Turbo Como 3.0 Test Drive

[p0ppyman]

I just took the Como 3.0 for a short test drive on flat road terrain. I'm doing a second test drive in a couple days to take it up some steep hills we have in our area. One thing I determined is I will consider 28 mph pedelecs. I got the bike up to ~ 40 kph on flat pavement and it felt very stable with the wider tire. Fortunately I'm using restraint so I execute my plan of test driving several manufacture / model / configurations before committing to a purchase.

I've read the list of problems people have been reporting about Specialized bikes. I'll continue to look for feedback specifically on the Como 3.0 so if you have any feel free to offer it up! Thanks!

Also a shout out for the LBS where I did the test drive. Ben the salesperson let me take the bike and even provided a helmet as I left mine at home. Easy breezy! Such a difference when the sales team at the LBS is welcoming and don't make you feel like you are interrupting them which happened to me last week at another shop.

 

[Dionigi]

A road trip to Half Noon Bay would test the hill climbing ability of the Como 3.0. A class 3, 28 mph, bike is great around town but would not be legal on California trails and bike paths.

 

[p0ppyman]

Yep I'm aware of the class 3 restrictions on multi-use (class 1) bike paths. Yes the HMB trip would be a good test but I don't care for some of the stretches or road along the way. The hills I have in mind are down in Monterey including the ones on the Marina to Monterey trail that traverses Fort Ord. Thanks!

 

[Volts]

There seems to be many aspects to electric biking and the characteristics of what's important to the buyer seems to vary a great deal from my readings of various forums. As far as hill climbing, many ask about that, but I think any electric bike will get you up steep hills without getting off to walk it. I've yet to read or hear of someone complaining about any electric being a disappointment on hills. I'm 250 pounds and I've taken my Como 3 on mountain bike trails in the mountains of Oregon. It works.
Choosing an electric for me came down to the attitude/helpfulness of the bike shop, i.e., will they be there for the duration of my two year warranty? And Specialized simply makes attractive bikes I think.
I got mine 500 miles ago, my girlfriend got one a couple weeks ago. No problems, Much fun.
Make sure and post back telling us what you get!

 

[Lasalle]

I have the Como 3.0 and my wife has the 2.0. Both perform exactly the same at sub 20 mph speeds. They are very smooth and quiet and easily climb the steepest hills. We use ours in Lake Tahoe, which is extremely hilly. Mountainous in fact. Hills in full assist will definitely hit the battery though!

The 3.0 is very much worth it. My wife complains that at 20 mph she can feel the power disengage. I don’t have that experience.

As for bike paths, it’s true that a 28 mph pedelec is not supposed to use them. However if you’re inclined - and I’m not recommending this - the little class 3 sticker on the downtube easily peels off, at which point it is literally impossible to tell that it’s a class 3.

 

[p0ppyman]

There seems to be many aspects to electric biking and the characteristics of what's important to the buyer seems to vary a great deal from my readings of various forums. As far as hill climbing, many ask about that, but I think any electric bike will get you up steep hills without getting off to walk it. I've yet to read or hear of someone complaining about any electric being a disappointment on hills. I'm 250 pounds and I've taken my Como 3 on mountain bike trails in the mountains of Oregon. It works.
Choosing an electric for me came down to the attitude/helpfulness of the bike shop, i.e., will they be there for the duration of my two year warranty? And Specialized simply makes attractive bikes I think.
I got mine 500 miles ago, my girlfriend got one a couple weeks ago. No problems, Much fun.
Make sure and post back telling us what you get!

Will do. I put ~ 20 miles on this Gazelle CityZen T10 HMB I rented today. Nice bike and I started to get use to the Bosch motor which I felt was pushing me a lot after I stopped peddling. Also it has a narrower more street type of tire than the Como. But I think the Brose on the Como 3.0 I test drove yesterday was smoother and more natural. I felt stable at ~ 25 mph with the wider tire. I'm going to test ride the Como 2.0 because I want to bike on mixed use paths.

 

[p0ppyman]

I have the Como 3.0 and my wife has the 2.0. Both perform exactly the same at sub 20 mph speeds. They are very smooth and quiet and easily climb the steepest hills. We use ours in Lake Tahoe, which is extremely hilly. Mountainous in fact. Hills in full assist will definitely hit the battery though!

