purdueboiler87
New Member
I have the Topeak Explorer Rack with a Topeak MTX Trunk Bag on my Como fine. Fenders on and no modifications needed to the bike.
Specialized Turbo Vado/Como/Tero/Tero X User Club
- Thread starter Stefan Mikes
- Start date
Not officially but I've read reports of two people who managed sucessfully to convert the Vado stock rims to tubeless. They used DT swiss valves.
Maybe the actual comparison chart of Specialized motors is helpful for somebody:
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Brendon@OEB
Well-Known Member
I prefer them a little narrower, I usually rest my elbows on the bars while just cruising, makes it a little easier to sit at max speed on the ride to work.
jenfeu
Member
Nice! I saw a photo of this setup in another thread - maybe yours? I'm going to see if my LBS has the Topeak Explorer. I want to be able to use some Deuter panniers I already have. I'll take them with me to make sure.
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Hi
Long time lurker, first time here.
I recently acquired a Turbo Vado 5.0, 2017/8 model with the BLOKS computer and rigid front forks.
What a machine. It's only done 1900km (although the previous owner obviously cared little for his paintwork!) and I have put 250km on it in a fortnight. Loving it. Great machine - one of the nicest bikes I have ever ridden.
Mine is a large and I am 182 cm tall and it is possibly marginal - I could have a medium with the seatpost set long - but it is what it is: the price was good! I may have to change bar height and/or stem reach but will take the bike in for proper fitting rather than just guess.
The BLOKS is a bit useless - I have of course discovered that it does not work with Mission Control and also that it does not actually seem to display all of what the manual says it should display. According to the manual, it should show battery range and a map but does neither. Perhaps there was some other app that it worked with to do that.
I made an enquiry of one bike shop about the TCD-W and was quoted about US$ equivalent 650 to get the parts. I have since found a better Specialized dealer that immediately asked for the s/n and sent that to Specialized for advice. That seems a more reliable way of dealing with it.
Overall, I think it is a great machine and would buy another in a heartbeat if anything happened to this one.
EDIT - update. Almost as soon as I posted this, I had an email from the Specialized dealer who said that Specialized are sending them the computer replacement kit free of charge and all I need is to pay the labour for installation, so that is a result!
Long time lurker, first time here.
I recently acquired a Turbo Vado 5.0, 2017/8 model with the BLOKS computer and rigid front forks.
What a machine. It's only done 1900km (although the previous owner obviously cared little for his paintwork!) and I have put 250km on it in a fortnight. Loving it. Great machine - one of the nicest bikes I have ever ridden.
Mine is a large and I am 182 cm tall and it is possibly marginal - I could have a medium with the seatpost set long - but it is what it is: the price was good! I may have to change bar height and/or stem reach but will take the bike in for proper fitting rather than just guess.
The BLOKS is a bit useless - I have of course discovered that it does not work with Mission Control and also that it does not actually seem to display all of what the manual says it should display. According to the manual, it should show battery range and a map but does neither. Perhaps there was some other app that it worked with to do that.
I made an enquiry of one bike shop about the TCD-W and was quoted about US$ equivalent 650 to get the parts. I have since found a better Specialized dealer that immediately asked for the s/n and sent that to Specialized for advice. That seems a more reliable way of dealing with it.
Overall, I think it is a great machine and would buy another in a heartbeat if anything happened to this one.
EDIT - update. Almost as soon as I posted this, I had an email from the Specialized dealer who said that Specialized are sending them the computer replacement kit free of charge and all I need is to pay the labour for installation, so that is a result!
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Art Deco
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Selinsgrove Pennsylvania
Congrats on what sounds like a good bike and good lbs. You are off to a great start this summer...
Got to get through winter first - it is 5 degrees and raining today!!
Sierratim
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Nevada City, CA & Paradise Valley, AZ
Congratulations! You'll enjoy the bike and the Mission Control app with the new display.
