Specialised Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 EQ Overview

Specialised’s household of Vado e-bikes have lengthy been a favourite of commuters and concrete using aficionados. For the reason that launch of the unique Vado about 7 years in the past, the platform has undergone an extended sequence of transformations and evolutions.

Tweaks over time have moved the bike from its heavier, boxier roots to a way more refined platform that appears, feels, and performs in addition to you’d count on a contemporary e-bike that has been available on the market since nicely earlier than anybody even heard the time period “Covid.”

The Specialised Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 marks the head of the design and revision course of that has introduced the bike into a brand new realm of efficiency, type, and performance. The bike has a full carbon body and fork with a glossy aerodynamic profile, beautiful paint, a light-weight body (for an e-bike), and a wealth of intuitive options that made metropolis cruising simple.

Specialised set me up on the Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 EQ (for “geared up”), a beefed-up model of the bike that takes the bottom mannequin and provides built-in fenders, a rear rack with built-in lights, cage mounts, a chainring protector, kickstand, and rear reflectors.

I spent every week utilizing the Vado as my major around-town wagon, working by way of busy Austin metropolis streets and bike paths, multi-use gravel trails, and a little bit of chunkier tidbits of terrain to seek out the bike’s candy spots and limits. After a number of days on the bike, I discovered the Vado SL2 to be a enjoyable, responsive, and intuitive machine that’s proper at dwelling within the huge metropolis or suburbs.

Briefly: The Specialised Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 EQ is a premium commuter e-bike that gives peak consolation, efficiency, and utility. Its carbon body gives effectivity and rigidity, whereas its built-in headset damper and 47c tires present loads of cushion.

Specialised Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 EQ Predominant Options

The Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 EQ has Specialised’s Turbo SL 1.2 motor. The motor delivers 320 W of energy, 50Nm of torque, and a high assisted velocity of 28 mph, although I pedaled the bike a lot sooner. A 520Wh battery powers the motor, offering as much as 5 hours of experience time. Specialised says it may deal with a 20-minute commute in each instructions for every week straight with out a cost.

For individuals who need one thing with just a little extra vary, Specialed gives a water-bottle-sized vary extender that tacks on as much as 40 further miles.

The Specialised Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 EQ additionally has the built-in Future Shock 3.2 dampener, which supplies the headset 20mm of journey and could be adjusted by swapping out springs with completely different tensions for a extra dialed match. Mixed with vast 47c tires and a slackened head-tube angle in comparison with earlier fashions, the bike offered a easy experience and regular dealing with.

Riders can regulate help ranges utilizing the Specialised app and customise the bike’s stem-mounted show to include energy output, cadence monitoring, teaching, or coronary heart price information.

Experience Report

My Specialised Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 EQ got here in a surprising Satin Crimson Sky/Crimson Onyx Frost shade that appeared like a matte burgundy end. At first look, I appreciated the bike’s clear profile, which included built-in cables and a no-fuss cockpit with digital controls on the left and mechanical shiting on the correct.

The digital management pad features with up or down buttons to maneuver by way of pedal help ranges and a middle button that cycles by way of the show display screen. I hopped onto the Specialised app and simply tinkered with energy ranges and different controls.

As soon as I powered the bike on and acquired shifting, I discovered that it progressively delivered energy to get me in control over a number of pedal strokes.

I appreciated that performance way more than a motorcycle that jolts ahead with reckless abandon. It made the experience really feel extra pure as a result of it responded in the same option to constructing velocity on a standard bike with out energy. The Shimano Deore XT 12-speed drivetrain, which is a tried and trusted mountain bike groupset, functioned completely, delivering snappy and dependable shifts.

Pedaling the Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 EQ felt like using an analog bike. I nonetheless needed to work to get it to hurry and preserve it there. It had loads of energy to deal with steep city climbs, although I usually acquired out of the saddle to place down extra energy of my very own.

I often wished for just a little extra oomph from the bike to get it in control just a little sooner. Nevertheless, extra energy usually means a heavier bike, so I can see the place a tradeoff was essential right here. The bike weighs in at slightly below 40 kilos, and whereas I often needed just a little further, the bike by no means felt underpowered for its supposed function of commuting and darting across the metropolis.

Whether or not placing energy into the pedals to stand up to hurry or sitting again to cruise, the Vado felt extraordinarily comfy and responsive. The place numerous commuter bikes look to low-travel suspension forks to easy out the terrain, the Vado as a substitute opts for a steerer tube spring system that gave me about 20mm of journey.

I liked this function as a result of I may nonetheless really feel the stiffness of the body and the way the bike was interacting with the highway, whereas nonetheless getting suppleness and forgiveness for my palms and higher physique.

Usually, I discover that when your complete bike is shifting up or down on a fork, particularly with an e-bike, it may really feel like I don’t have the identical stage of grip or contact with the bottom. Due to the Vado’s suspended stem and handlebar, the suspension motion was tremendously confidence-inspiring.

I discovered myself leaning deep into corners at excessive speeds and ripping into unfastened gravel sections with out fear. The grippy and strong 47c Hemisphere All Terrain tires felt completely locked in, and I don’t recall a single time I felt the bike get squirrely.

Inventory options on the show display screen included cadence teaching. That function is nice for people who need to use the Vado as an train bike as a result of you possibly can tailor your experience to a specific cadence or energy objectives. Once more, even with energy, the bike rode astonishingly equally to a standard bike. It helped me out, nevertheless it didn’t act like a bike. To me, that was a function, not a downside.

Specialised included its water-bottle-sized vary extender and Tailwind aerodynamic panniers which gave me one of the best vary and gear-hauling choices obtainable in my Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 EQ mannequin.

I made a degree to experience this bike like a commuter. Slightly than planning lengthy days out for a number of hours, I hopped from place to position over a number of days on all kinds of terrain. The battery acquired me by way of 4 stable days of using on a single cost, and the vary extender functioned completely when the battery lastly drained.

The bike’s MIK HD rear rack has a carrying capability of about 50 kilos. I connected the panniers and loaded them up with instruments, spare garments and footwear, a piece bag, and a pc with no issues. With a complete cargo capability of about 90 kilos, it might be simple to connect a trailer, rear cargo bin, or perhaps a entrance rack to get much more storage out of the body.

Builds and Pricing

Like all of Specialised’s bikes, the Vado SL 2 6.0 Carbon is available in a few completely different fashions tailor-made towards completely different riders. The bottom Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 gives a stripped-down package deal that Specialised refers to as a “bare speedster,” best for quick city commuting or health rides.

The Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 EQ caters extra to those that need to carry cargo or carry little ones alongside.

Specialised additionally has an LTD: Ahead 50 setup with particular paint and different bells and whistles that the model says supply unprecedented energy, velocity, and vary. Solely 250 of these dangerous boys will hit the market in choose retailers, so good luck getting a kind of if that’s your factor.

The Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 goes for an MSRP of $6,000. The Specialised Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 EQ goes for an MSRP of $6,500, and the Vado SL 2 LTD: Ahead 50 prices an MSRP of $8,000.

Conclusions on the Specialised Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 EQ

The Specialised Vado SL 2 Carbon 6.0 EQ is a nimble, light-weight e-bike that was a pleasure experience.

The additional options of the EQ mannequin made the bike a shoo-in selection for folks with longer commutes or those that want to hold a substantial quantity of cargo round city.

The bike’s carbon body and fork offered a responsive and confidence-inspiring platform, whereas its built-in headset suspension system and vast tires made it extraordinarily comfy and forgiving.

Whereas it comes with a premium worth, the newest Vado is clearly a premium e-bike that will put a smile on the face of any commuter.