Elite Direto XR: Resistance Issues with Zwift

Hello everyone,

I am experiencing resistance issues when using Zwift. I am using the trainer and Zwift since Jan/21 and it was working perfectly. In the last month after some updates I started to notice some issues: 1) sometimes it is hard to start pedalling due to a very high resistance, 2) high and unreal resistance on flats, 3) Random lack of synchronization, so the trainer doesn’t reflect the gradient in the screen, 4) High resistance when in decents.

In many cases as you keep trying the problem disappear or sometimes I turn of the trainer and try again.

I see the step motor working when I turn on the trainer and yesterday I used Elite App to ride varying the resistance level from 1 to 16 and I noticed that it seemed to be working perfectly.

Please, is there any reports about similar issues in the last weeks. Could it be a trainer problem, even though the evidences tell me it is not? I am using windows 10 since when I bought the trainer. The trainer is connected through ANT but the problem also happens in BLE.

Thanks for your attention.

Hi @OMAR_MURAD

Welcome to the forum.

When using ANT+ you should use the ANT+ FE-c profile.

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That is exactly what I use since day#1 without any issues but I noticed that after some Zwift updates the problem has started. Thanks for the welcome.

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I’m also having trouble with my wife’s connection on her Apple TV / Elite Direto XR setup. Will read the power over the bluetooth connection but not adjust resistance to the grade of the road. Anybody have a fix? Doesn’t work on separate laptop as well so I’m thinking it’s a Direto issue. But all firmware is up to date.

Did you pair as power source and controllable?

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Do you force close your Zwift app after each use?

Hi Omar,
I recently started using the Direto XR as well, and experienced similar issues. First noted that I have a smoother/more accurate go of it with the “FE-C” device paired, as opposed to alternatives like the “RealTrainer” (I’m still not sure I understand why there are the options). I occasionally still get some misfires where I’ll start a ride and the resistance is negligible/non-existent. I’ve found that this typically occurs when I may be pedaling through the pairing screen, or as Zwift is loading up the world/ride. I now avoid pedaling until I’m fully loaded into a ride, and I’ve had luck avoiding the issue.

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I am having major issues with resistance, I was about to make a post about it but thought I should read others first. I may give this a go as I usually pedal during the startup and pairing screen.

Same issue - my Direto has been fine on Zwift for years. This winter it stopped adding resistance on climbs.

I checked the power measurement from the trainer against an external meter - all good. I calibrated using both Zwift and the Elite myTrainer app. I also used the Elite app to check whether the motor moved the spindle in response to levels on the app and all good. Trainer difficulty is set at the middle (default). I’ve tested it using different devices, ANT and BT connections and on Rouvy - same issue.

Elite support reviewed and said, since the trainer resistance responds accurately to instructions from its app the problem is with Zwift (and apparently Rouvy).

Grateful for any advice!

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I have the same issues. Sometimes very hard to start off- then sometimes just start spinning in a race

Same problem here. It happened today on AdZ. I swear I was about to throw the damn thing across my window.

Anyway, if someone got a solution, please help us out.

Thanks!

Hi all,
I have exactly the same problem as described in the first post. Had the same issues during summer, my workaround was to not wake the trainer before pairing and not pedal before loading into game, and it worked fine for like 6 months, but a few weeks ago the problems started again and no matter what I do I can’t get it to act stable. Please help!
Thanks!

My experience with Elite Drive and Elite Justo (ANT+): Both work better if I do a “hard reboot” on the device (instead of wake it up); meaning pull (!, edited) the powerplug before starting zwift, wait for several seconds before powering again, afterwards starting zwift. Usually I power the devices off after riding.

Both Elite Trainers seem to have 2 protocols I can connect them with. And mixing these up will lead to constant resistance instead of reacting to road profile - or failure.

From time to time there seem to be short glitches on the ANT+; but I can’t rule out network dropouts on my side. At that moments I’m spinning on both the Elite devices.
The AdZ effect described by Marc-Olivier happened to me once seemingly within a ride. If not racing that moment: maybe giving the “A”-button a chance checking everything is paired correctly (?).

I’ll check if everything is nicely paired when in the ride next time. Maybe that was the problem in my case.

Same issue here, tried not pedalling until I was in a ride but it still did it.

I’m now updating firmware on trainer and opening a ticket with the elite care team. wish me luck.

I have recently had this problem. I don’t think it is down to Zwift, or a connectivity issue.

I found at the start of rides, the resistance was way too high - 0% gradient in Zwift, but struggling to maintain 60rpm & putting out over 350w. All of a sudden the resistance would fall away to virtually zero & after a few minutes of this happening repeatedly, it would sort itself out. I assume once the trainer had warmed up a bit, it freed up. It is located in my garage so can get pretty cold.

I believe it to be down to the resistance adjustment mechanism within the trainer itself. There is a motor drive that pulls the magnets along a threaded shaft. Over time, the grease gets claggy & can cause this mechanism to stick - on my trainer, I knew something wasn’t right as it made a screeching noise when powered up, as the trainer reset the resistance.
There is a couple of online videos how to clean & regrease this mechanism. I did it a few days ago & it only took about 15-20 minutes. It is now silent & working fine again.
Definitely worth doing, if you are experiencing this issue with resistance not changing.

I am not able to post links to the service articles, but if you search for “elite resistance check on interactive trainers” you should find the Elite Knowledge Base video explaining how to take the cover off the trainer, and how to check the resistance levels.
If you search for “elite cleaning the motor screw thread” that should find the Elite Knowledge Base article on what you need to clean & how to do it.

You need the Elite MyE Training app on your phone and you’ll need a fairly light grease to apply to the thread.

Now I know what the problem is, I will probably do this procedure annually as a bit of preventative maintenance.

More discussion of this issue over here…