One question, at over 2,000km how does the chain look? Mid-drive motors put more wear and tear on the chain than you might expect. I changed mine at 1,600km and everything is still working great. I also do reasonable chain cleaning and lube every 500 km or so. Others have reported waiting until over 3,000km without regular chain maintenance and then having to replace the chain and main chain ring to correct shifting issues.
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
Congratulations @Kiwimac! I own exactly the same bike, only mine is Step-Through size M. I believe it was the best model-year for the Vado (minus the BLOKS display). You'll fall in love with your Vado! What colour? Please post some photos!
The best news is you'll get the TCD-W upgrade. That will make your Vado actually the 2020 model (minus the suspension fork; and the motor is different). You'll be delighted, I promise you. Things to take care of:
All the best!
The best news is you'll get the TCD-W upgrade. That will make your Vado actually the 2020 model (minus the suspension fork; and the motor is different). You'll be delighted, I promise you. Things to take care of:
- Together with the display replacement, request full servicing of the bike. With that many kilometres on, the chain would certainly need to be replaced, and most probably the cassette, too. Take that seriously, as negligence might lead to the chainring damage (you don't want that). Let the LBS inspect the brake pads, too; and perhaps the hydraulic lines need to be bleeded.
- A simple A-HEAD compatible stem riser will do the work. Bear in mind that after the electronics upgrade, the cable slack might be rather tight, so you might not be able to utilise the full 75 or 80 mm of the riser height. Use a spacer of the riser to set the handlebars at proper height.
- Ask the LBS to apply software updates not only to the motor but also to the battery.
- After you have your bike upgraded to the TCD-W, use Mission Control to inspect the battery health. If healthy, no worries (she'll be fine). If degraded, order a new UI-600 battery via the LBS. It is US$900 equivalent but you want to ride your bike for several years to come.
All the best!
Art Deco
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Selinsgrove Pennsylvania
Sorry about that. Kiwimac. Didn't notice the hemisphere.
Sierratim
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Nevada City, CA & Paradise Valley, AZ
@Stefan Mikes has made an excellent point re the bralee pads. They should be checked for wear. We live in a very hilly town. My front brake pads needed to be replaced at 800km. Riding on flatter routes yields better pad life but the cost to check is low. Riding with worn pads can damage the brake rotors requiring replacement and contribute to early brake failure.
Thanks - handy advice.
The chain looks fine to me and shifts cleanly but I will certainly ensure that they check it. The brakes were inspected shortly before sale and the rear pads replaced but again, I will have them checked. I never had a bike with discs before - wow, they are something to behold for someone who grew up with sidepulls!
The colour is a sort of matt grey colour. The previous owner seems to have been more careless with his paintwork than I would be but at least it won't rust. I will try and find some paint for touch ups if I can. It's not seriously dinged up at all but there are more marks on there than there would have been if it was my bike and only a couple of years old.
I have a Cane Creek ST Thudbuster seatpost for it that I will put on tomorrow and will post some pics when I have done that.
Overall the bike is great to ride. I did have one issue where all of a sudden I had no power assistance at all. I pulled over and removed/refitted the battery and wiggled the computer and all went back to normal so perhaps something was not quite pushed home. Once I get the fit sorted (it feels as though I have a bit much weight on my hands at the moment) and the service work done we have many more miles ahead.
I have really begun to think of it less as a 'bike' and more as an actual car alternative. I live in the countryside about 3km from the nearest village, so I need not contend with commuter traffic at all on my rides. I have an Ortleib pannier on the back and for small shopping trips or collecting the mail from the PO Box the bike is now my preferred alternative if the weather permits. I am not a martyr though so if it is really wet and wild, the Subaru gets the job instead!
My wife and I are going to ride the Otago Rail Trail next March which will be a fun ride, 30-40 kms per day through the hills and mountains. Looking forward to that.
I think the battery here is NZ$1200 which is a fairly big chunk of change for a battery.
The chain looks fine to me and shifts cleanly but I will certainly ensure that they check it. The brakes were inspected shortly before sale and the rear pads replaced but again, I will have them checked. I never had a bike with discs before - wow, they are something to behold for someone who grew up with sidepulls!
