Specialized Creo 2 first ride review: Off-road capability with a serious e-boost

Specialized has launched the Creo 2 e-bike which sees the Creo platform receiving some big updates. Specialized launched the original Turbo Creo SL back in 2019, then the brand's first electric road bike. Fast forward to the present day and the brand has launched the Creo 2 which we covered in our news piece with all the tech info on the bike. 

I attended the bike launch in Cascais, Portugal and spent some time riding it there as well as the new Roubaix SL8 endurance road bike. The Creo 2 seems to have been reframed somewhat by Specialized with a greater focus on off road and gravel capability. Specialized makes the point that with the power of the motor on tap, why not fit burlier gravel tyres and have the best of both worlds. The Creo 2 arrives with a slacker, more relaxed geometry, larger gravel tyres and dropper post and a Specialized Future Shock up front.

What else does the new Creo 2 receive in the way of updates then? Well for starters 130 grams has been chopped off the frame weight. There is also a brand new motor platform in the shape of the SL 1.2 system which delivers more power and torque than before. A new Specialized app also allows you to manage the system and enjoy a wide range of data and information.

The majority of my riding is done on the road, and I have only ridden a handful of e-bikes so the chance to test a brand new drop bar e-bike was a really interesting and useful insight into the latest e-bike tech and riding style. Read on to see how I got on with the Creo 2.

Design and Aesthetics 

Aesthetics-wise, the Creo 2 has a bit of a monster truck vibe going on, and I think it works. Some of the best road e-bikes look pretty good these days and the Creo 2 is no exception. 

The bottom bracket shell area and down tube are hugely oversized as a result of the battery and motor placement and your eyes can't help but be drawn to them. This naturally creates a really large tube (though it doesn't foul your knees). The Specialized logo looks good on the downtube and aids the overall look, I think a shorter, smaller logo would look lost somehow on the huge down tube. 

The burly oversized look is continued into the headtube and fork, and is really aided by the Roval wheels having a little bit of depth and the chunkier Tracer gravel tyres. The tyres in particular help tie the look of the bike in and I think road tyres in retrospect would detract from the aesthetics overall a little bit. As my colleague Will Jones recently said of shallow wheels on aero bikes, it would make the bike look like it had 'skipped leg day'. 

My Expert model's paint scheme looked good. It's official name is 'black pearl birch, black pearl speckle.' In English, that's an off white base colour all over with black eggshell type speckles and Silver logos. A colleague on the trip likened the paint scheme to a kitchen worktop which does the glossy paint job a bit of a disservice I feel. 

Design wise, aside from the revised slacker, taller geometry, the Creo 2 frame looks similar to the previous gen model. 

The biggest change has taken place in the motor area with the creation of a brand new platform in the shape of the SL 1.2 system which sees an upgrade in power and torque as well as narrowing the Q-Factor. Steps have also been taken to quieten the motor and one of these steps was the inclusion of a moulded honeycomb structure around the outside of the motor. I have read remarks on the old bike's motor being somewhat loud though I haven't ridden it myself. 

I could hear the motor at work on the Creo 2 but it was quiet enough to blend into the background and general riding noise and wasn't a constant distraction. I'm all for a quiet bike so I think a lot of motor noise would have put me off. I think it would be most noticeable riding solo on the road, but off-road with the crunch of gravel under my tyres, it was barely there. 

Specialized says the motor should last the lifetime of the bike and there are no set service intervals or maintenance steps for the motor itself. While Specialized recommends not going mad with a pressure washer, it does acknowledge people are still going to get stuck in with them, so engineers have also taken steps to improve the unit sealing compared to the old unit. 

Reports of DIY e-bike battery fires and incidents only seem to be increasing in the news worldwide over the last few years. The Specialized engineers I spoke to were at pains to stress that one area where they take absolutely zero chances and take every possible preventative and safety measure is with their e-bike batteries. 

