# Pro-Form Tour de France Cycle Review



## Dctrofspin

As I write this, I have been on hold with Icon Fitness, waiting for a service rep for over 55 minutes. This is an improvement over my attempts to get through to an advisor in the past, which was impossible – the phone system simply wouldn’t let you in, telling you to call back at another time due to call volume.

Based on what a POS this machine is, I can understand the call volume issue. My journey began with a simple desire; my wife wants a training bike for the winter and I need to train for racing. She is tired of trying to use my bike, which is hooked up to a computrainer (which has served me well for five years without a flaw)…changing seat height frustrates us both, she finds the set up too long on the CT (it takes a bit to calibrate) and hates the low bar position. We decided a fully loaded stationary cycle with heart rate, power in watts, a large bandwidth of adjustments and ease of use would fit the bill. We narrowed our choices down to two: Cycleops 400 and the Pro-Form TDF. I’m a “you get what you pay for” kind of guy…but the delta in cost between the two was around $1,500…not exactly chump change. Besides, the commercials and the hard sell on the TDF being a device for dedicated racers was convincing – and the Googlemaps, automatic height adjustments and all were pretty trick. I will say there seemed to be a very suspiciously low number of on-line reviews for the thing…but after looking at the warranty and 30-day return it for any reason policy, I figured we’d be okay…the TDF it was. I went to the proform.com website and easily went through the order process on October 1.

I took the extended 3-year extended warranty for about $135 for insurance and placed the order. Within minutes of placing the order, I got a personal email from a sales guy offering the five-year warranty with a matt for the device for $46 more…what the heck, we did it (funny, I would love that guy now since we’ve been holding for about an hour and a quarter now). With the discount code I found, warranty and “bronze” shipping for $99, we were into this thing for about $1,800. After waiting for about three weeks with no word, I called the sales line to check my order. They said they were back-ordered (didn’t say that when they got the $$$) and it would ship on Oct. 25. When I heard nothing by the end of the month I called again and was told it was shipping on Nov. 5…which it did and we had it about a week later. Assembly was pretty easy (better than I feared) and the packaging to ship this thing was simply amazing. I registered with Ifit.com and set up some routes, which was very easy and fun. I fired up the console, registered it on the wireless network (it only will work with 64-bit encryption, if you can believe that) and everything logged in and downloaded just fine. I decided to put my own speedplay pedals on it and put my saddle from my TT bike on it for a bit more comfort (stock seat was a joke). 

Here was the next wake up call. They sent the machine with two right hand crank arms…you couldn’t put both pedals on. Luckily I had a couple sets of pedals by pulling it off another bike and I got going. ( Sidebar: In the meantime, I called back the help line...couldn’t get through… but was able to call the sales line and beg a guy to help me out…he got me through to the calling wait part … that took at least 45 minutes. Two weeks later my left crankarm came in a different color, but who’s complaining). I also came to learn the heart rate receiver was actually an option, so I simply grabbed my polar CS600 and was ready to go off riding the hills around Sonoma. 
First big issue: using the measurements from my bike, I could just get the seat forward enough to get my hip point aligned with the crankset…in fact I was only one adjustment hole away from maxing out. Mind you, I’m 5’ 10” with a 32” inseam…a pretty textbook 56cm off the rack kind of guy…this was alarming. To get my bars adjusted downward enough to even closely approximate a normal riding position, I had to go the very lowest setting, and even then it was at least a couple inches too high. I could live with that, but not the fact that when getting out of the saddle (think the slick commercial that ran throughout the Tour), my knees hit the bar! What joke. So I decided to concede that part of the set up and pulled the bars high enough to at least get full leg motion. 

The map features worked great and the tilting mechanism was really cool…I was warming up to this thing. Because I have the computrainer and ride with a powertap, I have a pretty good gauge on watts and perceived effort. Basically if you’re on a level riding mode, resistance seems pretty close to normal…90-95 rpm, 150 bpm and it’s showing around 185-205 watts. But if you hit the hills and really start pounding, it seems to register low…I rode it back-to-back with the computrainer to see…I’d say on a slight incline it’s off by about 10 percent…20+ on anything over 6 percent grade. No crisis…as long as it’s a consistent baseline, but it seems to float around a bit. 

