What Real World Range Are You Seeing With Your Specialized Turbo?

[Nxkharra]

Using Specialized's ap, https://www.specialized.com/us/en/t...Imperial=true&mode=ECO&terrain=FLAT&stops=FEW

you would be good for 87 miles.

Thank you for this reference site. I have been looking for the range calculator. Why can’t they add this to the display?
My old bike display was showing this. Not sure how accurate it was though.

 

[PaD]

I am questioning whether the new 2018 Vado 3.0 with Class 3 1.2 motor and 460Wh battery is the right bike for me. The other bike I was considering is a 2018 Vado 6.0 with a Class 3 1.3 motor and 604Wh battery for an additional $450 (both were marked down since they’re older models). Is the extra money worth the additional battery life and the upgraded components? I’m loving the 3.0 but today a 39 mile mostly flat ride sucked up 60-70% of the battery riding in Eco mode. I do sometimes like to ride farther and hillier although it’s mostly used for commuting. What to do? Also, what is the Smart Control Button?? Nothing like that on the 3.0 or any type of read-out that I could access...not sure if the 6.0 has those features. Appreciate your thoughts/input.

Are you talking about 2018 bikes or is it perhaps a typo?
The 2018 Vado 6.0 does not have the Specialized 1.3 motor.
I say it has a Specialized 1.2S motor, wich is what Brose call a TF motor, for speed pedelecs. It is stronger than the 1.2 and can give a bit higher max support but maybe a little bit less efficiant. Have a look at this product page from Brose.

Product

Brose eBike drive units are perfect collaborations on the highest level of the mechanical components, software and the individual biker.

www.brose-ebike.com

A 604Wh battery is 30% larger than a 460Wh so if riding conditions and motor is the same you will of course get more miles but maybe not exactly 30%.
And $450 is half the price of a new 604Wh battery.

The Smart Control is a feature in the Mission Control App. You need the newer display ( TCD ) to be able to use the app. Using the app the main advantage for me has been experimenting with Support level and Peak power in Eco mode.

 

[Larry Nigro]

I have same bike as you. I did a 30 mile ride this weekend. Terrain is mostly flat, 11th gear as much as possible on turbo. I was intentionally trying to run my battery down. I am 6'0 350lb and certainly not wearing cycling clothes. I got back with enough battery.. I had a lot of range anxiety when I bought the bike because of my size. It appears to be a lot of worrying about nothing. I was running mission control to try and capture data so I could figure out max range in those conditions. It seems to have stopped though at 20.77 miles, I did not think that shutting off the battery would end the workout on the app I would think as long as the app is running it would be able to resume. We stopped for a break and I powered down to conserver battery. So keep that in mind if your on a long cycle and make a pit stop. I'll post the stats from the app. I bought my wife a Como 5.0 Stepthrough also but I think she was using apple health only to track on her watch. I will have to check. Maybe she has data as well. She is not a large woman so her stats would probably be more real world for many riders rather than the stats of an Ape like me. As you can see from stats below though if I kept it in eco or sports I could probably easily get 50+ miles out of a battery charge. My butt on a saddle would give out long before the battery did.

Distance 20.77mi
Duration 1:34:08
Avg Speed 13.24
Min Elevation 784ft
Maximum Elevation 859Ft
Elevation gained 314ft
Elevation lost 314ft
Max speed 25.99
Calories 334.88Kcal
Total Consumption 346wh
Average support level 350.82%

No need to power down or turn off the battery if you are not pedaling the battery is not being used. On my Vado 3.0 the battery turns off after 10 minutes if at a standstill page 18 of manual. I did a 70 mile ride no problem think I could go 80 to 85 miles on one charge.

 

[Billperry]

My Turbo Como 5.0 is getting about the same milages as most of the above folks. I feel comfortable when planning a 45 mile roundtrip on moderately hilly suburban roads. My experience is that rider weight counts a lot especially when being hauled up elevations. Speed is also big, turbo mode uses a bit more than twice as many watt/hrs as does Eco. I also see a hit with air resistance. I don't think the tire inflation makes a big difference in the type of riding that most of us seem to be doing.