Specs and build

I had the Creo 2 Expert model to ride as my test bike for the day on our mainly off-road loop around the Cascais coast. 

The Expert sits in the middle of the Creo 2 lineup above the Comp model and below the top line S-Works offering. It is available in the eggshell white (my own description) pictured in this piece or a 'metallic obsidian' version. 

The frame is Specialized 11r carbon fibre and has returned to 12x142 rear spacing from the boost 148mm rear spacing of the Turbo Creo to increase the range of aftermarket wheelset options for the bike. SRAM drivetrain equipment contributes to a largely American build list and the bike uses Rival AXS equipment with a 44T chainring and 10-50T cassette. A GX Eagle rear derailleur took care of the 1X shifting. 

Carbon fibre Roval Terra C wheels were wrapped in Specialized Tracer Pro tyres and set up tubeless. The Terra C wheels have a 25mm internal width and 32mm depth. 

My Expert model had a Brand X mechanical dropper post with 50mm of travel installed, with the actuation lever fitted on the inside bend of the non drive side handlebar. This makes sense as if your getting back behind the saddle to tackle a steep drop your probably going to be hooked into the drops. 

Up front, my bike had the Future Shock 3.3 model fitted. This is the top offering of the new Future Shock 3.0 units, meaning there was some added plushness for the off road gravel riding we tackled.

First ride impressions

Our Creo 2 test ride covered a mix of road and off road, with the majority of the two hour ride time spent off road. Luckily the weather was a lot sunnier and warmer compared to our testing of the Roubaix SL8 the day before.

I needed to adjust my handlebar roll but other than that the bike was setup and ready to go for me and I rode it with SPD pedals fitted. There were also a couple of connections to tick off, and it was very easy to pair my test Creo with the Specialized app. This is done using the serial number on a sticker on the underside of the down tube. I also paired it with my Wahoo computer and added power, mode and battery screens in seconds. 

You also have the top tube-mounted Specialized 'Mastermind' LCD screen to tell you what mode you have selected to and display battery life. There are a few display options available here that can be toggled with the control buttons which were mounted on the underside of the handlebar top but I understand they can be positioned anywhere on the bars. 

Early into the ride after some road and single-track gravel riding, we approached the first key test of the day in the form of what can only be described as a wall looming before us up ahead. It looked like a white paved goat track rearing up out of the scrub. In fact, the sort of scary climb you might expect to see at the Vuelta a España. With a max gradient on the Strava segment topping out at over 32% for the 0.8-mile climb. It was certainly a stiff task and an excellent demonstration of climbing with an e-bike.

All I had to do was put the bike in its easiest gear (I understand the torque sensor will help you most at a cadence of 80-100rpm and you'll get the most out of the motor), select turbo mode and before I really knew what had happened I was at the top of the climb. The bike got me there very easily, so easily in fact that I had to take stock of what had just occurred for a couple of minutes at the summit. 

Of course, you still need to pedal and can decide on how much effort you are going to commit as well as technically managing the bike on the steep slopes but it was mightily impressive and a solid reminder of how e-bikes can open certain terrain up and to riders who otherwise may have struggled to access it.

Aside from the wall we climbed at the start of the ride, the other standout 'e-moment' for me was riding a forest climb as a group. The climb in question was a few minutes long and whilst not being a steep gradient, it had a few channels and rocky gulleys in it that required you to look ahead and get set up for your line choices to avoid trouble. It's the sort of climb I know I'd have been working fairly hard on riding a cyclocross or gravel bike. 

On the Creo 2, our group rode up the climb in pairs like a club run on the road. As well as making the physical effort of riding a climb easier, the extra power on tap helped you get out of trouble if you ended up in a rut or gulley. I noticed this section at the time and remarked on it, it was a definite eye-opener for me and was just totally different to how I'm used to riding off road. 

