RS Problems to new owner- Any help appreciated!

[mcaccamise]

I have read your starting sequence and you have said twice the red kill switch is off it should be in the on position than mode and start button pushed. Make sure the red kill switch is in the on position NOT off before starting.

[plmilligan1968]

I have read your starting sequence and you have said twice the red kill switch is off it should be in the on position than mode and start button pushed. Make sure the red kill switch is in the on position NOT off before starting.

Kill switch is most definitely on (down position) not moved at all. Ignition on, mode button pushed once, then ignition. Click and no turn-over at all.
I am hoping and guessing that it is a goosed battery. I will find out on Monday, it's a gutter as the weather this weekend is perfect biking weather, bright, sunny and reasonably warm. Just no firing bike. Hopefully on Monday the new battery will get me bike mobile again.

Cheers
Paul M

[Silvervette05]

Reading everything in the post, IMO it could be a dead short in the battery.

[plmilligan1968]

Reading everything in the post, IMO it could be a dead short in the battery.

Hi all

The new battery arrived today and I connected it up and tried to fire her up and nothing but a click again. I fully expected the bike to start after replacing the battery.

The dash lights up the needles rise and fall. I click the mode button and hit the ignition switch and nothing but a loud click. When she clicks all the lights on the dash dim out. Could it be a fuse ? I notice the main fuse one on the left side is much larger than the others and therefore not swappable. Is it ok to switch main fuse 2 with the fan fuse ? are they the same? (its a 2010 RS).

Any other suggestions to try ?? I have only had this bike a little over a week and I am very disappointed that a problem like this has set in already and just want to ride it. There is no dealer on the Island where I live and it will be a very costly exercise shipping the dead bike to a dealer in mainland UK even before he starts looking at it.

Thanks in advance.
Paul M

[quickster47]

I am beginning to think you could have a bad starter solenoid or even the starter itself is actually bad. Especially after the way you described the lights as going dim when trying to start her up.

Carl

[plmilligan1968]

I am beginning to think you could have a bad starter solenoid or even the starter itself is actually bad. Especially after the way you described the lights as going dim when trying to start her up.

Carl

Thanks for your reply Carl.

It is very strange as I rode her back on Island 530 miles no problems. The next morning I try and start her up and and she won't start at all. I don't get it?

Where is the starter/solenoid located? Just in case there is a lose connection ?

If it was the starter or solenoid would the bike throw any codes?

Thanks
Cheers
Paul M

[quickster47]

I doubt that it would throw any codes for that type of problem.

And since I do not have a GS or RS I can not tell you where the starter solenoid is located on your bike. But I am betting it might be close the the battery.

Carl

[DragonLorD]

take a video, even on your phone about what you doing and post a link here - fastest problem solving ever
i bet its something small and silly
also check if your new battery came fully charged, install it and tight poles before you attempt to do anything else
hurry up

[boborgera]

.


Where is the starter/solenoid located? Just in case there is a lose connection ?


Thanks
Cheers
Paul M

The solenoid is is next to the battery, And if memory serves me well, and just to the left,
There is a heavy red wire from the battery to the solenoid....
Usually when you hit the start button and hear a loud click/ing it's the battery ,bad cell...

[wyliec]

When you press the M (mode) button does the scrolling message go away and stay or does it come back?

[plmilligan1968]

When you press the M (mode) button does the scrolling message go away and stay or does it come back?

Wyliec, it goes away and stays away.

The battery replaced and charged, fuses swapped out, battery connections clean & tight, battery ground clean & tight. NO start just click. Here is a video showing what is happening. It looks like a solenoid or starter. Does anyone have any idea how easy these are to replace and how much they cost. I am deliberating on shipping the bike off Island to a dealer in the UK or buy and replace these parts?

Please watch the video and any further advice would be much appreciated! Thanks to everyone who has responded, you are very kind indeed and the help is much appreciated!

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9Tc...it?usp=sharing

With kind regards
Paul Milligan

[NancysToy]

Your solenoid is obviously OK. You can hear the click. It could be failing to pass any current, but I doubt it. Checking for voltage at the starter end of the cable while trying the switch would confirm it. Looks like a seized engine or a bad starter. BTW, your code check procedure appears to be faulty. The display should read "No Active Fault Code" or show the fault codes sequentially if the procedure is done correctly. Remember that you have to be in the "Total Hours" display before you push the buttons. Don't expect a fault code with this problem, however.