The 3.0 is very much worth it. My wife complains that at 20 mph she can feel the power disengage. I don’t have that experience.

As for bike paths, it’s true that a 28 mph pedelec is not supposed to use them. However if you’re inclined - and I’m not recommending this - the little class 3 sticker on the downtube easily peels off, at which point it is literally impossible to tell that it’s a class 3.

I used to have a house in Truckee @ 6400' so I understand extremely hilly! I learned to fly in Truckee and have an appreciation for mountain winds. Actually our friends who still live in Truckee purchased e-bikes which is how we became aware of them.

I get your drift and understand in no way are you making a recommendation.

Today I rode the paved mixed use Bay Trail and it had a 15 mph limit which I slowed down from ~ 20 mph to observe. Seems people with class 3 bikes could observe a limit rather than be restricted.

I ride mixed use trails infrequently but would prefer to do so legally when I did if possible. Fortunately we have plenty of bicycle friendly roads and protected bike paths in the San Francisco Bay area with more on their way.

 

[Volts]

Will do. I put ~ 20 miles on this Gazelle CityZen T10 HMB I rented today. Nice bike and I started to get use to the Bosch motor which I felt was pushing me a lot after I stopped peddling. Also it has a narrower more street type of tire than the Como. But I think the Brose on the Como 3.0 I test drove yesterday was smoother and more natural. I felt stable at ~ 25 mph with the wider tire. I'm going to test ride the Como 2.0 because I want to bike on mixed use paths.


View attachment 23510

We waited a month for my girlfreinds Low Entry Como 3.0 to come in, so we went to various bike shops and rented we waited. I've heard that from various sources that the Brose is known for it's quiet, smooth operation and I agree. And yes, the bigger tires are a big plus, I would imagine as time goes, most electric bikes will have wider tires.
Since this is a "Specialized" sub forum, I'll criticize the bike you have pictured based just on it's looks. It looks like a normal bike with a giant compartment on the downtube and an obvious motor at the pedals. It looks tacked on, as an afterthought. I've read that the next generation Bosch motor is physically configured more like the Brose on the Specialized, where it's sleeked out into the frame and not a welded lump at the bottom of the bike.
At this price point, whatever you get, I'm sure it will be quality. It sounds like you're having fun choosing, pretty cool!

 

[p0ppyman]

We waited a month for my girlfreinds Low Entry Como 3.0 to come in, so we went to various bike shops and rented we waited. I've heard that from various sources that the Brose is known for it's quiet, smooth operation and I agree. And yes, the bigger tires are a big plus, I would imagine as time goes, most electric bikes will have wider tires.
Since this is a "Specialized" sub forum, I'll criticize the bike you have pictured based just on it's looks. It looks like a normal bike with a giant compartment on the downtube and an obvious motor at the pedals. It looks tacked on, as an afterthought. I've read that the next generation Bosch motor is physically configured more like the Brose on the Specialized, where it's sleeked out into the frame and not a welded lump at the bottom of the bike.
At this price point, whatever you get, I'm sure it will be quality. It sounds like you're having fun choosing, pretty cool!

Yeah I agree on your assessment of the Gazelle as far as looks. While it functioned well and was reasonably light, I'm not going in that direction. I rented it because I wanted to test the Bosch Performance Line drive system. It served that purpose.

 

[Electrarider]

