Specialized Turbo Levo Gen 3 Demo Ride | First Ride Impressions | GoPro POV

First time riding a Gen 3 Levo and WOW this is an amazing bike!
It should be right for $13,000?
We had these bikes for right around 4 hours and we managed to ride 26 miles and 5500 feet of elevation in just under 3 hours of total riding. By using trail 85% of the time and Turbo 15% of the time we used 90% of the 700Wh battery in about 3 hours of riding.
This bike felt great off the demo showroom floor, but I do have a few personal gripes. If this was my bike the first thing I would do would be to ditch those 2.6" wide tires. As you can hear in the video I complained about them a lot. They felt vague, drifty and I didn't trust the front end at all! On the S5 they spec a 175mm dropper and I think it would have been better matched with a 200-210mm post so the seat could get even further down and out of the way. The code RSCs are great brakes but I would lean towards throwing something just a little better on this bike to manage the weight and heat dissipation. I would likely toss on Hayes, TRPs or Maguras to replace the codes along with the tried and true Magura MDR-P rotors. I would also like to try a 35mm stem on the S5 as the reach felt just a tad long for me. They did have the bike in stock HTA position and the flip chip in high. Maybe by trying the slacker HTA set It would have remedied a bit of that extra reach and also boosted confidence in the steeps.
The motor whined loudly on my bike and I think its because generally larger people ride the S5 models and those demoing these bikes likely ride in Turbo a lot. Spencer's S2 demo was quiet, much quieter than mine.
All in all it was a great day with my buddy riding around on these Levos! I would highly recommend the Specialized Experience Center in Santa Cruz, CA and I'll be demoing from them in the future.

[@ROZAY305BOSS]

Absolutely ripping bruv!

[@jroase1658]

These trails look so fun ! Best POV I’ve seen in long while . Enjoyed the ride 🔥

[@justin_niemi]

They’re some of the best I have had the pleasure of riding yet! I’m running the stuntman chesty with the hero 8 upside down. I’m a bit taller so the POV seems to work well 🤙🏻

[@user-xm7vn7ng6p]

This is by far the best Levo review(ride impressions) out there. BTW I totally agree with you on the 2.6 tires, I own an alloy levo and even though I am no where near your riding skill I can feel exactly what you have described.

[@ab_mtb]

That was so intense to watch. Absolutely sending it 🤟🤟

[@59trevski]

Omg how good and long are those trails, Top riding, sounds like the Levo motor is cooked 🤣🤘

[@markl8043]

I have a 19 turbo Levo Comp and it’s quieter than that. I love it. I would buy another one no problem. Awesome trails!

[@Pozitivi]

Sickkk Justin 🤙🤙

[@jpmlns2008]

this is wild!

[@efwewfwef1549]

jesus christ i am sweating just from watching that!! so intense!!! with my riding skills i would have died on that trail and especially at that pace! i guess that is exactly the riding these high end bikes are made for! keep it up!

[@justin_niemi]

😂 thank you man! I’ve definitely ridden these trails before and was probably going just a tad fast for these tires. It was all fun tho and luckily nothing too sketchy occurred. Keep it loose 🤙🏻

[@renemercado3314]

Dude, it's awesome how u can control that rear tire. Someday, I will try lol

[@Chrislenomadcorsicariders2a]

nice ride

[@HVACOG]

Surprised you were able to move the bike at all with those heavy nuts weighing you down. Nice ride. Cheers

[@justin_niemi]

😂 thank you so much!

[@DatzBerto]

SMASHING!!!!!

[@justin_niemi]

Thanks bro! Bike makes it easy to go fast, maybe too fast 😂

[@paulmerc3960]

Dude, how freaking fast are you going here? I tried pausing it to see if I can see your display but it's a no go. I just s turbo levo and my motor is very quiet but I have heard the more you ride, the louder it gets. I hope mine stays fairly quiet. Nice riding man, very skilled!