But after about six rides, things again went south. It has developed a slipping sensation at the top of the stroke of the pedal as you come over top…mildly noticeable on light loads…very pronounced under load. That was the reason for the call today to the help line. After 1 hour twenty minutes, I got a very nice person in tech support, who said it’s likely a slipping belt to be tightened. But then she said “but if it’s already at max tension, that’s just the way it is…they knew that when they designed it.” Holy crap…I can’t believe she just said that. She directed me to the customer help/returns line, where I explained that I’m extremely unhappy and want to return the machine. The woman promptly gave me a 10 percent credit on the visa card and asked kindly that I at least try to fix the belt…if that doesn’t work, they’ll get the return going pronto. So I’ll at least give them credit for being willing to deal with it. My guess is that this is an all-too-common issue for Icon Fitness/ProForm and they are simply paying problems to go away…at least they are willing to resolve it. 

Bottom line? It’s all too good to be true…it’s a pretty limp machine best suited to folks who need to unload a few calories and exercise twice a month…which is what I suspect most people do with home fitness…buy and watch it collect dust…not a bad business, I suspect they design to the task. But the TDF monumental marketing effort was simply fraud. Will follow up with what happens next.


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## takl23

I can't say I wasn't expecting one of these to come down the line at some point. Hopefully it'll do the job for your wife and you can stick with the computrainer.


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## Wilierit

That sucks. Good luck with everything. I do have to say that the commercial alone would have had me stay clear of this thing. It does come off as being a bit goofy. That being said, I wonder how much input they had from people that compete and ride to race etc... when they designed it.


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## Alaska Mike

Sorry about your negative experience. Your wife could have had a good bike trainer and a bike for that price, so I expect a short life for this product.

The question everyone wants to know: Do you wear a helmet when you ride it?


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## ZoSoSwiM

That sucks. Kinda looked too good to be true right from the start though.. Hope it works out for ya!!


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## Incident

That does suck! Honestly when I saw it, I thought it was just a cheap gimick for all the new cycling fans out there.


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## PoorCyclist

I would think a refund would be a good choice from the sounds of it,
why not get a bike and maybe a Kurt Kinetic trainer?
You might even have money left for a powertap wheel.


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## trener1

*Spin Bike*

Why not get a spin bike? aren't they somewhere around $500.
at my gym they have spin bike that have built in video monitors that show cadence and HR, along with some built in workouts, it seems like that would be a really good tool.
If you are interested, next time I go to the gym, I can try and find the brand/model for you.


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## MarathonPFS

I feel your pain. I bought the TDF bike in August. Same kind of deal, didn't ship even close to when it was supposed to, they knocked some money off the price, didn't call me and I eventually got the bike towards the end of October. Problems from the get-go. The iFit feature will not sync with my wireless network (Apple Airport router) and I have called, emailed, live chatted to no avail. After two rides a loud clanking noise started in the flywheel. It is hard to describe how frustrating it is to have such difficulty getting someone to answer the phone or to be on hold for an unreasonable amount of time (40 minutes to an hour). I was finally able to secure a service call last week and was emailed an order number saying I would hear from a technician within 5 business days. I'm on day 7, no call. I have advised my cycling group to steer clear. This is definitely a product that ICON and Proform appear to have no interest supporting after the sale. I too bought the extended warranty. Ok, I feel better sharing my experience if it helps one person avoid similar frustration. Keep your money in your pocket and look elsewhere. For the record, I'm a roadie and ride about 4,000 miles per year. I was looking for an inclement weather trainer.


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## nOOky

A local dealer is selling these for about $1099, I thought about it, but decided to stay with my trainer and buy more warm clothing to ride outside.


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## paulfeng

MarathonPFS said:


> I was looking for an inclement weather trainer.


"Inclement" like a good upper Midwest winter? 

