Turbo Levo Comp Alloy - Any immediate upgrades need to be made?

[Gee_Whiz]

For non-extreme trail riding, are there any upgrades that should be made to theTurbo Levo Comp Alloy? Tires, fork, entire drivetrain etc? Also how would this bike compare to other options such as the Cannondale Moterra Carbon Neo 1 or 2, and the Trak Rail 9.7-9.8?

 

[Stefan Mikes]

@sammcneill, will you chime in? As a new owner of Levo Comp Alloy you could say something about your experiences.

@Gee_Whiz: Judging by the specs, the Levo is equipped with premium components. If I were to buy that e-MTB, I would probably add external Li-ion battery powered lighting, then I would be riding the bike for a longer while to find out whether anything should be upgraded (the first thing to do is to choose favourite pedals as that level of e-MTBs comes without pedals). I, personally, would think of changing the chainring to 36T or 38T (the latter has to be used without the chain-guide). Levo is meant for technical mountain trail riding with dramatic climbs. With my personal needs (a lot of riding on the flats), the 32T would reduce the e-bike speed very much, and the gearing would "eat" the smallest cogs of the cassette very fast.

Cannondale Moterra Carbon Neo 1 is pretty similar in specs, only the battery is somewhat smaller. Some components such as drive-train are higher specced (and more expensive in maintenance). Carbon frame - do you need it? Bosch system -- are you sure you want it? (I don't want to create a big discussion here).

Trek Rail 9.x? All depending on the actual version (that affects the price). Same: Are you ready for carbon fibre frame? The Bosch system?

If you're considering carbon fibre Cannondale and Trek, why don't you consider a carbon fibre Levo?
-------------------
Levo is the reference e-MTB, to which other e-MTBs are compared. The thing I am really concerned about is the electronics -- and you will find no better electronics that Specialized. This is of course my personal viewpoint.

 

[Gee_Whiz]

Yeah, everything keeps coming back to a Levo in terms of best balance of price, components, battery etc. Its really interesting that no other mfg has caught up as of yet. Maybe with the 2022 models, but those seem tough to get a hold of currently. Only issue seems to be that Levos sit lower in the bottom dropout than some other models from what I can tell, which leads to more pedal striking?

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Specialized have light-years of experience in MTBs, and they are the leaders in the e-bike electronics. You could also spot the words "Specialized Warranty" under another thread. Regarding the pedal strikes: Would major e-MTBers ride Levos it that were an issue?

Following the thoughts of the other thread:
In the Spring of 2020, I thought I needed an e-MTB. That would be a Levo. The problem was, May 2020 was the worst month for Levo availability ever (and of course Levo was very expensive). I looked to Giant e-MTBs. It turned out that spec- and price-wise that was the best buy. I do not discuss the geometry as it has always been outside of my competence but the Trance E+ was a very good choice. I only didn't know I could connect a Wahoo or a Garmin to that e-bike! Combined with the terrible RideControl App, that was the only factor that was keeping me dissatisfied.

Later, I discovered I was not a fan of trail riding, and a proper MTB is not an urban animal. In the end, I bought me a Vado SL and gave the Trance to my brother (who dreamed of an e-MTB!) Jacek still successfully rides that Trance, he only made many mods to "urbanize" that e-bike. Besides, he loves trail-riding! And yes, he has bought a Garmin Edge 530 and uses it as the Trance's display.

 

[Gee_Whiz]

Specialized have light-years of experience in MTBs, and they are the leaders in the e-bike electronics. You could also spot the words "Specialized Warranty" under another thread. Regarding the pedal strikes: Would major e-MTBers ride Levos it that were an issue?

Following the thoughts of the other thread:
In the Spring of 2020, I thought I needed an e-MTB. That would be a Levo. The problem was, May 2020 was the worst month for Levo availability ever (and of course Levo was very expensive). I looked to Giant e-MTBs. It turned out that spec- and price-wise that was the best buy. I do not discuss the geometry as it has always been outside of my competence but the Trance E+ was a very good choice. I only didn't know I could connect a Wahoo or a Garmin to that e-bike! Combined with the terrible RideControl App, that was the only factor that was keeping me dissatisfied.

Later, I discovered I was not a fan of trail riding, and a proper MTB is not an urban animal. In the end, I bought me a Vado SL and gave the Trance to my brother (who dreamed of an e-MTB!) Jacek still successfully rides that Trance, he only made many mods to "urbanize" that e-bike. Besides, he loves trail-riding! And yes, he has bought a Garmin Edge 530 and uses it as the Trance's display

Ha! ironically this is the same determination I made regarding the Giant Trance and just posted it to the main thread; The new Giant Trance E+ looks very interesting as an option.. its so well specced and well rounded! Giant seems to be an underrated, sleeper in this market, as they donot come up in searches for similar bikes on the web

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Especially as the latest Trance E+ e-bikes have become pretty modern. With a significant price increase of course

 

[Nomad]

Ha! ironically this is the same determination I made regarding the Giant Trance and just posted it to the main thread; The new Giant Trance E+ looks very interesting as an option.. its so well specced and well rounded! Giant seems to be an underrated, sleeper in this market, as they donot come up in searches for similar bikes on the web

Are you talking trance with 85nm motor or the one with 80nm as the new has changes that are more important then the slight power gain in my opinion.

 

[Gee_Whiz]

Are you talking trance with 85nm motor or the one with 80nm as the new has changes that are more important then the slight power gain in my opinion.

