Looking into the future of the RT

[IWN2RYD]

I totally agree with Lamont.. and we haven't had our two RT's that long. I have had them totally un-cowled twice each. CB, GPS & XM installations.. After the first time I think it was rather easy. A bit time consuming but easy. Considering the cowling it so streamlined, futuristic, and very tight fitting.. Len

My comment is more about maintenance. I realize those that can afford or are physically able to can do this, will. Heck I even enjoy it to a point.

I think the ease of general maintenance is being overlooked. It can take IMHO to much time and effort to check the air filter, or heck even just a spot check for leaks. It is not like we can just pop the hood, or look underneath and look at most of the important items before a trip for example.

To this day I have not taken a day trip in any of our vehicles without checking.,. Air pressure, hoses, Air filter, Oil level, tranny level (Color and smell) and batter. Now could I be OCD?... Oh yeah! But enough times I have had a hose let go, or... Do today's newer cars need it? No not really. But old habits die hard

However, I cannot do but two or three of these without removing a serious amount of paneling.

But because I do this, I potentially save myself a serious amount of $$$$$. For example. Three weeks ago I did one of these checks on my wife's 2007 Mustang GT. I noticed a little bit of oil in the pinion seal. hmmmmm. Drove down the street with my head hanging out the window listening, rolled up all the windows and listened closely to rear... Heard a low hum... I noticed however during this test that the rear brakes had started to flutter.

Took the GT into the shop for a brake service and asked them check the rear end... And would you not know! That one of the carrier bearings and pinion bearing had started to fall apart. One of the pieces caused the seal to leak.

Now because I do my check, and I can do my checks... I saved the rear end from further damage. All they had to do was remove, clean and replace all the bearings and seals. No damage to the carrier had happened.

I realize that most responsible folks would have been fine as well. My point is I CAN see these things on my cars, and would like it to be easier for me to see these items as well on my RT.

I mean come on. We can go to any used car lot I find half of them to have lived with a minimal maintenance life as it is.

All I am suggesting is the physical needs and time to do the same thing on the RT series leads me to beleive there is a higher chance of folks to not maintain their ride as they would like or normally would say for a car...

Every Harley I have been around has been easier than a car to do this check. Yes I do realize a few other bikes are also a PINA... And I cannot speak for what the dealer charges in those cases. But it is quiet clear on the RT's.... $200+ just for an oil change that we need to do every 3k miles. At the rate I am going (1500 miles a month) I will spend at least $1200 this next year on oil changes

Not to mention, these are plastic panels! How many times can they handle this off and on? I installed the HWY pegs last weekend, and I already see the paint being removed from the washers when the dealer took my RT-S apart the two times they have had it. There is a lot more paneling to these RT's than there is the RS's.

Anyway, just my $.02. I am a sucker for easy maintenance. All this means to me as a buyer is this... A few years from now I will either buy new, or buy used from a person that kept records and or the dealer can confirm the maintenance was done correctly. Otherwise I am not interested in looking at used...

Edit 6-6-2010 ... So I thought I would drop a picture of one of the bolt holes on my left side panel. The dealer has had the side panel off twice since new. I removed it to install my hwy pegs. So in three mounts the hole is already on the way to being beat up...

[johnnyg]

For a first year production unit I think BRP did a pretty good job with the Touring version of the RT. It has a few bugs to workout like any other product but all in all they did good.

I'm sure that a lot of information was gleaned from this site as far as what we were doing to the GS/RS Spyder. If you look at other BRP products like the watercraft you can get the idea that they are always looking for the next best thing to make a product even better.

Chances are we're not going to see any major changes for a few years but now that a lot of us have put some real miles on the RT, what improvements would you like to see in the future?

I'll start.