Writing here from Minne-snowta, I wish this virtual reality trainer technology was better and more affordable.

My virtual reality last night was watching "Hot Tub Time Machine" via Qwikster, I mean, Netflix streaming, while riding my Kirk Kinetic. I guess that will have to do until spring.

[edit: oops, got your location mixed with "nOOky" from neighboring Wisconsin. I am guessing that OK is more rideable in the winter]


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## [email protected]

*proform tour de france*

hi i am responding to the questions about the proform tour de france.

while trying to find a link to this years tour de france coverage i came across the PROFORM "TOUR DE FRANCE". said to myself wow, not only can i ride the tour de france routes, i can ride all the rides i did during the 10 years i trained in holland (70-80). i can experience all the "climbs and decents", relive all the critiums and courses from all over europe i did. i was so excited!!!!!!!!!!!

i went to the PROFORM site, read the descriptions and watched the video. my excitement grew. i ordered from the site....in stock....two week delivery!!!! really excited!!!

i was immediately contacted by PROFORM and was offered extended warranty at a reduced price. i jumped on it with the thought "i am covered...no concerns about anything"

well two week delivery turned into THREE MONTHS!!!!! during this time i contacted PROFORM and asked for set-up as a compensation for the delays. it was granted and i was promised set-up at no cost!!!!! the excitement grew.

then the long waited day came. i was contacted by the shipping company and a date was set. i asked about the set-up and was informed "that is NOT included." i explained the situation to the person on the line and told her i would forward the e-mails confirming set-up promised by PROFORM. i immediately sent those e-mails with a line that read "if there is a problem please give me a call!" i did not get a call!!!

on the delivery day i was concerned the set-up would be a problem....IT WAS. i contacted my contact at PROFORM and was told "set-up was included...for $200...RIGHT." i immediately responded....WRONG!! and reminded him of our agreement. i also said i would send him back his e-mails reminding him of our agreement, which i did anyways.

the delivery guys come to the door and they want to know where the bike goes....i show them. next question i ask "you are doing the set-up ....right?" NO was the answer!!! my response was "don't even take it off the truck!" i told them of the agreement with PROFORM and was promptly told "we don't work for PROFORM and we don't know M... .....S." i said ok "do you know "a......a, at your company?" "yes!" call her i said, she know of the agreement!! after 30 minutes they set-up the machine...i wasn't impressed with the professionalism or knowledge of the product shown by the guys. nor did they test the systems as described by the PROFORM literature. i was just happy to have the bike!!!!!!

then i start to do the set-up of the computer.....problems!!!!!!!!!! i have several computers (laptops) on my home wireless network. i could not get the computer to recieve the network. i call PROFORM and find.....there has been issues with the computer. no problem....i have extended warranty. problem...PROFORM could not help with computer problem nor could IFIT. no problem....i have a fiend who is a computer engineer...he can help!!!!

i get on the bike and program in one of the pre-programmed rides...hit start and off i go. problem......pedals are slipping...on the level....impossible to do a climb...impossible to stand on the pedals to add power!!! CALL PROFORM...tighten the belt (0 miles on the bike). so i tighten the belt iaw the owners manual....no help!! CALL PROFORM. they are no help. i continue to tweak the belt and the bike is semi-rideable. i continue to work with the computer and finally...IT WORKS. i connect to IFIT and program a "competition", start the race and go less than a mile and the climb creates to much pedal slippage and i have to stop. then the computer dies!!!! CALL PROFORM. they are sending a tech....that takes two weeks. in the meantime i do semi flat rides (2). on the second ride the bike gets stuck in the "nose down" position!!!!! no problem...the tech is coming!!!!!

the tech comes after two weeks and PROBLEM....he has no clue on the bike. i show him how to make the adjustment to the belt (he said was adjusted properly) and how to use the computer to test the incline-decline and the error message. HE CALL PRORM and gets a solution...heorders parts.

