Vado SL 2 Carbon LTD premiered today!

[mschwett]

Then I see no benefit.

Personally I think if this 6.0 had come out first we'd say, "drop the price and weight even if that means less power a bit more noise and a smaller battery as we can buy bottle extenders."

the benefit is really in range, i think, which was never really an issue for me on the creo 1 but i could see how a "supercommuter" might benefit from it. outside of certain kinds of racing it's really pretty rare to see people do 100+ mile rides on flat bar bikes, so the use cases for the bigger battery are commuting and rides with lots of climbing, where the power could be useful to some riders.

i agree that the motor and battery are the wrong direction for the SL, but the carbon frame and carbon wheels offered in the LTD one are the right direction. you could have a flat bar bike the same weight, more or less, as a comparable creo, if they offered the 320wh battery!

 

[GAJ]

As we both know, range isn't an issue with an easy to pedal bike like the 4.0 and 5.0 SLs which is why I think they are the sweet spot for now.

Until we can get a battery that is the same size and weight as the 320 in these bikes I'm fine even without bottle batteries as are you it sounds like.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Just think Specialized could have just slapped the SL 1.2 motor onto the existing Vado SL frame, added the H3 display and then increased the price to the normal or even a little more expensive level...

 

[Avg_Joe]

The CF Vado2 6.0 non-EQ has a carbon fork and seatpost and clocks in at 35.x lbs. This isn't too bad. I doubt the aluminum version will be less than 40 lbs.

Curious tire choice - 700c x 47mm trekking tire. Add another +$100 to swap those out unless the bike is strictly for commuting.

Pass.

 

[GAJ]

The CF Vado2 6.0 non-EQ has a carbon fork and seatpost and clocks in at 35.x lbs. This isn't too bad. I doubt the aluminum version will be less than 40 lbs.

Curious tire choice - 700c x 47mm trekking tire. Add another +$100 to swap those out unless the bike is strictly for commuting.

Pass.

My SL 5.0 non EQ in large frame size weighed 33lbs on digital bathroom scale.

The EBR test of the base 6.0 EQ had their weight 2lbs heavier than spec.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

The CF Vado2 6.0 non-EQ has a carbon fork

Vado SL 5.0 has a carbon fork, too.

All Future Shock forks are carbon.

 

[GAJ]

Vado SL 5.0 has a carbon fork, too.

Indeed.

To make weight up for having a Futureshock unlike the SL 4.0 I suspect.

And justify a higher price though it also is said to have "step up" components vs the 4.0.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

To make weight up for having a Futureshock unlike the SL 4.0 I suspect.

Not necessarily. Future Shock has come from Roubaix and Diverge. It is quite common to install a carbon fork on road/gravel bikes, and it is a norm if a gravel bike has flat handlebars (I could give some names, not only Specialized).

I might risk the statement the carbon fork with FS is the standard issue part at Specialized. If I'm not wrong all Spesh FS forks support the Road Boost thru-axle.

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Personally I think if this 6.0 had come out first we'd say, "drop the price and weight even if that means less power a bit more noise and a smaller battery as we can buy bottle extenders."

Exactly.

To be fair, they're still selling that bike as the SL 4.0 and 5.0. With the SL 6.0, they just added coverage for an adjacent market segment.

Would've been easier to see the SL 6.0 in that light if they hadn't called it an SL. But understandable that they did.

BTW, why do they persist with the decimals and zeroes in model numbers? Why not 5 instead of 5.0? Has there ever been a model that wasn't a whole number?

 

[Rás Cnoic]

Exactly.

To be fair, they're still selling that bike as the SL 4.0 and 5.0. With the SL 6.0, they just added coverage for an adjacent market segment.

Would've been easier to see the SL 6.0 in that light if they hadn't called it an SL. But understandable that they did.

BTW, why do they persist with the decimals and zeroes in model numbers? Why not 5 instead of 5.0? Has there ever been a model that wasn't a whole number?

Ha! Good point. Bike naming culture is always a head scratcher. Why start at SL4 and not SL1? Most brands seem to love long numerical names. Cube is a nightmare, so many variations of each model.

I liked it back when Specialized were mostly known for the Rockhopper and the Stumpjumper - and in RED. Simple and descriptive!

I would love to eavesdrop on Specialized planning meetings. What decisions they make & why, how many models sold, their worries about rivals and so on. I'd pay for a warts and all doc from Netflix for that!

 

[mschwett]

Exactly.

To be fair, they're still selling that bike as the SL 4.0 and 5.0. With the SL 6.0, they just added coverage for an adjacent market segment.

Would've been easier to see the SL 6.0 in that light if they hadn't called it an SL. But understandable that they did.

BTW, why do they persist with the decimals and zeroes in model numbers? Why not 5 instead of 5.0? Has there ever been a model that wasn't a whole number?

also unsure why they use numbers instead of names for the more urban bikes.

tarmac, roubaix, creo, aethos, allez, diverge, crux, stumpjumper, levo, levo sl, enduro, rockhopper, etc etc etc all use a similar naming system :

sport
comp
expert
pro
s-works

from least expensive to most. sometimes they add “EVO” for a different but not lesser spec, LTD for special editions (usually paint and a few part upgrades) and in some models there is carbon and aluminum. the numbers are only used for the new models, so a tarmac SL8 is not a higher spec than an SL7, it’s a newer design.

by this system, the previous vado SL would have been the vado SL1 E5 comp and E5 sport, and the new one would be the vado SL2 comp carbon and expert LTD carbon. they could have used 1.1 for the mastermind versions.

