comparison test of 2013 rs and 2012 rssh .. 2013 rs is gone

[gila river rafter]

After a month and a half of ownership ,love the 2012 rss but have no trust in 2013 rs. The 2012 has been reliable, fun to ride , and my wife loves it! The last straw on the 2013 was the sway bar bushings worn out at 900miles! followed by three weeks of back ordered on bushings to get it back on the road.( one bushing shipped the other backordered again).I wont list the issues with the 2013 rs but the 2012 was quicker, less vibration at speed,and handles beautifully. Just heard too many, thats just the way 2013 models are from the dealership while they called BRP to find out what was wrong and then BRP referring me back to the dealer .The 2013 had ( gas fumes from day one,play in handle bars, ball joints were bad followed by sway bar bushings)..At any rate love the concept of the spyder but felt that knowledgeable dealers in this area were few and far between(AZ),also dont want to do R and D for BRP and their newly redesigned spyder. respectfully ,Gila River Rafter

[Flanker]

Yikes! Glad I bought a holdover '12 RSS!

[BajaRon]

After a month and a half of ownership ,love the 2012 rss but have no trust in 2013 rs. The 2012 has been reliable, fun to ride , and my wife loves it! The last straw on the 2013 was the sway bar bushings worn out at 900miles! followed by three weeks of back ordered on bushings to get it back on the road.( one bushing shipped the other backordered again).I wont list the issues with the 2013 rs but the 2012 was quicker, less vibration at speed,and handles beautifully. Just heard too many, thats just the way 2013 models are from the dealership while they called BRP to find out what was wrong and then BRP referring me back to the dealer .The 2013 had ( gas fumes from day one,play in handle bars, ball joints were bad followed by sway bar bushings)..At any rate love the concept of the spyder but felt that knowledgeable dealers in this area were few and far between(AZ),also dont want to do R and D for BRP and their newly redesigned spyder. respectfully ,Gila River Rafter

Sorry to hear of your issues. I really find it hard to believe that the sway bar bushings were worn out at only 900 miles. I wonder if maybe the wrong bushings were installed at the factory. I just don't see how they could possibly wear that quickly. The new bushing design should outlast the previous versions. If this was a wear problem then there would be a lot of people with worn out bushings by now.

I also find it hard to believe that the bushings were back-ordered. I've ordered several bushings sets and they all came in right away, no problems. And really, your dealer didn't have a 2013 on the floor that he could take a bushing off of to get you back on the road?

The engine is the same RT version in all 2013 Spyders so you're going to get a bit less HP and a bit more torque. Plus your 2012 is broken in and the 2013 was not. Once the 2013 has some miles on it the power should increase a bit.

The re-engineered suspension has definitely improved the geometry for handling over the 2012's and previous, though the sway bar and stock shocks may need upgrading to achieve the full potential.

The ball joint issue has really given the latest Spyder offerings a black eye but BRP has stepped up to the plate with a fix. I think BRP did adequate R&D on the 2013's. My guess is that their suppliers let them down on a few critical parts (been there, done that myself).

Sometimes the prototype is great but the production product does not meet the same specs. Like the picture of your Big Mac compared to the real thing. Still, it is BRP's responsibility to hold their suppliers to spec and I'm sure that did happen. Just a bit late.

Hopefully, yours will be a rare experience. Enjoy your 2012! :thumbup:

[BikerDoc]

I had a 2013 RT Loaner that I drove 920 miles last week.. Frankly the handling qualities of the 13 are horrible when compared to my 2012 and even my 2010

[Chupaca]

BajaRon

:agree: I think to many go into the 2013's looking for problems because of the publicity...not giving them a chance..but then many dealers aren't helping the issue...:dontknow::dontknow:

[otter28169]

People used to complain about the "first generation" spyders too. I think a lot of it is in the rider's riding style. I tend to treat my 2012 rs-s like a hy-per sled. I am very active in the saddle and enjoy the torque when I power out of the corners. If I try to ride it like my motorcycle, or drive it like a car I find that the handling is suspect at best. With new geometry in the suspension, there is most likely going to be a learning curve for the handling characteristics. But this is only one man's opinion.

Just sayin'............

[BajaRon]

BajaRon

:agree: I think to many go into the 2013's looking for problems because of the publicity...not giving them a chance..but then many dealers aren't helping the issue...:dontknow::dontknow:

:agree: but I think this explains only part of the problem. With some upgrades to the suspension I think people are going to be very happy with handling. If you compare the 2013's with a previous model that has sway bar / shock upgrades there will be disappointment. But with the same upgrades the 2013's should outperform previous models.

Time will tell....:popcorn:

[gila river rafter]

Sorry to hear of your issues. I really find it hard to believe that the sway bar bushings were worn out at only 900 miles. I wonder if maybe the wrong bushings were installed at the factory. I just don't see how they could possibly wear that quickly. The new bushing design should outlast the previous versions. If this was a wear problem then there would be a lot of people with worn out bushings by now.

I also find it hard to believe that the bushings were back-ordered. I've ordered several bushings sets and they all came in right away, no problems. And really, your dealer didn't have a 2013 on the floor that he could take a bushing off of to get you back on the road?