IT IS NOW THREE MONTHS SINCE THE PARTS HAVE BEEN ORDERED AND THE ON MAIN PART (wire harness) IS STILL ON BACK ORDER. IF IT IS EVER SHIPPED IT WILL TAKE ANOTHER TWO WEEKS FOR THE TECH TO GET HERE! SO I ORDER IN JULY 2011 DURING THE TOUR DE FRANCE AND I AM HOPING BY THE MIDDLE OF JANUARY 2012 I WILL AVE THE USE OF MY MACHINE. THEN I DO NOT HAVE THE CONFIDENCE IT WILL CONTINUE TO WORK!!!!!!!

IN THE MEANTIME I WAS CHARGED FOR SET-UP AND HAVE NOT BEE RE-IMBURSED FOR THOSE CHARGES!!!!!!!!! STILL FIGHTING WITH PROFORM!!!!!!!!!

MY OPINION.....THE PROFORM TOUR DE FRANCE IS JUNK AND THE WORD OF PROFORM IS WORTHLESS AND NOT TO BE BELIEVED!!!!!!!!!

YOU MAKE YOUR CHOICE.....WISH I WOULD HAVE MADE A BETTER ONE MYSELF!!!!! DON'T LET EXCITEMENT BE YOUR GUIDE!!!!!


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## turbodogs02

Man, what a drag hearing about this thing seemingly turning out to be a big POS. I have to admit, when I first saw the commercial, it looked like a pretty cool concept.


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## ghostryder

I was going to buy one, but now I will definitely walk away from this product. Thank you for the reviews.


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## Dctrofspin

*Follow Up*

Well, I pulled the machine apart as directed and tightened the belt. The lumpy pedaling feeling was simply worse. I called Icon fitness and told them I'm done. They made no protest, are sending a new box for a return (seven to 10 days...let's hope it comes) and have agreed to refund warranty, shipping and cost for the machine. I give them credit for at least responding swiftly...but the bottom line is this machine is nothing close to what's advertised.


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## spade2you

ghostryder said:


> I was going to buy one, but now I will definitely walk away from this product. Thank you for the reviews.


What's wrong with conventional trainers and rollers?


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## [email protected]

what is wrong with rollers.....nothing!!!!! about ready to go back to that method of training. the part that interested me the most was the google mapt. i had visions of the old days and places i rode. did a portion of one (less than 20 K) and it became unridable. 

update.....they are (with approval) stripping the parts needed. i am waiting on the call it has been approved....3 days now. same old proform!!!!


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## [email protected]

another couple of days and no word from proform!!! as i wrote in my review, proform is never true to their word. this company is a huge pothole in the road...be careful not to hit it!!!! looks are decieving!!!!


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## kbiker3111

> Writing here from Minne-snowta, I wish this virtual reality trainer technology was better and more affordable.


For the $1500 you spend on this contraption, you could get a really nice XC ski setup.


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## paulfeng

kbiker3111 said:


> For the $1500 you spend on this contraption, you could get a really nice XC ski setup.


Hmmm. Last year: snow coming up to our ears. (Well, knees or so.)

Today - no snow on ground in Twin Cities. But it looks like temp >40F on Sunday - I will get a December road ride in!!!


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## Rage_Cycling

Wow if I would have read this I would have never got one. Mine has been great no problems at all everything works great.


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## Smoke2

Made my mind up. nNo Way..invest in some good toe covers and hope for clear roads.

Sorry for all your guys problems.

Thx for the info.


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## [email protected]

next update.....the tech was here today to get me back on the road. what a morning. i got to see the bike completely tore down!!! the computer changed...no help....harness changed...no help...board changed...no help.. relay changed...no help....everything changed and the bike is in the nose down position. bad motor...the only thing left. no problem, please just get the bike so i may ride it while waiting on parts (again). the tech works on the "scraping" noice from the flywheel/magnet area. he adjusts...no help...checks the parts and parts order....no help....adjust some more..no help....then he finds the problem...broken weld on the frame!!!!! bike unrepairable.....problem...proform not open till monday!!! sooooooo....next year before i get a new one...maybe......had my doubts of it being fixed before the new year!!!! should i ask for compensation? what should it be? what a hassle! 3 months of lost training and agrevation!!!!!