Hi Poppyman, I recently purchased a Como 3.0 and love it! This was not a spontaneous purchase, I test rode at least 20 different bikes, of all the different configurations (ie front hub, rear hub and mid Engine). I quickly found out I didn't like the way the front and rear hub motors felt, I'm sure some people will blast me for this but to make it real simple I just didn't like they rode. My first mid engine was a Bosch and I liked it much better that the "hub" style motors. I do agree it did feel a little "jerky" but for some reason it just felt better to me. So after trying more I was now looking for the Right Bike. I first starting looking at Specialized but their first bikes were rear Hub Motors and I discounted them, which killed me because I'm a huge Specialized fan. To make this as short as possible I completely stumbled across the Como 2.0 at a LBS and fell in love with the Looks and immediately asked for a test ride (knew nothing of this Brose motor and somehow missed Specialized changing to Mid engine) rode it for about 4 miles and knew this was the bike! Never did ride the Como 3.0, I didn't pull the trigger that day, wanted to do a little research and liked what I found out. Went ahead and Ordered the Como 3.0 and have had it for 1 month now, as of last night I have 289 miles showing on the odometer. The only problem I had was one night the display didn't come on, but the Pedal assist and lights worked fine was going to take it back in but the next night I tried it and it worked just fine. Most of my riding is on the Bike trail near my house and I'm aware I'm not supposed to be on it but if its speed people are concerned with I'm constantly being passed by the road bikers and they travel in groups and just take over both sides of the trail and are riding well over the 15mph limit, I keep it to a maximum of 18mph on the trail and I'm always being passed (I don't want to get kicked of the trail it is very enjoyable I've posted various pictures on another thread) So bottom line is the Como 3.0 looks good and performs good, and even is fun as a cruiser without any power (rode it to a parade and street fair on the 4th of July so no power assist was needed had a blast), also you need not worry about hills COMO 3.0 works very well. By the way the Gazelle was my first mid engine test ride bike.

 

[Dionigi]

Since you frequent the CalTrain you might want to look at the Riese and Müller shop in San Francisco. Both the Nevo and new Charger are great bikes and very elegant, like a well made fly reel.

 

[p0ppyman]

Since you frequent the CalTrain you might want to look at the Riese and Müller shop in San Francisco. Both the Nevo and new Charger are great bikes and very elegant, like a well made fly reel.

I rented my Gazelle CityZen from New Wheel and saw their Riese and Müller bikes as well as their Stromers. My wife and I will be heading up to Cognition on 4th Ave in San Mateo in a little bit so she can test ride a Como 2.0.

While I think the Riese and Müller are fine bikes I've been digging the look of the battery being hidden within the down post as on the Specialized and Stromers.

No decision yet. I plan to demo the Stromer before I make a purchase decision.

 

[Electrarider]

I rented my Gazelle CityZen from New Wheel and saw their Riese and Müller bikes as well as their Stromers. My wife and I will be heading up to Cognition on 4th Ave in San Mateo in a little bit so she can test ride a Como 2.0.

While I think the Riese and Müller are fine bikes I've been digging the look of the battery being hidden within the down post as on the Specialized and Stromers.

No decision yet. I plan to demo the Stromer before I make a purchase decision.

I did ride the Stromer ST1X Comfort It was a very nice bike! The overall quality was very nice and it was an impressive bike, while the price was quite a bit more that wasn't the deciding factor it came down to the rear hub motor just not a fan of it. But give it a try it is a very strong bike you have to try and get what feels right to you. Another reason I didn't go with Stromer was the lack of a dealership, and since I'm new to this whole e-bike thing just felt better with a company that is for the most part locally headquatered here in Norcal. (I know the bikes aren't made here but at least I have very good local coverage should everything go bad) Also the Stromer is much heavier than the Specialized Como 3.0, I also thought about the fact of riding without power don't think I could ride the Stromer very far without power, something I think we all should consider in case things go bad I would like to at least limp home without having to leave a $3,200.00+ bike locked up somewhere while walking home to get my truck.

 

[p0ppyman]

I did ride the Stromer ST1X Comfort It was a very nice bike! The overall quality was very nice and it was an impressive bike, while the price was quite a bit more that wasn't the deciding factor it came down to the rear hub motor just not a fan of it. But give it a try it is a very strong bike you have to try and get what feels right to you. Another reason I didn't go with Stromer was the lack of a dealership, and since I'm new to this whole e-bike thing just felt better with a company that is for the most part locally headquatered here in Norcal. (I know the bikes aren't made here but at least I have very good local coverage should everything go bad) Also the Stromer is much heavier than the Specialized Como 3.0, I also thought about the fact of riding without power don't think I could ride the Stromer very far without power, something I think we all should consider in case things go bad I would like to at least limp home without having to leave a $3,200.00+ bike locked up somewhere while walking home to get my truck.

