Trek RIB Battery Alignment Procedure

[Doomanic]

Trek RIB Battery Alignment Procedure

 

[Dano78]

Trek RIB Battery Alignment Procedure

Just brought a trek rail 9.8 I hope I dont have to do this !

 

[tobster]

well my powerfly lt9.7 kept switching off over slightly bumpy ground and the LBS adjusted it - perhaps this is what they did. I'm still irritated I had to pay for this adjustment even though the bike was only 4 months old. It still cuts out occasionally so at least I now have a spec to aim for.

 

[Doomanic]

Assuming you bought the bike from them I'd be popping back in with a frowny face and getting that money refunded!

 

[tobster]

Assuming you bought the bike from them I'd be popping back in with a frowny face and getting that money refunded!

I moved home shortly after buying the bike and it's not practical to return the bike to the original shop.

 

[tobster]

well I followed the Trek battery alignment procedure. Apart from the fiddly small security hex bolts (which I will replace with allen bolts) and a nut falling off into the bike which needed a bit more disassembly to recover it, the adjustments were fairly straightforward - there is certainly a lot of movement available. The battery looks more flush in the frame and the gap at the top is smaller than it was. Just one ride and not one switch off so that's encouraging. Anything to keep the bike out of the LBS and on the trails

 

[Dano78]

I picked up my rail 9.8 on monday and asked the bike shop about the battery popping out problem and they said they check it all before it leaves the shop

 

[tobster]

I picked up my rail 9.8 on monday and asked the bike shop about the battery popping out problem and they said they check it all before it leaves the shop

mine was fine for about 4 months then it started switching off on bumps. It seems like it just went out of adjustment. Hopefully this Trek memo will enable us to keep them working without the need to take your bike into the LBS. To cap it all the bike shop charged me for this adjustment.

 

[SteveM]

Trek RIB Battery Alignment Procedure

Bought a Trek Powerfly 5. Five battery removal and charges later, the internal housing is completely loose and I am unable to get the battery back in the bike. There is no doubt, this is an engineering lemon and should never have made it to market. Trek have their very own BatteryGate on their hands. Thanks for the advice on the fix. Much appreciated! But this shouldn't be something we have to deal with.

 

[Hamina]

Trek have their very own BatteryGate on their hands.

Trek Rail 5 and I’ve removed the battery 20 times for charging. No problems.

 

[tobster]

now at one month after following the battery alignment procedure posted by Doomanic and not one power outage. I repeat it is fairly straightforward to do and only required one specialist tool (security torx) to be purchased. Sorted

 

[Forever Wild]

well my powerfly lt9.7 kept switching off over slightly bumpy ground and the LBS adjusted it - perhaps this is what they did. I'm still irritated I had to pay for this adjustment even though the bike was only 4 months old. It still cuts out occasionally so at least I now have a spec to aim for.

I had the same issue on my Powerfly LT 9.7. LBS fixed it for free. Seems to be a generic Trek issue.

 

[olde-mtber]

Bought a Trek Powerfly 5. Five battery removal and charges later, the internal housing is completely loose and I am unable to get the battery back in the bike. There is no doubt, this is an engineering lemon and should never have made it to market. Trek have their very own BatteryGate on their hands. Thanks for the advice on the fix. Much appreciated! But this shouldn't be something we have to deal with.

Sorry to hear of all your battery problems. I have a 2019 Powerfly FS5 and have done 2,500ks and have had no problems. I never get any big air but do small drop offs and have had no battery problems. Just checked the battery now and there is no movement in it but will keep an eye on it now and if need be make adjustments.

 

[Jumbleross]

Hi All, I’m having major issues with my XL Rail 9.7 just cutting out on descents. It’s been back to my LBS several times and they have been really good in working with with Bosch and Trek to try and remedy the issues. So far after replacing all the Bosch parts including battery and motor the bike seems to just cut out on fast descents. It seems that this type of riding makes the lower security torx screws that hold the battery and mail power connector bracket in the frame come lose. I’m thinking the root cause is the downtube of the frame has become mis aligned or twisted after 1000 miles of Peak District riding which is putting extra pressure on the bracket under large loads such as drop off’s on fast descents ? I’m 16.5 stone so not the lightest rider but certainly not the heaviest and not used this bike at any bike parks or hit any big jumps so I’m awaiting Treks response with baited breath ?

 

[Forever Wild]

Hi All, I’m having major issues with my XL Rail 9.7 just cutting out on descents. It’s been back to my LBS several times and they have been really good in working with with Bosch and Trek to try and remedy the issues. So far after replacing all the Bosch parts including battery and motor the bike seems to just cut out on fast descents. It seems that this type of riding makes the lower security torx screws that hold the battery and mail power connector bracket in the frame come lose. I’m thinking the root cause is the downtube of the frame has become mis aligned or twisted after 1000 miles of Peak District riding which is putting extra pressure on the bracket under large loads such as drop off’s on fast descents ? I’m 16.5 stone so not the lightest rider but certainly not the heaviest and not used this bike at any bike parks or hit any big jumps so I’m awaiting Treks response with baited breath ?

I have a 2020 Trek Powerfly 9.7 LT. my wife’s bike had similar issues as you. I have the exact bike with no issues. I brought both bikes into the lbs and what we found was her battery was loose while installed. Mine was not loose. They redid her battery mount until it was solidly installed in the downtube with no movement. Her bike is no longer losing power.

