Specialized Vado 5.0 IGH Cadence Survey

[jessed]

There’s a few threads here where people mention Vado 5.0 IGH speed / cadence issues, with some people (like me) having a big challenge getting up to 28 MPH and others being fine.

Looking to get some conclusive data in real life to determine if it’s hardware limitations or software configuration issues are getting in the way.

Keeping as many variables constant, let’s test in Turbo mode, Slowest cadence, as flat of a road as possible, and report back the cadence it takes to get to 20, 25, and 28 MPH.

I’ll start:

20 MPH: 72-73 RPM
25 MPH: 86-87 RPM
28 MPH: 103-104 RPM

Thanks!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

And now think how reliable and understandable the derailleur is

 

[Zekeer]

Yeah what gears are you in ? If you can go 104 RPM in the smallest gear . Not sure why you can't get to 28MPH . Also maybe you are riding on Gravel topped blacktop vs smooth Blacktop or Concrete . That can cause a variable in speed . You didn't supply enough info.

 

[mikeschn]

I think I'll stick with my derailleur!!!

 

[jessed]

You guys are unhelpful lol . Just trying to collect data from IGH riders to see if top speed of 28MPH is actually achievable at a reasonable cadence. No doubt the derailleur version can do it, though I am also curious to know what your cadence is at 28MPH in the highest (i.e. smallest) gear.

To be totally clear, I can get to 28MPH at 104RPM just fine, it just sucks to have to pedal that fast.

 

[Nonlinear]

I'm in Canada so my Vado is limited to 20 mph anyway! Silver lining, I guess

 

[rarobo]

I got my bike Thursday, had one chance to ride it 21 miles on a paved path,, I’m learning the bike and trying to be more aware of the bike, I did go out on the main road level for about 1/2 mile,had it in fastest cadence on turbo it hit 28.2 quickly then I backed off, the cadence was comfortable I didn’t see the cadence, but it was nowhere near 104

 

[TonyB6255]

I rode 20 miles today and at 100% PA, Cadence on Fast I hit 28.2 at a cadence of 94.

 

[mschwett]

There’s a few threads here where people mention Vado 5.0 IGH speed / cadence issues, with some people (like me) having a big challenge getting up to 28 MPH and others being fine.

Looking to get some conclusive data in real life to determine if it’s hardware limitations or software configuration issues are getting in the way.

Keeping as many variables constant, let’s test in Turbo mode, Slowest cadence, as flat of a road as possible, and report back the cadence it takes to get to 20, 25, and 28 MPH.

I’ll start:

20 MPH: 72-73 RPM
25 MPH: 86-87 RPM
28 MPH: 103-104 RPM

Thanks!

that is crazy. 100+ RPM at 28mph is not appropriate top gearing for a bike with a motor ridden on pavement. for reference a typical performance road bike is at about 75 RPM, a higher end hybrid/fitness bike is at 80 RPM and even a lower end hybrid/fitness bike is in the low 90s.

specialized either doesn’t intend anyone to ride these bikes fast, or something is broken. enviolo claims a 380% range on these hubs, which is comparable to the range of an 11-42 cassette.

 

[Zekeer]

You guys are unhelpful lol . Just trying to collect data from IGH riders to see if top speed of 28MPH is actually achievable at a reasonable cadence. No doubt the derailleur version can do it, though I am also curious to know what your cadence is at 28MPH in the highest (i.e. smallest) gear.

To be totally clear, I can get to 28MPH at 104RPM just fine, it just sucks to have to pedal that fast.

I'll have to pay attention next time I ride . But there's no way I am pedaling 100 to get to 28 / and that's a vado 4 2020 and I'm 66 you're like what age ? pic looks like you are just a kid At 100 RPM you should be flying . What do you have turbo set at ? Maybe you should try the factory default? Do you know how to change your values ? have u checked it ? Maybe the top end is way down

 

[opimax]

Z, what s your drivetrain? The 5.0 is the Envelio hub , most are talking about the automatic version , we can’t control the gear we are in directly. It is a CVT which does not have specific gear ratios except the upper and lower ends.

I too have questions about the same issue , too high a cadence for the speed delivered, I can’t ride yet to post my numbers currently. I would be interest in the manual version numbers too.

