Turbo Vado 3.0 - Confirmed 28mph

[PacApp]

I purchased my Vado 3.0 a week ago and can confirm the pedal assist will go up to 28mph. The sales agent at my LBS said this was a "last minute" change by Specialized. That said, it requires an firmware update to the battery and bike I believe.

 

[Ike582]

I purchased my Vado 3.0 a week ago and can confirm the pedal assist will go up to 28mph. The sales agent at my LBS said this was a "last minute" change by Specialized. That said, it requires an firmware update to the battery and bike I believe.

Is there a way to tell which firmware your bike or battery is running? How can you tell if your Vado is running the most current version?

 

[PacApp]

I have no idea how to tell what version firmware the Vado has. I would recommend testing the bike you intend to buy before purchasing it and see if it will assist above 20mph. If it assists above 20mph - you've got the most recent version.

 

[Ike582]

I have no idea how to tell what version firmware the Vado has. I would recommend testing the bike you intend to buy before purchasing it and see if it will assist above 20mph. If it assists above 20mph - you've got the most recent version.

Thanks. I ordered a 6.0 two weeks ago and test rode a 3.0 at that time. On a flat road I was able to get the 3.0 to 28mph in top gear but only by pedaling as fast as I possibly could. Not a pace that could be sustained for very long, so I'm not sure if the bike I drove had the upgraded firmware.

 

[Carterk]

This confirms what I was told last month by a knowledgeable salesperson at a large Austin lbs that does a significant amount of ebike business (I posted this at the time in another thread.) it's great to have confirmation of this good news! PacApp, how hard to you feel you need to pedal (on flat ground) to get to 28? And how's the thing do on hills???

 

[PacApp]

Getting to 28mph is less about power and more about cadence. Because of the gearing, you're pedaling really fast to get up to 28mph. Generally, I've been cruising around 22mph comfortably on my commute. Going up hills is a breeze!

 

[ruben de wulf]

is there news already ?

 

[Douglas Ruby]

There is a big difference in gearing between the Vado 3.0 and Vado 5.0/6.0. The Vado 3.0 has a 40T chain ring while the Vado 5.0/6.0 have the same 48T that all of the previous generation Turbos did. They all have an 11T small sprocket on the rear 10 or 11 speed clusters.

The cadence needed to hit 28 mph on the Vado 3.0 is 97 rpm in the highest (10th) gear (40T-11T) and is 115 rpm in 9th gear. The cadence to cruise at 28 mph on the Vado 5.0/6.0 is just 80 rpm in top (11th) gear (48T-11T) and 96 rpm in 10th gear.

So even if the Brose mid drive on the lesser Turbo Vado's is set up to handle 28 mph at a cadence of around 100 rpm, the stock gearing on the Vado 2/3/4 bikes is not optimal. Most of us are not professional class athletes, so maintaining a cadence of 100+ rpm is pretty difficult.

OTOH, purchase a larger chainring and you should be able to gear the Vado 3.0 for a more comfortable high speed cruise.

Doug

 

[Ike582]

There is a big difference in gearing between the Vado 3.0 and Vado 5.0/6.0. The Vado 3.0 has a 40T chain ring while the Vado 5.0/6.0 have the same 48T that all of the previous generation Turbos did. They all have an 11T small sprocket on the rear 10 or 11 speed clusters.

The cadence needed to hit 28 mph on the Vado 3.0 is 97 rpm in the highest (10th) gear (40T-11T) and is 115 rpm in 9th gear. The cadence to cruise at 28 mph on the Vado 5.0/6.0 is just 80 rpm in top (11th) gear (48T-11T) and 96 rpm in 10th gear.

So even if the Brose mid drive on the lesser Turbo Vado's is set up to handle 28 mph at a cadence of around 100 rpm, the stock gearing on the Vado 2/3/4 bikes is not optimal. Most of us are not professional class athletes, so maintaining a cadence of 100+ rpm is pretty difficult.

OTOH, purchase a larger chainring and you should be able to gear the Vado 3.0 for a more comfortable high speed cruise.

Doug

That makes sense, thanks Doug.