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## hrumpole

[email protected] said:


> next update.....the tech was here today to get me back on the road. what a morning. i got to see the bike completely tore down!!! the computer changed...no help....harness changed...no help...board changed...no help.. relay changed...no help....everything changed and the bike is in the nose down position. bad motor...the only thing left. no problem, please just get the bike so i may ride it while waiting on parts (again). the tech works on the "scraping" noice from the flywheel/magnet area. he adjusts...no help...checks the parts and parts order....no help....adjust some more..no help....then he finds the problem...broken weld on the frame!!!!! bike unrepairable.....problem...proform not open till monday!!! sooooooo....next year before i get a new one...maybe......had my doubts of it being fixed before the new year!!!! should i ask for compensation? what should it be? what a hassle! 3 months of lost training and agrevation!!!!!


1. Refund.
2. Computrainer or tacx bushido or emotion rollers
3. Or kurt kinetic, powertap, and trainerroad.


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## M Ice

My experience has been the same...waited 3 months to get mine, but have had zero problems since receiving it. Assembley was easy, really like the ability to configure the bike down to the gears (compact crank with an 11/28 rear cluster). No problem getting it to fit...5'10 w/32 " inseam...like previous poster). Love the google maps and ifit live features....incline/decline feature is ok, but in all honesty, could do without the tilting thing...the change in resistance is adequate....one less thing to break. Seat is ok...not great...but ok. Pedal width is the biggest difference for me from other trainers or actual road bike...but not a big issue. The thing is dead quiet, which I really like...very smooth. There is no comparison to a basic spin bike...this thing is far superior. (have done more than my share of spin classes over the lat three years). Have never used the computrainer or others, but overall, I've very happy with this product. Have only been riding roughly a year And half, but have completed four centuries and the LotoJa Classic (206 miles...one day)


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## [email protected]

another update.....monday 26 dec. proform sent me an e-mail this morning, sorry but we dont have a report or photos so....nothing we can do at this time. as for compensation for 6months of hell (paraphrasing) go f*_^&%?4k yourself....as for refund of the promised set up (again paraphrasing) go f#%@&$k yourself. my response....once again PROFORM'S word....worthless!!!!!! i will keep you informed to this calamity known as customer service.....NOT!!!! it will be next year, maybe by march this will be worked out!!!!!!!!!!


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## cltbat

Thank you guys for posting. I found they have a Facebook page and many of the posts there tell the same story. 
I do hate that you are going though this but your willingness to share has saved some of us the same fate. I have so wanted to pull the trigger on one of these just for the wizbang effect of riding via google maps .. Looks like I will stay with the sufferest vids this winter.


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## [email protected]

next update tuesdaydec 27. wrote this morning andnow it's in the PR (or as i would say...lack of public relations) department and will be several days before a decision is made. so as i have said all along...it's going to be well into the new year till i see resolution to this matter. great PR!!!! months of shipping delays, months of part backorder delays and now it's going to take several days to make a PR move. if i ran my business this way.....i would'nt have a business!!! can you see being 6 months late on a weddingcake and then having it be a disaster!!!! will keep you informed of the situation.


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## gibson00

Can you not dispute the charges with your credit card company?

Honestly, always a bad idea to buy a stationary belt drive bike of any kind.

For that kind of money, you could have easily found a used computrainer and a used semi-high end bike (or new low end bike like motobecane, etc.).


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## [email protected]

i have made a dispute claim with the cc company, but that takes a waiting period (i am waiting). but in the mean time i want proform to HONOR their WORD!!! wish i did go another route, was caught up in the excitement of google maps and anothyer time in forgotten space!!!! the main reason i write is to dampen that excitement (that is blinding) in just one other persons eye. to keep them from making the samemistake as me. i have alsohad great success on stationary trainers in the past.