[@emtbtrailrider539]

Got the Turbo Levo Pro with Cascade Link

[@Flex-Jitsu]

I have the same exactly Levo. The issue isn't the 2.6" width of the tires. It's that it has the Specialized Butcher (trail casing) tires. And its sidewall is like paper thin so you have crappy support when you corner. I replace them right away with 2.6" Schwalbe Magic Mary (front) and Big Betty (back) both Super Gravity casing. Grip and damping now is so good. Also, I changed the fork to 170mm and added the long travel cascade link with 230x65 shock which increased the travel from 150mm to 165mm. Now the bike rips.

[@darrenmaguire9171]

amazing riding, that massive jump had some serious airtime!! what make/spec tires would you suggest instead of the specialized 2.6s?

[@justin_niemi]

I sent it so much farther than I normally do on the analog bike 😳 I think anything 2.5 and under. I really didn’t think the difference between 2.5 and 2.6 was so drastic but it really is. I also run DD or DH casings so they flex a lot less in corners. I would say a 2.4 minion and 2.5 Assegai would make this bike handle so much better. Both in a 3C DD compound which be my choice 🤘🏻

[@_Don_Wick]

I just watched this on my lunch break homie lol Did you rent from the Specialized shop next to Campus? Thinking of renting a Levo sometime🤘🏽

[@justin_niemi]

Yup! Specialized Santa Cruz Experience Center on River 👌🏻 not a bad way to spend a few hours!

[@markbailey3027]

That's fast

[@alessandronatuzzi7121]

nice video.where is this place😍😍😍

[@jimji2774]

yes some others are saying not only the width of the tires but also the thin walls are the problem.

[@justin_niemi]

I’d argue both of those factors matter! Casings probably help to prevent the surfyness 🏄‍♂️ just a little more.

[@jimji2774]

I own an S works Levo now and really like these wide tires. I' m thinking that if you were a faster rider that you might like something more nimble but as an old, slow guy I love how much traction I get with these and don't feel any need to change them.

[@Coastal-rsidedown]

Old video, but showed up on my feed as I am looking at Turbo Levo. That is fast. What would you pace be like on a non ebike.

[@justin_niemi]

Sorry for the late response! I’d say my pace is pretty close on my normal bike maybe a tad slower because of the weight. My enduro bike weighs in at 40 lbs so not much of a difference there 😂

[@goride365]

Awesome vid. How tall are you and do all the gen 3 levo make the whining noise? Thx🤘🏼 also I’m 5’10.5 with a 33” inseam. I was told for and specialized enduro that a s3 would suite me best. My current bike is a Ripmo af Large and the levo s3 wheel base is about 1/2”-1” shorter then my large Ripmo which feels too longs sometimes.

[@justin_niemi]

Hey Foster, @ 5'10" I would probably recommend S3 enduro for you as well. The Levo and the enduro have diff geo tho keep that in mind because I think for the Levo you'd be more on the cusp of a 3 or 4. Comparing your rip AF geo is definitely a great way to go about it but don't get too tripped up on wheelbase. I'd focus more on reach, HTA and STA! Most levies do not sound like this one haha this one has seen some miles and heavy riders. The 2.2 motor is generally quiet AF!

[@goride365]

@@justin_niemi hell yeah man. Thanks. I’m also looking for an easier bike to flick around. Gonna sit on s3 and 4. 🍻

[@davidtimewell1740]

What trails are these

[@gadgetztan]

What glasses are those? Looking for some right now.

[@justin_niemi]

www.heatwavevisual.com future techs! I’m running the Hi-Vis/clear. We actually have a 10% off code. RIPPERS10 🤘🏻

[@paologardonio9746]

Hello! may I ask you how much weight and the setting used on the x2? thank you

[@justin_niemi]

I weigh 190 lbs kitted up and I run the X2 at 230psi

[@FlowFinderUSA]

im putting my 203 Zee's on mine. 1st thing

[@dustfarter8137]

The Kenevo Sl would likely be more your flavor but that new Levo is awesome too.