 

[Uburoibob]

Longest ride I did with my 2019 Como 2.0 was 40 miles. Mostly ECO with some of the higher assist tossed in for a few hills. I got home with about 10% battery remaining. I weigh 205. Wind as a sustained 10-12mph headwind. This was before I had the TCD-W installed to replace then BLOKS, so I wasn’t using Smart Ride. Since the frame cracked on this bike where the motor mounts, I now have a 2020 3.0. Once I get the software updated on Thursday (right now it’s set up as a European bike and can only go 15.5 mph assist) I’ll have a better idea about it. The 48 tooth chainring may make a difference, though I am not sure it will be positive or negative yet.

 

[FreeWheelie]

rode about 33 miles on my 2020 Vado 3.0 (1.2e motor, 460Wh), mostly eco mode, but used turbo to climb a few inclines and to go above 25 mph a few times. Ended up with 45% battery left.

 

[PaD]

European, 15,5mph limit, 2020 Vado 5.0. 604Wh battery.
I usualy get 0.8 - 1.1 mile for 1% battery depending on if it’s top or bottom of battery charge. I ride in Eco mode.

On my first full charge I rode 75 miles (120km) and still had 20% charge left. This was over a couple of days with mixed city riding and shorter excursions.
My bike is now doing 18mph, or just over, since I had wheel circumference adjusted in software. I ride at that speed now and then but mostly between 10 and 15mph in Eco mode.
I still get great milage and think a realistic range for me , without any range anxiety, would be 70-75 miles (110-120km) without draining the battery completely. (10%?)
Fitted Schwalbe Marathon Plus 2 weeks ago and I think they have a little higher rolling resistance compared to original Trigger Sport.

Speed is the key factor where I’ve ridden but if I ride somewhere else terrain could be another watt eater.
If you have a distance that has to be covered lowering the speed can absolutely be the thing to do to.

I was in a hurry to catch a train to go for a ride last Sunday. Sport mode and headwind used 4% battery for a 2 mile ride. That’s double my usual consumption.

 

[Nxkharra]

I rode 26 miles on the pacific coast with one short climb (7%) and the rest mostly flat. Average speed of 14m/h. Used mostly on Sport and Turbo mode.
I had 45% battery remaining at the end.

 

[Mamabernst]

Thanks for all the input about range relating to battery size. I traded up for the Vado 6.0 with 604Wh battery and am seeing the longer range capacity. One new thing I learned is how the chain needs more attention than on traditional bikes. The Specialized store staff told me I should be WIPING DOWN AND LUBING THE CHAIN AFTER EVERY RIDE (for me, that’s almost everyday!). Am curious if other folks are so thorough with their maintenance, apparently the motor demands more care than a regular bike.

 

[Marci jo]

Thanks for all the input about range relating to battery size. I traded up for the Vado 6.0 with 604Wh battery and am seeing the longer range capacity. One new thing I learned is how the chain needs more attention than on traditional bikes. The Specialized store staff told me I should be WIPING DOWN AND LUBING THE CHAIN AFTER EVERY RIDE (for me, that’s almost everyday!). Am curious if other folks are so thorough with their maintenance, apparently the motor demands more care than a regular bike.

Wow, every ride? My goal is clean and lube around every 200 miles but I’m sure that it actually gets done at around 400 miles. I use a simple one step clean and lube product.
Can’t say if that’s the best maintenance because there’s only 2,500 miles on the bike. Hmmm....it would be nice to know what the mfgr recommends.
I am super careful when shifting to avoid and clunking/clogging. Trying to avoid extra stress on the chain.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I had two longer rides recently on my Turbo Vado 5.0. I weigh 236 lbs. In both cases I started with full 604 Wh battery.

Ride 1: Sport mode only, distance 28.25 mi, avg speed 17.2 mpg, elevation gain 465 ft. Temperature 44 F. Remaining battery: 8%
Ride 2: Eco mode for 5 mi, then Sport mode. Distance 32.28 mi, avg speed 14.3 mph. elevation gain 465 ft. Temperature 42 F. Remaining battery: 8%.

