Life Fitness elliptical trainers are one of the top choices when it comes to at home cardio machines.
They offer a great value for money and have a fantastic range of models to provide something to suit every individual.
If your Life Fitness Elliptical display not working properly or the display readout is growing dim, then let’s review the most proven troubleshooting steps you should follow before calling the manufacturer or a repair person.
Without further ado, let’s get right into it!
Why Your Life Fitness Elliptical Console Not Working?
The digital console is an important part of exercising on your elliptical, you can basically use it to adjust things like speed, resistance and incline.
The two most common reasons why Life Fitness elliptical display console will be dim, display bad results, or fail to turn on are bad batteries and problems with the reed switch.
The following troubleshooting guides will help you identify and fix your Life Fitness elliptical display problem.
Life Fitness Elliptical Display Not Working – Troubleshooting Guides
If your Life Fitness Elliptical console doesn’t power up, or the display readout starts growing dim while the machine is in operation, the first thing you have to try a Life Fitness elliptical battery replacement to see if it fixes the problem.
1. Replace The Batteries
The Life Fitness elliptical display requires a P/N 6V battery.
You are going to need a T25 Torx Driver and Phillips Screwdriver in order to successfully go through the battery replacement process.
Start by removing the main shrouds, then disconnect the red and black wires from the Life Fitness battery.
Remove the two torx screws that are securing the battery to the drive module, and install the new batteries in reverse order.
Make sure they are facing the right direction and that the connections are clean, and free of damage.
2. Check The Power Supply
If the console doesn’t work after replacing the batteries and the screen doesn’t receive any power, you need to make sure you’ve already plugged your machine into a functioning power outlet first.
Check your outlet first, ensure the power cord is connected securely, and that the cord and plug are free of damage.
If the power doesn’t come to the console, check if your outlet is workable by plugging an appliance into it.
If the appliance doesn’t power, you may need to check your Circuit Breaker or move the machine to another outlet.
However, if it’s still working correctly, then you need to check the connection at the front of the unit to make sure the connection is secure and undamaged.
If your machine has a loose connection, you need to replace the power adapter or connection of your equipment.
3. Adjust The Reed Switch
In case your screen only reads zeros, or displays inaccurate workout data, you need to adjust its reed switch.
The information on the display will not be right if the reed switch is too far from the flywheel magnet.
So what you are going to do is to remove your Life Fitness motor cover, then regulate the reed switch using a robust Phillips screwdriver.
To reduce the risk of electrical shock or unsupervised usage of the equipment, always unplug the power cord from the wall outlet and place it in a secure location, then wait 5 minutes before going through this process.
- Remove the Clevis Joint Covers from the front of the Pedal Lever, then remove the Bolt and Nut securing the front end of the Pedal Lever to the Rocker Arm clevis and lower the Pedal Lever to the ground.
- Remove the Clevis Covers from the Idler Assembly.
- Remove the Bolt and Nut securing the Idler Assembly to the Coupler Assembly.
- Remove the Cover, Bolt, Lock Washer, and Flat Washer securing the Coupler Assembly to the Crank Arm.
- Remove the Pedal Lever with the Adjusting Stride Mechanism Link attached.
- Remove the Crank Arm Cover, Guard Plate, and Crank Arm from the Crank Shaft.
- It is time to remove the side shrouds. The left Shroud is held in place by eleven screws, while four screws hold on the right Shroud. The Lower Shroud is held in place by six screws.
After you successfully remove the side shrouds, locate the Reed Switch, then turn the pulley until the flywheel magnet is aligned with the Reed Switch.
Next, loosen the screw located on the reed switch without removing it and move it manually until you successfully lengthen the distance between the magnet and the switch of ⅛ inch.
Plug in the power cord, press the power switch to turn on your Life Fitness elliptical, and rock the Pulley forward and backward just enough that the Magnet passes the Reed Switch repeatedly.
Repeat these actions until the console displays correct feedback.
When the reed switch is correctly adjusted, press the power switch to the off position, unplug the power cord and reattach the left disc and plug in the power cord.
4. Check Wires Connections
The exact steps for this portion will vary based on your Life Fitness machine and model number.
This will be a general guide to take you through the necessary steps, but use your manual to identify how to access the parts indicated.
Start by unplugging your machine.
Next, use your elliptical manual to identify how to access the main wire. It typically goes through the flywheel housing and connects to the console.
With the main wire now accessible, check this wires connections and pins.
These pins sit inside the plastic casing that connects the wire to the controller or console. You need to make sure none of the pins have been broken or bent.
If a bent pin is found, carefully bend it back into place.
Identify and check any pinch points the wire may have. Pinch points are any place the wire moves between two parts.
If this wire is damaged anywhere, you may want to replace it.
If no damage was found, reconnect the main wire and plug your machine back in.
Check if the console works now.
5. Check The Motor Control Board
Your Life Fitness machine will have a controller if it has an incline motor.
What you are going to do is to remove your Life Fitness motor cover in order to check your controller board.
After you unplug the machine, follow the same process you did to get access to the Reed Switch by removing the main shrouds.
Here is a video demonstration for more detailed instructions:
Once you have an eye on the motor control board, you should see a red LED, if that light doesnt turn on you may need a new controller.
If the light is powered and you have checked everything above, the issue may be the controller or the console.
Final Tip
If none of the above fixes work, then your console is probably damaged and needs to be replaced.
Call Life Fitness customer care at 800-527-6063. But before you call, get prepared by having the serial number of your elliptical ready.
Final Thoughts
The digital console is an important part of exercising on your elliptical, you can basically use it to adjust things like speed, resistance and incline.
It can be a great problem solver sometimes to reset a Life Fitness elliptical for most of the problems that may occur.
After this article you will be willing to know the reason why your Life Fitness elliptical console is not working and take the necessary steps to fix it immediately to make sure you will not be shorting yourself on calories you could be burning.