We tackled a good selection of riding off road and the Creo handled it excellently, it's a capable package. Only when really rattling down some rougher descents and sections did I feel a little beaten up in the front end, but we were crossing into borderline MTB terrain here, in my opinion. You could also fit burlier tyres to the bike with a more aggressive tread to boost its capabilities in this terrain. I would have probably let some air out of my tyres in order to let things go on the descents a bit more but played it safe and kept them fairly firm not wanting to pick up an unnecessary flat or sidewall slash from one of the many angular rocks along the route. 

Mechanically the bike was pretty much perfect, nothing rattled loose on my test bike, I had no punctures and the SRAM equipment worked very well. The only niggle came from the mechanical Brand X dropper post. The lever is on the large side and rubbed the top of my thumb pretty regularly when I was hooked into drops and descending. This is something of a personal setup point but if it were my bike I'd be putting some time in to get it in the right place. The electronic shifter-operated AXS dropper post would eliminate this issue and would probably be my preference for ease of use as well as uncluttering the bike a little. It would be nice to see all three Creo 2 models receive a SRAM AXS dropper, though I appreciate the cost difference this might make. 

The Specialized app provides a range of really interesting ride and e-related metrics and there's a lot to explore there. For instance, on our ride, I spent 34% of the ride in Eco mode, 41% of my ride time in Sport mode and 19% in Turbo mode. I suspect the somewhat cagey road rider in me spent a decent part of the ride trying to carefully conserve battery power for later on, not knowing the route or what lay in wait for us. However, in hindsight, I probably could have stuck it in Turbo a lot more and just had more fun as well as testing the battery's limits. I finished our ride having used 77% of my battery so had a bit of juice left that I could have used to let it rip in Turbo mode. 

The Micro Adjust mode was also really interesting and I switched to using this around 2/3rds of the way through my ride. It allows you to raise or lower the motor assistance by 10 watt increments within a selected mode. I found myself riding in the same gear on flatter terrain mostly, but just adding 10 watts here or there where needed, a rise in the road for instance or downhill. All I had to do was toggle the buttons on the bars. 

One thing to mention regarding Turbo on the flat or smooth tarmac is that at times it forces you to get on the brakes when it kicks in and shoots you forward somewhat. This can also not be the most effective way to manage battery life. There is definitely a new skill set to learn when riding e-bikes and managing motors and battery life and it was really interesting to experiment with a new way of riding. If you ride e-bikes regularly forgive my observations on these points that are probably second nature to you. 

Early Verdict

I had a lot of fun riding the Creo 2 and for someone who hasn't ridden many e-bikes, it was a really interesting chance to jump into that world. If you're looking for something new or your riding feels a little stale the Creo 2 (and e-bikes in general) with it's gravel and off-road capabilities could well be the injection of fun you've been looking for. There is a whole new riding style and skillset to discover, not to mention the obvious additional aid an electric bike provides. 

The Creo 2 was engaging and fun to ride and is very capable, as mentioned we covered some terrain that an XC MTB would be at home on and the bike dealt with it well. I could push the Creo 2 hard off road and really have fun, but then when you're back on tarmac it zips along nicely, I have to agree with Specialized so far on this claim, there's enough electronic assistance to enjoy road and off road riding in equal measure with the larger volume gravel tyres fitted. Though I think the bike will be most at home on gravel. 

I can't see how you would want a motor with more power for a bike like this, and was pretty impressed with the electronic assistance on offer across the board. After two hours of ride time and being on the bike for around three with the system turned on, I had used 77% of battery with the range extender fitted. Based on this I think long rides or trips would require charges along the way or carrying extra range booster batteries.

It was great fun to ride in a group of riders all on e-bikes and the electronic help is a great leveler. I'd still choose a regular bike for pretty much all of my personal riding. But the highlight for me was probably just getting to grips with a new type and style of riding, like choosing when to change modes to get the best out of the bike etc. Riding the Creo put a smile on my face and I had fun riding it, and that after all is what it's all about.