My new Kickr Core makes a repetitive clicking noise. I don’t know if it is the same as what you are hearing. Here’s a link to the audio file: Kickr Core clicking. Is this what yours sounds like?
I contacted Wahoo support, sent them the video they requested to see it, and said this is common and not an issue. It happens on some units, caused by the labels on the belt going around the tensioning pulley. It should mellow in a month of heavy use. If this is the same noise yours is making, then that will be the answer Wahoo will give you.
If this is not the same noise as you are experiencing, a simple way to get us access to your uploaded clip is to paste the URL in a reply but change the “.com” to “dot com”. Until you’ve posted some good number of posts to achieve a trusted status, the forum system will not let you post URL’s. But you can make this simple textual change, then we can copy it into our browser and change the “dot com” back to “.com” and get to your uploaded clip.
It is very difficult for other forum members to provide feedback without hearing the sound. Joel, for example, shared in his reply an audio track which he called clicking, there is without doubt some sound there, but it is very confusing to use the word “clicking” to describe it, as clicking (at least in my mind) is normally a sharp metallic sound. It was so helpful to hear it as opposed to reading a description!
It is particularly intriguing that you write that you hear a knocking sound while coasting, i.e., even when you do not rotate the pedals. It must then either come from the spinning flywheel, or from a shaking frame of the trainer.
Your best bet is to open a ticket with Wahoo support and upload an audio (or video with audio) and ask for their advice. My experience with Wahoo has been that they reply quickly, give good advice, and overall provide great customer support. One of the things which they might advise you to start with, is to check that all legs on which your trainer stands are in tight contact with the floor and the trainer does not shake from leg to leg. The legs can be adjusted by rotating them.
If Wahoo decides that the trainer requires a repair, they probably will ship you a new one. When I had an issue with Wahoo Headwind fan (chemical smell from the plastic), they cross-shipped me a new one right away.
Please see link here: hXXps://youtu.be/aAM95MYQLeA
(h t t p)
What do you guys think?
I am confident there is no leg wobble and the cassette is fitted securely with no movement at all.
Joel I think it’s the exact same sound as what yours has… If Wahoo are going to say this is normal then I think i’ll return it to the store for a refund. I’ve watched so many review videos prior to purchasing this on YouTube and haven’t heard this on any of them so it’s quite strange really…
@Mahipal, Yes, that appears to be the same click I am getting. Since I started a support ticket with Wahoo, I’ll give it the month they requested to see if it goes away. I too am surprised by this and told them so, as they assert this is supposed to be as close to silent as a trainer can get. I’ll let Wahoo deal with it first so as not to cause the store I bought it from have to deal with the problem. As Andrei mentions, Wahoo was very responsive. If it continues and Wahoo won’t replace it I’ll then deal with the store.
A side note: Andrei mentions “check that all legs on which your trainer stands are in tight contact with the floor and the trainer does not shake from leg to leg. The legs can be adjusted by rotating them.” That is for the Kickr. The Kickr Core does not have the rotating adjustments, they are solid bar legs, nothing to adjust.
Yes I was going to ask what your plan was, best to give it a month and then go from there like you said.
It’s strange they’re saying it’s a label inside because some of the videos I’ve seen on YouTube where someone has opened it up, I can’t see any labels that would cause a sound like this…
I’ve made another video showing the sound, just a bit clearer just in case I need to show proof to the store.
hXXps://youtu.be/6_IEmPt9_zg
I’m probably going to take it back to the store tomorrow for a refund and then back to square one trying get hold of another one which could take months…
Thanks for clarifying regarding the leg adjustments Andrei was referring to.
Yup, that’s the same click as what I have going. This is the video I provided Wahoo https://youtu.be/z-J5yuyGFBo
They say it is from the printing on the belt, not a label inside. Supposedly from that printing going around the tensioner. I’m not sure I buy that, but I’ll give them the month test. I have 3 months to return mine to the store so not as concerned.
I would ask Wahoo to fix it or would return the trainer and would get a new one. This does not sound right, especially the metallic friction sound which appears during coasting. Hopefully other owners of Kickr Core would chime in and share if they hear a similar sound, or if they had it and it went away.
Yes there’s surely something wrong here, I’m going to the store today to return it. They don’t have stock of any new ones at the moment like most places here in the UK so I’ll just try and get a full refund.
