Specialized Turbo Vado SL: An Incredible E-Bike (User Club)

[Stefan Mikes]

51/38 is a whopper! I can’t imagine needing that on an ebike even if you’re climbing Mt. Fuji.

Turbo Levo Comp has it at 32-51T Actually needed in technical single-track climbing.
I used 38/51T with full power of SyncDrive Pro for several times. One was a steep rocky climb up Great Owl Mt (Poland). Another was climbing a street so steep no local was riding their bikes up the incline there (Kraków). Yet another time was climbing on a concrete structure under a Warsaw bridge (I could not believe myself I could do it!)

Of course, excessive gearing is unnecessary on most of roads.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Yes I’ll try that first of course, however curiosity will get the best of me eventually

@VoltMan99: I had a talk with a customer (and a friend), an experienced stress analyst. He sent me excerpts from a monograph by title "Vibrations". A double suspension system that you think of was actually described there. Although I cannot understand any of the formulas, one thing is clear: under unfavourable circumstances, the vibrations might amplify, even leading to dangerous resonance. Please rethink the whole thing

 

[ActionJackson]

@VoltMan99: I had a talk with a customer (and a friend), an experienced stress analyst. He sent me excerpts from a monograph by title "Vibrations". A double suspension system that you think of was actually described there. Although I cannot understand any of the formulas, one thing is clear: under unfavourable circumstances, the vibrations might amplify, even leading to dangerous resonance. Please rethink the whole thing

Stefan, thanks! No worries I’ve already been distracted from the stem suspension problem. I’m looking at the RedShift ShockStop seatpost. I’m thinking this is a good combination:

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Here you come again

 

[rochrunner]

I'm not going to have to worry about this for a while, and it probably doesn't apply to places with stricter regulations (e.g. Europe), but has anyone looked into the possibility of installing an inline switch of some sort to be able to turn the headlight off and on? The taillight isn't a concern and besides when I replace the seat post it will have to go (I have other taillight options). But I really want to turn off the headlight when I'm just riding on trails and pathways, which is 90% of my riding around here.

(Please don't reply telling me why I shouldn't do this, safety, visibility, yada, yada, yada. Just assume that, at 75 and 70 years experience, I know what I'm doing. )

 

[rochrunner]

By the way, after being told by my LBS that they wouldn't see new stock for SLs until next year, just for fun I did an inventory search for a Vado SL 5.0 (L) on the Specialized web site and they actually have one (or at least had one!) at a shop just 25 miles away. But I was exceptionally "mature" for once, and since I'd decided that this really wouldn't be a good time to get a new bike when I still have a low-mileage Vado 4.0 and other things to occupy my time, I resisted the temptation.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I don't know how to install the light switch and am not willing to experiment. The daylight lights hardly consume any battery charge. When auto-switched to low-beam, the total energy consumption is 8 W.

What I intend to do though is to remove the front fender and replace it with a MTB one in a form of a sheet. The stock fender makes it impossible to ride in the forest as the front wheel is being constantly blocked by small twigs.

 

[PennyFarthing]

but has anyone looked into the possibility of installing an inline switch of some sort to be able to turn the headlight off and on?

I just removed mine completely (connectors are accessible in top tube via tcu on TV SL5). Why did I do this... Well I don't ride at night and I need an attention grabbing flashing front light for self preservation. This is perfect for what I need and fits on the handlebar.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

flashing

????

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Not flashing and not attention grabbing.
"See and be seen".

 

[PennyFarthing]

Not flashing and not attention grabbing.
"See and be seen".

View attachment 93355

But not many drivers around failing to spot you in that idyllic setting. it looks like it's a downhill too!

 

[rochrunner]

I don't know how to install the light switch and am not willing to experiment. The daylight lights hardly consume any battery charge. When auto-switched to low-beam, the total energy consumption is 8 W.

The power draw is not the issue.

What I intend to do though is to remove the front fender and replace it with a MTB one in a form of a sheet. The stock fender makes it impossible to ride in the forest as the front wheel is being constantly blocked by small twigs.

I also get annoyed by small stones rattling in the fenders.

Here is what I use on my Crosstrail hybrid: https://ridepdw.com/collections/fenders/products/origami-front-fender. It's worked well for me and easily snaps on and off if you don't need it all the time. I even have a road bike version of it for that bike. The SL has a pretty fat downtube so I'm not sure if the mounting straps will work, but I do plan on one for my SL. It certainly kept my legs and water bottles clean enough on a muddy day on the Great Allegheny Passage rail-trail.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

We won't quarrel about the lights, Doug

Here is what I use on my Crosstrail hybrid: https://ridepdw.com/collections/fenders/products/origami-front-fender. It's worked well for me and easily snaps on and off if you don't need it all the time. I even have a road bike version of it for that bike. The SL has a pretty fat downtube so I'm not sure if the mounting straps will work, but I do plan on one for my SL. It certainly kept my legs and water bottles clean enough on a muddy day on the Great Allegheny Passage rail-trail.

