How would BLE be subject to interferences given it employs a frequency-hoping protocol with CRC and packet integrity check?
See Wikipedia.
No idea, but it behaves as if it is… 
How would you explain it?
Can you try connecting other devices with BLE (Correct me if wrong, but you mentioned “Other things are connected to Zwift with Ant+”)? Most trainers today support both ANT+ and BLE.
Also, I wonder what effect would have switching the router back to channel 11 (the router’s original channel) on disconnects.
I did try connecting the trainer with BLE (instead on ANT+) and it seemed to work.
Yes, that would be the ultimate test - I must admit I’m just a little wary of trying it now that everything is working, but I suspect that curiosity will overcome that…
Busy right now but I’ll give it a go at some point and report back…
I would not change anything.
With so many reports the changing the frequency of the router helped I would not go and mess with it.
It doesn’t work because it’s an Elite product, that’s the long and short of it. Their bottles and bottle cages are decent though.
I’m having exactly the same experience as yourself.
Zwift finds the Sterzo on full strength signal, calibration no problem. As soon as I start riding I keep getting disconnect messages in Zwift.
I had a ballache with one of their trainers also, would never buy another Elite trainer product, they’re dogsh1t.
Mine has been working absolutely faultlessly since I changed my wifi channel. I haven’t yet dared to see if changing back to channel 11 reintroduces the problem…
I’m fairly sure it’s a hardware issue…
When downward pressure is applied on the Sterzo from the handlebars in the riding position, it disconnects from Zwift.
If you pick up the Sterzo and squeeze the shoddy Elite plastic casing, it connects and disconnects repeatedly.
I’m so much over Elite, it’s difficult to feel pissed off about it. I should have known better and not bought it in the first place. I’ll just use it as a riser block. 
Yours definitely sounds like a hardware issue, as you say.
I’ve taken mine apart a couple of times over the 14 months I’ve had mine (for mechanical reasons: to remove or replace the centering spring).
A weak point in the design is where the two long wires connecting the battery compartment to the tiny PCB pass between the two sections of the casing, being held in place in channels by bits of what feels like duct tape.
If one or both of the cables were to be trapped between two corners of the plastic casing during assembly, it would be very easy for the wire to become damaged, eventually causing an intermittent break and thus dropouts.
That’s poor design, in my opinion. Relatively easy to diagnose if one has a multimeter. Relatively simple to fix with a soldering iron, more wire and better assembly with new tape, but not something the user should have to do.
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If it’s out of warranty, i might open it up and take a look. Thanks for the info.
This is going kind of a little off topic now, but I thought I’d share some photos.
Today, I finally made the time to install a power switch on mine so that I can use the Sterzo Smart as a dumb steering block without having to unscrew the battery compartment and remove the batteries, should I want to ride in a large group with the new Pack Dynamics (3.0) and not use steering.
Now I can just cut the power at the flick of a finger.
I took the opportunity to sort out the wiring so that it doesn’t use tape any more, making disassembly/assembly simpler.
Here are the original internals (admittedly with the factory tape having been re-applied a few times and looking worse for wear). Those power wires were very short, so it was always tricky to take the unit apart without unpeeling the tape.
Here it is now, after the modifications.
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