As above really. I have a Kickr Core that has done about 7.5k km in 18 months - got in it just now and it was making noises like a badly balanced jet engine, coupled with some nice grinding accompaniment. It slowly quietened down until it was back to normal after about 15m of riding, but it clearly isn’t happy. I’m dreading it going kaput during our latest lockdown in the UK.
Has anyone else had (and cured) a noisy Kickr? Are there any user maintenance tips worth following?
Have you not used it for a while? i have the original Tacx flux which i use as my backup trainer and the first time i use it after a few months it makes a lot of weird and wonderful noises but after a bit of use they seem to go away.
might be similar with your? assuming it all works as it should (aside from the noise) maybe give it a go for a bit.
Thanks Chris! Nope - used for the last couple of days as well as today. It has occasionally been noisy before (and it definitely doesn’t like low cadence) but nothing like as noisy as today…
The drive belt on my Kickr snapped this week; I turned to YouTube and there are a lot of videos showing maintenance tips and tricks for making them quieter etc. I didn’t look specifically for Kickr Core info, but probably worth checking them out.
PS. if you need a new drive belt, the official Wahoo offering is a complete rip-off. They are available for elsewhere for less than half the price.
Do a Factory Spin Down on it. That quelled almost all of the noise in my KICKR. There’s pretty detailed instructions on the Zwiftinsider.com blog. I’d also get another belt but that’s probably not going to affect the noise. The noise is either the brake (this is the thing creating the drag for you to work against) or the bearings.
My Kickr Cores have each lasted between 9-12 months. Wahoo has done a reasonable public relations job by “replacing” the faulty trainers, but every replacement I’ve received was a used reconditioned trainer that they simply patched up and sent back out as a “warranty replacement”. The latest one I received a couple weeks ago was clearly in rough condition with readily apparent scratches and scuffs. I had asked to be given credit towards a purchase of their latest V5 trainer, but they refused. Each time one has a problem, it takes about 9-10 days from the time I contact them until I have a replacement trainer at my door. If you’re in the middle of an important block of training, that can be incredibly frustrating.
Thanks both - much appreciated. I did the factory spin down and it made some difference, but I increasingly think there is play in a set of bearing somewhere that is causing the noise and vibration to get worse. I get that these things have a hard life, but I’m a little disappointed that, for the price, we don’t get better components/build quality. But as per the suggestion above, I’ll give Wahoo the chance to fix it and see what happens.
I’ve had problems with the optical sensors and the dreadful knocking noises. They all worked great until they didn’t. When the problems arose, it was sudden.
I think you are 100% right. These trainers are not first generation. Tacx and Wahoo should be able to construct a trainer that has at least 5 years of life. I’m sure that most of us are just regular keen cyclists, way off the ability of the Pro’s, yet a top end trainer can’t last even a year, what a joke.
If I was a Pro, I’d have to have multiple trainers just to avoid being let down.
The thread is about Wahoo Kickr Core, why do you mention Tacx? I got a 1st gen (!) Tacx Neo shortly, second hand, no problems (power reading = NG eco powermeter).
Hi Milan,
I mention Tacx, in reply to Ben, as unfortunately the Tacx Neo I have found (remember is on its 3 generation) to be as equally unready for consumer use.
I was mainly here to commiserate with Wahoo users.
I hope your Neo serves you better than mine. My Neo 2 lasted 10 months, my Neo 2T lasted 7 months.
When it is working it is great, when its not, its just an expensive “bike rack”.
I think I’m done with expensive trainers.