[Neez]

Since you seem to have tried the obvious cures, I should relate my troubles ,which were similar. My 2008 GS-SE5, when fairly new, refused to start so I had it towed to the dealership. After trying the obvious things, they replaced the battery. No cure. Then they replaced the starter. Still no cure. They finally discovered that the bearings in the starter drive train were too tight, and they replaced these on warrantee at no cost to me. That cured the problem, and I have had no grief with it since. The mechanic said that it was a rare occurrence but it does occasionally happen. PS- they also bore the cost of the replaced battery and starter and the tow.

[plmilligan1968]

Since you seem to have tried the obvious cures, I should relate my troubles ,which were similar. My 2008 GS-SE5, when fairly new, refused to start so I had it towed to the dealership. After trying the obvious things, they replaced the battery. No cure. Then they replaced the starter. Still no cure. They finally discovered that the bearings in the starter drive train were too tight, and they replaced these on warrantee at no cost to me. That cured the problem, and I have had no grief with it since. The mechanic said that it was a rare occurrence but it does occasionally happen. PS- they also bore the cost of the replaced battery and starter and the tow.

It sure looks like the starter motor has died.

I now have to find the best method of getting the Spyder back to a dealer on the Mainland, an expensive exercise. While it is there I will get some mods installed to make it worth the journey.

I only had her on the Island for 2 days before this trouble. It seems I will be without a ride for another couple of weeks. I sure hope I have more luck when she returns, or my Spyder ownership will be short and expensive.

Now where is that bottle of wine :-(

Cheers
Paul M

[boborgera]

It sure looks like the starter motor has died.

I now have to find the best method of getting the Spyder back to a dealer on the Mainland, an expensive exercise. While it is there I will get some mods installed to make it worth the journey.

I only had her on the Island for 2 days before this trouble. It seems I will be without a ride for another couple of weeks. I sure hope I have more luck when she returns, or my Spyder ownership will be short and expensive.

Now where is that bottle of wine :-(

Cheers
Paul M

Usually when a starter gos bad it will spin but not engage the fly wheel.
I replaced many starters on cars [Never on a bike/trike] over the years, And most times the bendix spring,
Would weaken/brake and just spin the starter gear..

[Explorer]

The suspense is killing me. Have you found the cause of the problem?

[plmilligan1968]

The suspense is killing me. Have you found the cause of the problem?

Hi Explorer

The bike is still off the road but the good news is an engineer from one of the dealerships in the UK should be flying over to the Island on Friday. It certainly looks like the starter motor has died, the engineer is bringing a starter motor with him. To make it worth while I am also having him fit a few mods (Juicebox, Two Brother Twin Exhaust, High airlow air filter, sports windshield and floorboards). Of course all this will mean nothing if he can't get it started but all things point to the starter motor.

It is going to be a costly exercise considering I have only ridden the bike for 4 days prior to it breaking down. I have owned the Spyder for 19 days and only been able to ride it for 4 of them. Even though I will part with some hard earned cash on Friday/Saturday, Hopefully will be riding again with a modified Spyder looking and performing better than when I got it. That will put a smile back on my long face :-)

I will keep you posted and also upload some photos of the mods once they are done.

Cheers
Paul M..

[plmilligan1968]

Hi all

It's been a long while since I was on Spyderlovers & updated you all on my RS problem.

The journey has been a long a one. If you remember my newly acquired RS would not start, all the obvious checks were undertaken (battery, earthing cables, starter motor, solenoid etc), but still nothing.

So I drained the oil and it was black (not a good sign), so I pulled the oil filter and it was full of filings (a very bad sign). So I got the RS shipped out to a dealer to take a look.

Before I bought the Spyder (with 12k miles), it had recently had a service undertaken. One of the items replaced was the clutch plates. Yes you guessed correctly, the clutch plates were fitted incorrectly and they completely blew, the clutch plate pieces jamming the cam chain & sprockets.

Needless to say I was gutted as I knew the fix was going to be major leaving me Spyderless for many weeks as well as very expensive.

The Spyder has been away the whole time and I only got it back last weekend. While it was being fixed I took the opportunity to have a fair few mods installed (K&N air filter, juicebox pro, two bros twin carbon fibre exhaust, mini bafflers, suspension upgrade, ultra sports windshield, Rivco driver footboards, IPS key).

