Centurion D5 SMART manual: the app, the specs and the setup

The earlier D5-Evo SMART has the same weight, length, force and battery figures in Centurion's D-series SMART manual. In the same range, the D3 SMART takes gates up to 300 kg and the D6 SMART up to 600 kg.

Centurion lists these among the SMART+ controller's features:

• Set up from a phone: an interactive app replaces the buttons and display of older controllers.
• Automatic limit setup: the motor learns its open and closed positions.
• A non-contact Hall-effect position sensor, which Centurion chose because it resists dust, oil, dirt and insects.
• Separate opening and closing speeds, with adjustable soft start and stop.
• Collision detection with auto-reverse, with adjustable sensitivity.
• Separate inputs for opening and closing beams, with an automatic beam test.
• Positive Close, auto-close, pedestrian opening and several operating modes.
• Lightning and surge protection, which, as on every Centurion, depends on a proper earth.

The gearbox is filled with oil at installation, and the motor is released by hand with a lockable release handle and key.

Centurion publishes three apps for its SMART motors, on the Apple App Store, Google Play and Huawei AppGallery:

• MyCentsys Pro, the installer's app, used to configure the motor during installation.
• MyCentsys, for owners, to change user settings.
• MyCentsys Remote, for phones added to the motor as remote users, alongside NOVA remotes.

Centurion's minimum requirements are a phone with Bluetooth Low Energy, and iOS 13 on an iPhone 6s or newer, or Android 8.0. In each app you choose your motor from the list, connect to it, and follow the prompts.

Centurion's commissioning is short, because the app leads it:

1. With the motor mounted, the rack fixed and the origin harness connected, the installer opens MyCentsys Pro.
2. They select the motor from the list and connect to it.
3. The app prompts them through the setup, including the automatic limit setup, in which the motor learns the gate's open and closed positions.
4. Features such as auto-close, the pedestrian opening, beams and Positive Close are then set in the same app.

Before that comes the mechanical work: the foundation plate, the gearbox with its oil, the rack sitting just above the pinion, end stoppers that can stop the gate at full speed, and anti-lift brackets so the gate can't be lifted off the pinion. A new mains supply to the motor is a job for a registered electrician. The rest is on gate motor installation.

Centurion's SMART+ manual gives the D5-Evo SMART+'s standby on its 7.2 Ah battery for two kinds of gate, and the gap between them is the best argument for a free-running gate:

A gate that drags halves the number of times it opens in a power cut. Centurion adds that a larger battery gives longer standby; we test and fit them, see gate motor batteries.

Centurion makes a steel theft-deterrent cage that fits over the D3, D5-Evo and D6 SMART to make the motor much harder to get at. Centurion is clear that it reduces the risk rather than removing it. We fit it on new installations or to an existing SMART motor; Centurion's fitting instructions are in Centurion D3/D5/D6 SMART theft-deterrent cage, installer manual.

Most problems are the same as on any sliding gate: a battery worn out after years of power cuts, a gate that drags on its wheels or rollers, a rack pressing down on the pinion, beams knocked out of line. Start with the gate on manual: if it doesn't push freely, the gate needs attention before the motor.

The SMART's own messages and settings are read in the app, and D5 SMART troubleshooting takes the checks in order. We repair SMART control cards, chargers, position sensors, gearboxes and receivers. All our spare parts are genuine, and every repair carries our six-month guarantee on our repairs.

In South African shops, a Centurion D5-Evo SMART / SMART+ kit (500 kg) costs about R7 500–R8 000 (Takealot); motor only about R6 000 (Takealot), without installation. Our Centurion D5-Evo SMART sliding gate kit is R7 999 installed, with what's listed on the card below. Prices checked October 2026. Your exact price is set in a free quote before any work starts. No call-out fee when we do the work. If no work is done, a R650 call-out fee applies.

• Centurion D-series SMART+ installation manual: the current D3, D4, D5-Evo, D6 and D10 SMART+ range
• Centurion D-series SMART installation manual: the earlier D3 and D5-Evo SMART
• Centurion D3/D5/D6 SMART theft-deterrent cage, installer manual: the theft-deterrent cage

For the D5-Evo set up from its own display, see the D5-Evo manual, and for every other Centurion model, Centurion manuals.