2019 SPECIALIZED TURBO LEVO FSR

All-new e-bike that’s guaranteed to put some spark into your trail riding

The 2019 Turbo Levo isn’t just an updated model, but a brand spanking new bike. By revising nearly every part, Specialized have managed to take the performance of their trail e-bike forward in leaps and bounds. First up, let’s look at the frame changes. Specialized have swapped to 29in wheels running 2.6in tyres, to give the rider improved trail feedback. There’s still room to run 27.5x2.8in ‘plus’ tyres if that’s your preference though, and a flip chip in the shock link helps keep the geometry on point with both wheel/tyre sizes. On the subject of geometry, the Turbo Levo’s reach has been lengthened to make the sizing roomier, while the chainstays have been shortened to improve agility. Rear wheel travel has been beefed up to 150mm and both the linkage and the shock tune now provide more ramp-up, to ensure it can handle bigger hits. The 2019 bike also shares the ‘Sidearm’ technology debuted on the new Stumpjumper. This driveside strut between the top tube and seat tube increases frame stiffness while the rear suspension is active, aided by a redesigned shock link. When it comes to pedalling assistance, the motor, battery, software and phone app have all been overhauled for 2019. Specialized’s new 2.1 motor, which combines Brose hardware with their own electronics and software, boasts a little more power – 560W, up from 530W – despite being 15 per cent smaller. It’s also 400g lighter, thanks to a new magnesium housing and direct-to-frame mount. The Expert and S-Works models now come with a massive 700Wh battery, which provides 40 per cent extra range over the 500Wh battery used across the rest of the range. New electronics keep the whole system more thermally stable, so the bike should never lose power due to overheating. Specialized’s updated Mission Control app still lets you customise how much assistance the motor provides in each of its modes (eco, trail and turbo) – a feature the US brand call ‘Infinite Control’ – and now has a new feature called Shuttle Mode, which lets you access maximum motor power with less rider input, and can again be adjusted. Pricing starts at £4,000 for the aluminium Turbo Levo FSR and rises to £9,999 for the top-end, carbon fibre S-Works model with Roval carbon wheels.