Took the pedals on a first ride today. Wattage seems accurate and smooth, and compared nicely to the G3 I was also running. The problem is that I noticed the pedals were really tight right out of the box. In other words, if you try to spin the pedal, it only rotates about a quarter turn. After a two hour ride it didn't seem any different. I spoke to Garmin and they sent me the manual which explained in detail how to take them apart. I dismantled each pedal and upon inspection of the spindle, it seemed like there is excessive friction against the internal bearing. I re-assembled them and torqued the left pedal to 6.5 instead of 7 pounds as recommended ...the right I had to estimate as it is reverse threaded. The whole process takes a little over 10 minutes a pedal. The end result is that they now rotate about a half a turn if I try to spin them. It is an improvement, but it really seems like they are too tight, and possibly a waste of watts. I have never ridden with a pedal that didn't spin like a top. ciq.forums.garmin.com/.../1267681.png
I had the same issues described here, quite a lot of friction on my pedals. So I just now performed an overhaul on my Vector 3 pedals (>3000km, with new battery caps). The bearings were very dirty, so apparently it was about time. The overhaul was easy enough and went without problems.
During reassembly I noticed that (now) the pedals spin freely without the battery cap attached, but the battery cap has a substantial effect on the smoothness of the pedals. If tightened with a hex key the friction returns. So now I hand tighten the pedals, just to the point that the seal is no longer visible. Now, the pedals are free spinning and working well.
Perhaps some of you can also have a look at this: loosening the battery cap a bit. It might solve your issues.
The issue could be with the battery stack height. There is quite a bit of variation on the height of the LR44 batteries from different manufacturers. I found that some brands can cause the issue you are describing, especially as they near end of life as they typically expand.
The issue could be with the battery stack height. There is quite a bit of variation on the height of the LR44 batteries from different manufacturers. I found that some brands can cause the issue you are describing, especially as they near end of life as they typically expand.
What brand are you using?
I replaced all batteries for fresh (Camelion) batteries and now the pedals have been spinning freely and working well for about 500 km.
I had the same issues described here, quite a lot of friction on my pedals. So I just now performed an overhaul on my Vector 3 pedals (>3000km, with new battery caps). The bearings were very dirty, so apparently it was about time. The overhaul was easy enough and went without problems.
During reassembly I noticed that (now) the pedals spin freely without the battery cap attached, but the battery cap has a substantial effect on the smoothness of the pedals. If tightened with a hex key the friction returns. So for now I hand tighten the pedals, just to the point that the seal is no longer visible. With this, the pedals are quite smooth (not free spinning, but smooth).
Perhaps some of you can also have a look at this: loosening the battery cap. It might solve your issues.
I'll update this once I have tested a couple hundred km.
I have a similar problem. My pedals was spinning freely, however today my right pedal doesn't spin freely.
When take off the battery cap and the battery carriage/board, it spins freely.
However when I tightened the battery board's 2 screws, it doesn't spin, it gets very stiff.
I have to loosen those 2 screws to make the pedal spins, however it still doesn't spin as freely as before.
Can someone please help me what the cause for this? Should I send back my pedal to Garmin?
This is the answer. I’ve had the same issue as others. The pedal doesn’t spin freely. I took the batteries out and replaced the cap and there is no issue. Must be the battery depth, not sure what brand of battery to buy now. Not sure if anyone has any recommendations?
All LR44 battery dimensions should be identical. My pedal get permanent fix by changing battery door to latest 3rd version, include change the little motherboard inside pedal, all previous issue fixed. ( I have 2 pair of vector 3). I strongly suggest you look for local Garmin distributor to buy a replacement from them.