The colour is a sort of matt grey colour. The previous owner seems to have been more careless with his paintwork than I would be but at least it won't rust. I will try and find some paint for touch ups if I can. It's not seriously dinged up at all but there are more marks on there than there would have been if it was my bike and only a couple of years old.
I have a Cane Creek ST Thudbuster seatpost for it that I will put on tomorrow and will post some pics when I have done that.
Overall the bike is great to ride. I did have one issue where all of a sudden I had no power assistance at all. I pulled over and removed/refitted the battery and wiggled the computer and all went back to normal so perhaps something was not quite pushed home. Once I get the fit sorted (it feels as though I have a bit much weight on my hands at the moment) and the service work done we have many more miles ahead.
I have really begun to think of it less as a 'bike' and more as an actual car alternative. I live in the countryside about 3km from the nearest village, so I need not contend with commuter traffic at all on my rides. I have an Ortleib pannier on the back and for small shopping trips or collecting the mail from the PO Box the bike is now my preferred alternative if the weather permits. I am not a martyr though so if it is really wet and wild, the Subaru gets the job instead!
My wife and I are going to ride the Otago Rail Trail next March which will be a fun ride, 30-40 kms per day through the hills and mountains. Looking forward to that.
I think the battery here is NZ$1200 which is a fairly big chunk of change for a battery.
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
Same as mine, see post #1
That's the dreaded BLOKS display, I think. See if you can remove the display by turning it (anticlockwise I think). If that's not possible, there should be a tiny screw at the display base (pointing towards you). Remove the screw with the smallest Allen key and store safely. Now, the display can be removed. There is a small silver dot at the base of the display: it is the Reset button. Push it with the smallest Allen key for a longer while: the display will reset. Replace the display in its base.
I had suffered that for 7 months.... When your display is replaced with the TCD-W, no more worries.
I hope your battery is healthy. However, it might be, say, 80% good and that will reduce the range more and more until the battery gets unusable. I hope that's not the case. You'll have to buy a new battery some day anyway, so start saving for a new battery. Just saying. My battery was never activated as I got my 2017 Vado 5.0 as New Old Stock in 2019, never ridded before, so the battery was fresh. I have bought a new battery (with extra cover) anyway, rotate the batteries between my rides, have got very long range capabilities and know first the bike becomes obsolete before both batteries die
P.S. Here's how my 2017 Vado 5.0 (2020 electronics upgrade) looks on a 113 km/70 mi ride nowadays
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mikecoin56
Member
Just joined the Specialized Turbo Vado Como User Club when I picked up my Turbo Como 4 today. I was really surprised to see a couple things about the bike that I hadn't expected and were not like I saw in all of the reviews.
The light for the rear of the bike was not under the seat but attached to the rear fender. It was a Herrman's H-Trace mini.
Both the front and rear fenders had the rubber extensions on the bottom.
The light for the rear of the bike was not under the seat but attached to the rear fender. It was a Herrman's H-Trace mini.
Both the front and rear fenders had the rubber extensions on the bottom.
Welcome to the club and congrats for your (metal?) fenders. Maybe your Como wanted to be a Vado (which has the better fenders)?
I never ever had an issue with my BLOKS display during the last 2 years but I know of a number of issues the new TCD-W display had at the beginning.
So you probably would have suffered
anyway if they had converted your display to the TCD-W earlier.
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
It looks the fenders are the famous Dry-Tech ones, the same as used on my Vado. The long rubber mudflap protects the motor chamber against being soiled.
Congratulations, Mike!
BEC111
Well-Known Member
Beautiful. Specialized makes very attractive bikes.
When I went on a group ride the other day, many of the members commented favorably on my Vado Sl. I’m sure you will experience the same. Making riding it even more satisfying.
jenfeu
Member
I was surprised to see this on my Como too. I'm glad because I will be putting a rear rack on like you did. Which rack do you have?
Art Deco
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Selinsgrove Pennsylvania
The local bike shop probably installed the light the way it should be for the fenders.
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