Two-minute review
Anyone in search of a terrific all-round electrical bike that comes with the good thing about a superior powered system will discover a lot to love in regards to the Specialized Turbo Vado 4.0 (2022). It comes with the 4X You drive system, that means it’s obtained loads of energy to faucet into because of the 250W motor and 710Wh battery. Even with out energy help, the 11-speed SRAM gearing system is a deal with to make use of by itself.
The Turbo Vado 4.0 isn’t designed round probably the most delicate of frames, however that is a small sacrifice to make for its sheer practicality. It’s a kind of e-bikes you possibly can simply hop on and hop off once more, utilizing the ability as and once you want it.
At the identical time, it boasts spectacular vary and bristles with plenty of prime tech, together with the sensible MasterMind bike laptop, neat safety choices, and a rock-solid supporting app. This is an costly bike, however the look, really feel and using expertise all assist to reassure you that you just’ve made the precise alternative.
Price and launch date
The Specialized Turbo Vado 4.0 (2022) was unveiled in September 2021, and is available for purchase proper now direct from Specialized, or from approved resellers.
It begins at $4,000 / £3,900 / AU$5,000 (on the time of writing, some sizes are discounted), which is in direction of the upper finish of the worth bracket for an on a regular basis e-bike. For context, the Cowboy 4, which sat on the prime of our roundup of the very best e-bikes for a lot of months, is priced at £2,490 (about $3,400 / AU$4,700).
Our present top-rated folding e-bike, the Gocycle G4, is a bit more costly at $4,999 / £3,999 (about AU$7,000). This is predicted for a folding bike because of the complexity of the engineering.
Design
Specialized additionally despatched us the brand new Align II helmet to strive with this bike. Both have intelligent design as their central theme, with high quality not far behind. While the helmet proved to be greater than acceptable to put on and is solely useful, the Turbo Vado 4.0 (2022) is an actual factor of magnificence. The body is dominated by a cumbersome entrance downtube, which homes the battery, however apart from this the Vado 4.0 seems to be like a strong, on a regular basis cruiser that’s suited to quite a lot of biking necessities.
It’s not a flashy bike. In truth, the look of the Vado is decidedly low key particularly within the White Mountains/Black Reflective colorway we examined. There’s a zingier Red Tint/Silver Reflective end in case you favor one thing extra vibrant, whereas the Cast Black/Silver Reflective mannequin is darkish and moody if that’s extra your factor. The paint is thoughtfully chosen too, with reflective qualities that ought to make you simpler to see on the highway.
Whatever coloration mixture you plump for, the Specialized Turbo Vado 4 is a step up from the sooner mannequin, the Specialized Turbo Vado SL, that we obtained to like over an prolonged mortgage interval in 2020. That bike proved excellent as a each day rider, particularly for fast flits to the outlets because of its front-mounted basket.
The Turbo Vado 4.0 is kind of a chunky bike, and weighs in at 24kg – rather more than the 14.9kg SL (Super Light) mannequin. Somehow although it doesn’t really feel that cumbersome once you’re utilizing it although, which we’ll clarify shortly.
The Turbo Vado actually has all of the options you’d count on from a high-end e-bike. A significant enchancment is the bike’s laptop. Dubbed the MasterMind, this can be a totally customizable unit, which includes a crisp and clear show that employs strong, blocky fonts which are simple to learn in all situations. The coloration and contemporary really feel of its show is de facto good on the eyes. The bike is supplied with Garmin Radar too, which may detect automobiles as much as 140m / 460ft away, and present their location.
Everything will be adjusted by the supplementary Mission Control app, which allows fast and straightforward adaptation of the management choices, in addition to offering complete data in your rides over time. Specialized additionally presents over-the-air software program updates, very similar to fashionable automobiles, that means the Vado 4.0 is fairly future-proof and also you need not take it to a service heart to get vital patches and new options.
Specialized has additionally paid shut consideration to the bike’s safety choices. The app can be utilized to disable the bike with a PIN wanted to reactivate it. The Vado’s battery is lockable and will be simply eliminated altogether as an added bonus.
There are built-in entrance and hind lights. The taillight is definitely a neat wraparound LED strip, a rear rack as commonplace, plus these all-important Drytech mudguards, that are important for taming any spray or mud that flies up from the pretty beefy Pathfinder 650b x 2.3-inch tires.
These additionally do a terrific job of absorbing bumps within the highway, as do the Suntour entrance forks that may journey 80mm and tackle potholes with ease. Specialized has ensured that the newest design will work with through-axle trailers and youngsters’s seats too, which has apparent advantages in case you’re planning on utilizing it for household adventures.
Elsewhere, and as you’d count on from this premium model, the necessities are top-notch together with a body constructed from E5 aluminium, Specialized’s personal alloy handlebars with tremendous comfortable grips, a Rivo Sport saddle and no-fuss flat pedals. Crucially, there’s a SRAM 11-speed derailleur that proves to be a dream to make use of. Changing gears is a bit of cake too, with a big lever for the ‘easy gear’ picks and a small button for heading up by means of to the highest gears.
This is backed up by the Turbo Full Power Motor, which is constructed into the underside of the downtube. Power ship is slick and clean. Stopping comes courtesy of SRAM discs entrance and rear. As a whole package deal the bike actually seems to be the half and, whereas that explains why it’s fairly dear, the Vado can also be subdued sufficient to not seem actually stealable.
Performance
One of the large variations between the lighter Vado SL and this Vado is vary. This e-bike can cowl much less at 144.8km (virtually 90 miles) in comparison with the SL’s 195km (round 121 miles), however the determine remains to be respectable sufficient, particularly when you think about the burden of the bike itself. In truth, except you’re actually placing within the biking hours that must be greater than sufficient for many wants over the course of some days.
There’s quite a bit to love in regards to the new Vado 4.0, as we found over a protracted interval of use. It’s a kind of vastly helpful cycles which you could simply leap on once you want it. The e-bike will be powered up immediately by pushing the ability button on the handlebar-mounted laptop. Simply choose one of many modes – Eco, Sport or Turbo – and also you’re able to go.
Those outsized tires really feel nice on the highway and show very grippy once you actually get going. They’re much less spectacular in case you hit a muddy path as we came upon in moist situations. You’ll have to have a foot able to put down in case you overdo the ability settings, pedal too arduous and expertise a whiff of wheelspin, however this provides a contact of enjoyable to proceedings in case you’re in want of a bit adrenalin buzz.
On common roads although, the Vado 4.0 kills it, with the ability supply proving completely balanced, dynamic and at all times there once you want it. The gearing is sensible too, with the up and down levers on the handlebars permitting for slick modifications. This is an e-bike that Specialized appears to have gotten spot on in that respect. Overall, this incarnation of the Specialized Vado 4.0 is the very best one we’ve tried thus far.
First reviewed February 2022