the bike from moving from its stationary position.

 

[RMK!]

I was going to do the 45 mile ride today to test Eco mode but ended up using the smart ride feature on a truncated 32 mile ride. 30-35 miles seems to be my current sweet spot and despite my intended easy pace, I ended up with a 20mph average with a cadence of 72 rpm. Just can't get over the need to quickly pass any cyclist I come across. I imagine many hate my battery powered guts ... ;-)

 

[Prairie Dog]

I was going to do the 45 mile ride today to test Eco mode but ended up using the smart ride feature on a truncated 32 mile ride. 30-35 miles seems to be my current sweet spot and despite my intended easy pace, I ended up with a 20mph average with a cadence of 72 rpm. Just can't get over the need to quickly pass any cyclist I come across. I imagine many hate my battery powered guts ... ;-)

Glad to know that you that were able to get out and ride. It's been raining here all day and the forecast for tomorrow doesn't look much better. Our recent warm fall appears to be coming to an end. Wonder how many cyclists realize they are being passed by an e-biker. Decent stats btw!

 

[mikemcm]

Got my wife the turbo creo sl expert in May as her secondary bike for gravel rides with me. 981km, 8 charges, 122km per charge. She rides at 25/25 Eco, 35/35 Sport, 70/70 Turbo. Longest ride has been 70km with ~1000m of vertical. Always lots of battery left. I love it for head winds. She goes in turbo and I kick in behind.

 

[Prairie Dog]

Got my wife the turbo creo sl expert in May as her secondary bike for gravel rides with me. 981km, 8 charges, 122km per charge. She rides at 25/25 Eco, 35/35 Sport, 70/70 Turbo. Longest ride has been 70km with ~1000m of vertical. Always lots of battery left. I love it for head winds. She goes in turbo and I kick in behind.

Whoa! Gorgeous fall colors. My wife has the Creo Comp Carbon and it's inspired her to ride with me more often. We recently rode a section of road in Clearwater Country and were amazed at the scenery. Hah, can't believe I 'rode a road'!

 

[Drbike]

Thanks, great pics and they are nice looking bikes. What kind of mileage are you getting from a full battery? Yesterday, I depleted the main battery and a Range Extender in 48 miles riding mostly flat bike trails averaging slightly over 18mph. I rode in Sport Mode until I hit 12% battery and then it dropped the power level. I will try the same ride this week using ECO mode. At my age (69), 6'5" and 205lbs I don't expect the mileage younger, lighter, stronger riders get but I was expecting better mileage than that with 150% battery in Sport Mode.

At age 73 and 205 lbs I find my e-Bianchi able to subtract 20 years to my performance not 20 pounds. One must factor fitness and weight to our performance goals and always enjoy what we have left in our declining years. I’m currently rehabbing from my second knee replacement within two years after 38 years of bike touring. Ride on no matter what your ride.

 

[RMK!]

Although I have always enjoyed bike riding, it was never a serious hobby/sport for me. My height and very long legs made fitting a bike difficult and deterred me from getting more into biking. The XXL Creo is the first bike I have ridden that actually fits me.

Getting out into nature and getting exercise are my priorities. Needing to ride faster-farther is an unfortunate personality trait that I need to try and overcome. I want biking to help me stay fit and avoid medical interventions, not be a causality. My wife is a very smart woman (Nurse Practitioner with her PhD) and she has a Rules of Medicine saying that goes " Air goes in and out, blood goes round and round, stay away from surgeons ...

 

[abercrombie]

Anyone remove the bar end plug? I unscrewed and pulled and even used a plastic pry tool but it just doesn't want to go.
EDIT: Nevermind, I was able to remove it with some effort.

 

[abercrombie]

Turbo Vado SL 4.0 EQ conversion to drop bar, spotted on the Facebook Turbo Vado SL group.

 

[abercrombie]

What's the difference between a Vado SL with a drop bar and a Creo? Is it that the Creo costs more money?

Yea probably the low entry price for the aluminum models. The guy said he got it used for 3k, then did a gravel conversion including tubeless and GRX Di2 resulting in a 33lbs bike. It's probably still under the price of the lowest aluminum Creo model.

 

[itsmel]

What's the difference between a Vado SL with a drop bar and a Creo? Is it that the Creo costs more money?

The Creo is a fairly high end road bike with an added assist motor, while the Vado SL is more of a town bike with an assist motor. The frame materials are different; the geometries are different; the forks are different; the components are different; and most importantly, how they are designed to be ridden is different. Putting drop bars on the Vado SL makes it superficially look more like a Creo, but it's certainly not going to ride the same. I'd also add the bike in that picture has had a good bit more modifications than just the addition of drop bars.

 

[jodi2]

What kind of mileage are you getting from a full battery? Yesterday, I depleted the main battery and a Range Extender in 48 miles riding mostly flat bike trails averaging slightly over 18mph. I rode in Sport Mode until I hit 12% battery and then it dropped the power level. I will try the same ride this week using ECO mode. At my age (69), 6'5" and 205lbs I don't expect the mileage younger, lighter, stronger riders get but I was expecting better mileage than that with 150% battery in Sport Mode.