Swell idea!

 

[Calcoaster]

I'm not going to have to worry about this for a while, and it probably doesn't apply to places with stricter regulations (e.g. Europe), but has anyone looked into the possibility of installing an inline switch of some sort to be able to turn the headlight off and on? The taillight isn't a concern and besides when I replace the seat post it will have to go (I have other taillight options). But I really want to turn off the headlight when I'm just riding on trails and pathways, which is 90% of my riding around here.

(Please don't reply telling me why I shouldn't do this, safety, visibility, yada, yada, yada. Just assume that, at 75 and 70 years experience, I know what I'm doing. )

Why does replacing the seatpost remove your taillight? I assume there is a wire pair that comes up the seatpost and connects to the saddle light. Isn’t it an easy job to reconnect the wires to the light? I haven’t looked at the setup so I’d like to know if there is a problem and if there is a workaround. Thanks!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

But not many drivers around failing to spot you in that idyllic setting. it looks like it's a downhill too!

I ride a lot, very often with traffic. We've been on a road trip with my brother. He wore the yellow reflective vest and same colour helmet as you can see in the picture above. He rode into the shadow of a forest. If not his blinking tail-light, I could not see him at all. Now fancy it is a driver going from the opposite, fully in the sunshine and he has the option to take another car over. What would that driver see if not the daylight lighting?

It's easy to get killed.

 

[rochrunner]

Why does replacing the seatpost remove your taillight? I assume there is a wire pair that comes up the seatpost and connects to the saddle light. Isn’t it an easy job to reconnect the wires to the light? I haven’t looked at the setup so I’d like to know if there is a problem and if there is a workaround. Thanks!

The Redshift Shockstop has no way to route wires through it. The replacement seat might also be a problem with mounting the OEM taillight.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

The Redshift Shockstop has no way to route wires through it. The replacement seat might also be a problem with mounting the OEM taillight.

That's why I went with the EQ. Now I cannot remove the rear fender

 

[Rincon]

Turbo Levo Comp has it at 32-51T

I forgot to imagine MTBs.

 

[Rincon]

Rincon, please listen to me.
There are two figures:

• 16400
• 21500

I'm not sure what you're talking about. Is that in Euros? A Polish currency? Are those prices for the Vado SL 4.0 vs Vado SL 5.0? That's not the US price, which is less than 1/3 of those numbers. I bought the Vado SL 5.0 because I wanted the features, I can afford it, and I think it's a good value. We are free to disagree here. Buy whatever suits you. I'm not being snarky. Everyone needs to make their own decisions. I respect whatever decision you made for yourself.

The Vado SL 5.0 lists for US$4,750. The Vado SL 4.0 EQ lists for US$3,750.

Assuming those are Vado prices in zloty, I see that Vado 5.0's US$4,750 converts to 18,426 Polish zloty. So you're certainly paying a premium for either of the bikes.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Rincon,

I'm not in dispute with you And it does not matter what currency I quoted.

Now:
SL 4.0 EQ is PLN16,400, which is USD4,230 (EUR3,580) compared to the US price of USD3,750. (German price is EUR3,500).
SL 5.0 EQ is PLN21,500, which is USD5,550 (EUR4,700) compared to the US price of USD4,750. (German price is EUR4,600).

As you can see, the European prices are far higher than they are in the U.S. I could attribute them to the VAT but even that does not match, as the Polish VAT is 23%, and the German tax is 25% (besides, what is your local sales tax?)

Anyway, it is not the matter of how many % is the 5.0 more expensive than 4.0 but the dollar difference, which is US$1,000 in your country and US$1320 for Poland.

What I paid for extras was:

• Range Extender + RE Cable + RE Y-Charger Cable + 2 water-bottle cages + TCD: USD615
• Redshift ShockStop Stem: US$190
• Redshift ShockStop Seatpost: US$275

Total: US$1,080

For the price difference between 5.0 and 4.0, I was able to buy the full suspension as well as everything related to the Range Extender. And that was my aware decision because I could well afford 5.0 if I were convinced I would have got a better bang for the buck with it. To be very honest, the thing that discouraged me the most with the 5.0 was the carbon fork. I don't need it, and in case I rode into the forest and the CF fork broke, Specialized would certainly say: "We clearly define VSL 5.0 is to be ridden on roads only, and we cannot honour your warranty in case of crash" I'm sure Rincon you know what Ye Goode Ole Specialized stands for

Yet I'm not saying your decision was wrong. I only say I found another way.