I'm worried. Could the ambient temperature cause so big degradation to the battery?

I'm delivering the bike to the Specialized dealer for the display replacement, diagnostics and the inspection after first 200 km this Wednesday. I'm worried. The other e-bike I own makes at least 50 miles under exactly the same conditions and it is 576 not 604 Wh battery...

EDIT: "The same conditions" means he same ambient temperature and the same distance/avg speed as under the "Ride 2" and the other bike carries large panniers while Vado only carries me...

 

[Uburoibob]

When you get your display replaced, download Mission Control. It will report on the health of your battery. What year is your bike?

 

[Stefan Mikes]

It was sold to me as 2019 model. Judging by fork, brakes and tyres as well as the rear light, it might be 2018 one. I have a feeling I have been cheated.

 

[Nxkharra]

I have a 2020 Vado 5.0. I have had two rides of almost all turbo mode, relatively flat, not much wind, and I weigh 186. I was able to ride 36 miles with 5% battery remaining.

 

[Uburoibob]

It was sold to me as 2019 model. Judging by fork, brakes and tyres as well as the rear light, it might be 2018 one. I have a feeling I have been cheated.

It's tough to determine the year by features as they overlap a bit. If you are getting the TCD-W display installed, you'll be able to tweak your rides. And you'll be able to see battery health/condition. The dealer should be able to tell you too once they plug it into their diagnostics/setup software.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

It's tough to determine the year by features as they overlap a bit.

The e-bike industry is unpredictable. Fancy car year-models being different among one another because some spare parts from last year model were left and should be used up in this year's model...

 

[Captain Slow]

I find it quite interesting that there are two guys on here who have wives with the same bike. Data from their rides from both them and their wives would be interesting to know how much the size and weight of the rider impacts range. It makes sense that weight will affect range more on hilly terrain compared to flat, but how much of a difference is it in each case?

 

[blackdog7]

I have the Como 4.0. This goes up to 28 mph with the 500 Wh battery. I am very happy with the bike, and I like almost everything about it. If there is one thing that I would choose to improve, that would be to have more range.

For doing 16 mph commute round trip, I use about 45 - 70% of the battery.

The other day I did 24 miles, and I used 95% of the battery.

I have noticed that now that it is getting cooler, the battery range is noticeably reduced. When I did that 24 mile ride, it was about 34 degrees.

Also, with clothing and gear, my total weight with the bike is around 300 pounds.

One thing I have also noticed is that wind will affect the range. I am sitting upright on that Como, so there is definitely wind resistance that will have to be overcome with energy.

Also, I ride in the sport or turbo mode at all times. I do not use the eco mode at all. I do this because I know I can make the commute without using eco mode. I am riding over 20 mph for much of the ride.

In summary, the way to really use up the battery is to be on the heavy side, and to ride on a cold, windy day, and keep it in turbo mode.

When that battery eventually fails (I hope a very long time from now) I will definitely plan to get a bigger battery if it is not too much extra money.

Note also, I have learned that it is best for long-term battery health to use the battery from about 20% to 80% -- literally to not charge it fully, and don't run it down to zero. For that reason also, it would be better to have a bigger battery.

 

[Uburoibob]

I read somewhere, in Specialized’s site last year, that you want to bring your battery in where the temperature is above 35 degrees F for charging and storing. I ride in 40 degrees here and the range seems no different than at 70 degrees. It’s relatively flat here, but frequently windy (near Chicago). 200lbs, 6ft. Como 3.0 2020, and I had a 2019 Como 2.0 that had the broken frame problem. No difference in range.

 

[Rick53]

I read somewhere, in Specialized’s site last year, that you want to bring your battery in where the temperature is above 35 degrees F for charging and storing. I ride in 40 degrees here and the range seems no different than at 70 degrees. It’s relatively flat here, but frequently windy (near Chicago). 200lbs, 6ft. Como 3.0 2020, and I had a 2019 Como 2.0 that had the broken frame problem. No difference in range.

When you say broken Frame Did the weld brake free ? I am trying to imagine how the frame itself broke : Can you be clearer please :