Positive comments about Spyders

[AeroPilot]

My wifes 2011 RT SM5 got us started and logged 76000 miles before we became a 2 spyder family with her 15 RTS and shortly thereafter my 15 base RT both SE6s. She now has her 16 FE3T with 39000 mi and my base RT has 50000 mi. My RT has been towed to the shop twice and although the wiring harness was replaced last November and the DESS module replaced this September we just finished our Trip to Tucson and back without trepidation.



Driving over from Albuquerque we did however log the last 20 miles in slushy snow getting into Show Low AZ and didnt freeze to death. The next day I blew a tire when I hit a 6" rock that washed down to the road in a driving cloudburst south of Show Low. The RT was stable on the blown tire and I was able to roll on the flat for another couple of miles until I found a wide spot to pull over safely. I appreciate that the RT kept us safe and that although it took another day back in Show Low to get new tires for the front, we were able to complete our trip to Tucson and back.

Never an engine or driveline problem, just happy for the days in the wind.

[Road-Kill]

I'm happy that everyone loves their mechanical failures.
I also have that warm fuzzy feeling knowing that Can-Am is dead last in reliability as per both MCM & CR.
I'm ecstatic that people think mechanical failure and reliability are the same thing.
To think the "demographic" (code for elderly) is being "threatened" ……..by the 60+ crowd.....is wonderful.
The last thing the dinosaurs need are a younger generation enjoying themselves as well.

Well I have NEVER been towed, have NEVER been stranded, and LOVE the dependability of my 2015 RTL in 35000 miles.
Does that mean I have never had a problem, NO. I had to have an air compressor replaced, but I had it done under warranty in the off season. I unplugged the dump valve, aired up the rear bag, and rode for a few weeks with a manual air ride.
I had a leak in the frunk and had to have the seal replaced under warranty also.

So, has my Spyder been trouble free? the answer would be NO, but neither has any other motorized vehicle or any other product I have owned.
Has it been dependable? Absolutely, I am not afraid to jump on it and ride it anywhere. In fact will be doing that this coming riding season to remote places in Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado.
Does that mean that other Spyders might not have or be problems? NO, sometimes things are built that just do not work, but that doesn't mean that all the others do or will have problems just because one does.

I had a Ford Ranger that was in the shop more than it was out, but yet the ranger was said to be one of the most dependable small trucks on the road. I disagreed because mine was a lemon, but that doesn't mean all of them were. I did not try to discourage others from buying one because of my experience, I knew that the normal was not what I had occur.

The problem that I see is that if all we do is tell everyone about the negative experiences that we have, and never let anyone tell of the positive experiences they have had without the negative comments being added back in, we are spoiling future buyers, limiting sales, thus lessening the companies chances of survival.

If you don't like the Spyder or Spyderfolk then, in my humble opinion, you don't know Spyders.

The demographic, that sadly BRP seems to want to run away from. is pretty homogeneous.
We are a group of folks that like it or not are linked by our common history.

And we linked by a common desire to wrench out the most of what life has to offer.
We are a motorsports generation.

Hot Rods, DIY, and active enough to want to enjoy the sheer joy of a solid twist on the throttle.

Yep, Spyders have brought us to together and it's our common heritage that keeps us together,

Oh, and BTW I wouldn't give a second thought to the reliability or dependability of my Spyder to hop on and travel for a good meal or a good time anywhere.

My wifes 2011 RT SM5 got us started and logged 76000 miles before we became a 2 spyder family with her 15 RTS and shortly thereafter my 15 base RT both SE6s. She now has her 16 FE3T with 39000 mi and my base RT has 50000 mi. My RT has been towed to the shop twice and although the wiring harness was replaced last November and the DESS module replaced this September we just finished our Trip to Tucson and back without trepidation.



Driving over from Albuquerque we did however log the last 20 miles in slushy snow getting into Show Low AZ and didnt freeze to death. The next day I blew a tire when I hit a 6" rock that washed down to the road in a driving cloudburst south of Show Low. The RT was stable on the blown tire and I was able to roll on the flat for another couple of miles until I found a wide spot to pull over safely. I appreciate that the RT kept us safe and that although it took another day back in Show Low to get new tires for the front, we were able to complete our trip to Tucson and back.

Never an engine or driveline problem, just happy for the days in the wind.

[Rick H.]

I'm happy that everyone loves their mechanical failures.
I also have that warm fuzzy feeling knowing that Can-Am is dead last in reliability as per both MCM & CR.
I'm ecstatic that people think mechanical failure and reliability are the same thing.
To think the "demographic" (code for elderly) is being "threatened" ……..by the 60+ crowd.....is wonderful.
The last thing the dinosaurs need are a younger generation enjoying themselves as well.

Ya know Road Kill I don't think it is a matter of anyone enjoying their break downs on a Spyder and I certainly can't speak to it as I don't own a Spyder. In fact today I stopped at the nearest Spyder dealer and looked at the left over RT's they have on sale. I like the grey dark version, but something in the back of my mind just won't let me pull the trigger and buy one while they are on sale. It could be your comments, which are quite vocal, or other issues I have read about. I am a confirmed BMW owner who came from Harley. I have had 5 BMW's and over 12 new Harleys before the Beemers. Almost every one of my bikes has at some point required going back to the shop for something, but only one broke down on me and left me stranded. That was a 2002 Road Glide that made it about 14 miles from the dealership before it broke down due to a bad stator. That Road Glide, although it was the nicest Harley I ever owned was also the last I would ever own. It listed for about 15K and after I got done putting another 5K into it to turn it into a Road Glide Ultra, which they didn't make back then, I tried to trade it in a year and a half later and could only get 14.5K on trade. Bye-Bye Harley along with their crap about 10 cents on every dollar back on accessories at trade-in time.