The engine is the same RT version in all 2013 Spyders so you're going to get a bit less HP and a bit more torque. Plus your 2012 is broken in and the 2013 was not. Once the 2013 has some miles on it the power should increase a bit.

The re-engineered suspension has definitely improved the geometry for handling over the 2012's and previous, though the sway bar and stock shocks may need upgrading to achieve the full potential.

The ball joint issue has really given the latest Spyder offerings a black eye but BRP has stepped up to the plate with a fix. I think BRP did adequate R&D on the 2013's. My guess is that their suppliers let them down on a few critical parts (been there, done that myself).

Sometimes the prototype is great but the production product does not meet the same specs. Like the picture of your Big Mac compared to the real thing. Still, it is BRP's responsibility to hold their suppliers to spec and I'm sure that did happen. Just a bit late.

Hopefully, yours will be a rare experience. Enjoy your 2012! :thumbup:actually both can ams were new at time of purchase. Gila

[gila river rafter]

BajaRon

:agree: I think to many go into the 2013's looking for problems because of the publicity...not giving them a chance..but then many dealers aren't helping the issue...:dontknow::dontknow:
I had no idea that the balljoints needed replacing on the 2013 model until I was told that it couldn't be delivered on the day I purchased it.I agree that some people are natural complainers,however, I bought the bike to ride with my wife,and had no idea that the 2013 had negative publicity or for that matter was that much different than the 2012 model. Gila

[Flanker]

People used to complain about the "first generation" spyders too. I think a lot of it is in the rider's riding style. I tend to treat my 2012 rs-s like a hy-per sled. I am very active in the saddle and enjoy the torque when I power out of the corners. If I try to ride it like my motorcycle, or drive it like a car I find that the handling is suspect at best. With new geometry in the suspension, there is most likely going to be a learning curve for the handling characteristics. But this is only one man's opinion.

Just sayin'............ Same experience on my '12 RSS. Another potential parts source for the OP; BRP's Spyder web site. I ordered some spare T 30 torx screws for my bodywork via this means. Needless to say; no discount on parts prices and they stuck it to me on S & H too....................but the parts came through quite quickly. Good luck! http://parts.spyder.brp.com/Index.aspx?s1=hliuvf7hmjehulua8ggf480960&catalog_id=0&language_id=1&siteid=1

[Sarge707]

I,m hoping the 2013,s don,t sell so Great cause I might get a Killer :hun:trade in deal on my GS for a Base ST in "November!":yes:

[BajaRon]

actually both can ams were new at time of purchase. Gila

Well then you have a better comparative situation that I do. I'm more going on specs and geometry, which should work out to certain real world realities. I wonder if the setup on the 2013 was correct.


I had no idea that the balljoints needed replacing on the 2013 model until I was told that it couldn't be delivered on the day I purchased it.I agree that some people are natural complainers,however, I bought the bike to ride with my wife,and had no idea that the 2013 had negative publicity or for that matter was that much different than the 2012 model. Gila

The more I see the more I wonder about your dealership. You'd think any decent salesman would regale the advances made to the 2013 (as there are actual, real improvements). But then if he's trying to sell you both a 2012 and a 2013 he may want you to think they are the same. Still, a bit of honesty would be nice, if he actually knew there was a difference.

I'd make a lousy salesman, I suppose.

[Havasu Rider]

Gila, Are you using the Spyder dealer on the NW side of Tucson or the one on the east side? Have heard the one on the East side is the better one.

[jthornton]

The more I see the more I wonder about your dealership. You'd think any decent salesman would regale the advances made to the 2013 (as there are actual, real improvements). But then if he's trying to sell you both a 2012 and a 2013 he may want you to think they are the same. Still, a bit of honesty would be nice, if he actually knew there was a difference.

I'd make a lousy salesman, I suppose.

My salesman was honest he said "I'm not sure of the exact differences. I think they have different brakes but not sure about the rest."

I'm like you Ron, I'd know the differences... and I'm a lousy salesman.

JT

[gila river rafter]

Gila, Are you using the Spyder dealer on the NW side of Tucson or the one on the east side? Have heard the one on the East side is the better one.
yes the west side store, I had purchased bikes there before,over the years.I had bought parts and accessories from the east side store but never had any dealings or work done on my bikes there. I do know they are owned by the same people as is a harley dealership here in tucson.

[gila river rafter]

[QUOTE=BajaRon;632372]Well then you have a better comparative situation that I do. I'm more going on specs and geometry, which should work out to certain real world realities. I wonder if the setup on the 2013 was correct.



The more I see the more I wonder about your dealership. You'd think any decent salesman would regale the advances made to the 2013 (as there are actual, real improvements). But then if he's trying to sell you both a 2012 and a 2013 he may want you to think they are the same. Still, a bit of honesty would be nice, if he actually knew there was a difference.

I'd make a lousy salesman, I suppose.[/QUOTE He did tell me the front end geometry had been changed on the 2013 .But nothing much else.Also that the2012 came with the fox shocks.]