You have the US version mit 28 mph? It's difficult to compare this with a US road Creo or with my german Creo Comp Evo with 16 mph limit. But I had a 28 mph Bosch speed pedelec similar to the Creo (but 10kg heavier) and my way to office is similar, both ways together about 49-50 miles with only 365 hm/1200 feet with 40% good forest paths and 60%. With maximum support I needed about 1000 Wh of battery with an average of maybe 20 mph. When I used lowest support/Eco, it was about 18 mph and 500 Wh, so like you. I still have a strong swiss Stromer speed pedelec where I can do the tour with an average speed of 22 mph, but then I need about 1600 Wh...
So I think your consumption is correct. Switch to Eco an you will double your range.

 

[Prairie Dog]

You have the US version mit 28 mph? It's difficult to compare this with a US road Creo or with my german Creo Comp Evo with 16 mph limit. But I had a 28 mph Bosch speed pedelec similar to the Creo (but 10kg heavier) and my way to office is similar, both ways together about 49-50 miles with only 365 hm/1200 feet with 40% good forest paths and 60%. With maximum support I needed about 1000 Wh of battery with an average of maybe 20 mph. When I used lowest support/Eco, it was about 18 mph and 500 Wh, so like you. I still have a strong swiss Stromer speed pedelec where I can do the tour with an average speed of 22 mph, but then I need about 1600 Wh...
So I think your consumption is correct. Switch to Eco an you will double your range.

The difference in speed restriction could explain the higher depletion rate RMK! is experiencing particularly in a higher consuming mode. In Canada, e-bikes are restricted to 32 kph (20 mph) compared to the 45 kph US versions.

 

[RMK!]

The difference in speed restriction could explain the higher depletion rate RMK! is experiencing particularly in a higher consuming mode. In Canada, e-bikes are restricted to 32 kph (20 mph) compared to the 45 kph US versions.

Yes, we have a 28 mph (45kph) limit but that makes that ebike a Class 3 which has more riding location restrictions. To be able to ride many bike trails in California it must be a Class 1 or Class 2 ebike. Class 2 ebikes have a power assist limit of 20 mph and can have more than a 750W motor. Class 1 ebikes have the same 20 mph speed restriction as Class 2 but cannot have a throttle e.g. ride without pedaling. If the Creo was speed limited to 20 mph (like Canada/Europe), they would be a Class 1.

 

[jodi2]

Europa has 16 mph limit for normal/unrestricted eBikes :-(
With main battery and extender under our limit here I could do maybe 250 miles like your trip in sport's mode. But not with 20-22 mph bit with maybe 16-18 mph (over 50 miles, not 250...) depending on my own effort. And without motor maybe 1 mph less, as I would pedal most of the time over the motor limit. So the motor support not very rewarding, I use the creo only for hilly tours.

 

[RMK!]

Europa has 16 mph limit for normal/unrestricted eBikes :-(
With main battery and extender under our limit here I could do maybe 250 miles like your trip in sport's mode. But not with 20-22 mph bit with maybe 16-18 mph (over 50 miles, not 250...) depending on my own effort. And without motor maybe 1 mph less, as I would pedal most of the time over the motor limit. So the motor support not very rewarding, I use the creo only for hilly tours.a Turbo Vs

Interesting ... thanks to all for the good input. I seem to be falling into a pattern of riding 3-4 times a week @ 25-45 miles per ride. Slowing down to an average of 15-17mph seems to extend the range to 60 miles with my 150% battery (Range Extender) setup. I like (need) the assist from Sport mode to make this ride enjoyable and still get the workout I want. I love the 28mph assist limit of the US setup Creo, but could live with a 20mph assist limit. I think a16 mph assist limit would make the rides more of a grind and rule out the Creo for my use case.

Coming from putting 2500 miles (in 6 months) on a 500W cadence assist ebike, the relatively low power assist levels of the Creo was surprising. My friend who works at Specialized mentioned that the power differential would be noticeable and he tried to steer me toward a Turbo Vado. I test rode both and preferred both the fit, handling and looks of the Creo. If I had been riding an acoustic road bike for the past months, I'm sure I would have a very different much more positive take on the Creo's power output.

I'm in Northern California and the weather allows for a riding season of at least 300 days/year. Having the Creo plus another more powerful long range ebike for off road and cruising with the wife is an ideal situation. I believe that ebikes are here to stay and I have created a number of converts by demoing my ebikes. In my experience, almost everyone who actually rides an ebike loves the experience but here, I'm preaching to the choir ...

 

[Deacon Blues]

I test rode a couple of Creos before the pandemic hit and I loved the bike. It felt like a slightly heavier version on my (now sold) 2016 Diverge. The only negatives for me were the location of the power levels button and a desire for more power on those really steep hills.