[Closed] Advice for buying a used ebike?

Spesh have the worst motor reliability but the best warranty so that's where I'd be looking.

MY 2019 & 2020 have 4 years from date of purchase (you'll need the original receipt) and is fully transferrable. MY2021 are 2 years.

AFAIK, none of the other manufacturers offer warranty cover that transfers in full to second owners. Cube and Haibike is not transferable at all. There may be others, you'll need to do your due diligence and get reading the warranty T&Cs for any bike you are interested in.

Thanks doomaniac. It was a 2020 Levo SL I was looking at in particular. Not sure if the 4 year coverage applies to the SL or just regular Levo models.

We have a Levo SL and also Turbo Levos. Must be lucky as not had any problems yet. Bought ours new so cant comment on warranty transfers.
Bought our first in 2017 and sold that last year to a mate who couldn't afford a new one. no problems with that one.

It just has to be a good saving to forego a full warranty, you do get second ownership coverage with specialized, but there are limits with that i believe, i.e. lifetime warranties go down and so on, so look at the full picture, not just the motor warranty. I think it's also just the motor, so battery and the rest aren't covered outside of the original warranty as well, again check it out.

There are also a few service places now operating for motors, so if something does go wrong, or you want it serviced due to notchiness or whatever you can send it off easily enough, probably a couple of hundred to service them, so you can always factor that in.

Good info re the 3rd party motor services, cheers!

Going in with your eyes open, which you seem to be doing, is the key really. If you can stomach the cost of the bike plus the potential cost (and hassle, but warranties dont help that) of repairs, then you're good to go

dusterbenny
Free Member
Good info re the 3rd party motor services, cheers!

Yeah, a lot of people have the belief that after warranty has run out, you are on borrowed time, but reality is that the motor is just another part of the bike that requires maintenance and servicing. Folk will pay 200 quid for a fork service easily enough, so it's not exactly a new thing to pay that kind of money for a service.

Ebike motors are just simple motors, they will suffer wear and tear and potential damage to the bearings, mechanically it's like a crank/bb in that area, spesh have a good network and getting a diagnostic shouldn't be too difficult, then fixing is usually not that bad. Batteries tend to last a good amount of cycles, usually a good 2 year life at top health, then reducing slightly, again all to be factored in, same thing as you do with forks/shocks/etc.

Another vote for specialised, * I believe it’s just the levo (not the levo sl), 19 and 20 that have 4 years warranty.

I’d avoid shimano (*as to my knowledge no commercial rebuilders are rebuilding them , just supplying spares so you can yourself) and make sure whatever motor you get can be rebuilt and have spares available.

You could always call this bloke - https://www.ebikemotorcentre.com/repair-overhaul-upgrades/
* my understanding is that they are looking into the levo sl motor to see if they will cover it.

I’d check that there were lots of bikes using the same battery, as that way you’re more likely to get a secondhand one or new spare.

Then it’s normal bike stuff so I’d also look at general frame spares (*assuming fox or rockshox suspension which means you can get it serviced, buy spares), esp suspension bearings/bushes/spacers etc that will be undoubtedly needed and even things like derailleurs which some people seem to be making bike year specific.

Yes, I had 2018 and 2020 Turbo Levos and both needed a replacement motor on 2 occasions, numerous replacement wiring looms, ECUs. But they extended the warranty to 5 years and also for subsequent owners.

Not sure if other manufacturers also cover 2nd or 3rd owners but I would be very wary about buying anything 2nd hand without a warranty.

On the Spesh side, the Levo SL uses a totally different motor, a Mahle one, which has a good reliability track record.

I’ve never bought a 2nd hand E-bike but you should be able to tell by looking at it how well it’s been looked after.

Obviously internal electronic parts are a risk and can’t be checked but if it’s overall in good condition then it’s prob worth the risk if your getting a good saving.

I used to work at a Specialized dealer - the guys who worked there that had e-bikes bought and sold every year - after the shop discount they could get a season of riding and be a few hundred quid up at the end of the year. OP I’d also check to see if dealers are selling demo stock with full warranty.

Spesh have the worst motor reliability

This is so much old news, much like C'dale crack and fail comments... yes they had reliability issues, but now there as reliable as any of the others motors & they treated owners like myself ('19 Levo owner) to an extra 2 years of warranty. Don't fall for ppl telling you that any are the best, all of them can potentially fail and do*. The difference is, as mentioned above that Brose and Bosch have a a growing market of ppl doing repairs to them out of warranty. Unlike shimano motors, which is a shame as they tend to last really well otherwise.

*I know this sound very dramatic, but as per the other posts, shit happens and a motor failing on an ebike, is probably going to happen soon or later. Usually later... but how much later