Comparison of minimal or full assist concepts: Which electric drive is the future?
Laurin Lehner
· 04.12.2022
All topics in this concept comparison:
Minimal and full-assist e-mountainbikes at a glance
How we tested the different concepts
Every now and then we look enviously at our colleagues in our Sister magazine EMTB. While we have been experiencing a lull in innovation for years, the development of e-MTBs is going from strength to strength. The current generation of e-bikes no longer has anything to do with the ugly bikes from the pioneering days with their bulky battery on the down tube. Now you have to take a closer look to see if there is a motor hidden in the bottom bracket. The trend: so-called minimal-assist motors. We have analysed the full-assist and minimal-assist concepts in two Specialised-Levo models compared.
The question is: is more always better? Because more battery and more bang in the motor mean more power, but also more weight. For years, designers built their e-bikes according to this motto. Weight didn't seem to play a role - as if the designers finally felt liberated from the weight dictate after all the years of organic bike development. So they screwed on everything they could. According to the motto: The motor provides support anyway. The result: stable, but also lead-heavy e-bikes that were as easy to steer down the hill as a Hercules Prima 5s moped.
By the way: According to our reader survey, almost 15 per cent of FREERIDE readers want to buy an e-mountainbike.
The motor and battery were and continue to be a weight driver. Installing both small, slim and therefore light is a bold move. "Many customers have range anxiety," says designer Peter Denk. The fear is justified. Anyone who has ever cranked a 25-kilo e-bike to the end of a mountain tour without assistance knows: then nothing works! But not if the bike weighs significantly less than 20 kilos due to the downsizing. Nevertheless, many scene insiders labelled the idea of minimal-assist bikes a flop when they first made headlines in specialist magazines in 2018. These first niche bikes were only halfway light and had little power and range.
Minimal assist vs. range anxiety
"Only those who try out these bikes will realise how well e-bikes can cope with low weight," says EMTB editor-in-chief Josh Welz. That's because the e-feeling is gone and the bike can be steered over the trail almost like a non-motorised MTB. However, you can't go uphill without any help from the rider. Here you have to pedal yourself. A lot of pedalling. At least if you want to go far. That's too much effort for e-hardliners. Fans of the full-assist concept celebrate the efficiency: "I can fly up the mountain with maximum downhill yield," says EMTB tester Adrian Kaether. But which is better for whom? Designer Peter Denk sees it this way: "The minimal-assist concept is for bikers, the full-assist concept for e-bikers."
The concept comparison: Specialized Levo SL vs Specialized Levo Turbo
Levo SL with Minimal Assist motor
The Specialized Levo SL is state of the art when it comes to light eMTBs. The bike with 150 millimetres of travel at the front and rear is supported by the small in-house motor and achieves a maximum torque of 35 Newton metres. The 320 watt-hour battery lasts for over 1000 metres in altitude, depending on use.
Tyre size: 29 inch, Weight: 17.9 kilos, Price9700 Euro (Expert model)
Levo Turbo with full-assist drive
The Specialized Levo Turbo has a powerful 2.2 motor with a maximum torque of 90 Newton metres and pushes hard. Depending on the mode, the 700 watt-hour battery allows for long tours. In combination with the downhill Geo, the Fox suspension flattens everything out (160/150 mm).
Tyre size: 29/27.5 inch, Weight22.1 kilos, Price15,000 Euro (!)
The E-MTB motors for uphill and mountain tours
On mountain tours, bikes have to excel in several facets at once:
- Uphill
- when carrying/pushing
- in technical passages
- on angry descents
The Levo SL (Light-Assist) pedals very naturally uphill. The three preset modes make sense. The smallest mode provides minimal support, but is just right to protect the rider sufficiently on steep ramps. Super! But you have to know: Even in power mode, the Levo SL doesn't fly up the mountain. The 320 watt-hour battery is sufficient for well over 1000 metres in altitude if used sparingly. A range extender (160 Wh) can be inserted into the bottle cage - we managed to conquer 650 metres in altitude with this alone. Unfortunately expensive: 460 euros.
