Tacx Neo 1 (and possibly others) Trainer Maintenance/Care Best Practices

Hey Guys,

I wanted to create a thread to see what everyone is doing to maximize the life of their trainer, specifically the Neo 1.

My trainer:
I have a Tacx Neo 1 I bought in January 2019, I think it was one of the later gen Neo 1s. Serial number starts with 19. I haven’t had any serious problems with it so far. It did arrive with a few of the plastic housing screws very loose (thread visible) and a crack in the housing. This was actually a replacement for a dead Flux 2 so I didn’t bother returning it again. My trainer developed a creak I think about a year and a half into its life. The creak only showed up late into the ride and it didn’t really bother me. I think I have it fixed (more testing needed) as I replaced the freehub body, greased everything up and tightened the nut that holds the freehub body on as it was a little loose (from factory?). I have a bike dedicated to my trainer and I keep a towel over the bars and head set during rides. I would say my pedaling is not that smooth. Never had to pull the Neo disc off (knock on wood). I have smelled the weird smell after a high power sprint for probably 10 seconds then it disappeared. The virtual tire slip problem exists and it sucks but only happens on Zwift.

My Pain Cave:
Everything is basically permanently set up, I never put way the Neo or the bike that’s on it. Its in a main floor of a house with laminate floors (no static from carpets). When I’m training its usually around 70 F, sometimes crack the window if its not too cold out. No pets (less dust/hair to get into the Neo). The Neo sits on floor mat/pads to get it a little damping. I use a wheel chock under my front wheel.

My Legs/Trainer Usage:
When I got the trainer I had an FTP of around 200 watts and weighed around 68 kg, pretty new to training at that point. At peak, I hit 272 watts and weighed 65 kg. I typically do the mid volume plan and ride indoors pretty seriously during the Canadian winter from mid November to early April. I spend most of the other months outside but sometimes ride inside during the summer. I do the odd Zwift race, more and more rarely now, but mostly have it paired to TR. TLDR: I’m pretty light, power isn’t impressive and the trainer is ridden more than average but with few sprints.

Regular Trainer Care:
I always have my Neo plugged in during a ride. After my ride I point my fan at my trainer and leave my Neo plugged in. I leave it like this until the disc on the Neo is room temperature-ish. I’ve heard a lot about them over heating and my theory is this stops heat from building up in them post ride. Usually ends up being an hour as I forget about it haha. I wipe, lube and wipe again my chain probably every few weeks with wet lube. Usually whip the dust off the plastic housing every few weeks as well.

Less Regular Trainer Care:
I check the chain wear every few months. Chains seem to last a while when they’re only ridden inside. I try to wash my trainer dedicated bike a few times a year to get rid of the sweat. I have only greased the freehub spacer and surrounding parts once but probably should do it annually or so. Once a year or so I try to blow the dust out of the fans with canned compressed air while carefully stopping the fans from spinning. I still have a few months of warrant (2 years for the Neo) so I don’t want to take too many pieces off it.

That’s my background and maintenance plan. Hopefully I get a few more years out of the Neo, might be a bit of a dream though. Anything else I should do?

As your unit is still covered by the warranty I’d take time to look though the Neo owners Facebook group. They cover most issues relevant to your unit and it seems ( as with the flux) it’s pot luck if you have a lemon, a descent unit or something in between.

I actually joined Facebook to access the users know how on the flux. If I would have put more thought into researching the flux earlier I would have joined earlier and saved considerable time.

In short if you open the casing you void the warranty. The customer service from Tacx/ Garmin is hit and miss too.