Turbo Vado SL 2 6.0 - turns itself on when off and unattended

[BEC111]

Since then only 1 random turn on. But I've had a motor fault (sadly didn't record the number) & yesterday during a ride the H3 displays locked up. Sorted by doing a full reset - but really shouldn't be necessary!!
Time still often incorrect on H3 until connected to App.

My SL2 has only powered on itself twice. To my knowledge. The time is off any time I don’t ride for more than a day.

Both of these bugs are annoying but not earth shattering. Specialized has finally realized that their e-bikes are computers on two wheels. They just haven’t quite gotten the software/firmware right.

 

[Mike Tod]

Mine did it again yesterday. Seems it resets time to 00.00 when this happens too. I'm sure its a software bug but Spec don't really seem interested..... Shame, when you spend some 6k on a bike you do expect it to be fault-free !!

 

[BEC111]

I suspect that there are two issues here. The clock being off makes sense if there is no power to the H3 when the bike is powered down so the clock stops running. Perhaps, after a short delay. No battery in the H3 so the capacitor (a guess) that drive the clock discharges and needs to sync with the App to update.

The power on mystery is the kind that is really hard to address since the problem occurs so rarely that catching it so a developer can identify the problem can be a matter of chance.

 

[Mike Tod]

Umm. Maybe. But for the first 12 months or so of ownership there were zero problems with time or self powering on. So maybe it was a Spec' update that started it all.... Even now some days when I've switched on after maybe a week of inactivity (temperature here in Summer has been high 30's low 40's so often too hot for riding) the time has been correct, other times it can be off after only 1 day, so that doesn't really fit with the discharging capacitor theory. Thanks for input though. LBS reckons he might have to send it back to Spec' in France 'cos he's out of ideas......

 

[BEC111]

Umm. Maybe. But for the first 12 months or so of ownership there were zero problems with time or self powering on. So maybe it was a Spec' update that started it all.... Even now some days when I've switched on after maybe a week of inactivity (temperature here in Summer has been high 30's low 40's so often too hot for riding) the time has been correct, other times it can be off after only 1 day, so that doesn't really fit with the discharging capacitor theory. Thanks for input though. LBS reckons he might have to send it back to Spec' in France 'cos he's out of ideas......

Oh well. The capacitor idea was merely a guess. I doubt there are capacitors in the unit. Resolution will be interesting. In keeping with my past tech experience, Specialized will make a firmware update that will fix the problem and not tell us.

 

[mcdenny]

No more time corrections or auto turn-ons since about 6 weeks ago. ???

 

[Mike Tod]

29th Sept overnight & clock incorrect, 3rd Oct it was on when I opened garage to go for a ride - again clock wrong. Same day whilst on stand for a clean (sponge only - no hose) & I was inside cleaning/oiling the removed chain it came on again. LBS asked me to to check the light splitter cables (they've replaced this already) which as they're an hours drive away I did. All in perfect condition no signs of water ingress.
Since then (fingers crossed) its been ok. So only 2 weeks !

 

[BEC111]

I saw a posting elsewhere that said the power comes on to recharge the small battery that boots the controller. That almost makes sense, but if true, what a dumb idea. I guess it would be OK if the bike shuts down after the charge cycle, but that doesn’t appear to be the case. At least with the current firmware version.

 

[Mike Tod]

Makes no sense in my case - it's seemingly a random act ! If it happened every e.g 43 days that might make sense but it doesn't. Anyway I had a Vado SL before this for 3+ years & that ran perfectly. From the circuit diagrams I've seen there's always battery power going to the On/Off switch &/or the H3 controller via the light splitter unit.

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Makes no sense in my case - it's seemingly a random act ! If it happened every e.g 43 days that might make sense but it doesn't. Anyway I had a Vado SL before this for 3+ years & that ran perfectly. From the circuit diagrams I've seen there's always battery power going to the On/Off switch &/or the H3 controller via the light splitter unit.

I think you've been targeted for pranking by the alien mothership orbiting behind the moon. They came to eat us but didn't like the taste (too much like chicken). Then they discovered how much fun we are to mess with and stayed for the chuckles.

Don't let 'em see it's getting to you and they'll move on.
;^}

 

[BEC111]

Makes no sense in my case - it's seemingly a random act ! If it happened every e.g 43 days that might make sense but it doesn't. Anyway I had a Vado SL before this for 3+ years & that ran perfectly. From the circuit diagrams I've seen there's always battery power going to the On/Off switch &/or the H3 controller via the light splitter unit.

I know it makes no sense. Here‘s the entire post, from the Vado SL group on Facebook:

“Hope this helps: Same issue. First call to Specialized seemed as if they themselves were still in learning phase. / A local bike shop Firmware update temporarily helped ( 2025 sl2). Finally put on diagnostics scan of some sort at my local shop about 3-4 weeks ago. They Found that not all electrical components were integrated ( or a similar term) as required. Corrected( All in less than 15 minutes). So far the multiple daily turn on’s have stopped( about 4 weeks now).
More explanation:
Because the wired mastermind has a rechargeable battery that is only charged during operation via the bike’s main battery it can go to a low charge state and signals the main battery to turn on in order to charge that little battery ( sounds weird, doesn’t it). That occasional turn on is a feature not a bug per a second Specialized support call prior to that second trip to my LBS. This turn on mastermind recharge feature also has a one line mention in the owners manual. But is was happening to my bike often including 2 days after a 14 mile ride for example. Again that mastermind which is wired , requires bike to be on to charge itself). That battery is needed to activate the turn on sequence, which i thought was odd since my wife’s Velotric D2’s controlling computer has no such issue or need to recharge itself.
In summary , the sl2 needs a scan to assure all components are registered and integrated, at least in my case, at this time.”

I have no idea how true this is but, very interesting.

 

[Mike Tod]

Wow ! Well done Sherlock ! I'm vacationing for a while but when back I'll get this translated into French & then show it to my LBS & see if he understands. Sort of makes sense that all the components need to be registered with each other but a) you'd have thought that would have been done during manufacture & b) doesn't really explain why I had an initial trouble-free year with bike - but its worth a try.
I've never seen the line referred to in the handbook either but maybe time for another read....
I'm beginning to think Jeremy's alien theory might make more sense

 

[Mike Tod]

Found relevant line. Page 30 of the English version.
"The display’s internal battery is charged by the main battery, when at a low state of charge, the bicycle will power on and charge up the display While charging, the display shows “Charging Display” During this charging cycle the bicycle lights will automatically power on but motor support is disabled "
Never seen "Charging Display" when bike has turned on, no mention here of incorrect time display & I'm fairly certain that the motor works when I've found it on. In previous post I mentioned it came on 2x one day - just after a 40km ride & then later so I really can't see this is due to the H3 battery being flat - unless of course there's a fault on the charging circuit.
Its a mystery - as I think Toyah sang some time ago....