I will ride the Stromer before I make my purchase decision just to see if I can tell the nuances of a rear hub motor compared to the Brose (my current favorite) and Bosch drive systems. I may rent it for the day so I can use it on the test route I have that has hills.

My wife and I just returned from Cognition Cyclery. She did her first e-bike test drive on a Como 2.0. I test drove a Como 2.0 as well. She really enjoyed the ride. Tomorrow is her birthday. Let's see what happens.

 

[Dionigi]

The recently introduced R&M Nevo and Homage have integrated batteries with the option of a second battery.

I rented my Gazelle CityZen from New Wheel and saw their Riese and Müller bikes as well as their Stromers. My wife and I will be heading up to Cognition on 4th Ave in San Mateo in a little bit so she can test ride a Como 2.0.

While I think the Riese and Müller are fine bikes I've been digging the look of the battery being hidden within the down post as on the Specialized and Stromers.

No decision yet. I plan to demo the Stromer before I make a purchase decision.

 

[p0ppyman]

The recently introduced R&M Nevo and Homage have integrated batteries with the option of a second battery. View attachment 23638

Good to know and a sweet looking bike! Was this introduction at Eurobike?

 

[Electrarider]

I will ride the Stromer before I make my purchase decision just to see if I can tell the nuances of a rear hub motor compared to the Brose (my current favorite) and Bosch drive systems. I may rent it for the day so I can use it on the test route I have that has hills.

My wife and I just returned from Cognition Cyclery. She did her first e-bike test drive on a Como 2.0. I test drove a Como 2.0 as well. She really enjoyed the ride. Tomorrow is her birthday. Let's see what happens.

View attachment 23634

The Platinum Color is my very Favorite Color I wish the Como 3.0 came it that color! But the Better Brakes and speed meant more to me! Your Wife looks happy on it! One of the guys at my LBS call it the "Electric Smile"

 

[Electrarider]

The recently introduced R&M Nevo and Homage have integrated batteries with the option of a second battery. View attachment 23638

I like the looks of the R & M, my only concern on the bike pictured would be frame flex, other than that looks very nice! Looks like it has numerous features. I see cushioned seat posts, front shocks, Fenders, Rear Rack and is that a built in Cafe Lock I see? What's the price tag look like on that one?

 

[Electrarider]

Tonight I went for a short ride(18 miles) and decided to see how far I could ride without power. (since I made my earlier post about riding without power), thought I would put my money where my post was. The first 9 miles I was in "Eco Mode" (aka Level assist #1) I started tonight's ride with only 2 bars showing, at this point in time I turned the power off and decided to try to make it home, and for those of you that have read my previous posts know the last 2 miles home is the dreaded hill! I actually did ride back home with no power (I only used the power for the lights) I'm not going to lie it wasn't easy I actually made it up the steep hill in one of the lower gears, but overall I did ride it home with no pedal assist. Most of the 9 miles back home was fairly flat with some rolling rolls, but it is nice to know that this bike IS a bike first with the added benefit of pedal assist. Again this was just an experiment to see if it was possible to ride any distance, when the motor decides to stop working, can't predict what will break on an electric bike (I hope nothing will) or if it will seize and lock the cranks to where you can't pedal. But it's nice to know I can make it home when the motor/battery aren't there. Will definitely not be doing this experiment on a routine basis.

 

[p0ppyman]

The Platinum Color is my very Favorite Color I wish the Como 3.0 came it that color! But the Better Brakes and speed meant more to me! Your Wife looks happy on it! One of the guys at my LBS call it the "Electric Smile"

Yeah Laurie was having fun. She has a Fuji road bike, I have one too, and is in better shape than me right now. We did a 22 mile RT ride two weeks ago down toward Monterey and she peddled the whole way but I had to walk up a few of the inclines. Two years ago (30 lbs ago) that was not the case for me.

We are going away to do some fly fishing tomorrow and Sunday. If she is interested in testing out the Como 2.0 step through next week then I think she will get an e-bike too. Yeah the platinum color looks good. I'm with you I'll purchase the Como 3.0 for the reasons you state plus I picked up a 6 month contract so I'll be commuting again. I really don't want to be stuck in my car anymore.