I think the newer 85nm one; https://www.giant-bicycles.com/us/trance-x-advanced-eplus-2-2022

 

[Nomad]

I think the newer 85nm one; https://www.giant-bicycles.com/us/trance-x-advanced-eplus-2-2022

I think the newer 85nm one; https://www.giant-bicycles.com/us/trance-x-advanced-eplus-2-2022

I believe the non carbon Trance is going to have this motor and controller to soon. So more ground clearance and a control mount that is more durable in a crash. I am still waiting for the Reign e2 to be available up here in N.H. as I want the aluminum frame and more travel but I keep looking at the Trance x advance eplus. PLEASE Giant I want that Reign ready to buy!

 

[Gee_Whiz]

I believe the non carbon Trance is going to have this motor and controller to soon. So more ground clearance and a control mount that is more durable in a crash. I am still waiting for the Reign e2 to be available up here in N.H. as I want the aluminum frame and more travel but I keep looking at the Trance x advance eplus. PLEASE Giant I want that Reign ready to buy!

Hmm so the Giant is sounding more and more interesting..

 

[Stefan Mikes]

@Gee_Whiz:
I can still remember the day I entered a Warsaw Giant LBS. I had a chat with a salesman there when I noticed a gorgeous e-MTB being walked in by another employee. I could not control myself and exclaimed:
-- What is that marvellous bike?!
-- It's yours...


If you want and can buy a Trance, pay attention to the frame colour. Giant can paint their e-MTBs wonderfully but the colour on some models is dull and ugly.

@Nomad: Why would you like a huge, heavy and long Reign E+? Do you plan to do jumps on it?! @PDoz once told me off and recommended either Stance or Trance, for which I am grateful to this day! (I chose a Trance as it could satisfy my ego)

 

[Gee_Whiz]

@Gee_Whiz:
I can still remember the day I entered a Warsaw Giant LBS. I had a chat with a salesman there when I noticed a gorgeous e-MTB being walked in by another employee. I could not control myself and exclaimed:
-- What is that marvellous bike?!
-- It's yours...


If you want and can buy a Trance, pay attention to the frame colour. Giant can paint their e-MTBs wonderfully but the colour on some models is dull and ugly.

Lol yes this is the main thing thats giving pause i think, along with what you mentioned bout the ridecontrol go software.. The top of the line trance paint job needs some work; the lower model paint is pretty nice though

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Lol yes this is the main thing thats giving pause i think, along with what you mentioned bout the ridecontrol go software.. The top of the line trance paint job needs some work; the lower model paint is pretty nice though

The Chameleon painting is astounding!
Regarding RideControl app. That is not a tragedy. The only nuisance is that whenever you are going for a ride, the app will like to update the e-bike's firmware Besides, RC app is only good for tuning the assistance level. My brother's best buy was a Garmin Edge that works perfectly with his Trance. AFAIK, only Specialized and Giant e-bikes support the ANT+ protocol!

We are ready for a ride. Jacek turns his Trance E+ and RC app on to discover we would need to wait for a quarter for the e-bike update...

 

[Gee_Whiz]

The Chameleon painting is astounding!
Regarding RideControl app. That is not a tragedy. The only nuisance is that whenever you are going for a ride, the app will like to update the e-bike's firmware Besides, RC app is only good for tuning the assistance level. My brother's best buy was a Garmin Edge that works perfectly with his Trance. AFAIK, only Specialized and Giant e-bikes support the ANT+ protocol!

View attachment 114754
We are ready for a ride. Jacek turns his Trance E+ and RC app on to discover we would need to wait for a quarter for the e-bike update...

Jacek's face tells the whole story

 

[Nomad]

@Gee_Whiz:
I can still remember the day I entered a Warsaw Giant LBS. I had a chat with a salesman there when I noticed a gorgeous e-MTB being walked in by another employee. I could not control myself and exclaimed:
-- What is that marvellous bike?!
-- It's yours...


If you want and can buy a Trance, pay attention to the frame colour. Giant can paint their e-MTBs wonderfully but the colour on some models is dull and ugly.

@Nomad: Why would you like a huge, heavy and long Reign E+? Do you plan to do jumps on it?! @PDoz once told me off and recommended either Stance or Trance, for which I am grateful to this day! (I chose a Trance as it could satisfy my ego)

well ya and drops. It's a little like when someone is just a little bit to big for a medium and should run a large.

Seriously What is up with some of the color choices sometimes it seem the lower models have a sharper paint job???

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Aha, there is one more thing. The Giant dropper post is just hopeless and needs to be replaced immediately, for example with a OneUp V2.

 

[Gee_Whiz]

well ya and drops. It's a little like when someone is just a little bit to big for a medium and should run a large.

Seriously What is up with some of the color choices sometimes it seem the lower models have a sharper paint job???

Its sooo weird and makes the upper models look low budget

 

[Gee_Whiz]

Aha, there is one more thing. The Giant dropper post is just hopeless and needs to be replaced immediately, for example with a OneUp V2.

Ok, will note that aspect-TY; Will research more, but it seems the Giant is the most well rounded option. Reading on the eMTB forums, people do speak of many issues with the Shimano EP8 motor which removes the Norco and Merida :/

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Merida

Which is unavailable in the United States, I presume?

 

[Gee_Whiz]

Which is unavailable in the United States, I presume?

There are a few on US eBay, but Im not able to find info on US warrranty support if needed