 

[Marcela]

The motor doesn't have the beans to get you to 28 mph at the lower cadence. You need better legs

 

[opimax]

I have a Trek Allant 7s which is a derailure style , I have the same legs which can hold 28.3 on flats with this for a while , not quire apples to apples but close. Once I saw 28 in the upper 80s maybe slightly down hill but not the norm, usually upper 90s or above but also when I get to the same 90s and above I can be at 23 sometimes when it doesn’t make sense to me???

 

[jessed]

I don’t think this is a motor issue… for mid drives (and analog bikes), speed and cadence are really just a gear ratio math problem. That is, the motor might make it easier to pedal at a certain cadence or get up to a certain cadence, but wouldn’t actually change the necessary cadence to get to top speed.

 

[Onimaru]

I don’t think this is a motor issue… for mid drives (and analog bikes), speed and cadence are really just a gear ratio math problem. That is, the motor might make it easier to pedal at a certain cadence or get up to a certain cadence, but wouldn’t actually change the necessary cadence to get to top speed.

This. In my limited experience before mine acted up, it’s possible at slightly above 80 cadence. With mine broken, maybe Enviolo shipped some shotty hubs from supply chain issues during COVID.

 

[Tim C]

Yeah - I'm in the same boat. Cadence setting is on "Slowest" and in Turbo mode (ie max power) - I get around 42-43kph (around 26mph) on the flat with no wind, but with a cadence or over 100rpm. I have just had a chat on the phone with the bike shop. They feel its the gear ratios and if you want to get more speed they may be able to swap out the gear set but the downside is less support for the lowest gear on hills. Anyway I have started the conversation and they are going to look into it.

 

[jimji]

I agree with the original poster on the cadence levels for various speeds with the Vado 5.0 igh. For example 72 rpm gives me about 20 mph and 80 rpms provides right about 22mph. This is all in the slowest setting on the cadence level choices on a smooth blacktop road btw. I am not comfortable pedaling above 80 so have talked my my local bike shop guy who works with a lot of Enviolo hubs about going from the stock 24 tooth rear cog to a 22 tooth. He says this will give me about 10 % lower cadence levels which should bring my 80 rpms to around 25 mph or slightly more. 28 will still be a bit high but I don't regularly need to go that fast as 25 is plenty for me. It should also allow a better use of the different cadence settings on the controller and still have plenty adjustment to get up steep hills at least in turbo. He wasn't able to find one from his regular suppliers so was going directly to Gates company which is located here in CO.
I also own a Priority Current with a manual shifted 5 speed Enviolo which I am told has the 360 degree igh as compared to the 380 degree in the Vado. With my friend and I pedaling together in top gear the Vado had a ever so slightly higher cadence level than the Current. However 1st gear in the Current is much higher than the Vado so that is how they get it to go that fast. They both run out of gearing about the same rpm but I am not sure I would want to try the gear up the Priority any more since 1st is so high already. It should be fine on the Vado though with is greater gear range. Looking forward to this tweak on this truly amazingly smooth machine.

 

[rarobo]

I just came off a 75 mile ride with my Vado 5.0 on a rail trail ,I’m definitely not an expert but what I noticed in the slowest cadence it’s hard to pull the speed up to 28 but in the fastest cadence it reaches 28 miles an hour at about a 90 , with my eyesight having trouble seeing the exact cadence it does not record it but it did show a 28.4 mph that’s my experience anyway, love the auto, I can ride 23-25 mph for several miles at low to mid 80 cadence, something I could never do on my Nexus Priority Current ( although it is a great ebike for the price)

 

[Hitch]

Thanks for starting this thread. I'm anxiously awaiting the shipment of the 5.0 IGH ordered over the weekend. I'll post here once it (finally) arrives.

 

[newts]

And now think how reliable and understandable the derailleur is

Except it isn't. It's only understandable because you spent your entire life using it. It is finicky to adjust and needs constant attention. It is vulnerable to damage. Using chains is greasy and needs frequent cleaning and maintenance.

Try using a belt drive and IGH for a while. WIth the enviolos you just twist a knob to get more less gearing factor. No clunks or indexing. We'll see how it goes long term but it should last a lot longer without maintenance. Same with the belt compared with chains. Especially with e bikes that chew up chains.

The Vado 5 though with the automatic electric shifting is another beast. I considered the Vado 5 and was afraid of the computer controlling everything. If the Vado 4 had IGH and a belt I would have gotten another Vado instead of the Gazelle.