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## M Ice

Sorry to hear of your experience..... Other than the delay in shipping (3 months), I've had no other issues. Have only ridden it 8 times though at this point. Hopefully things will stay good. Time will tell....hope your issues get worked out to your satisfaction. I'll continue to follow the forum to see what happens.....I may need your advice if things go bad with mine.... Good luck


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## Zipp0

If they give eveyone with problems their money back, they will be bankrupt in days. It seems their strategy is to duck,dodge and delay until people give up, or a billing cycle goes by and CC companies are more reluctant to do a chargeback. They did a huge media blitz and probably sold a ton of these. Now they are trying to hold onto all that cash that it sounds like they might not deserve.

I wouldn't wait too long to maybe file in small claims court or other legal action. I googled 'proform tour de france problems' and got lots of hits.......


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## bigjohnson54

*Mine works just fine*

I ordered the Tour De France, It did take a while to come in, about a month, the drivers offered to set if up but I told them I could do it, and it was easy to put together. I bought this for my wife, she stole my trainer and had me put her mountain bike in it, she does not want a road bike. I did not have any issues setting it up to my wireless network. The routes you can download are pretty realistic, sometimes it is hard to log on to ifit,com. This bike is super quiet and gives you a good workout. My Kurt Kenitic Trainer gives you a good workout too, but this one makes me work harder. I would much rather ride outside than inside, but we have long winters and not much daylight, so this helps.


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## Gill-Again

I appreciate the folks posting about their issues with this trainer. I was considering buying one for the route following ability, but I will definitely NOT be getting it now.

Anyone have experience on the Wattbike? I am also considering it, but wonder if it falls into the same "lots of gimmicks, but not durable" category....


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## M Ice

Latest update on my experience with this product....15 rides (weather still nice enough to ride outside so not using it every day). Still no issues...still quiet and smooth. Have created maps which follow some favorite rides and the incline /decline changes etc are spot on. The street view function is pretty cool as well where you can see your ride via iPad or laptop as you progress (provided a street view exists in Google Maps). Overall happy so far, but still not enough time on it.....only a total of 26 hours so far.


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## Wood Devil

Thanks for this review. I'd have probably never come up with the money to pick one up, but it's off my wish list now.

It's just unfortunate that snazzy marketing can fool us into buying junk. 

The sad part is that it probably costs under $100 per unit to manufacture and ship back from China, yet here they are with a neat commercial aired during the TdF, and they get us to pay the better part of $2000 for it.


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## NJBiker72

Glad I am hearing all the feedback. I have had ProForm treadmills in the past and for a cheap company (relatively) they held up well, so it seemed promising.

That and my old Wally World bike on the trainer has some mysterious malady that will not pedal forward this morning. So I am searching on here to find anything?


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## M Ice

OK....so here's my latest update after another half dozen rides..... Still no issues....google maps feature is great....have mapped several of my favorite routes and am amazed at how accurately it replicates grades...right down to freeway overpasses etc. Find that ride times on the TDF trainer are very similar to actual ride times outside...biggest difference is no stop signs etc. Does seem however, that the resistance levels on the trainer are less than in reality on climbs...while it can replicate resistance, it doesn't account for gravity and rider weight...so I kick the gear up a notch until it feels right. 

Disclaimer....I don't ride it out of the saddle as I seldom do outside ....I'm not a racer so I'm definitely not putting as much stress on the machine as a CAT 1-3 guy would. Also, I'm only 5'10" so fit and banging my knees when I do stand has not been an issue (have read reviews from taller riders where fit was a problem)

Overall, I'm very happy. Purchased mine at the vendor pavilion at a recent race direct from the manufacturer and got a great deal.....


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## atown117

Good to know it's terrible...I was going to look into getting one of these based off of a promo video. By the looks of it thank goodness I didn't!


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## Squint

The slicker the marketing, the more one should be wary.

Good products often sell themselves via word-of-mouth personal recommendations.


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## supraholic

Why would you pay money for this junk?


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## cda 455

supraholic said:


> Why would you pay money for this junk?



Is English your first language, Mr. Obvious?


