I am the happy owner of a Kickr v2 from 2016. It works well, use it almost every day, replaced the belt one year ago. The only issue is that it under reads, so I am using it with a Stages crank PM to control the power.
I noticed that the v5 is now on sale for £749.
Was wondering the same thing with the v5 sale happening a couple of times now…
I almost wonder how much it really under reads. stages left sided can be prone to error as its single sided. if its a drive side r8000 or 9100,9000 it could be along the lines of what people saw on the shimano branded ones for reading inaccuracies.if its only out by 10 or so watts that sounds about normal for a trainer vs crank power meter .if its more then that there is an advance spin down you could try on your v2 I belive which should be done after a belt change for sure
Sorry meant to say it over reads. Done several tests, all sorts of calibrations including the hidden factory one. It’s always out by around 20-30W at 300W (Stages reads 270W, Kickr says 300W).
My left right balance is 51-49 or 50-50 measured with a Quarq based on years of riding.
Since I started using the Stages to control it, the workouts are definitely more challenging.
Back to the questions, would it be worth upgrading in my case? It’s going for its 8th year in 2023, great run for the money!
It is difficult to advise on what to do, since the v2, v5 and v6 all do the same thing. And your v2 is working. You could get better accuracy and probably reduced noise, but as long as power is consistent, your v2 would be fine.
Personally, I’d add another device, like a climb or rollers to provide additional training stimuli.
I have gone through two upgrades now, the latest to the 2018 model from an older refurb model (can’t remember which) which was was an upgrade from the the original KICKR.
After upgrading I gained cadence, KICKR Climb option (just got it) and more reliable BT connections. I know the later models are quieter and there is more info on DCRainmaker.