Specialized Globe Haul ST Cargo E-bike Review

The Globe Haul ST, a new e-bike from Specialized, is built to handle all your everyday cargo-carrying needs.

Whether it’s a parent carting their kid to school or a delivery guy zipping over with your takeout, e-bikes are becoming more and more common these days. New direct-to-consumer brands like Rad Power Bikes have helped drive e-bikes’ rise, especially when it comes to utilitarian cargo models. But last year, I was particularly intrigued to see an established bike brand, Specialized, enter the fray by teasing an all-new cargo-oriented e-bike on Instagram. That new model has now arrived: Globe Haul ST.

Launched at the beginning of March, Haul ST is a short-tail, aluminum-frame e-bike designed, as the name implies, for hauling cargo. It has a hub motor mounted in the rear wheel, and like other pedal-assist e-bikes, the motor provides a boost of power when you pedal. It’s a Class 3 e-bike, which means it has a top speed of 28 mph. It’s the first model in the Globe lineup, which will eventually become a sub-brand under the Specialized umbrella.

I got my hands on one to test over the past month, and put over 100 miles on it while running errands and riding for fun. It was a real eye-opener in terms of how a cargo e-bike can fit into day-to-day life. Interested in joining the pedal-assist revolution? Read on for my review.

Globe Haul ST Specs at a Glance

Motor: 700-watt hub motor

Battery: 772 watt-hours

E-Bike Class: Class 3

Range: Up to 60 miles

Drivetrain: SunRace nine-speed cassette (11-36T), 50T front chainring, microSHIFT derailleur, and microSHIFT Advent shifter

Brakes: Tektro post-mount hydraulic disc brakes

Wheels: 20-inch, double-wall alloy

Tires: 20x3.5 “Carless Whisper” tires

Weight: 77 pounds

Globe Haul ST Review: Pros & Cons

Ease of Assembly

Globe Haul ST is available for purchase through Specialized dealers, or you can opt to have your bike shipped and set it up yourself. I tried the latter route, and it went well for the most part. 

Specialized took great care to make the unboxing and assembly process as intuitive as possible. Numbered cardboard pieces make it easy to unbox, instructions are a cinch to follow, and all the necessary tools are included (such as two torque wrenches). Assembly consists of installing the stem, bolting on the handlebars (the brakes and shifter are already cabled up and attached), screwing in the pedals, and attaching some reflectors. The bike literally rolls out of the box as you build it up. I had mine ready to go in less than an hour.

That said, the direct-to-consumer model has its issues. The front brake rotor on my bike was bent (perhaps due to a shipping incident), which required a trip to a Specialized store to fix. If I were to order a Haul of my own, I would much rather work with a local bike shop so a pro could assemble it and deal with any issues before it gets into my hands.

But my experience also demonstrates one of the big advantages of going with a Globe over another direct-to-consumer brand: Specialized has a whole network of shops and dealers who can work on this bike. That means you’ll have support for maintenance and repairs for as long as you own it.

First Ride: Testing Specialized's Globe Haul ST

On paper, Haul ST is all about carrying cargo. But during my testing, I found myself telling people again and again about how much fun the bike is to ride. Thanks to the bike’s torque sensor, which responds to the pressure you put on the pedals, the 700-watt motor kicks in quickly to launch from a stop, and the 28 mph top speed allowed me to keep up with traffic and ride confidently on city streets. 

Haul ST has five pedal-assist settings (you can also turn the assist off). I usually rode in level three, which provides plenty of power for city riding. Tektro hydraulic brakes did tend to pulse a bit on my tester, but they provided great stopping power—enough to prevent me from crashing during two close calls with obstacles and cars.

The bike ate up hills without any hesitation. One afternoon, I took it on one of my favorite local bike routes, which involves a steep ascent along a winding canyon road. It’s normally an intense workout on my regular bike. But after bumping up the assist to level five and setting off, I crested the hill without even getting out of breath.

Haul ST really shines for its thoughtful design. The step-through frame makes it easy to get on and off. The double-telescoping seatpost and long quill stem make it possible to accommodate riders who measure 4’5” up to 6’4,” according to Specialized. The buttons and HMI display screen are simple and straightforward, and they allow you to quickly adjust the motor’s boost level on the fly. The included fenders and powerful lights are a great value add: I had no problem riding at night and in wet conditions. In fact, I was glad I got to test Haul during a stretch of rainy weather in L.A.—cruising through puddles on this bike was an absolute blast. (My feet stayed mostly dry.)

