Specialized Turbo Vado/Como/Tero/Tero X User Club

[Stefan Mikes]

The Spring Has Come!

Or, I say so

I swapped Schwalbe Winter Plus with Smart Sams for the Spring, especially as I expect some mixed terrain rides. Smart Sams will be swapped to Electraks in June.

 

[Kam1936]

My other e-bike 48 V 14ah. 672w will take a charge while riding. For that bike I can extend the battery life 70% as I charge while I'm riding from the power supply unit. At level 2/3, assist that's another 28 miles added to the existing 40 mile range. That's another advantage I can use the power unit for. Except with the Vado I have to pull over to take a charge.

 

[Kam1936]

Man. I wish the Turbo Vado 5.0 allowed charging while riding. I took DJ city bike for a spin and tested the Jackery with it. I was charged up the entire time. I left with a full battery. 15 miles later I arrived with a full battery. Mainly riding in Level 3 assist but cranked it up to level 4/5 on the highway. Jackery was at 80% remaining. Return trip 7 miles Level 5 assist mostly level 3 on trail only. Battery was 3/4 full when I got home. 30 mile round trip. Jackery 49% battery remaining. I think the ratio of drain output (vs input) was more because of the increase in speed. The output is much less than the Vado at 111w when charging the bike battery from the Jackery, yet the battery capacity is 674w. Not sure why that is. The Vado was pulling 172w minimum. If the remaining juice from the Jackery brings the City bike back to fully charged, I estimate 70 mile range at level 3 assist with an entire charge from the Jackery. At > average speed of 15mph. https://www.trailheadcyclery.com/product/specialized-crossroads-armadillo-26-inch-245011-1.htm
I'm going to put these on the City Bike once the tires I have wear out.
I literally did not break a sweat to and from. Not going to get a workout on the City Bike. It's not designed that way. Plus, it has a throttle. Still it will hit 40kmh about 24.5 mph peddle assist 5 mode and sustain it as long as the juice is between 75 and 100.

 

[Nxkharra]

Man. I wish the Turbo Vado 5.0 allowed charging while riding. I took DJ city bike for a spin and tested the Jackery with it. I was charged up the entire time. I left with a full battery. 15 miles later I arrived with a full battery. Mainly riding in Level 3 assist but cranked it up to level 4/5 on the highway. Jackery was at 80% remaining. Return trip 7 miles Level 5 assist mostly level 3 on trail only. Battery was 3/4 full when I got home. 30 mile round trip. Jackery 49% battery remaining. I think the ratio of drain output (vs input) was more because of the increase in speed. The output is much less than the Vado at 111w when charging the bike battery from the Jackery, yet the battery capacity is 674w. Not sure why that is. The Vado was pulling 172w minimum. If the remaining juice from the Jackery brings the City bike back to fully charged, I estimate 70 mile range at level 3 assist with an entire charge from the Jackery. At > average speed of 15mph. https://www.trailheadcyclery.com/product/specialized-crossroads-armadillo-26-inch-245011-1.htm
I'm going to put these on the City Bike once the tires I have wear out.
I literally did not break a sweat to and from. Not going to get a workout on the City Bike. It's not designed that way. Plus, it has a throttle. Still it will hit 40kmh about 24.5 mph peddle assist 5 mode and sustain it as long as the juice is between 75 and 100.

My other e-bike 48 V 14ah. 672w will take a charge while riding. For that bike I can extend the battery life 70% as I charge while I'm riding from the power supply unit. At level 2/3, assist that's another 28 miles added to the existing 40 mile range. That's another advantage I can use the power unit for. Except with the Vado I have to pull over to take a charge.

I just watched a video of a lady with Specialized turbo bike who was charging the battery with solar power while she was riding cross country. This was posted on this forum.
womder how was that possible.

 

[Kam1936]

I just watched a video of a lady with Specialized turbo bike who was charging the battery with solar power while she was riding cross country. This was posted on this forum.
womder how was that possible.

I think her bike was specially designed to do that. She had a Turbo S. Also, her bike is over 5 years old.

 

[Kam1936]

Rig — Marissa Muller

"Alive is being in motion, outdoors, with the wind in your face and the sun warming your back."

www.marissamuller.com

Read more here.

 

[Dallant]

I just watched a video of a lady with Specialized turbo bike who was charging the battery with solar power while she was riding cross country. This was posted on this forum.
womder how was that possible.

Her bike was specially designed as was her solar power system. BTW, she did NOT use her smartphone while riding. She felt she needed to pay attention to all the vehicle traffic around her and didn’t want to be distracted.

 

[Kam1936]

Her bike was specially designed as was her solar power system. BTW, she did NOT use her smartphone while riding. She felt she needed to pay attention to all the vehicle traffic around her and didn’t want to be distracted.

Yep. I checked out her website and shot her a kite. My question was where did she sleep along the journey. Her gear didn't include sleeping bag/tent or water supplies. Since she was averaging about 60 miles a day. She must of been catching her rest at motels/hotels along the way or at residences provided for her.

 

[lloose]

I'll snap a few when I get home.

 

[Kam1936]

Looks like my Turbo Vado 5.0 2019's twin. Nice pic

 

[rochrunner]

Looks just like mine.

