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I can't connect to my bike with my Android phone. What can I do?
I can't connect to my bike with my Android phone. What can I do?

How to get reconnected to your bike with your Android phone

Florian from Cowboy avatar
Written by Florian from Cowboy
Updated over a week ago

To fix connection issues for all Cowboy models, we’ve prepared a step-by-step checklist to guide you through the process of reconnecting to your bike.

Short term solution

Cowboy 3 and Cowboy Classic/Cruiser/Cruiser ST owners : if you are in a situation without a phone or if you simply cannot connect and you need to use your bike, please note that you can turn on your bike without the app via the Manual Unlock feature.

To do this, take out the battery with your key, wait 6 to 20 seconds and push it back into the bike to kickstart the engine. Each bike has its own sweet-spot, so we advise you to try different timings if it does not work the first time.

Connecting to your Bike

Step 1: Make sure you are only connected to one device.

  • It is very important to make sure you are not already connected to your bike on another device. If you find that you are, then disable Bluetooth on the first device to free up the connection for the second one. Since the bike can only connect to one device at a time.

  • Go into your settings, tap Bluetooth and click on the information icon next to COWBOY to remove it from your devices. (If you are requested to fill in a Passkey / PIN code when trying to connect, it will appear on your screen above the text-box, if it wont, make sure you try ‘0000’ and ‘1234’ first before reaching out to our support team so they can provide you with your personal token)

Step 2: Ensure your Phone and App are the latest version

  • Make sure you’re running the latest version of the Cowboy app. Go to the PlayStore and update your app if a new release is available.

  • Make sure your device is compatible with our app. On Android, our latest app supports all OS versions from Oreo 8.0.

  • Make sure your Smartphone is updated to the most recent version

  • Make sure you are next to your bike when trying to connect.

Step 3: Check your phone settings

  • Switch your phone’s Bluetooth off and on again.

  • Force quit the app and open it again.

  • Ensure your smartphone is not in airplane mode or in low battery mode (as that can prevent some features from working)

  • Try to turn off other Bluetooth devices connected to your phone (for example a smart watch or a Bluetooth speaker).

  • Unpair your bike/forget the device, and reconnect.

  • Completely shut down your smartphone and turn it on again.

  • Ensure the Cowboy App has all the right permissions from your phone, you can check this by going into settings on your smartphone, go to ‘Apps’ -> ‘Permissions’ and make sure all the permissions are turned on such as Bluetooth and Location.

  • If still not connecting -> Uninstall and Reinstall the Cowboy app

Step 4: Check if the battery is charged.

  • Take the battery out of the bike and put it to charge. The LED light on the charger should turn red which would indicate that the battery is charging, it will turn green when the battery is full.

  • Reinsert the battery, let it sit in the bike for 6 hours (while it charges the communication module) and then try to connect again.

Step 5: Check on another device.

  • If all else fails, please try to use another device, it can be another Android phone or preferably an iPad/iPhone, that will help us indicate where the problem lies.

Step 6: Restart your bike

  • Make sure you run the latest version of the app (at least 4.4.8 on Android and 4.4.6 on iOS)

  • Follow this link or open the Settings tab then “Your Bike > Advanced > Restart my Bike”

  • Stand near your bike and click on “Restart my bike”

Should the issue persist, please contact your Cowboy team through the app chat.

We are happy to help you.

My phone asks for a Bluetooth pairing code, where can I find this?

The Bluetooth pairing code is a 6-digit code that will allow your phone to connect with your bike. The pairing code appears on your app when trying to connect with your bike. If you cannot see the Bluetooth pairing code, simply get in touch with the team through the app and an agent will provide you with the code.

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