Went over to the Dark Side and bought a BMW 1200LT and switched to the K1600 series and they have made great strides in refining that bike since my first one in 2012. Unfortunately for me K1600's don't bring back a lot of trade-in value in my area, so switching to a Spyder RT is going to be a costly affair. The saving grace is that the sale price now offered on Spyder's makes up for some of the monetary shock. Even with the savings I am having a hard time convincing myself that a Spyder is a worthwhile purchase. I have read about the dreaded DESS issues and a few other glitches and actually making the switch is difficult for me. Reliability aside on a Spyder, the lack of horsepower concerns me as my K1600 pushes out quite a bit more, but I almost never use it which is rather sad. In retrospect though I have to ask myself if I really need that much horsepower at 67 years old? Part of me says yes and part says no, not anymore. But will I miss it on a Spyder? I don't know....decisions, decisions. Your posts certainly don't make my decisions any easier. So in some respects you have accomplished one of your underlying goals of keeping potential customers away from buying a Spyder.

I have a few more days to think this through and hopefully I will make the right call for me. From a personal standpoint though if I suffered two similar breakdowns on my K1600 I would certainly find a common thread as to what is taking place. If a drive belt pulley or bolts are breaking there has to be a reason and just replacing the parts and waiting for it to break again isn't repairing the underlying problem. So all I can say is good luck finding the real cause of your pulley problem and quite possibly you saved me from making a decision I may regret later on.

Rick H.

[stmike 1800]

I have had bad belt vibration since day one .I think i have it fixed now ,with the help of fellow spyder lovers .THANKS
I got the handling better by adjusting the toe in .
Can not use the the BRP connect ,as i refuse to buy an expensive phone to make things work that should have come standard.
The radio is a big fail ,very poor reception ,and can not hear it at speeds.

Now to the good things.
The wife is more comfy on as a passenger than any bike i have owned ( and i have owned tons of bikes ).
I have never dropped it ,thats a big plus.
Never had a break down .
10000 km of close to trouble free miles .

At my age this bike will be my last ,hope to not have to much problems on the way .


2018 rtl dark

[Road-Kill]

I like to keep things real.
Every bike I have owned in the last 30+ years has had issues with my Harley Ultra being by far the worst.
My Spyder F3s is coming in as 2nd place winner in lack of reliability.
I'm not a salesman nor do I wish to be.
If you buy a Spyder (or any bike) you should know EXACTLY what you are walking into.
I knew I was walking away from a trust brand (Honda) and into unknown territory so I'm not mad.
The fix is easy....sell my Spyder and go running back to Honda.
I'm not giving up on my F3s just yet because I haven't had my 3rd failure....(3 and your out!)…..yet.

Ya know Road Kill I don't think it is a matter of anyone enjoying their break downs on a Spyder and I certainly can't speak to it as I don't own a Spyder. In fact today I stopped at the nearest Spyder dealer and looked at the left over RT's they have on sale. I like the grey dark version, but something in the back of my mind just won't let me pull the trigger and buy one while they are on sale. It could be your comments, which are quite vocal, or other issues I have read about. I am a confirmed BMW owner who came from Harley. I have had 5 BMW's and over 12 new Harleys before the Beemers. Almost every one of my bikes has at some point required going back to the shop for something, but only one broke down on me and left me stranded. That was a 2002 Road Glide that made it about 14 miles from the dealership before it broke down due to a bad stator. That Road Glide, although it was the nicest Harley I ever owned was also the last I would ever own. It listed for about 15K and after I got done putting another 5K into it to turn it into a Road Glide Ultra, which they didn't make back then, I tried to trade it in a year and a half later and could only get 14.5K on trade. Bye-Bye Harley along with their crap about 10 cents on every dollar back on accessories at trade-in time.

Went over to the Dark Side and bought a BMW 1200LT and switched to the K1600 series and they have made great strides in refining that bike since my first one in 2012. Unfortunately for me K1600's don't bring back a lot of trade-in value in my area, so switching to a Spyder RT is going to be a costly affair. The saving grace is that the sale price now offered on Spyder's makes up for some of the monetary shock. Even with the savings I am having a hard time convincing myself that a Spyder is a worthwhile purchase. I have read about the dreaded DESS issues and a few other glitches and actually making the switch is difficult for me. Reliability aside on a Spyder, the lack of horsepower concerns me as my K1600 pushes out quite a bit more, but I almost never use it which is rather sad. In retrospect though I have to ask myself if I really need that much horsepower at 67 years old? Part of me says yes and part says no, not anymore. But will I miss it on a Spyder? I don't know....decisions, decisions. Your posts certainly don't make my decisions any easier. So in some respects you have accomplished one of your underlying goals of keeping potential customers away from buying a Spyder.

I have a few more days to think this through and hopefully I will make the right call for me. From a personal standpoint though if I suffered two similar breakdowns on my K1600 I would certainly find a common thread as to what is taking place. If a drive belt pulley or bolts are breaking there has to be a reason and just replacing the parts and waiting for it to break again isn't repairing the underlying problem. So all I can say is good luck finding the real cause of your pulley problem and quite possibly you saved me from making a decision I may regret later on.

Rick H.