[@justin_niemi]

I thought about demoing the SL but the small battery/motor meant less laps or less assistance. With how capable these are I would be interested to compare them back to back 👌🏻

[@jgccuencocuenco8296]

How do you compare this bike to the Orbea Rise H30?

[@justin_niemi]

I can't say I've yet to ride the Rise but just looking over the geo numbers the Rise doesn't excite me. It's much more trail than that of the levy with its enduro spec geo. The nimble and light factor are to be appreciated of the rise but that's about it for me personally.

[@denniekruit2078]

Damn that motor is loud

[@antoncvelbar6297]

You ride with shoes connected to pedals?

[@justin_niemi]

Nope I run Nukeproof Horizon flat pedals and 510 free rider pro shoes!

[@Jetdriver333]

Do you like the 26’s?

[@justin_niemi]

😂 rhetorical question? 2.5 for Maxxis or 2.4 for most other brands

[@claywalls8869]

What is your height? I’m 6’ 1 1/2” I have a S-5 on order.

[@justin_niemi]

I am 6’3” with a 34” inseam. You’d like the S5 but I would slap on a 35mm stem immediately!

[@86309]

What tires were they? Psi?

[@justin_niemi]

2.6 butcher & 2.6 eliminator. Either T7 or T9 I don’t remember exactly. Running psi in the 23-25 range. I think after riding other bikes with a similar combo but in 2.3 instead of 2.6 it is a much better width and mitigates some of the floatiness I was feeling on trail. ✌🏻

[@jim6335]

Did you feel less tired after the ride?

[@justin_niemi]

Oh yeah much less tired overall. My legs were sore the next day because so much pedaling but I didn’t feel nearly as smoked as I do with 4 analog loops. We were able to do 8 on the Levos! Double the loops in the same amount of time.

[@RumpStumper]

Maybe your opinion of the tires is wrong. You say they are floating and stuff, but you compare them to Maxxis tires that you Ride on your Push bike. But the heavier bike is much harder on the tires. Maybe its Not the tires, its the weight? You Need to swap them out and compare to other tires on the Same bike. Btw: niiccceee Video

[@justin_niemi]

I’d have to disagree. I’ve ridden plenty of ebikes with Maxxis tires (Bullit, Heckler, Levo, Kenevo) and even with Maxxis 2.6 tires on some. The 2.6 and greater continues to give that floaty feeling and it’s even worse with the tread pattern of the Butcher. Even with T7/T9 deeper and stickier knobs would work much better. I am going to jump on a friends bike here soon with butcher F/R in a 2.3. He claims it’s much better than the 2.6 in terms of floatiness and overall grip, so we will see 🤘🏻

[@RumpStumper]

@@justin_niemi thx for responding 🍻

[@Nathan-wf1pr]

I have new continental and maxxis dhf, these specialized tires have wimpy knobs compared. No comparison.

[@ottoaeonjayomottomachal]

At 15:50 it sounded tire flat

[@slbynum]

There’s somethings got to be wrong with that motor. I’ve never heard one on a levo that made that much noise.

[@justin_niemi]

It’s whining so bad 😰 had a few hard miles on it haha

[@RumpStumper]

Mine is quiet, no noises like in this Video

[@canieto1]

I bought my 2022 levo brand new, and it made that sound from day one. So loud!!! Specialized is refusing to warranty it. First and last specialized I ever buy.

[@SB-uu3uq]

@@canieto1 are they saying that the noise is as expected is that why they won't do anything about it?

[@FrancescDalmau]

That motor doesn't sounds right at all bro

[@DeLange12]

I think the motor is kaput

[@56namnam]

Slow Down Bro!

[@justin_niemi]

I was trying those 2.6 tires didn’t have the braking traction I needed 😔

[@nathanjeong]

Bro you are too fasttttttft

[@justin_niemi]

Thank you! Would have been able to scrub more speed with a smaller, grippier tire 😆 got a little touch and go there in the steeps