Centurion Vantage manual: the Vantage 300, 400 and 500 SMART

The three models differ in one thing, the length of the arm's stroke, and that sets how big a leaf each can move. Everything else is shared.

All three push with up to 250 kgf, run a 12 V DC motor from a 7.2 Ah battery that the mains keeps charged, allow 250 operations a day at a 50% duty cycle with mains present, and work from −15 °C to +50 °C. The arm extends and retracts at about 28 mm a second, adjustable, which is why the longer models take longer to open.

The earlier, pre-SMART Vantage came as the V400 and V500, with the same strokes and push force, run by the V-Series controller instead of the SMART one.

Centurion's limits are kindest when the leaf opens to 90°. Open it further and the arm pushes at a worse angle, so the figures drop fast. For the Vantage 500 SMART:

Centurion gives a simple way to find your gate's angle. With the gate closed, mark the ground 1 m from the hinge along the gate; open it fully and mark 1 m along the gate again; then measure between the two marks. A gap of 1,414 to 1,521 mm means an angle of 90° to 99°, and 1,532 to 1,638 mm means 100° to 110°.

Centurion asks for every leaf to meet its wind load tables as well as its weight limits, because a solid leaf catches the wind like a sail. Its figures are for a 1.8 m high gate, and show the wind speed in which the motor can still work it:

A solid 3 m leaf is only good for about half the wind of a palisade one, and the shorter Vantage 300 and 400 cope with less again. Centurion adds that opening and closing slow down as the wind picks up. On a windy, exposed site, a gate that stops or reverses on gusty days may be working at its wind limit, not failing.

Centurion's critical installation checklist for the Vantage SMART is short, and most Vantage faults we see break one of its points:

• A wall bracket that can't move, anchored by one of the methods in the manual: through-wall, chemical anchors, welding, sleeve anchors or rawl bolts.
• The arm's full stroke used, with the brackets placed from Centurion's geometry tables for that opening angle.
• Only the Vantage SMART cable, at most 10 m from the controller to the operator, with a 350 mm loop left in it.
• An electric gate lock on any leaf longer than 3 m, to hold it closed.
• Opening and closing angles within the guidelines, and a gate and motor that suit the wind on that site.

The space around the hinge decides whether a Vantage fits at all. Centurion sets a maximum for how deep the hinge sits on the pillar and a minimum gap between the open leaf and the side wall. Where the hinge is only about 200 mm from a side wall, very few bracket positions work. An outward-opening gate usually needs an extension bracket made up for the wall bracket, and Centurion says never to fit an operator on the outside of the gate, where the public can reach it.

The arm is held on the gate bracket by a snap ring, and Centurion suggests a padlock and its optional padlock shield on top of that, for security. The swing gates page covers the gate side: hinges, frames and choosing a motor.

The Vantage SMART is driven from a separate weatherproof wall box holding the Vx SMART controller, the charger and a 12 V 7.2 Ah battery. Centurion's kit comes with code-hopping remotes but not the battery, which can be bigger for longer standby. One wall box runs both arms of a double gate: the double kit is two operators and one wall box.

The Vx SMART controller is set up from a phone. The installer commissions it in the MyCentsys Pro app: install the app, choose the operator from the list, connect, and follow the prompts. The controller then sets the open and closed limits automatically, using an origin clamp set on the arm at the gate's open position. A new MyCentsys Pro connection has to be authorised by opening and closing the manual override, so nobody can change the settings from the street. Owners manage remotes and phone users in the MyCentsys app afterwards. How the three apps work is on the Centurion SMART app page.

The Vx SMART controller's features, from Centurion's manual:

• Opening and closing speeds set separately, with smooth starts and stops
• Collision detection with auto-reverse, sensitivity adjustable
• Several operating modes, auto-close, a pedestrian opening and positive close
• Up to three sets of wireless Photon SMART beams, plus separate wired opening and closing beam inputs, which it tests automatically
• A built-in NOVA code-hopping receiver, which Centurion lists for 1,500 remotes

The older V-Series controller on a V400 or V500 has its own built-in receiver with room for 64 remote buttons, and was set up from its own commissioning guide.

The Vantage releases with a key: Centurion's step is to release the operator with the key supplied in the kit, then swing the gate by hand. Each operator comes with its own unique set of keys, and Centurion asks for the key number to be recorded, so a double gate has two sets of keys that aren't interchangeable. Write the numbers down before the day you need them. Our guide to opening a gate by hand covers what to do if a key is lost.

The motor always runs from the battery; the mains only charges it. Centurion's figures for a double kit on a 7.2 Ah battery, without safety beams, are 70 operations over half a day without mains and 58 over a full day. A bigger battery gives longer standby, and the motor can run off a solar supply, sized with a Centurion reseller. Centurion's manual is firm that the operator must never be run directly off the 12 V battery: it runs through the controller.

The control card's fuses can be replaced; the charger's fuse isn't serviceable, so a technician deals with the charger itself. The mains supply to the wall box is a job for a registered electrician. For batteries, see gate motor batteries.

Centurion's handover checklist tells the owner that the gearbox comes pre-filled with oil and that the SMART operator needs no routine maintenance. What does need regular checks is everything around it:

• Monthly: check that the collision detection and the safety beams work.
• Regularly: the gate's end stops and catch brackets, and that no insects have got into the operator.
• On a SMART model: the operator's health in the MyCentsys Remote app.

The manufacturer's warranty on a Vantage runs for 24 months after delivery, with six months on batteries, on a carry-in basis. Centurion's terms let it be voided on equipment that wasn't installed to the manual, was damaged by lightning, power surges, corrosion or insects, or was repaired by anyone Centurion hasn't authorised.

• The leaf stops or reverses part-way. Collision sensing has felt resistance: a stiff or dropped hinge, a leaf heavier or longer than the model allows at that angle, or wind on a solid gate.
• One leaf works and the other doesn't. Each arm has its own cable and motor channel, so it's that arm's cable, connection, fuse or motor.
• The gate stops short or overruns. Check that the arm uses its full stroke and that the origin clamp is still tight where it was set; the limits may then need setting again.
• A loose or rocking arm. A wall bracket that has worked loose, which wrecks the geometry and loads the arm unevenly.
• Short runs in a power cut. An old battery, or a solar supply too small for the gate.
• The app won't connect. See the SMART app checks.

We repair Vantage arms, Vx SMART and V-Series controllers, wall box chargers and cabling, re-anchor brackets, fit gate locks, beams and padlock shields, and replace batteries. All our spare parts are genuine, and every repair carries our six-month guarantee on our repairs.

Kit prices in shops are without installation. Prices checked October 2026. Our installed price for the Centurion Vantage 500 double swing kit, and what it includes, is on gate motor prices beside the other kits. 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 V-series SMART (Vantage) installation manual: the Vantage 300, 400 and 500 SMART, installation, wiring and commissioning
• Centurion Vantage 400/500 swing operator (mechanical), installer manual: the earlier V400 and V500, mechanical installation

Every other Centurion model is on Centurion manuals.