Since getting it back I drove 400 miles home and have driven another 200 since & she hasn't missed a beat.

It's been painful & expensive but I now have my Red RS back and I have a smile on my face (at last).

I have been very unlucky, but time, money & patience has paid off. My Spyder is now faster, louder, better looking and even more fun.

Thanks to everyone who helped with my initial help plea, it was much appreciated.

Happy festive season to you all.
I have the best Christmas present of all, my Spyder back :-)

Photos of the mess of clutch plates and my restored & modified Spyder.
https://drive.google.com/folderview?...UU&usp=sharing

Cheers
Paul

[BajaRon]

Hi all

It's been a long while since I was on Spyderlovers & updated you all on my RS problem.

The journey has been a long a one. If you remember my newly acquired RS would not start, all the obvious checks were undertaken (battery, earthing cables, starter motor, solenoid etc), but still nothing.

So I drained the oil and it was black (not a good sign), so I pulled the oil filter and it was full of filings (a very bad sign). So I got the RS shipped out to a dealer to take a look.

Before I bought the Spyder (with 12k miles), it had recently had a service undertaken. One of the items replaced was the clutch plates. Yes you guessed correctly, the clutch plates were fitted incorrectly and they completely blew, the clutch plate pieces jamming the cam chain & sprockets.

Needless to say I was gutted as I knew the fix was going to be major leaving me Spyderless for many weeks as well as very expensive.

The Spyder has been away the whole time and I only got it back last weekend. While it was being fixed I took the opportunity to have a fair few mods installed (K&N air filter, juicebox pro, two bros twin carbon fibre exhaust, mini bafflers, suspension upgrade, ultra sports windshield, Rivco driver footboards, IPS key).

Since getting it back I drove 400 miles home and have driven another 200 since & she hasn't missed a beat.

It's been painful & expensive but I now have my Red RS back and I have a smile on my face (at last).

I have been very unlucky, but time, money & patients has paid off. My Spyder is now faster, louder, better looking and even more fun.

Thanks to everyone who helped with my initial help plea, it was much appreciated.

Happy festive season to you all.
I have the best Christmas present of all, my Spyder back :-)

Photos of the mess of clutch plates and my restored & modified Spyder.
https://drive.google.com/folderview?...UU&usp=sharing

Cheers
Paul

I have heard of this before. I'm told all of the Can-Am ATV's have their clutch plates installed in a similar fashion. But the Spyder is different. Mechanics (that tend to know everything) simply install the Spyder clutch as they are accustomed. It isn't until they blow one up that they check the install instructions and discover that they've done it wrong.

[Riker]

Didn't notice it anywhere.. and we are pressing the brake ? I know simple, but has happened... sorry if mentioned..

[spydaman60]

nice looking ride man!! sorry to hear of your misfortune, but the key thing is you're back on the road and rolling again!!! good luck bro, and karma will take care of the seller!!!

[Bob Denman]

on finally being ready for some "Wind Therapy"!

[napper39]

i sorry my brother of all your trouble and glad you reported back of the fix,i hope now you have many years of fun riding sorry my in put didnt help,now ride like the wind and have fun you sure have erned it.

[PistonBlown]

Pleased to hear you're back on the road but can't believe the damage to the clutch plates shown in your photo's. All I can say is thank goodness it didn't happen while you were riding because that would have locked the back wheel up for sure.

Anyway just to congratulate you on an excellent colour choice - Red and Black is the colours for this area of New Zealand (Canterbury/Christchurch) and the team colours of our rugby team the mighty Crusaders:-) Also really like the exhaust and windscreen.

Have fun,

Jos

[plmilligan1968]

Thanks Jos, much appreciated.

Yes, I was lucky that the debris in the engine didn't do more damage. 52 engine parts were replaced, most precautionary (16 sets of bearings alone).

I was very glad the clutch plates blew while the engine was warming up and not when I was ploughing down a motorway at 70mph plus. That could have been ugly.

I am a Manchester United supporter, so Red & Black were my only colours.

Thanks for your help & great communication. It's great to have more experienced Spyder owners to converse with.

Here's to 3 wheels in the breeze!
Keep well & ride safely (but not slowly)!

Paul M