I wanted to thank everyone that gave me their insights and experiences about the Vado line of e-bikes. It proved to be valuable as I was test riding Turbo Vado 4.0 and Vado 4.0 SL bikes today. My LBS had both on the floor and as they are located not far from my house, I was able to ride both of them up some hills. The Turbo Vado 4.0 was very comfortable and just a down right fun ride. The Vado 4.0 SL surprised me as I was riding up a hill thinking the climb was pretty easy I looked down and realized I was riding with no power assist! That was the thing that made me think I should start my e-bike experience with the SL. I want to do some longer rides (60 miles or so) and if I were to drain the battery I know I could ride home. However, I am thinking how I might save some money and perhaps purchase a Vado 4.0/5.0 to keep the SL company. Again, this forum has been very valuable to me and I want to thank everyone who submits as this is greatly informative.
Turbo Vado 4.0 SL Purchase
- Thread starter larrybike
- Start date
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
@larrybike,
The range of an e-bike depends in great share on the rider's leg input. If you set the Assist and Max Motor Power in the "heavy" Vado to 30% or less with Mission Control, you'll be able to complete your 60-mile ride still on the battery. You could also set Smart Control in Mission Control the way: "I want to ride for 60 miles with such-and-such elevation gain and I still want to retain 10% of the battery just in case". The Smart Control will provide the assist automatically.
The point is, you haven't ridden the SL for 60 miles yet. Probability is you are very tired at the end of the ride and then you'll miss the assist. On the "heavy" Vado and with the Smart Control, it is typical to have the juice left in the battery and the owners typically go on the Sport or even the Turbo mode at the end of the ride when they need the assist the most. Especially the Vado 5.0 with the 600 Wh battery means heaven against hell on long rides (compared to the 240 Wh battery of the SL).
Consider that please.
The range of an e-bike depends in great share on the rider's leg input. If you set the Assist and Max Motor Power in the "heavy" Vado to 30% or less with Mission Control, you'll be able to complete your 60-mile ride still on the battery. You could also set Smart Control in Mission Control the way: "I want to ride for 60 miles with such-and-such elevation gain and I still want to retain 10% of the battery just in case". The Smart Control will provide the assist automatically.
The point is, you haven't ridden the SL for 60 miles yet. Probability is you are very tired at the end of the ride and then you'll miss the assist. On the "heavy" Vado and with the Smart Control, it is typical to have the juice left in the battery and the owners typically go on the Sport or even the Turbo mode at the end of the ride when they need the assist the most. Especially the Vado 5.0 with the 600 Wh battery means heaven against hell on long rides (compared to the 240 Wh battery of the SL).
Consider that please.
Brendon@OEB
Well-Known Member
Glad you had a great experience! We have a range extender for the SL that someone backed out on if you want it, ordered it for a Creo with the cable, works on the Vado SL just fine. I think the Vado 5.0 would compliment the SL with the powerful motor. My $.02
Brendon@OEB
Well-Known Member
Range extender is $450, I'll include the cable. Freight shipping USPS should be pretty reasonable.
I’ve had my Vado 4.0 SL for 10 days now and so far find the battery very adequate for how I ride. Which is mostly paved bike trails. On my last ride of 38 miles I did a good chunk in my 40/70 % mode and finished with 52% of the fully charged battery left. Some of the ride was unassisted and some in my eco set at 20/35. But overall I had all the assist I needed and really enjoyed the ride. Of course ice cream half way through and some beer at the end didn’t hurt. Thinking of the bike as a tool and how I’d primarily use the tool made my decision pretty easy. One of my biking buddies has the heavier Vado 4.0 so I did get a chance to ride his bike. Which was very nice. The bottom line is I really like the SL and am happy with my choice.
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