Garmin Tacx NEO Motion Plates

I don’t find these to provide much benefit. I primarily use a tri/TT bike for “zone 2” training. I don’t notice a major difference during sustained efforts. Hard, out of the saddle or frequently varying resistance are where these shine. Some side to side motion would really be nice, but there’s really none to speak of. Long rides do seem slightly less boring. Honestly, I forget that they’re even there most of the time. Certainly beats the price of the massive rocker boards, however.

I’ve owned my Tacx for 10 years and ride on average 300 Km per week. Last year I started to have knee problems due to the bike siting stationary with no forward and back movement. As they say, it’s like riding a brick but the motion plates do work and are not in your face like other plywood types on the market. Comes with a front wheel cradle for the wheel to rock forward and backwards. Have logged over 1000 Km with no knee issues

I slapped this under my Neo and immediately saw a 100W bump in my FTP :) Pro tour here I come.

OK back to reality. What this allows is some slight (2-3 cm) movement fore-aft during harder efforts. It's most noticeable during standing efforts. Combined with the Neo's slight lateral slack, the bike does feel more 'live' under you... again especially when standing. On long endurance or recovery level seated efforts the motion is minimal. Noticeable, but minimal.

There seems to be an internal spring or elastomer so the resistance to fore-aft movement increases with distance. It's hard to hit the limit of travel.

The included front wheel riser is higher to accommodate the height added by the motion plates but more importantly the groove for the front wheel is flat. This allows the front wheel to move fore-aft. If you put it in a standard riser (Tacx, Saris multi-position hexagonal one) which has an groove shaped like an arc fore-aft, the bike will move very little. In a way, this is great if you have multiple users, some who prefer not to have the motion. No need to remove the motion plates, just swap in a different front wheel riser.

Installation takes 2 minutes and that includes opening the box.

I can't rate this 5 stars because of the cost. I get that it's a one-off item, specifically engineered for one of (if not THE) most expensive smart trainers out there. So you're not just paying for the $10 worth of materials. Having said that, the price seems to be about 2X what something like this "should" cost.

They are not great for sprinting. I wasn't sure if it was going to give me a sea sick feeling. Once your up to your steady cadence, there is minimal movement. It does add alot of comfort for hour + rides and I would also imagine it being easier on the bike frame. I bit the bullet on the price because I figured I would only save 90 bucks if they came on sale. Increased comfort is not worth delaying for a sale over that amount of money in my situation. I will also add I put out a pb ride on zwift, cutting down 5 minutes on a route, when trying these for the first time.

Not only back and forth, but also left and right!
The improvement, it makes, is much bigger than I expected.
The price seems a bit expensive for the supplement but is worth, I believe.