One notable difference between Haul ST and competitors like Rad Runner 3 Plus is its lack of suspension. This is less of a drawback than you might expect. While I definitely felt bumps and kept a sharp eye out for potholes when riding, the massive tires aired down to 15 psi smoothed out pavement cracks, loose gravel, and speed bumps. Overall, I found the ride to be quite comfortable.

Specialized advertises 60 miles of range “with a standard sized rider” on Haul ST. Of course, range varies a lot depending on your boost level, the terrain you’re riding on, and how much cargo you’re carrying. In my testing, I never had a problem with running out of juice, even on longer rides. The HMI display has a helpful range function that shows how far you can go given your current level of charge and assist setting. At level three assist, I could count on around 45 miles of range with a full charge—plenty for the day-to-day riding I needed to do.

Still, I did have a few nitpicks.

First, I encountered a few technical glitches with my tester bike. Periodically—sometimes even multiple times on the same ride—the power would cut out and an error message would show up on the display screen. A second trip to the Specialized store failed to resolve the issue, but by downloading the accompanying Globe app, I was able to install a firmware update on the bike that did the trick. Although the error was annoying and potentially dangerous (especially when the bike died while I was crossing a busy intersection), using an app to correct it quickly was a major plus. Specialized says these over-the-air updates will be used for any future bug fixes, as well as to tweak the bike's performance based on rider feedback.

Second, the nine-speed rear derailleur shifted fine overall, but it sometimes had difficulty getting into the lower gears. I also think the traditional bike cassette might be a bit overmatched by the electric motor. For the vast majority of my riding, I used only the top three gears. More importantly, I wished the gears were more spaced out. With the additional boost from the motor, I picked up speed quickly from a stop, and that meant repeatedly mashing the shift lever to shift up and keep from spinning out while pedaling. (Accelerating more slowly helped alleviate the issue, but where’s the fun in that?)

Cargo Capacity Aboard the E-bike

Haul ST is designed to be a pack mule, and to really use this bike as intended, you’ll need to purchase some cargo accessories (Specialized sells lots of them). I installed two pannier racks on the front of my bike and used two Coolcave panniers and a Turbo Basket screwed into the MIK-compatible rear rack. These gave plenty of room to carry just about anything I needed.

Loading the Haul ST was a snap. The hefty double-leg kickstand kept the bike upright and stable when piling on gear. The Coolcave panniers were a real highlight: They have flat bottoms, so you can stand them upright while loading or unloading, and the KlickFix mounting system created a secure hold, making them easy to get on and off the racks. They also nest within each other for tidy storage off the bike.

When riding, Haul’s steering definitely felt more sluggish with the front racks loaded, but the ride was stable, and the two panniers and basket held all my gear and groceries without issue.

Haul ST has a max gross weight of 419 pounds. Minus the weight of the bike itself, that leaves 342 pounds for a rider and cargo. Need to schlep a bag of mulch home from the gardening store? Tie it down with some straps and ride away. Want to drop your kid off at school? Throw a seat on the back. Planning to run a mobile coffee shop? Specialized sells a customization kit so you can securely attach all kinds of objects to your bike.

My only gripe about hauling on Haul ST: It can’t carry more than one adult human (the rear rack is limited to 88 pounds). That puts it behind rivals like Tern GSD, which has a max gross weight of 440 pounds and can carry two adults. But Haul ST is smaller and costs thousands less than Tern. Overall, it’s still very capable. 

What to Consider Before Buying Globe Haul ST

Think seriously about how you’ll store Haul ST at home before you purchase one. I live in a second-floor apartment, and heaving this 77-pound ride up and down the stairs was very difficult—and made the bike way less convenient to use. Keeping it in a locked garage or ground-floor storage area would be ideal.

For city dwellers, options are more limited, but one New York-based e-bike evangelist has a novel solution for her cargo bikes: She locks them to racks on the street, then covers them with motorcycle covers for overnight storage.

The Verdict

Globe Haul ST packs a great deal of functionality into a small, well-designed, and affordable package. There are cheaper e-bikes and e-bikes with bigger cargo specs, but Haul ST finds a sweet spot in terms of capability and price. I think it’s an ideal car replacement for the masses.

[$2,700; specialized.com]