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## Hobari

I want to add my experience. This spin bike is not very good to begin with, the reliability is awful and the service is terrible. To elaborate:

1. If you are a serious rider and put serious torque into the bike you will find that it has an alarming amount of flex. Stand to climb and you the handlebars shake as you apply torque. Too much plastic, not enough metal. The flywheel is crap and climbing is difficult.

2. Like hrumpole, my bike became stuck in the maximum nose down position. The software is very touchy and I've had to work like a devil to establish and link to the iFit website and actually create a ride on google maps. I could have better used that time doing something useful, like, say, spinning.

3. My bike decided to assume its stubborn nose-down position on Christmas day. To skip all the tedious stuff you don't want to read, I finally got my replacement for the defective bike today. I'm convinced that this was only because I posted some negative comments about customer service on Facebook which prompted an email from a real live human being.

I would characterize this bike as something temporarily entertaining for a complete novice rider. It is not only worth the money, its simply worthless for any one really interested in training. To advertise it the way ProForm does, as some high end wonderful piece of competitive equipment, is simply ludicrous and asking for these kinds of reviews.

I'm going to sell my replacement on Ebay.


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## BuenosAires

I bought my realaxiom trainer from Performance about 5 years ago. Still going strong. I have tons of Tour de France courses, Verona world championship course, San remo, and others. I'm not sure how accurate the Watts are, but based on some tests i've done, i think they are close enough. At least i know it's consistent, so i can use it as a baseline. And i'm riding my own bike. For $500, it was a steal, IMO. I'm surprised more people don't buy these.


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## DJ Milw

*Watch Out*

I purchased a new ProForm Tour de France bike in Jan 2012 and set up was easy. I was so excited to give it a try. Once I jumped on for my first work out the slippage on the pedals was unbearable. I called customer service (CS) & after ridiculous wait times, I finally talked to one of their tech people who walked me through how to tighten the belt.

Once tightened, I jumped on again for a second workout, and though it was a bit better, the slippage was still terrible. In fact you can not stand up on this bike or it will just release / slip back to the level one in terms of resistance. I really couldn’t get a good work out at all on this bike at all.

Even in the manual mode, once the resistance is set, it would continue to change by it self which was extremely annoying. 

In addition, the handle bars were so wobbly that even after extensive tightening, I couldn’t correct the issue.

After 3 weeks of ridding this bike I gave up. I called CS again to return. CS spent some time trying to convince me to speak with technical service because all of these issues, per CS are correctable, and they even offered me a new bike, then an additional 10% discount, but I refused and asked for a shipping number.

The good thing about the return is you don’t have to pack the bike like you received. I just disassembled the bike & put it back in the box with no packaging, taped it up and put it on my front step. 2 days later UPS picked up & shipped this piece of junk back to where it came from with no issues.

It is really to bad because the concept of this bike is awesome, but like always, never, and I mean never, buy something new that’s not tested by the public.

I then went out & bought a new Cycleops PT 300 & love this bike. I wish I would have done this in the first place!!


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## JM999

Hi i am new here.I purchased the TDF trainer generation 2 knowing it had a sliping pedal condition from craigslist.I am a technician so i thought i could fix this.Here is what i found.
1,The slippage concern is not from the cranks or tensioner.It is from the flywheel pulley.
If you hold the pedals with one hand and turn the flywheel backwards with the other you will feel the sliping.The rr dropout washer between the dropout and the pulley has elongated.I replaced with similar.Also i installed a washer between the rr dropout and the locking nut.Hold the lr locking nut and thighten the rh nut til you do not fell the flywheel sliping.The flywheel will not sping for a long time now like before and it may feel slightly harder to pedal but once it is up and running and changing gears you will not feel it.I ran a tdr stage with climbs and stood up and pedaled and no sliping.
2.Once when i turned on the bike it asumed the downward position and stayed there.I went into the incline position portion on the console and turned it off .Restarted the bike and it calibrated frw and back and stood up straight.
3.The tensioner pulley is not straight with the belt so it wants to come off the pulley and rub on the frame.Making a rubbing noise.I will teek or install a shim to straighten the pulley with the belt.
4,Handle bars are loose.Once adjusted,tighten the knob inward till they are tight,.
Hope this info helps someone seeing as there is alot of disatified buyer.This one is working well and really like it.