• Longer range before fuel stops.
  Even though the RT is right in line with other trikes as far as range and fuel economy I would like to see at least a 200 mile range. That may take a bigger tank, bigger motor or change in gearing but if you're going tour you need more range.
• Better suspension.
  I'm pretty happy with the stock rear suspension but the front is really lacking and that should be an easy thing to fix. I know the Elka's made a huge difference in the ride for me and there's no reason the RT can't come stock with good shocks. I know most companies cut corners in this area but BRP doesn't need to.
• Better seat.
  After spending some serious miles on my Corbin I can tell you there is a lot of room for improvement on the seat. Having the seat cup you in and having a backrest is something that all touring machines should have. The gas door is one of the greatest things ever. Not having to lift your seat to fill your tank is a big plus.
• More power for more lights and gizmos.
  If you look at the Goldwings or even the Harley Touring bikes they all have extra lights and gizmos on them. Not only that but when you start adding stuff like heated seats, GPS, radar, neon's or LEDs, cell phone chargers and who knows what else it really starts adding up. Along those lines I think the next RT should come stock with HID lights. That really makes a difference on those dark country roads. It's a safety thing too as people can see you better.
• More windshield options.
  I would like to see taller and shorter versions of the stock windshield. Right now I wish mine was about 2" shorter and I'm sure there are those who would like a taller windshield.
• Wind deflectors.
  There are a few areas on the current RT that I would like to block the wind and there are times I would like to route the wind to me. All the Goldwing guys use Baker Airwings and they do a good job at doing this very thing. At least make that a factory option.
• Adjustable floorboards and more forward foot position.
  This is one thing that Harley has nailed. Having your feet in front of you makes for a much better day in the saddle. A heal/toe shifter option would be good too. This is something the Goldwing is limited on because it's a flat 6 but I think it's doable on the RT.
• Passenger armrest.
  Once again this should be standard on all touring machines.
• Top loading bags with removable trunk.
  I absolutely hate side loading bags. I never use the ones I have now because they are too much trouble. A top loading bag works so much better and I would use those if I had them. There are more than a few of us that ride solo most of the time so I really don't need a rear trunk most of the time. Make it so that is removable and maybe give us a fender rack to throw on top if we like. Once again Harley nailed it on this one.
• Handbrake?
  I'm sure there is a good reason for not having it on any of the current Spyders but I sure can't think of one. Motorcycle guys tend to grab for that brake in a panic stop. Roll you bike out of a trailer and tell me what you grab for when it starts getting away from you. I know you can get use to not having one but dog gone it I spent all these years training myself to grab the front brake first and then the rear and I want to keep that training when I jump back on my bike.
• Adjustable handlebars.
  We come in all shapes and sizes and it would be nice if the bars could adjust forward and backward and maybe up and down. I think they do this on their watercraft already.
• More power on take off.
  This thing is a dog on take off, you give it throttle and nothing happens till the computer is happy. They really need to at least give us the same throttle response as the RS
• Bluetooth interface.
  Everything is wireless now days so why have a cord to tether us to the RT? At least make Bluetooth a option.
  
  
  That's all that comes to mind right now but maybe you can add to this list. As far as I know the Spyder is the first road machine that BRP has made and maybe they could use a little input from us as to what would make a great product just about perfect.

Maybe they could come out with a rear finder that covers all of the back tire,the trailer gets coverd in durt, an try to find away to cut down on the back draft on the pasenger neck an back. johnnyg

[SilverSurfer]

All good comments from LaMonster. Here are a few of mine:

• Larger displacement engine without added weight. The biggest engine I've seen from Rotax is an 1125 version that they put on one of the Buells. I think a 12-1300 cc displacement would be perfect. Greater power-to-weight ratio normally equals better mileage.
• Accessory mouting points for cupholder ... whatever. If you have the RT/RT-S SE5 with a GPS option, there is nowhere left to mount anything. There are no brake/clutch fluid well covers for typical RAM mount applications and the handlebars are too thick for standard clamps. Ideas: (1) BRP, or an aftermarket could fabricate a mount that will secure to the (naked) handlbars of the RT to make up for well mounts, or (2) Come up with an application that will safely clamp into and suspend from the body side panels that won't interfere with one's legs.
• BRP - Go to Kuryakyn and plead with them to fashion a claimshell grip that will go over current RT-S heated grips. Kuryakyn does it for the Goldwing 1800 GLS, but there is no solution for the RT.

[Lamonster]

• BRP - Go to Kuryakyn and plead with them to fashion a claimshell grip that will go over current RT-S heated grips. Kuryakyn does it for the Goldwing 1800 GLS, but there is no solution for the RT.

I bought the one for the Wing and I could get the right side to work with a little carving on the grip but the left side is a no go on the SE, paddle hits.