Will have to hunt for a new one now, it took me a month to get my hands on this one! Most stores are advising new stock will arrive in March so could be a long wait but what can you do…
I’ve had my Kickr Core a week and haven’t noticed a noise, so I just went to see if I could hear this sound.
I could hear what sounds like the same thing, which seems to happen once for every rotation of the belt, so could be linked to the belt join / the white-printed letters on the belt. The sound of mine seems quieter than yours or Joel’s so I didn’t notice it and don’t consider it an issue on mine.
What I have found with my Kickr is that my power output is much “spikier” than with my old (wheel-on) trainer and when I stop pedalling it’s like I brake to a quick halt on Zwift rather than freewheeling to a gently stop. Does anyone know if this is normal?
Thanks. I find it a bit annoying - I thought direct drive was supposed to be more realistic but I definitely miss being able to freewheel along and enjoy the momentum I’ve built up, which felt more like real life. This feels like the brakes go on as soon as I stop pedalling.
I believe what you are seeing is completely controlled by Zwift. The smart trainer reports 0 watts being imparted by the rider. What Zwift does with that information is controlled by Zwift. With 0 watts input, the flywheel continues to spin for a while so you can pick up your pedalling without having to apply a huge load. But the trainer is not the one to dictate whether your avatar should keep moving while that flywheel is spinning.
You want the trainer to do this and Zwift expects it. Here are some examples of how Zwift uses this information:
If you are going downhill steeper than 3% and greater than 35 MPH, your avatar goes into a super-tuck. Zwift uses the 0 watts input as the trigger under these conditions for the super-tuck. If the smart trainer did not report 0 watts, you would not see the super-tuck.
If you are going downhill at a slower speed or shallower grade and stop pedalling, your avatar keeps on riding. The speed is dependant on all the factors Zwift uses to compute speed such as aerodynamics, grade, wheel performance, etc… It is intended to do what a bike would do IRL.
If you are riding on the level, you will slow down and come to a stop like you would do IRL. Zwift seems to decelerate faster than I preceive I would IRL, but the basic function is the same.
Mahipal, I cannot judge what is the best to do because I am not familiar with return policies in the U.K., but in your place I would contact Wahoo first and would indicate that you plan to return the unit to the store, unless they advise otherwise. They may suggest that they send you a new unit right away, as their availability may be better than that in the store.
This is what I did with my Wahoo fan. I had 3 months return policy, it was emanating chemical smell which did not go away in three months, so I wrote to Wahoo and told them that I plan to return it but wanted to ask them first if this is the preferred course of actions, and they said no, we will replace it for you right away. They cross-shipped a new one, I had it in 5 days (even though they were sold out in stores). Wahoo customer service is very quick with replies and very helpful. They may get overwhelmed at times, but they genuinely try to keep customers happy, in my opinion and experience.
Paul, in my experience on Wahoo Kickr Bike, it takes some time of free rolling until avatar stops. Flywheel continues spinning, which makes it much easier to pick up pedaling again. This depends on the slope, though. If you ride uphill, or ride on a workout in a “level” mode in which you set up an uphill slope to create resistance, avatar would stop quickly. Level workout mode is particularly tricky in this sense because it does not reproduce the slope which you see on the screen, so one can get confused - you will have an uphill resistance even when you go downhill, pretty much like in ERG mode. So, what you describe, does not seem normal unless you are in one of these workout modes.
If you are riding on the level, you will slow down and come to a stop like you would do IRL. Zwift seems to decelerate faster than I preceive I would IRL, but the basic function is the same.
This is the thing - since I got the new trainer, I slow down like I would in real life IF I put the brakes on. I might do some tests with one trainer vs the other side-by-side.
I rode a Kickr Core for 8000kms before replacing it with a KickrV5 about 2 weeks ago. I never experienced a sound like you guys describe and that wouldn’t be acceptable to me. Wahoo saying that you can’t expect a smart trainer to be quieter is insane. I would return it pronto and yeah I get why you would be reticent with how hard they are to find right now.
I have the same noise with my second hand Kickr. It has gotten progressively worse with use and is now creating some glitches in the ride. Return it now. I recommend accepting a replacement because the Kickr my daughter has is as quiet as can be.
My Kickr does not brake to a stop when I stop peddling and glides downhill very fast. That might be an unrelated issue.
Buying a Wahoo machine second hand was not a smart move. You need the warranty with these machines.
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