CBC News - Winnipeg man parks 3 wheeled motor bike...

[xinu]

Was watching the local news tonight when a story was aired about a guy in Winnipeg who was complaining about safety and quality issues with his Spyder. I know that BRP has had several Spyder recalls over the years of production and to my knowledge all have been addressed. They also showed video of a Spyder on fire at the end of the segment just for icing on the cake drama.

I just purchased a new 2012 RSS last week after lots of research including the SL forum and a test ride. My conclusion was all major issues have been addressed and there was just as much risk purchasing a new Spyder as any other modern open air/wheel motor vehicle (motorcycle). I was disappointed that CBC decided to run this seemly biased story without more research and perspective from other ryders. The Boss was also watching the story and said 'you knew about this before you bought right?'. The whole thing just pissed me off.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/story/2013/08/16/mb-canam-spyder-motorbike-issues-iteam.html

[Oldmanzues]

It has been said many times in many ways so here is one: Never let the facts get in the way of a good story.
Or kind change the way it is presented.
A USSR newsperson comenting on a race. The American car finished next to last, while the USSR car finished second. He did not mention the fact there were only two cars in the race.
Oldmanzues

[SNOOPY]

You'd be surprised how many recalls every manufacturer in the world has each year.

Some, like Toyota, are very very good at hiding most of them.

[Yazz]

:welcome: That pisses me off too!

Think the guy in Winnipeg had an axe to grind with his dealership,

And CBC did what news stations do best, turn it into a Henny Penny "The sky is falling!" story.

Sheesh! :gaah:

[bruiser]

Wow. Quite an indictment for BRP and the Spyder. Researched Safecars.gov. Interesting reading. Not good PR that's for sure, especially in their home country.

[xinu]

I remember reading somewhere that Mike Holmes, who is well known in Canada for his home improvement TV shows where he fixes shoddy workmanship and structure design issues for unfortunate home owners that hooked up with crooked contractors, rydes a spectacular Spyder LT with trailer. I would think he would be the last person to purchase POS technology. I hope BRP is pushing their PR people to strengthen their image as a safe, trouble free and fun ryde.

[SpyderAnn01]

Welcome, I think you will really enjoy your 2012 RS despite what your local news may think.

[NancysToy]

The only real word I can think of to describe it is "irresponsible!" Summing up unrelated recalls, of which only a portion actually apply to the owner's Spyder, smelling fuel fumes with your nose a few inches from the atmospheric vent, brake failures that were unexplained and could readily have been for low fluid and the owner's failure to check it properly. Buyer's remorse at its worst...and journalism that manufatures its own news. It is a sad, sad world we live in!

[spyryder]

The only real word I can think of to describe it is "irresponsible!" Summing up unrelated recalls, of which only a portion actually apply to the owner's Spyder, smelling fuel fumes with your nose a few inches from the atmospheric vent, brake failures that were unexplained and could readily have been for low fluid and the owner's failure to check it properly. Buyer's remorse at its worst...and journalism that manufatures its own news. It is a sad, sad world we live in!

:agree: Sensationalism at it's worst. Shame on you CBC!!! :mad:

[ARtraveler]

I am also surprised that the station published such a story. There have been problems, but not all those problems on all :spyder2:'s.

[Buttsy]

One thing to remember the CBC is our government funded and operated national network. Since it is not hockey season, no real panic the 7 people that were watching most likely were not going to be Spyder owners in the future. I agree the article or segment was composed in a manner which reported one side of the saga. But one thing I would suggest is that I believe if BRP were to look back at their Spyder track record of performance and product launch and product redesign or even vendor quality control issues I think they would agree they have made more than 1 or 2 mistakes. When you make these mistakes you do open yourself up and your critics will attack. BRP needs to self reflect as every company should, appreciate where improvement is needed and then address the weak area's. Once fixed several years of being the "best of the best" will make the detractors disappear.

[grumpybob]

It has been said many times in many ways so here is one: Never let the facts get in the way of a good story.
Or kind change the way it is presented.
A USSR newsperson comenting on a race. The American car finished next to last, while the USSR car finished second. He did not mention the fact there were only two cars in the race.
Oldmanzues My dog took 2 first place ribbons this weekend, only him & another dog in each class. Both ribbons sure look great on the wall to anybody else that looks at them - to me not so much.

[Buttsy]

My dog took 2 first place ribbons this weekend, only him & another dog in each class. Both ribbons sure look great on the wall to anybody else that looks at them - to me not so much.

Congrats......................:roflblack: :roflblack:

[Flanker]

Good choice in rides! Though I'm biased..........................;)

[condorflysu]

:agree: Sensationalism at it's worst. Shame on you CBC!!! :mad:
That fellow in the interview was just seeking a refund, did not stress fixing any problems, he spoke about refunds more.