[bodymanpainter]

Low maintenance and make them as dependable as a Goldwing! Every thing else is great. Also more colors maybe some pearl colors. And I agree a bigger engine with more power. While we are dreaming make it a shaft drive and loose the viberating belt. And for goodness sakes better shocks!!!

[Questions]

I've reading all about the RT. Up front it looks so appealing, but after all the reading, especially this thread, I'll keep my Wing.

Maybe a few years down the road . . .

[widowmaker2011]

I've reading all about the RT. Up front it looks so appealing, but after all the reading, especially this thread, I'll keep my Wing.

Maybe a few years down the road . . .

The current rendition of the Goldwing (1800) had more than its share of teething problems in its first few years as a new

model...http://www.goldwingfacts.com/used1800.htm..

Also , If the wing is their first bike , most are satisfied , if they are upgrading from a 1500 wing or other touring bike , many find the suspension severely lacking (sound familiar) "Harsh shocks from concrete slab joints or seals. (blowing out the head light bulbs, 5 sets).
Fork travel at rest is half used up just sitting. Resulting in poor performance.
Fork bottoming out on slightest bump with braking. Fork bottoming out on bumps or holes that should be absorbed by the normal travel of a fork with out braking.
Anti-dive system is known to stick in the dive mode adding to the issue. (Various band-aids now on line).
Poor twisty bump handling. RR shock set up contributes to this too.
Poor frt tire performance as seen by others. Cupping, etc do to suspension issues."

There are remedies, with traxxion being a favorite upgrade to correct the suspension issues.

I am a previous wing rider and the wing is a nice bike but seriously showing its age with no model changes to speak of in many years. When it did go from the 1500 to the 1800 the first few years owners had some issues. Its the price to pay for a new machine out of the blocks. Go ahead and ride your wing, its certainly nothing to be ashamed of I guess, just know we are way ahead of you in the technology (and coolness ) curve.... I for one would NEVER go back... Ride on, man.

[IWN2RYD]

I've reading all about the RT. Up front it looks so appealing, but after all the reading, especially this thread, I'll keep my Wing.

Maybe a few years down the road . . .

Hey thanks for posting!!welcome

Keep in mind that a good amount of those that have responded to this thread ride two up... And a few also tow a trailer.

Frankly for a 991cc sized engine, there is a lot of power for example. However, many have also felt the "Punch" of a 1600 or 1800 and want it in this bike.

Not only that... As already stated... first year release = semi-beta testers.

Also.... Not to pee in anyone's pot... But my wife and I Loooooove Harley and looked hard at the Goldwing... To be frank... At the end of the day, the additional safety features built into this bike, and the fact that we could save thousands of $$$$. Made the choice easy for us.

On last personal thought. My wife and I just finished a Trike/Sidecar training class. We without a doubt are beyond happy that we chose the Can-Am Spyder route. They are not even comparable really IMHO. I agree with the Can-Am commercial... "It would have won it's category, had there been one"

[CSX4350]

I've had my RT-S for 3 weeks and have almost 1200 fairly trouble free miles. I really only see a few things that could use attention.

Power- Not horsepower but torque. Ride a Wing or a Harley, they have serious grunt under 2000 rpm, the Wing redlines at 6000 and the Harley at 4500. My 2007 Wing would leave a red light with zero throttle, just let the clutch out at an idle. The Rotax needs more displacement, a totally revised powerband and different gearing. Personally, I think one reason the mileage (and hence the range) is so poor is because the engine is underpowered and is working its butt off to move this thing down the road. Make it about 1500cc's, loaf down the road at 3000 rpm at 70 mph, and I'd bet the mileage and range goes up.

Electronics- Make the required harness standard! Also, why on earth do I need to buy the CB radio (that I'll NEVER use) in order to be able to use a headset to listen to the radio?? Come on, Honda gives all that standard on the Wing!

Lastly, why on earth did it cost $326.14 for my 600 mile oil change? I just had a full service on the Cummins ISX in my bus, and even with all filters and 41 quarts of oil it cost less than that.

[Questions]

I've had my RT-S for 3 weeks and have almost 1200 fairly trouble free miles. I really only see a few things that could use attention.