The Turbo Levo (Full-Assist), on the other hand, rides like a grown-up e-mountainbike. Even the preset Eco mode pushes powerfully and more than the highest mode of the Light Assist Levo. However, just as with the Light-Levo, you can modify this individually via smartphone. If you switch to the highest mode, you can speed up the mountain without any effort. The large 700 watt-hour battery allows for extended day tours with reasonably economical handling. When pushing, both models have an E-push assist at the push of a button, which only works so-so in practice. The extra four kilos of weight of the Turbo-Levo are clearly noticeable when carrying and pushing the bike. On the descent, the Levo SL spoils you with its natural handling, motivates you to bunny-hop and makes us cheer. The Turbo-Levo, on the other hand, rides like it's on autopilot: safe and fast, but the pilot has to be careful not to mutate into a passenger.
Conclusion Uphill and mountain tour:
We liked the Light-Assist Bike Levo SL much better on the climbs because it was more natural, lighter and more playful - very similar to a conventional bike.
E-MTB concept comparison: up & down/playing
Our home circuit along the Isar probably has a similar character to many home circuits in Germany. An undulating trail: a few jumps, a few dirt edges, root carpets and little gradient (unfortunately!).
Riding here with the full-assist motor is a revelation. Thanks to the powerful motor, you can surf through passages where you would otherwise struggle to keep up the pace. With the Power-Levo, you can sweep over the trail with verve and pull off edges - thanks to the extra propulsion. But once the wheels leave the edge, you'll feel the other side of the coin: gravity pulls the bike and rider down to the ground like an airtime present. Bunny-hop over the cross tree trunk? Phew! That really only works with a lot of skill and strength.
The Light Assist motor in the Levo SL, on the other hand, cranks very naturally over the undulating trail and only provides noticeable support when necessary. At 18 kilos, the Levo SL is lively enough to accelerate over bumps.
Not with the handling of a trail bike, of course, but still as good as a freerider and playful too. You've got plenty of puff to get the bike back up to speed on undulating terrain, as you're spared during the climbs. We really liked the geo of the Levo SL. All trail manoeuvres are child's play.
Conclusion Up & Down/Play:
The Levo SL can't match the basic speed of the Power-Levo. Nevertheless, freeriders want to play, and this is definitely easier with the Levo SL light-assist bike. Victory.
And finally: the downhill classification
Heavy makes you fast - at least downhill. Bobsleigh riders know that, and so do we. The 22-kilo Full-Assist-Levo pushes downhill and develops an enormously smooth ride. We ride the Power-Levo on trails that we would normally only tackle on a big bike. The suspension works at the highest level and seems to harmonise particularly well with the extra weight. Jumps take some getting used to at first - you have to get used to the slightly different handling. Once you've made the jump, the bike is stable in the air. If the trail flattens out and you need to maintain speed, the weight suddenly becomes noticeably negative again. Then you have to push and steer the Power-Levo particularly actively over the trail - and that costs energy.
Quite different: At 18 kilos, the Light-Assist Levo SL weighs as much as many a freerider, and that's exactly how it rides downhill. It has nominally only one centimetre less travel at the rear than the Power-Levo, yet it feels like less travel on the trail. It may not bulldoze over nasty root carpets, but it spoilt us with first-class handling and the lightness of an organic bike. In short, the Levo SL makes you want to play like no other e-mountainbike. Bunny hops are easy and the e-bike accelerates willingly on flat sections even without the motor. We've even ridden the Levo SL on our home trails with an empty battery - anything is possible.
Conclusion on the downhill qualities:
The Power Levo is more planted on the trail and is the faster bike. The Levo SL may not be able to keep up, but you can play with it on the trail. A tie between the light and full-assist concept.
Opinions of the testers
Dimitri Lehner, FREERIDE editor-in-chief:
Biking together with different e-concepts? Not a good idea. The full assist always wants to go faster. For me, the minimal-assist concept wins - because it's closer to biking.
Laurin Lehner, FREERIDE tester:
The Levo SL was an eye-opener for me. So natural and so playful. Super! The motor provides well-dosed support on steep ramps. Full-assist bikes are also fun, but too heavy and sluggish.
Florentin Vesenbeckh, test editor EMTB: "We are only at the beginning".
The light class (minimal-assist) is just starting to really take off. In the coming months and years, many exciting light bikes will come onto the market. Especially for downhill-orientated bikers. The new generation of motors, such as Fazua and TQ, takes the topic to a new level: quiet drive noise, clean look and even significantly more powerful than the Levo SL. Even former e-bike haters could be swayed.
Laurin Lehner
Editor
