FreeMotion 510 Elliptical Review

Brief Overview

The Freemotion 510 is a heck of a value. All people who have been looking at Gold's Gym for elliptical should take this one into consideration before buying. It's available at this price from walmart.com. The rear-drive elliptical design from FreeMotion has one of the best ellipse motions on the market today. The only real problem with this machine is the substandard quality of components, light warranty, and horrific customer service that FreeMotion provides its customers.

Overall Quality

The lack of warranty on the 510 would be concerning if not for Costco's lifetime return policy. The 510 is basically a stripped-down version of NordicTrack's Audiostrider 990 pro. Solid quality with an excellent feel give the 510 a lot of pluses to recommend it.

The Freemotion 510 isn't a bad choice at $899. This low of a price range is never going to give you a great elliptical, but this one at least provides you with good value. The quality is nice for what you pay, and it has a great feel to it. Overall, there are a lot of reasons to like this model.

Ergonomically speaking, this machine is great. You're not going to find an elliptical that offers a more natural range of motion selling for less than $1,000. The adjustability isn't bad. The stride length can be set anywhere from 18"-20", giving you some options to fit it to your body type. There are also 20 digital resistance levels, as well as 30 degrees of incline, to allow you to set this machine to your personal fitness levels. If you're willing to pay an extra $100, you can find a couple of models that can make a lot more adjustments.

As far as projected reliability is concerned, this elliptical does very well. Only a few models in this price range have a longer life expectancy, and there are several models costing a $1,000 more that are expected to last about the same amount of time. The quality of parts is also nice for this low of a cost.

The noise levels of this machine are a little higher than average. Most ellipticals make about the same amount of noise, but those that sell below $1,000 are usually slightly louder. You can find quieter machines if you're willing to pay an extra $100.

The warranty on the FreeMotion 510 isn't good. Parts and labor are covered for 1 year, while the frame is covered for life. Even at this low of a price, you can find ellipticals that come with a much better warranty.