 

[2wheelsgood]

What a curious bike.

They added a carbon frame and SL 1.2 as many asked and then completely negated the benefits with a heavier battery and fat trekking tires.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Why not 5 instead of 5.0?

I think there is a whole group in the marketing department that only works on the names that are pleasant to the eye

Most of us here are not in the e-MTB. Are you aware there is Turbo Kenevo SL 2 Comp (US$8,000) and Turbo Kenevo SL 2 Ohlins Coil (US$11,000)? There are several Levo SL models that should have SL 2 in the name (for the SL 1.2 motor) but they haven't? That there are full power Levo G3 (for Generation 3) models, some of them being T-Type? It is harder and harder for me track all these changes!

Jeremy, I think the whole story started at least a dozen years ago. It looks the bike manufacturers liked the way Windows et al. were numbered. My last pedal bike I bought was a Polish Romet Wagant 3.0, already in 2013! Interestingly, some brands such as Giant number their most expensive bikes and e-bikes with the lowest numbers, such as 0 for the top shelf and 4 for their absolute junk entry level models

 

[RRCV]

You should decidedly give the motor a try Even only in ECO mode

Will do, one day soon, when my legs run out of fuel.

 

[RRCV]

You should have bought a Sirrus X 4.0 at less than half the price and 10lbs lighter than the non eq SL 5.0.

I did consider several non e-bikes, I purchased the SL because I will need assist one day soon

 

[Stefan Mikes]

tarmac, roubaix, creo, aethos, allez, diverge, crux, stumpjumper, levo, levo sl, enduro, rockhopper, etc etc etc all use a similar naming system :

sport
comp
expert
pro
s-works

And what about the frame size convention?

• Active bikes: XS, S, M, L, XL, XXL
• MTBs: S2 through S6
• Road bikes: 49, 52, 54, 56, 58, 61

Will do, one day soon, when my legs run out of fuel.

I did consider several non e-bikes, I purchased the SL because I will need assist one day soon

I was about to ask the same question as @GAJ You could have bought a perfect traditional bike of 10 kg yet you chose a 17 kg e-bike It is true the e-bike makes us reassured that we will return home still on th battery (especially in your situation). Riding an e-bike is fun. So I am surprised you do not use even some assistance on the surface that is harder to pedal such as gravel

The only situations in which I rode my Vado SL unassisted were group rides with some "snail" friends of mine I briefly considered buying a modern traditional bicycle just for more workout but gave up when I discovered my average speed on a Specialized Diverge E5 EVO was below 15 km/h, and that was when my legs were temporarily stronger...

 

[RRCV]

I was about to ask the same question as @GAJ You could have bought a perfect traditional bike of 10 kg yet you chose a 17 kg e-bike It is true the e-bike makes us reassured that we will return home still on th battery (especially in your situation). Riding an e-bike is fun. So I am surprised you do not use even some assistance on the surface that is harder to pedal such as gravel

The only situations in which I rode my Vado SL unassisted were group rides with some "snail" friends of mine I briefly considered buying a modern traditional bicycle just for more workout but gave up when I discovered my average speed on a Specialized Diverge E5 EVO was below 15 km/h, and that was when my legs were temporarily stronger...

Riding the SL unassisted, and with a 5kg back pack, water, tools, food, is a much better workout

I did try other heavier e-bikes, to me the heavy e-bike ride experience was more like driving a large, cumbersome truck, I prefer the agile feel of the SL

Loose, sandy gravel and a 40-50kmh headwind, for 4-5km almost beat me, I considered reaching for the assist button and selecting Eco, but dropped a gear or two and managed to keep the heart rate down and cadence up

 

[Twowheelxtc]

I too ride my Creo with no assist 90% of the time just saving power for steep hills. Completely stupid I know and I can offer no defence as I know I’m just being ridiculous! . When I ride my 9yr old Rubaix that weighs 8.5k it’s so much easier and faster!! The road bike snobs that claim we ebikers don’t get any exercise and are lazy talk rubbish in an attempt to make themselves feel superior!

 

[Chargeride]

My Haibike eco plus mode is basically no assist, it turns the fat tyres into road tyres.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Riding the SL unassisted, and with a 5kg back pack, water, tools, food, is a much better workout

The road bike snobs that claim we ebikers don’t get any exercise and are lazy talk rubbish in an attempt to make themselves feel superior!

Guys, you should be aware the power and energy you input into your crankset is the same regardless you are assisted or not (of course if you are really pedalling as much as you can!) Just check your Specialized power-meter readouts, and the leg power and energy expenditure on Strava (as long as these data come from your e-bike).

The whole point with being electrically assisted is you can ride farther with the same body energy input.

See a comparison of rides on almost the same route:

A powerful Vado 6.0, see the average speed and calories.

A Vado SL.

You might say: 'Stefan, you burned 400 kcal less when riding your big Vado?' Yes. It is just because my Vado SL ride was 40 minutes longer to complete the same route! Could I ride for 120 km on a traditional pedal bike? Not.