Wahoo Elemnt Roam: Self-test: Repairing the Wahoo GPS yourself - not so easy

It's a dilemma. On the one hand, amateur cycling is a comparatively resource-friendly sport and can therefore be regarded as reasonably sustainable. The racer is driven by muscle power, combustion only takes place in the body, and the fuel supply for this can also be made more or less ecologically harmless. On the other hand, you can accumulate a lot of equipment and accessories around the environmentally friendly hobby of road cycling, which means that the eco-balance is no longer quite so favourable.

These include, for example, weather gear with membranes whose chemical components are toxic and accumulate in the environment as so-called "eternal chemicals". And, of course, electronic gadgets, which have long since become indispensable cycling companions in the form of bike computers and GPS devices. What has been around for a long time will break at some point - and then the question arises that has a direct impact on aspects such as sustainability, eco-balance and, last but not least, costs: repair or throw away (and buy new)? A current example: a Wahoo Elemnt Roam GPS computer from 2019. A colleague's much-used data collector - a successor model has been on the market since 2022 - is showing technical weaknesses after five years and its display no longer presents the data with the usual brilliance. To save the device from a fate as electronic waste and avoid having to buy a new one, we attempted a repair, as we had already done with a Garmin Edge 810.

Repair? Only on your own

After a brief online search, we discover a suitable replacement display for just 35 euros, and instructions encourage us to attempt the repair. And to get straight to the point: Our rescue attempt was successful. However, we have to admit that our "amateur" operation has left the electronics patient with a few permanent scars. We also had to realise that, unlike the Garmin, replacing the Wahoo battery is not for hobbyists - a specialist is needed. However, even when asked, none of the common manufacturers such as Garmin, Wahoo or Sigma offer their own repair service; they only offer discounts on new purchases, a kind of scrapping bonus. This could certainly be done better in terms of sustainability.

The patient: Wahoo Elemnt Roam

The Wahoo Elemnt Roam (around €350) was first launched in 2019 and our device has been in constant use since then. The Roam still works perfectly, but the protective screen has detached from the housing and a circular defect can be seen in the bottom left-hand corner of the display.

Tool

You will need various small mounting levers made of plastic and metal, a suction cup, tweezers and a 5 mm Torx screwdriver. A so-called scaler (second from the right), which is normally used for cleaning teeth, has proved useful for cleaning the old adhesive areas. An illuminated magnifying glass, a sorting box and a special adhesive for electronic components round off the range.

Replacement display

The matching part can be found in various online shops for around 35 euros plus shipping costs. When ordering, care must be taken not to accidentally order just the protective screen without the display. The display unit can hardly be separated from the protective screen without destroying it

1. warm up

The Elemnt Roam consists of a lower and an upper housing section including display with protective glass. The parts are glued together. To separate the housing halves and the display, the adhesive must be softened. The best way to do this is to heat the entire device all round to 50 to 60 degrees using a hot air gun. The housing can then be carefully prised open along the joint using a metal spatula. This process requires patience and feeling; if the adhesive is still too tough, the housing can be damaged. We were able to avoid this, but it was clearly scratched. We were unable to open the device with the plastic lever, which is gentle on the material.

2. unfold

The open halves of the housing can be opened like a book. To do this, take the Wahoo in both hands and fold the top to the left and the bottom to the right. This is important because the flexible cables between the battery and the circuit board only have a limited length. We have marked the upper cable with a white dot as a guide for reassembly. The cables are separated by levering them out from the bottom upwards using the plastic assembly lever; the housing halves can then be separated completely.

3. dismantle the circuit board

To access the defective display, the circuit board must be removed. To do this, loosen the four 5 mm Torx screws and place them in the sorting box. The circuit board on the left-hand side is now still connected to the display with two flex cables.

4. pull off the flex cable

As the two flex cables are different widths and clearly positioned, there is no risk of confusion; there is no fuse. To disconnect, support the cables with a plastic lever on the inside of the cable bend and pull them out of the contact shoes with a slight tug on the circuit board. The circuit board can now be laid to one side.