 

[RayZR]

Hello. Have my first e-bike on order and am super excited, a Turbo Como 3.0. I sit at 6’0” with a 31” inseam and appear to be at the top of the size chart for a M/L by height. I was also at the top of the chart for my current bike, a Sirius size L, which has been fine. Any thoughts on sizing for the Como? I’ve ordered the traditional step over frame, they only had a low entry to demo at my LBS, which was a size L. It seemed to be sized properly. Thank you!

 

[rochrunner]

In general, I think it's better to be on a bike that's slightly small for you than slightly too large.

 

[Kam1936]

I met a young woman today when I picked up my Burley Nomad trailer. She was working on one of the back wheels of her cargo trailer that she built herself. When she isn't riding she sleeps in it on your. No comfort of hotels. Although her bike is Specialized, it's not an E-bike. If I didn't see it with my own eyes I wouldn't of believed it. Ventilation and insulated. She welded it together by herself. She had a single Jackery 60w panel running to her Jackery 160 to keep her phone and the things she used charged.

 

[JackFlag]

Hi all,

Wanted to say hi. Received my Como 5.0 a few weeks ago. Great bike.

I installed a Redshift stem and used the existing spacers. However, the spacers have "bumps" allowing them to fit into each other. This causes the Redshift to sit unevenly on the spacer. To address this issue, I turned the spacers 90 degrees. This allows the Redshift to sit flush on the spacer. See the attached photos. This seems to work. Any thoughts? Thanks!

 

[mikecoin56]

Hi all,

Wanted to say hi. Received my Como 5.0 a few weeks ago. Great bike.

I installed a Redshift stem and used the existing spacers. However, the spacers have "bumps" allowing them to fit into each other. This causes the Redshift to sit unevenly on the spacer. To address this issue, I turned the spacers 90 degrees. This allows the Redshift to sit flush on the spacer. See the attached photos. This seems to work. Any thoughts? Thanks!

When installing the Redshift stem on my Como 4, I decided to replace the original spacers with a spline with new ones from my LBS. No matter how I spun the original ones, I couldn’t make them work correctly.

 

[NightRider1]

I met a young woman today when I picked up my Burley Nomad trailer. She was working on one of the back wheels of her cargo trailer that she built herself. When she isn't riding she sleeps in it on your. No comfort of hotels. Although her bike is Specialized, it's not an E-bike. If I didn't see it with my own eyes I wouldn't of believed it. Ventilation and insulated. She welded it together by herself. She had a single Jackery 60w panel running to her Jackery 160 to keep her phone and the things she used charged.

I might have spoken to her and asked if her "snail-shell" also has air conditioning.

 

[Kam1936]

I might have spoken to her and asked if her "snail-shell" also has air conditioning.

Yeah I thought about asking your mother or sister that but I already knew the answer. Shame.

 

[Kam1936]

Hooked the Burley Nomad to the Vado today. Charged up the bike and the Bluetti while I worked out. I like the pass through charging that allows input and output charging simultaneously. Two 100w Rockpal panels running parellel gives a steady charge of 122w an hour. The Jackery power unit charges 84w an hour with the same setup.

 

[KeithE]

Majority of EBR Forum owners of Specialized e-bikes ride either a Turbo Vado or a Como. This is natural, as these two major models have been designed for an average cyclist. Turbo Levo and Kenevo are technical ride stuff, discussed on e-MTB fora. Creo is for road cycling fanatics

It is quite interesting American versions of Vado are in the majority Class 3 bikes, while the only speed Vado model for Europe is Vado 6.0. Does anybody own the 6.0? Canadians have to be content with the 32 km/h versions, unluckily. (The Australian have to be content with 25 km/h).

I'd like you friends to talk more about your experiences with your Specialized e-bikes, for good and for bad. Please post pictures if you like.

I fell in love with my 2017 Specialized Turbo Vado 5.0, which I bought in Autumn 2019. (I thought of buying a 2019 or 2020 model that would have stretched my budget too far). There are four components and a feature I am extremely happy with in my 2017 model:

1. Rigid fork - (2020 update: married with Baramind BAM suspension handlebars; and the Kinekt 2.1 suspension seatpost)
2. 29x2" Elektrak tyres (Autumn 2020: Replaced with Schwalbe Smart Sam 47-622 for some off-road capability while staying silent on-road)
3. TRP Zurich brakes (the top of the class)
4. 600 lm headlight and very strong rear light, illuminating the number plate as well. (2020 update: Following the overhaul from the BLOKS to the TCD-W display, the headlight was replaced by Specialized with a 1700 lm Supernova M99 Pro).

The feature is the beautiful grey colour.
View attachment 45130

When I first mounted the Vado, I was positively shocked with the bike's geometry. So sporty! What I love about my Vado is the agility and the acceleration, both being fantastic, especially in the Sport mode. It is a lot of fun to ride fast!

Now, it is your turn to brag about your Specialized e-bikes!

Hi Stefan, You have been helping me with my decision making on the Gazelle and Specialized.
It's on that tread in May 2021.
I have seen your comments on many treads.
This bike you have here is the Vado. Why isn't there a suspension fork? Is it because you aren't in USA? On my post you said you loved your Como. I'm still doing research. I like the suspension in the handlebars and different tires.
The Como is a more comfortable ride. I did notice a front tire noise. The rest of the bike was quiet.