 

[tobster]

Hi All, I’m having major issues with my XL Rail 9.7 just cutting out on descents. It’s been back to my LBS several times and they have been really good in working with with Bosch and Trek to try and remedy the issues. So far after replacing all the Bosch parts including battery and motor the bike seems to just cut out on fast descents. It seems that this type of riding makes the lower security torx screws that hold the battery and mail power connector bracket in the frame come lose. I’m thinking the root cause is the downtube of the frame has become mis aligned or twisted after 1000 miles of Peak District riding which is putting extra pressure on the bracket under large loads such as drop off’s on fast descents ? I’m 16.5 stone so not the lightest rider but certainly not the heaviest and not used this bike at any bike parks or hit any big jumps so I’m awaiting Treks response with baited breath ?

Have a go following the RIB battery aligment method posted. It is very straightforward. Perhaps initially just see if according to the method it even needs adjustment. Mine was out by a mm or so. Having adjusted it following the method I have not had one power out. I would change the security torx bolts to something more substantial ASAP like allen bolts

 

[Jumbleross]

Have a go following the RIB battery aligment method posted. It is very straightforward. Perhaps initially just see if according to the method it even needs adjustment. Mine was out by a mm or so. Having adjusted it following the method I have not had one power out. I would change the security torx bolts to something more substantial ASAP like allen bolts

Cheers for the advise mate, yep all alignment procedures have been done, also wrapped the male connector in electrical tape and fitted back in the bracket to ensure their is no play. We definitely think their is flex in the downtube caused by fatigue.

 

[Jumbleross]

I have a 2020 Trek Powerfly 9.7 LT. my wife’s bike had similar issues as you. I have the exact bike with no issues. I brought both bikes into the lbs and what we found was her battery was loose while installed. Mine was not loose. They redid her battery mount until it was solidly installed in the downtube with no movement. Her bike is no longer losing power.

Cheers for the advise. The battery is perfectly aligned and zero play inside the frame. I used a tyre level to gently prise the battery in the frame too to ensure it was fully secured in.

 

[Jumbleross]

Hi All, I’m having major issues with my XL Rail 9.7 just cutting out on descents. It’s been back to my LBS several times and they have been really good in working with with Bosch and Trek to try and remedy the issues. So far after replacing all the Bosch parts including battery and motor the bike seems to just cut out on fast descents. It seems that this type of riding makes the lower security torx screws that hold the battery and mail power connector bracket in the frame come lose. I’m thinking the root cause is the downtube of the frame has become mis aligned or twisted after 1000 miles of Peak District riding which is putting extra pressure on the bracket under large loads such as drop off’s on fast descents ? I’m 16.5 stone so not the lightest rider but certainly not the heaviest and not used this bike at any bike parks or hit any big jumps so I’m awaiting Treks response with baited breath ?

Latest update is that Trek have agreed to send a new frame so I’m hoping this will fix the issue and the issue is a dodgy batch of frames and not a design flaw. I spoke to another Trek store to see if they had the colours I’ve been offered so I can see them in the flesh so to speak and they admitted they have an open case at the moment which sound similar to mine. I can’t fault Trek after sales service but if the new frame doesn’t fix the issue I’m selling the bike and getting a Santa Cruz when it comes out with the new Shimano motor and 29” wheels.

 

[MsO]

I had same problem trek changed the frame all was good for about 300 miles and it's happening again waiting on response

 

[Jumbleross]

Well that’s not good ? Hope you don’t mind me asking a few questions:
Was it a carbon frame?
What size is it?
How heavy are you?
Did they replace with a project one frame?

just trying to gauge it’s a design flaw for heavier riders and should sell the bike or not ?

 

[MsO]

It's a rail 7 I'm around the 16 stone mark couldn't tell you what kind of frame but the colour is red and black

 

[Jumbleross]

Cheers for that, I think yours is an aluminium frame, I’d be really interested in what they say, that battery is proper hanging out ?

 

[Doomanic]

That is aluminium and that battery definitely needs adjusting.

 

[Jumbleross]

I was thinking that, If the battery ended up sticking out like that over time I’m wondering if it’s more to do with the bracket and lock assembly not aligned properly rather than the whole frame being misaligned? My issue is the battery is correctly aligned and secure and loses power when hitting big jumps hence the suspected route cause being a faulty frame which is flexing too much. Mine is carbon so flex should be far less than an aluminium frame.

 

[MsO]

Shouldn't have to keep adjusting the battery I had loads of problems with it before cutting out and some times the bike wouldn't start again for about half an hour then it would just turn on, first time bike went back I didn't see it for a month they changed the frame and now it's happening again it could be refund or they give me a new bike

 

[Jumbleross]

Yeah I agree, what is was trying to say was maybe the bike shop aren’t properly aligning and securing the battery mounts in the first place so over time when the frame is flexed it’s moving the brackets further out of alignment. Seems really bad luck to have 2 faulty frames

 

[MsO]

The bike went back to trek service center in Milton Keynes they done all the work there I'm going down the line a new bike or refund now

 

[damdegraff]

My battery on my '21 Rail 9.8 seems to rattle quite loudly when decending fast over rough terrain. With even just ta mildly firm push, I can move the the battery a good 3 or 4 mm when the bike is just standing still and the battery is locked into the bike. Most if not all of the play is at the top of the battery. The bottom is seated nicely and is firmly mated to the frame. Is that normal?

Should I try the alignment procedure, or fit some foam padding to remove the play in the battery and it's ability to jiggle?

 

[Doomanic]

Is that normal?

No.

Should I try the alignment procedure

Yes.