New to the Spyder...

[fotofrank]

I work at a motorcycle dealership and I have the priviledge of selling the Can Am Spyder. I also have the opportunity to ride Spyders occassionally. I took an RS home for the weekend to get familiar with it. Overall it was a great ride. The more I ride Spyders the more I like them.

Anyway, I took the RS on a Toys for Tots ride Sunday. Three things I noticed about this Spyder. 1. The cowling between my knees got pretty hot during the ride. 2. As the motor got hot, at operating temp, I guess, the motor began to miss. 3. This is the worst: the rear brake howled something aweful.

When I brought the RS back to work today, I took it back to service to find out about these squalks. Has anyone else noticed anything like these things I have described? I want to know as much as I can so I can sell them with confidence. Especially to new riders.

FotoFrank

[zrc]

I am new to the Spyder too, and I have not seen these issues given that I love my spyder correctly! I have not have the heat issue, and I have not had any brake noise except on the 2 occasions I have had the "opportunity" to stop abruptly and bark tires with the ABS. The missing however, I had for the first time this weekend, and I was concerned until I remembered being low on gas as I was leaving the house and adding 2 gallons of low grade fuel to the tank, once I put more high test / known good gas into my fabulous machine I had no more missing. So I think my missing was a gas related issue!

Hope my limited experience helps :)

[Bob Denman]

They do tend to blow a little heat back at you... http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/28/28_1_10.gif There's lots of relatively inexpensive fixes for it; so it's not a deal-breaker on its own.
Rear brake noise: Gen 3 pads seem to do the best job of making your :f_spider: stop sounding like you've backed over the family cat! http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_22_15.gif
Have the shop double-check to make sure that the rear pads are moving freely on the pins! :thumbup:

[fotofrank]

Well, this Spyder has almost 12,000 miles, so the pads might need to be replaced. The heat on from the cowling isn't too bad. Probably more insulation in the area is in order. As for the missing, I filled the tank with BP 93 octane before the ride so I didn't expect any firing issues.

FotoFrank

[fastfraser]

No question about it the Spyder loves the cooler temps. As stated above lots of fixes out there for the problems listed in your post. SpyderPops Fan Can for the heat, O2 modifier for the back fire on deceleration and Gen 3 brake pads for the brake squeal .

[NancysToy]

The engine should not miss when it gets hot, although if an aftermarket exhaust or maybe even a Kindle exhaust was fitted...especially in conjunction with an improved air filter, it would be possible. Sounds like the Spyder you rode needs some service or some tuning. The squealing brakes are a known problem. The newest Spyders with the Gen 3 brake pads do this much less. Using the brakes hard a few times helps, as does properly breaking in the pads. A tech can deglaze the pads if necessary, clean the calipers, and adjust the parking brake to help reduce squealing. All disc brakes squeal under certain conditions, though. As to the heat from the cowl, it is common, but less noticeable at speed. Wearing proper riding gear helps a lot.

[johnnyg]

I work at a motorcycle dealership and I have the priviledge of selling the Can Am Spyder. I also have the opportunity to ride Spyders occassionally. I took an RS home for the weekend to get familiar with it. Overall it was a great ride. The more I ride Spyders the more I like them.

Anyway, I took the RS on a Toys for Tots ride Sunday. Three things I noticed about this Spyder. 1. The cowling between my knees got pretty hot during the ride. 2. As the motor got hot, at operating temp, I guess, the motor began to miss. 3. This is the worst: the rear brake howled something aweful.

When I brought the RS back to work today, I took it back to service to find out about these squalks. Has anyone else noticed anything like these things I have described? I want to know as much as I can so I can sell them with confidence. Especially to new riders.

FotoFrank

FotoFrank if you have any question, maybe you could show up this Saturday.
When
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Time
12:00pm until 9:30pm




Where
Start point Central Florida Powersports, 2575 N. Orange Blossom Trail, Kissimmee, FL






Description
SRA - Florida Coast to Coast Chapter Road Captain, Johnnyg, has prepared a "Holiday Meet, Greet and Eat Dinner and Spectacle of Lights Ryde", which will originate at Central Florida Powersports in Kissimmee, FL at noon, December 17, 2011. View their website below
www.mypo...wersports.com (http://www.mypowersports.com/)
SRA Florida Coast to Coast Chapter and Central Florida Powersports are co sponsors of this event. Central Florida Powersports will have door prizes available for the lucky winners.
After the door prizes have been presented, Johnnyg will guide us traveling back roads to PizzAmore' in Mt. Dora, where dinner reservations have been made for indoor as well as outdoor dining with an extensive menu of great food at reasonable prices. View their website below
www.youlovepizza.com (http://www.youlovepizza.com/).
After dinner a walk and ryde is planned around Mt. Dora to view the Christmas Holiday Decorations for which Mt. Dora is noted. This stacks up to be a great day and evening ryde. This event involved a small group last year but was a big hit.
All ryders are welcome so come join in the holiday fun

[wyliec]

I have a 2008 GS and at about 9,000 miles the cowl used to get so hot I couldn't place my hand on it. Changing the Y gaskets solved that problem. Of course, you will notice some heat on your right foot, which is normal.

My rear brake used to howl like a banshee. I now have Gen 3 back there and still get a little howl when going in reverse.

[arntufun]

I work at a motorcycle dealership and I have the priviledge of selling the Can Am Spyder. I also have the opportunity to ride Spyders occassionally. I took an RS home for the weekend to get familiar with it. Overall it was a great ride. The more I ride Spyders the more I like them.

Anyway, I took the RS on a Toys for Tots ride Sunday. Three things I noticed about this Spyder. 1. The cowling between my knees got pretty hot during the ride. 2. As the motor got hot, at operating temp, I guess, the motor began to miss. 3. This is the worst: the rear brake howled something aweful.

When I brought the RS back to work today, I took it back to service to find out about these squalks. Has anyone else noticed anything like these things I have described? I want to know as much as I can so I can sell them with confidence. Especially to new riders.

FotoFrank



I agree with Wyliec, the Y gaskets will most likely take care of the heat (except right foot heat) and also the sputtering of the engine. :thumbup:

[fotofrank]

Well, Johnnyg, I'd like to go to your event but Saturday is the busiest day of the week. Gotta be at the dealership in hopes of selling something.

Thanks to all for your input on these issues. I passed the info up the chain of command. We'll see what happens.

In the meantime keep the three wheels rolling...