5. remove the LED strip light

Two silicone light strips are now visible on the top and right-hand side of the housing (status indicators). They are only inserted positively and can be carefully removed with tweezers and placed in the sorting box. Marking is not necessary, both parts only fit in one position.

6. remove buttons

In this state, the housing should only be moved with the utmost care, as the three side buttons and parts of the three bottom buttons can fall out and easily be lost. It is advisable to mark the location and position of the side buttons. Caution: In the centre of each of the three lower rubber buttons are plastic pistons the size of a pinhead for transferring pressure to the circuit board contact. Remove these with the tweezers and store them in the sorting box.

7. adhesive surface

In an intermediate step, we separated the glued display from the upper part of the housing by heating it again. Now all the glued surfaces had to be cleaned, which took about half an hour. We used a sharp scaler that reached into the corners and adhesive joints (about 0.5 millimetres wide) to remove all stubborn adhesive residue. A small standard paintbrush is suitable for a finish that is gentle on the material. To glue in the replacement display, we used a so-called display adhesive for smartphones with the model designation T-8000, available from five euros in large online shops or in specialist model shops. Thanks to a very fine metal opening, the adhesive can be applied in fine doses all round so that the fine cut-outs for the two LED light strips are not accidentally glued shut. After the adhesive has evaporated for about two minutes, the display with protective disc can be glued in place with a little pressure.

8. mounting the buttons

In preparation, the three side pushbuttons can now be reinserted into the lower half of the housing (battery side). The correct position of the pushbuttons can be checked before final assembly by inserting the loose circuit board upside down in this state; the side pushbuttons in the housing must meet the pushbuttons on the circuit board in the centre when pressed, noticeably at the pressure point. The position of the power button can be recognised by a small bar, which is why it only fits in one position. Before the circuit board is then mounted in the upper half of the housing with the four Torx screws, the three small plastic pistons must first be reinserted in the three pushbuttons below the display.

9. connect flex cable

Once all six pressure switches are in their correct position and ready for operation, the circuit board can be pushed into position from the right and connected to the two flex cables of the new display. This test of patience requires a steady hand, as the slots of the two cable connections on the circuit board are very narrow and must be positioned precisely. The connection is only correct when the black-coloured cable lugs have completely disappeared into the connections. Once both connections are in place, the board can be screwed to the housing using the four Torx screws.

10. dry mounting

The two flex cables of the power supply from the battery to the circuit board are pressed onto the contacts on the circuit board from above, a slight click can be felt. In this state, the two halves of the housing can be placed on top of each other for an initial function test. If this is successful and all the buttons work, the two halves of the housing can be firmly glued together again, otherwise all the previous work will have been in vain.

11. the final result

Compared to the Garmin Edge 810, the Wahoo is less repair-friendly. Opening the glued housing requires considerably more effort; the adhesive must be heated to loosen it, but the device should not get warmer than 60 degrees, otherwise the battery may suffer. Cleaning the adhesive surfaces is also fiddly and time-consuming. Keyword battery: As the original power storage unit is permanently soldered to the charging electronics, we did not have the confidence to replace the battery due to a lack of experience. In our opinion, re-soldering is a job for specialists.

Screwing or gluing?

In today's world, where sustainability is becoming increasingly important and DIY (do it yourself) is becoming more and more popular, the question arises as to how repairable electronic devices are. We tested this using the example of the two defective GPS devices Garmin Edge 810 from 2013 and Wahoo Elemnt Roam from 2019.

This showed that the Garmin, which is more than ten years old, is much easier to service than its slightly younger competitor: its housing is screwed down and fitted with a classic rubber seal, which makes it easier to access the internal components and at the same time ensures protection against water and dust. The battery can be easily replaced thanks to standard plug connections, which extends the service life of the device and reduces electronic waste. In contrast, the Wahoo Elemnt Roam is glued. To open the device, it has to be heated, which is time-consuming and risky as it can easily be damaged.

At the same time, replacing the battery requires advanced knowledge of handling sensitive electronic components, including soldering. As a result, the cost-saving adhesive construction makes repairs more difficult and is a handicap for longevity. Unfortunately, newer Garmin devices are also glued instead of screwed and are no longer as repair-friendly.