I recently purchased a 2021 Orbea Gain M20i and have been enjoying the bike immensely. However, I encountered a couple of initial issues that I managed to resolve. I’m sharing my experience here to potentially help other owners. This post focuses on a synchronization problem I experienced with the handlebar-mounted Mahle Pulsar One computer display, a new feature for the 2021 Gain models, and its communication with the bicycle itself.
The Mahle Pulsar One computer on this bike is designed to pair with the bicycle’s power system. It provides real-time ride data and battery percentage, and crucially, it allows riders to adjust the motor’s power levels using buttons on the display. This is advantageous because it allows for quick power level reduction without cycling through all levels using the top tube button. Furthermore, it enhances safety by allowing power adjustments without taking your eyes off the road.
Initially, I found that the computer worked perfectly on about half of my rides. On the other half, it seemed to malfunction. The computer would power on in power level 1 and correctly display this. However, when I pressed the “up” button to increase to power level 2 or 3, the display would change to show the selected level, but the motor’s actual power output remained unchanged at level 1. After approximately 30 seconds, the computer display would revert back to showing level 1. Interestingly, the bike’s power button on the top tube still functioned correctly to change power levels, and the computer display would accurately reflect these changes. This indicated that communication from the bike to the computer was working, but not the other way around – control from the computer to the bike’s motor was failing.
After some investigation, I discovered the cause of this inconsistent behavior. The solution is surprisingly simple: the order in which you power on the devices matters. If I first turned on the Mahle Pulsar One computer on the handlebar and then turned on the bike’s main power button, the entire system worked flawlessly, with the computer buttons correctly controlling the motor’s power levels. However, if I first turned on the bike’s power button and then activated the computer, the computer’s up and down buttons would fail to change power levels as described earlier. This crucial detail regarding the correct power-up sequence is, to my knowledge, not documented anywhere in the Orbea user materials.
I am curious to know if other Orbea Gain M20i owners with the new Mahle Pulsar One computer have encountered this synchronization issue. Is this behavior unique to my bike, or is it a general characteristic of this system? Sharing your experiences would be helpful for the Orbea e-bike community.