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## JM999

Well.the trainer has worked well.Just sometimes the wifi takes a little longer to run.But i am very pleased with the bike.I set up Ifit account and set up a map and worked well.
I biked in hawaii from the mountains to the beach.Rode to work in my house.I like the fact that you can race other riders and see how far they are from you.
Also i hooked up my laptop to my 46"lcd and wow ,just like being there.So far very pleased.


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## Mergetrio

So, you need to be a technician to fully enjoy this? Why can't this be rectified from the factory? I was planning on purchasing this, but now I have second thoughts.


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## MJCBH

*Also wavering.....*

I've been thinking of upgrading my current spin bike for this one as well but am a little hesitant because of the bad reviews and questionable reliability. Any thoughts on whether or not the Second generation bike (2012/2013) is any better? Obviously the poor customer service would not change with the model year. Looks like they did make some changes to the console and changed the shifting mechanism. The new shifting kinda reminds me of the new electronic shifting on road frames.

Are there any other spin bikes (not computrainers) that have similar mapping functions? I'd really like to upgrade my current spin bike to one with a power meter, a freewheel (so I can "coast" in between hard intervals).


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## Speedi Pig

MJCBH said:


> I've been thinking of upgrading my current spin bike for this one as well but am a little hesitant because of the bad reviews and questionable reliability. Any thoughts on whether or not the Second generation bike (2012/2013) is any better? Obviously the poor customer service would not change with the model year. Looks like they did make some changes to the console and changed the shifting mechanism. The new shifting kinda reminds me of the new electronic shifting on road frames.
> 
> Are there any other spin bikes (not computrainers) that have similar mapping functions? I'd really like to upgrade my current spin bike to one with a power meter, a freewheel (so I can "coast" in between hard intervals).


OK, I've never considered buying the ProForm bike and likely never would even without the technical and customer service issues. The incline/decline feature is pure junk...just an unnecessary function that can break.

I'd suggest either sticking with a road bike and trainer. You could pick up a new PowerTap and quality trainer for the cost of the ProForm. Or, if you want a pure spin bike, try picking up a used one from a gym.


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## JaxFL

*Pro Form Tour de France Bike DON'T BUY IT*

I received this bike this past December. Right off the bat I had problems. There were numerous mechanical problems but the one that is the nagging issue and that I can't get rid of is the power meter. It reads almost double what i am actually putting out. That is great for my ego but bad for training.

After calling Icon probably 20 times they finally agreed to replace the bike. That was great, the only problem was that it was untrue, i guess they just wanted to get me to quit calling. After waiting for about a month to get the information for the return I called and they told me they needed proof of purchase and a picture of the problem. I told them that you couldn't take a picture of the problem, power meter, and that it was bought from their website. They said ok, they see that they have everything and someone will get back to me. Another month passes, i call back and they say they need proof of purchase and a picture, i told them they already had the proof of purchase in their records and that I was told they didn't need the pictures. Obviously something went wrong with their records because now they need proof of purchase and pictures.

I am going next to my lawyer, anyone else want to join in with me?

Ernest


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## Hobari

*How To Get a Little Action from ProForm on Your Defective Tour De France Spin Bike*

Go to the ProForm Tour de France Spin Bike Cycling Bike Forum on Facebook and post all your complaints there. ProForm may not care about you once it has made a sale, but it is very sensitive to anything that might hurt prospective sales. Before I sold my POS spin bike, I was able to generate a response from the manufacturer only by posting my complaints on Facebook.


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## psychobudgie

similar experience. Bought one of these last year. It has had about 30 hours use (it was a good summer here!) and we are already on the third fault. The console broke down, the pedal motion had a "click" in it (this took a month before a service engineer came to fix it) and now the left hand gear change doesn't work. They have (bless 'em) sent me a replacement gear button which I have to fit myself. When it works, it's great, but the reliability is such that if there is ONE more fault, it is being sent back as not fit for purpose. Avoid.


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