[Bob Denman]

:gaah:From now on; I'm not going ANYWHERE without a couple of bags of marshmallows!! :gaah: ;)
That :cus: crybaby is just looking for his 15 minutes...

[jerpinoy]

In a way CBC is doing us :spyder2:owners in the long run. Getting media attention might be one way to move things a bit faster. JMHO.

[rcturner]

I don't agree with the way this story was presented but most, if not all of the issues listed have been real for some Spyder owners. Over what seems like a very long time, BRP has addressed the issues. Some with success, some not so much. That said, none of these issues should ever have reached the consumer if BRP had done proper development, testing and qualification. Also, there is a great deal of talk on this forum about BRP and their indifferent attitude towards their customers. My personal experience with dealing directly with BRP would mirror the opinion that they are very arrogant and indifferent.

I have been quite happy with my 2012 RT with two exceptions. One issue was with the clutch not engaging on a very warm day and in a lot of stop and go traffic. The other was with their advertising and their refusal to take responsibly for what they has said.

Nothing will always be trouble free but most of the Spyder issues seem to be much more related to design deficiencies than assembly or dealer issues.

[ARtraveler]

That fellow in the interview was just seeking a refund, did not stress fixing any problems, he spoke about refunds more.

If memory serves (:roflblack:), he made two different statements about refunds.

:ani29:: BRP should take all these defective machines back

:ani29:: BRP should give everyone a refund of their money.

He was definately seeking a refund from BRP as opposed to getting any issues fixed. Just suprises me that the TV station went along with the piece.

[Bob Denman]

Did you guys notice who was in that video???
(hint: he's pretty well-known in here...)

[ARtraveler]

Did you guys notice who was in that video???
(hint: he's pretty well-known in here...)

I watched the video again--who are we talking about? The person taking the picture at the BRP Event fire?

[Bob Denman]

That's not the one that I'm thinking about... ;)

[ARtraveler]

That's not the one that I'm thinking about... ;)

:bbq::bbq::bbq: (seems appropriate here? :roflblack:)

[otter28169]

Good choice in rides! Though I'm biased..........................;)

Same Here, good idea on the ryde. Sounds to me like there is going to be another manufacturer rntering the game and maybe they need for BRP to have some bad press???? I know it sounds steep, but I bet I could get a news crew on it if I had a video of a businessman with his hair on fire, punching himself in the head in a vain attempt to put out the flames.

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

[daveinva]

You know what? Count me in the happy camp.

Every. Single. Day. on this forum we're reading owner complaints about the Spyder. While we can take some of them with a grain of salt-- and be happy for those, like me, who have never had a complaint to speak of-- there are obviously issues with the Spyder. Minor ones, mostly, but some that may, MAY, be major. Like, fire-producing major.

So, what do you think is going to get BRP to take action? Gripes on an online forum? Or old-fashioned muckraking press?

Sensationalist it may be-- what "journalism" isn't these days?-- I guarantee that stuff like this gets more attention from BRP than most anything we have ever written here. *No* company can afford bad media like this, nor will they if they can take steps to avoid it in the future.

I love my Spyder. But I want *everyone* to love their Spyder like I do. Seems to me that can only be accomplished when BRP takes the most serious complaints seriously.

[Bob Denman]

"'Nuther" hint:
"I can't even turn it."
And look for the signature farkle... :shocked:

[wftb]

i have encountered two problems that have not been recalled and i have documented them on this forum .one involved a fuel leak and the other was the total failure of the PLASTIC gears that power our oil pumps .only 7400 km on the bike .i really like the spyder but BRP is really dropping the ball here .and why dont we get recall notices in the mail ? that is what car manufacturers are required to do .i give my VIN # to the dealer and he runs it and all he ever says is no outstanding recalls .the brake pedal one worries me because i was never near a dealer when that was issued .i have owned a new suzuki bike , 4 honda bikes , a honda outboard and 2 suzuki outboards and they never saw the dealer after i took possession .people expect the odd recall but the quality level is just not there .the phantom CEL's , bad oil pressure senders etc just dont happen on modern japanese bikes .yes , this CBC article is geared toward sensationalism but these problems are on going things .spyder sales , according to the dealer i got mine from , have doubled every year since the intro .this bike is a smart idea , but if quality does not improve , this bike will become just another interesting failure .if honda , yamaha , suzuki or kawasaki build a version of the spyder , BRP will be out of the road bike business .

[GeoffCee]

The only real word I can think of to describe it is "irresponsible!" Summing up unrelated recalls, of which only a portion actually apply to the owner's Spyder, smelling fuel fumes with your nose a few inches from the atmospheric vent, brake failures that were unexplained and could readily have been for low fluid and the owner's failure to check it properly. Buyer's remorse at its worst...and journalism that manufatures its own news. It is a sad, sad world we live in!