Power- Not horsepower but torque. Ride a Wing or a Harley, they have serious grunt under 2000 rpm, the Wing redlines at 6000 and the Harley at 4500. My 2007 Wing would leave a red light with zero throttle, just let the clutch out at an idle. The Rotax needs more displacement, a totally revised powerband and different gearing. Personally, I think one reason the mileage (and hence the range) is so poor is because the engine is underpowered and is working its butt off to move this thing down the road. Make it about 1500cc's, loaf down the road at 3000 rpm at 70 mph, and I'd bet the mileage and range goes up.

Electronics- Make the required harness standard! Also, why on earth do I need to buy the CB radio (that I'll NEVER use) in order to be able to use a headset to listen to the radio?? Come on, Honda gives all that standard on the Wing!

Lastly, why on earth did it cost $326.14 for my 600 mile oil change? I just had a full service on the Cummins ISX in my bus, and even with all filters and 41 quarts of oil it cost less than that.

Your points are probably the ones that made me decide to wait. But then again for me waiting another 3-4 years before the design matures I may not be riding anymore.

I do ride two up and pull a trailer so power is important. My 2005 Wing with 42K miles has NEVER been in the shop. I've done all my own maintenance. It has never left me stranded. I get basically the same tire mileage I see reported on this site as the Spyder.

Many want better seat, better windshields, better wind control, etc. I have all that already on a bike that is virtually bullet-proof and many have over 250K miles on them.

Not trying to convince anybody. The thought of the Spyder is exciting and I think they are on the right track, eventually. I just decided I didn't want to buy another bike and spend thousands of dollars above the price of the bike to get what I already have.

Wish you all the best.

[Lamonster]

Your points are probably the ones that made me decide to wait. But then again for me waiting another 3-4 years before the design matures I may not be riding anymore.

I do ride two up and pull a trailer so power is important. My 2005 Wing with 42K miles has NEVER been in the shop. I've done all my own maintenance. It has never left me stranded. I get basically the same tire mileage I see reported on this site as the Spyder.

Many want better seat, better windshields, better wind control, etc. I have all that already on a bike that is virtually bullet-proof and many have over 250K miles on them.

Not trying to convince anybody. The thought of the Spyder is exciting and I think they are on the right track, eventually. I just decided I didn't want to buy another bike and spend thousands of dollars above the price of the bike to get what I already have.

Wish you all the best.

If you've been riding a Wing very long I'm sure you know who Fred Rau is. He rides two up and tows a trailer and he's a long time Wing rider that is now a convert to the Spyder. Click on the pic to read his blog

[Questions]

If you've been riding a Wing very long I'm sure you know who Fred Rau is. He rides two up and tows a trailer and he's a long time Wing rider that is now a convert to the Spyder. Click on the pic to read his blog

Yes, I've read/viewed his stuff along with yours also. Fred still has his Wing too, as he states! As stated before, at this point, it doesn't make sense to me to buy something that has less standard features that I desire and then spend tons more $ just to get what I already have. I can write a check today and buy a Spyder outright, but there comes a point of what makes the most financial sense, even though I realize we don't ride bikes because they are "practical" or necessarily "sensible"!

[CSX4350]

Don't misunderstand my desire for more power, once this engine gets the revs up it makes good power. I just think that a larger displacement engine with more low end grunt would be an improvement. For highway riding it is just fine as it is, roll on acceleration is more than adequate.

As far as cost how many thousands of dollars to Wing riders spend to modify their bikes??? One of the main reasons I got rid of my Wing is because I've broken my left knee 3 times and catching that bike at red lights was getting a bit worrisome, to be nice. I could have spent $20,000+ to have my Wing triked, or sell my Wing and buy the Spyder.

Also, if you've ridden a Wing trike it doesn't run like a regular Wing, the additional wind and physical drag detracts from the performance and mileage. A friend with an HD trike tells me the same thing, it doesn't perform nearly as well as it did before he had it triked. He has right at $65,000 in his trike. That makes me feel great about what I spent for mine, even with my wishes for improvements.

I do ride two up and pull a trailer so power is important. My 2005 Wing with 42K miles has NEVER been in the shop. I've done all my own maintenance. It has never left me stranded. I get basically the same tire mileage I see reported on this site as the Spyder.

Many want better seat, better windshields, better wind control, etc. I have all that already on a bike that is virtually bullet-proof and many have over 250K miles on them.