 

[Carterk]

I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that Specialized has, in fact, decided to make the 3.0 a class 3, 28mph bike after stating unequivocally just a month or two earlier that it would be limited to 20 mph. Do I plan to ride faster than 20 on any kind of regular basis? I don't think so- I never have on my conventional bikes, I don't *need* to go that fast, and I'm very conscious of the efficiency hit one takes when riding at those higher speeds. No, I just want to know that in those rare instances that I want to pump myself out of a situation as fast as possible that my bike isn't going to quit on me as soon as I pass 20 mph.

 

[MacVado3.0]

You guys are lucky to go pass 20mph. I can't even get my 3.0 to go pass 16mph. Took it to lbs and their specialized tech tried the firmware update but it didn't take. So the bike is just sitting at lbs.

 

[ruben de wulf]

is there any news about the update ??

 

[Lawrence lanes]

I’ve tested 2 different 3.0’s and now own one of them. I was able to achieve a little over 26 mph with both samples with motor assist in turbo mode. 2 different salesmen informed me that specialized had recently upgraded the 3.0 to the 26 mph spec and I read somewhere that the 3.0’s are set to do 26.2 mph, but not quite the 28 mph of the pedelec category. 26 is good enough for me.

 

[ruben de wulf]

Lawrence are you sure about this? So the bluetooth function works on the 2 bikes?

 

[Lawrence lanes]

Don’t know about Bluetooth. Not sure that will be activated until the app comes out. What I’m saying is that I heard specialized made a late decision not to limit the u.s. bikes to 20 mph. I’ve read that the firmware that controls that may be in the battery, not the display. On my bike and the other I demoed, max assisted speed seems to be 26 mph, not 28. Going over 26 on the flat does take considerable effort, but up to 26 in turbo mode is easy. My problem is that the display seems to be in “demo” mode, so it reverts back to km/hr when turned off And some other nuisances. Also seems to lock up periodically. I’m told there is a firmware update to take the display out of this demo mode, although the dealer here in San Rafael was unaware of this.

 

[DarthVado]

I can confirm the Vado 3.0 goes 28 mph, and much faster. The motor cuts off at 28 mph, and it is a class 3 bike. My bike required a firmware update, maybe two sometime in July.


I love the bike, but mine is having a problem with shifting and staying in the high gear, constantly skipping during pedaling. I have also had the motor spin the chain out of control, sort of like revving the engine in a car while in neutral. Is anybody having a similar problem?

 

[DarthVado]

There is a big difference in gearing between the Vado 3.0 and Vado 5.0/6.0. The Vado 3.0 has a 40T chain ring while the Vado 5.0/6.0 have the same 48T that all of the previous generation Turbos did. They all have an 11T small sprocket on the rear 10 or 11 speed clusters.

The cadence needed to hit 28 mph on the Vado 3.0 is 97 rpm in the highest (10th) gear (40T-11T) and is 115 rpm in 9th gear. The cadence to cruise at 28 mph on the Vado 5.0/6.0 is just 80 rpm in top (11th) gear (48T-11T) and 96 rpm in 10th gear.

So even if the Brose mid drive on the lesser Turbo Vado's is set up to handle 28 mph at a cadence of around 100 rpm, the stock gearing on the Vado 2/3/4 bikes is not optimal. Most of us are not professional class athletes, so maintaining a cadence of 100+ rpm is pretty difficult.

OTOH, purchase a larger chainring and you should be able to gear the Vado 3.0 for a more comfortable high speed cruise.

Doug

 

[DarthVado]

Doug, would you know if Vado 3.0 owners are having problems with shifting and chain skipping while pedaling in high gear? I have also had the motor spin the chain out of control, sort of like revving the engine in a car while in neutral.

 

[PhilRW]

Doug, would you know if Vado 3.0 owners are having problems with shifting and chain skipping while pedaling in high gear? I have also had the motor spin the chain out of control, sort of like revving the engine in a car while in neutral.

I had that exact thing happen to me once so far: I was pedaling and then it just went into "neutral," I don't know how else to explain it. Like some kind of clutch mechanism skipped or something.

I've had the chain skip or clunk when in the highest gear. It also happened to my wife's 3.0 and the shop changed the rear cassette out for a 36T and the problems got better. It hasn't been bad enough on mine to warrant a trip to the shop (...yet).

 

[DarthVado]

I sense they have a problem with the deraileur/cassette combination on the 3.0. I asked to have the deraileur upgraded, but Specialized denied the request. I'm having the bike tuned again, hoping for better results. BTW, my problem was with the 11T and other higher gears.