Hello all,
After a session on Zwift I noticed the rear fan -bottom left-stopped working but the one at the front of the unit -bottom right-carried on spinning for a good few minutes. I’ve had a scout around the internet and it seems there is a overheating problem with the NEO 2 /2T. I was wondering if any other users have had similar issues and if so what was the outcome
Thanks
Hi Warren,
I had the same issue with my Neo 2, although my Neo stopped working (no resistance and overheating smell with a flashing red power light, I think). When it cooled down, the Neo would work, but the rear fan was not operating and I could smell overheating again.
I decided to return the unit to my LBS. They were really helpful offering many different solutions but in the end gave me a refund as they could not get a replacement for 6 weeks or more.
I found a Neo 2 T at another LBS and bought that.
I now run another fan directed at the drive side of the new Neo to help the internal fans. So far, all OK.
My original Neo lasted 12 months, but came with a two year warranty. New on has the same warranty I think.
Thanks for the reply and the tip,I’ll run another fan towards the Neo’s internal fans and hopefully I won’t get any overheating issues. I’ve only had it 8 months so if it does overheating I’ll get onto Garmin/Tacx support
I was out of warranty when it happened. And guess what: while Tacx is half an hour driving from where I live they cannot service the device!!! I’m offered a new one at a reduced price. But I can not afford the expense (Covid measures caused my income to go to 0)
If it is just the thermostat (something I read) I should be able to do that myself…
Hi all,
I have the same problem with the fan not working at the rear. I noticed it was getting hot above the fan area. AT first i just kept losing all the wattage (on Zwift) and couldn’t seem to sort it but once I realised it was the cooling fan not working I positioned a normal room fan near it and sort the problem out. Garmin have agreed to replace it as its less than 2 years old but its not good. Will my new one fail in the same way?
I have a 2T without problems so far, but am wondering if there is any pattern in the way those with problems use their 2T - perhaps from doing many longer rides.
I can imagine the issue could be occurring because of a simple failure of an element that’s part of the fan mechanism itself or its thermostat, or it might be because they didn’t put strong enough fans in, so in longer rides the heat damages part of the system.
So, how long is a typical ride for those who’ve had the overheating issue?
As an update to my previous post my 2nd Neo, the Neo 2T also decided to throw in the towel (7/8 months use). All the lights went out and there was no resistance whatsoever. I took that one back to my LBS and got a full refund.
I won’t be buying another one.
Troy, what’s the usual ride length you do? How many miles overall did you put on each trainer?
Hi Justin,
The Neo 2 lasted roughly 7717 miles. (lasted just under 12 months)
The Neo 2 T lasted about 3883 miles. (just 8 months)
Generally I ride about 1-2 hours, 5 days a week if I can. There will have been a few weeks when I did nothing though.
If you get a problem with yours I would suggest that you get a full refund and if you really need another one, buy another one with the full 2 years warranty.
Plus keep your original set up for emergencies.
“Ride On”
Troy - thanks for responding, good to know. I haven’t a clue what the “average Zwifter” does for the their workouts (Zwift must know this, but don’t recall seeing any numbers), but I’m guessing you might be on the heavier end of usage?
I virtually never ride for an hour, I prefer 20-45 minute higher impact sessions, and usually only 2 or 3 times a week, so perhaps it’ll take longer for a problem to show for mine. A design choice they made was to essentially completely enclose the mechanism in plastic, with no openings on the sides, so it doesn’t seem like using an additional fan to blow on it would have much effect. Fingers crossed, but its frustrating to pay $1400 for something that seems this fragile…
Unfortunately mine has just done the same. I was thirty five minutes into a training ride. I keep the room pretty cold (was around 11 degrees in there), so I wasn’t expecting overheating. Absolutely nothing coming from the fans. Bad timing given new years and the fact that I’m just getting back after two weeks off the bike with a thigh injury. Lets hope warranty repair/replacement isn’t too slow. My trainer is only five months old.
David - what’s your normal ride time, how many rides/week?
Typically in the region of an hour, with the odd ride up to around 2 hours. Five or six rides a week. Definitely nothing crazy.
Agreed, that isn’t a pattern that should be a problem. I bet they’ll redesign the housing to let a lot more access for air, it’s amazing how quickly it heats up after being plugged in, even before you start pedaling! For sure I’m going to stick to shorter rides, and think about getting a fan to blow into the upper heat escape area.
It is incredible really. You’d expect better quality with something so expensive. On my ride today I know the fan fired up when I turned on the trainer because it is very easy to hear. After the ride I let it cool down and turned it back on. No fan sound at all, so definitely a dead unit now. The real question is how long it will now take before I have a working trainer again.
I never tried with mine, but I wonder if the Neo could be used without the outer plastic casing? Just a thought.
I totally agree, especially as its in its 4th year? and on its 3rd generation.
I’ll take a look and see if there’s a way to do that. However, it’s presumably on there largely to keep fingers/toes from being sliced off…!
Yes, you’d think they’d have it dialed in by now. Most likely they updated one component for this latest version that has turned out to be more sensitive to dying from repeated heat/cool cycles. Probably something that costs about 10 cents… 
Keep your fingers on the bars, and your toes in your shoes and clipped in. 
Keep us updated on your findings.
or losses. (toes/fingers)
Will do. 
There’s a bunch of obvious screws/bolts holding the cover on, but I’m wondering what else might be attached to the cover on the inside that I could be damaging… It’s also tempting to drill some holes in the cover instead, but then I assume I’d void the warranty 
So I think an external fan blowing over the vent might increase airflow enough to make a difference, and the shorter rides I do will hopefully lengthen the time to failure (and also put me out of warranty when it fails - you can’t win)
I think Shane Millar may have done a u-tube video about servicing a Neo some time ago. It would be worth checking out the net first for some info.