Not trying to convince anybody. The thought of the Spyder is exciting and I think they are on the right track, eventually. I just decided I didn't want to buy another bike and spend thousands of dollars above the price of the bike to get what I already have.

Wish you all the best.

[IWN2RYD]

Yes, I've read/viewed his stuff along with yours also. Fred still has his Wing too, as he states! As stated before, at this point, it doesn't make sense to me to buy something that has less standard features that I desire and then spend tons more $ just to get what I already have. I can write a check today and buy a Spyder outright, but there comes a point of what makes the most financial sense, even though I realize we don't ride bikes because they are "practical" or necessarily "sensible"!

Very good points....

My wife and I became very intrigued with the RS when first introduced... But life and desire to sit in the position you do made the purchase to fall into our "I'm agonna" list.

There is something to say about holding off until you cannot sleep at night and a high enough of your conversations turn to the "Item" you cannot get off your mind.

[fleet]

Already have 2 yellow 2008 RS's. Picking up my new silver RT w/ Audio on Friday ............. Beginning to think that I should give up my 1000.00 deposit since everyone says what I'm getting is a pokey, trouble laden, piece of crap . What do ya think ?

[dave01]

Already have 2 yellow 2008 RS's. Picking up my new silver RT w/ Audio on Friday ............. Beginning to think that I should give up my 1000.00 deposit since everyone says what I'm getting is a pokey, trouble laden, piece of crap . What do ya think ?

Just go and pick it up and send it to me. I would be happy to own another pokey, trouble laden, piece of crap . LOL

[ThreeWheels]

Already have 2 yellow 2008 RS's. Picking up my new silver RT w/ Audio on Friday ............. Beginning to think that I should give up my 1000.00 deposit since everyone says what I'm getting is a pokey, trouble laden, piece of crap . What do ya think ?

Honest ??
If you're being sarcastic,then we share your humor, go ahead and buy the RT.
If you're serious, then you are already thinking it's trouble. If anything should happen to go wrong, and I mean anything, no matter how small, like the first time you overfill the tank and smell gas, you will only convince yourself that you were right the first time. You should definitely pass and buy a Harley Davidson trike instead.

But, that's just my opinion, I could be wrong.

[Lamonster]

Added a few more things to my list so here's a bump.

[GypsyBill]

Other than the stuff on Lamonster's list, I want it to cool off enough here in south central Texas to get some riding done...

[docdoru]

Other than the stuff on Lamonster's list, I want it to cool off enough here in south central Texas to get some riding done...

Is this the new Remington 1911 in your avatar?

[curly]

dont have anything new to add, lots of people have posted some great ideas. Would like to 2nd a few suggestions:
Bluetooth, this is pretty much a standard in most cars now days, should be standard on a top of the line spyder.
The turn signal needs reworked, as many have mentioned it's kind of a pain to cancel.
I found the front end suspension to be finicky. Based on some of the threads here on SpyderLovers I was able to easily make the changes needed to make it a solid ride (simple things like tire pressure, adjusting the front/rear shocks). If I had not found this forum, I would likely have been returning the spyder, it was pretty flaky without those changes.

All that said, I'm having so much fun it's almost illegal. 7 weeks, 4k miles.

[GypsyBill]

Is this the new Remington 1911 in your avatar?

No, it is a STI Guardian (45 ACP). Does kinda look like the Remington in that pic tho...

[fastfraser]

Thanks for your updated post Lamont . Do you know something that we don't about the 2011 and can we hope to see some of your wish list on the new RTs ? Pretty sure I'm going to pull the trigger on a new 2011 RTS White when they come out . Love my SE5 but have spent a ton making it into a after market touring machine that will never match the RT !

[rogerb]

Agree with most of the upgrades mentioned. One thing that really bothers me is filling the last two gallons of gas at trickle speed. Due to the high cost of gas pumps are being set to pump faster making hard to trickle fill. Better venting would help.

[SocalT]

Thanks for your updated post Lamont . Do you know something that we don't about the 2011 and can we hope to see some of your wish list on the new RTs ? Pretty sure I'm going to pull the trigger on a new 2011 RTS White when they come out . Love my SE5 but have spent a ton making it into a after market touring machine that will never match the RT !

2011 Preview? Monday afternoon.........