Newbie ?which Spyder?

Hi all,

Well I signed up for the 3-wheel riding course which takes place in a few weeks. My wife and I are considering a Spyder to enjoy rides in the country. I had a question as to what may suit us best. I’ll drive solo much of the time commuting to work only 20 miles away. But we would like to ride together... enjoying the back roads and small towns in Amish country. But we also like to go overnight to the shore now and then which is about 2 hours away.

An RT is out of my price range. I was looking at an F3 or F3 -T. I’m concerned about storage space. Can I add saddle bags, passenger seat rest and top case to an F3? Or is it better to consider F3-T? And then add the passenger seat rest and top case?
Or is F3 with saddle bags and rpassenger seat rest enough? I have a cpap machine that I would take.

Thanks

Snayl135

Firstly, welcome to the Forum & posting here, hope we can help you achieve the miles of smiles most of us get from our Spyders. :ohyea:

On to your questions, you really should try to ride any/all of the machines you're interested in before committing, ideally with your wife going along to OK or veto the pillion seat too! However, it really does sound like your storage needs might be best met by an RT, or at least by an optioned up F3 - and yes, you really can set them up for just about anything, just so long as you throw enough $$ at them! But even if you do that, it'll still be an F3, so if that's not your preferred ryde to start with.... :dontknow: So, ride them all first, then start looking at what needs to be done to make your preferred ride suit you & your needs. :thumbup:

Model chosen, or if you're still not sure about which model you really want to end up with, maybe you could/should consider finding a cheaper 'previously owned' Spyder to own & ride for a while to see how you like it/if it does the job?!! You might be able to get a well optioned older model F3 that has most of what you want/need already fitted, or if you like, maybe you even try a 2012 or 2013 RT with the V-twin motor, probably for as little as half of what you might hafta pay for a newer F3/RT - doing that could be one way of making sure you do eventually get something that ticks all the boxes for you. If you do your homework well & get a good deal on an older Spyder going in, you might even be able to ryde the older model for as long as a year or so before moving it on without losing too much of your hard earned $$ on the deal AND you'll end up knowing exactly what you want from a new Spyder. Of course, there's no guarantees on that, especially on the $$, but it has been done & could work well for you?! :2thumbs:

As Spyder owners for the past 2+ years, (13,000 mi), my lady and I do ryding similar in style to what you describe as your planned use. My advice would be: 1- take the Spyder course, then get your m/c driving licence if you don't already have it; 2- visit a dealer with your wife and ask to take test rides on both an RTL and the F3L. They feel and ride differently, but either model would serve your purpose. If you can't afford a new (current) version, look for a slightly used Spyder in the model of your preference. Basically, I'm thinking that because you primarily really want a Spyder with two-up capability and adequate storage capacity for those country rydes or weekend get-aways, you're going to be better served by the Limited version which has the comfort, storage and better rear suspension already built in, rather than adding bits on to a basic bike. Unsold 2019's will soon be heavily discounted off original MSRP. Or, as I say, look for a lightly used, recent older 'Limited' model that has some warranty time left and hasn't been abused. There are some pretty decent buys out there if you do your homework and look around. But do go and test-ride at a dealer first, just to get a feel for the handling of the different models. That you can do on the cheap, without committing. The dealer may even be able to help you find a used bike if they can't fit you into a new one.

Sounds like a RT would probably meet your needs better. As others have said ride them both to see which is better because no amount of storage options will make you more comfortable. I was at a dealer today and they had some New Old stock (2018) RTs in stock that were pretty heavily discounted. That sort of thing might be an option for you to look into as it might put it closer to your price range.

If you want to keep your costs down on an RT do not buy the "limited" model. Buy a stock RT <$20K new and add what you feel you need. The RT base model provides the exact same storage as the others, as well as most of the features. I bought mine ('17 RT) new for less than $17K and have added a few things, but not even close to what a "Limited" would have cost.

big rebates on rt

Definitely try both AND have the wife along. I wanted an F3, but after trying the rear seats on both, we have an RT-S. That's another thing; if going for an older RT, the plain RT is a decent choice, but usually has a manual trans if that makes a difference. The RT-S (made up to 2017) has either manual or semi-auto, but most of the ones I found are semi. The RT-S has pretty much everything the RT Limited has but lots less chrome. That was a big plus for me as I don't care for chrome. Lots of good deals online, I got mine from iMortorsports.

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Originally Posted by bushrat

As Spyder owners for the past 2+ years, (13,000 mi), my lady and I do ryding similar in style to what you describe as your planned use. My advice would be: 1- take the Spyder course, then get your m/c driving licence if you don't already have it; 2- visit a dealer with your wife and ask to take test rides on both an RTL and the F3L. They feel and ride differently, but either model would serve your purpose. If you can't afford a new (current) version, look for a slightly used Spyder in the model of your preference. Basically, I'm thinking that because you primarily really want a Spyder with two-up capability and adequate storage capacity for those country rydes or weekend get-aways, you're going to be better served by the Limited version which has the comfort, storage and better rear suspension already built in, rather than adding bits on to a basic bike. Unsold 2019's will soon be heavily discounted off original MSRP. Or, as I say, look for a lightly used, recent older 'Limited' model that has some warranty time left and hasn't been abused. There are some pretty decent buys out there if you do your homework and look around. But do go and test-ride at a dealer first, just to get a feel for the handling of the different models. That you can do on the cheap, without committing. The dealer may even be able to help you find a used bike if they can't fit you into a new one.

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Agreed

based on your criteria, I would suggest looking for a good used RTL or RT at least. there are some good deals that I've seen on line every so often. whatever you get you will be a happy Spyder rider! drive safe.
BIG F