You make good points, as usual Scotty, BUT the demo Spyder fire was real enough and it bothers me some, (I meant the Spyder was demo, not the fire)!

For BRP to say the cause of the fire is unknown and is under investigation while at the same time insisting that Spyders are safe to ride sounds like complacency. Not until the fire has been forensically investigated and the cause determined will they be in a position to claim Spyders are "safe".

That demo trike had just been ridden according to the report I saw earlier and was awaiting another rider. Imagine if that trike had been sold, ridden and parked up in the new owner's garage, the consequences of a fire like that could be tragic. As you know, even with a fire extinguisher on hand it is nigh on impossible to get to the seat of the flames, there is too much bolted-on tupperware to get in the way. As the video shows, it's a highly combustible machine.

Following this I now leave my RT outside until it has cooled down and only later do I push it into the garage. I've reached an age where I no longer believe that bad stuff only happens to other people. That's why. :sour:

[NancysToy]

You make good points, as usual Scotty, BUT the demo Spyder fire was real enough and it bothers me some, (I meant the Spyder was demo, not the fire)!

For BRP to say the cause of the fire is unknown and is under investigation while at the same time insisting that Spyders are safe to ride sounds like complacency. Not until the fire has been forensically investigated and the cause determined will they be in a position to claim Spyders are "safe".

That demo trike had just been ridden according to the report I saw earlier and was awaiting another rider. Imagine if that trike had been sold, ridden and parked up in the new owner's garage, the consequences of a fire like that could be tragic. As you know, even with a fire extinguisher on hand it is nigh on impossible to get to the seat of the flames, there is too much bolted-on tupperware to get in the way. As the video shows, it's a highly combustible machine.

Following this I now leave my RT outside until it has cooled down and only later do I push it into the garage. I've reached an age where I no longer believe that bad stuff only happens to other people. That's why. :sour:

I'm not downplaying the fires or the DPS failures in the least...I am just protesting the sensationalism with which they were reported. The owner in question did not report having many of the problems used as ammunition in the feature. It was a stretch, and it was probably not convincing to a person of moderate intelligence. They would have done better to forget the disgruntled owner and concentrate on the fire story...and maybe even the incidence of recalls if they really felt strongly about them...although only a couple were actually widespread.

[Bob Denman]

Was this crybaby a member in here??

[shelbydave]

Did you guys notice who was in that video???
(hint: he's pretty well-known in here...)

You speaking of the yellow spyder with the IPS key? That voice does sound familiar...

[Bob Denman]

NOW you're getting close! :2thumbs:

[shelbydave]

NOW you're getting close! :2thumbs:

Have you gone through his videos to find that sound bite?

[Bob Denman]

No I haven't... :opps:
I was kind of hoping that he'd post it for us, and add some proper context to his comment... :thumbup:

[GeoffCee]

I am just protesting the sensationalism with which they were reported.

It seems that sensationalism and journalism in these modern times go hand in hand but it's far from being a new phenomenon. We once got chatting to a photo-journalist for a couple of hours in a pub. It was a long time back, maybe in the 60's. Neither of us can remember his name, but we clearly remember him saying that he kept a partly burned teddy bear in his car together with a couple of children's shoes of different sizes. If he was reporting on a fatal house fire involving children he would place the blackened bear in the garden of the house before taking its photo. A road accident involving a child would show where it had happened and he included a child's shoe in the foreground of the shot.

We thought he was adding to the pain and misery of the people involved but he brushed our misgivings aside, the human angle was what his editor wanted and a couple of simple props kept him employed.

There is plenty of sadness in a photo of a burned out Spyder without the need to add props to it. :(

[finless]

"'Nuther" hint:
"I can't even turn it."
And look for the signature farkle... :shocked:

Yes I know who your talking about as when I was researching spyder before I bought, I saw that youtube video.
It's Lamonster's video showing his spyder would turn easy on cement but not asphalt! That's a really old video from like 2009 as I recall.

Bob

[Bob Denman]

Ding :2thumbs:!! Winner winner; Chicken Dinner!!!! :yes::yes::yes: :firstplace: :ohyea::ohyea::ohyea:

[ARtraveler]

Ding :2thumbs:!! Winner winner; Chicken Dinner!!!! :yes::yes::yes: :firstplace: :ohyea::ohyea::ohyea:

I had a feeling that's where this was going--but was not "dead on" sure.

[Bob Denman]

Watch that video one last time; when you see the IPS and the really well-farkled up dash & bars... :thumbup:

[condorflysu]

That fellow in the interview was just seeking a refund, did not stress fixing any problems, he spoke about refunds more.
No refund but it looks like a recall and fix are insight.

[Bob Denman]

Yes... for all of you Canadians! :thumbup:
We're still waiting down here... :gaah: