Cruise control problem

[C3517C]

This is strange but here it is. Over the past few months I noticed my cruise control (or maybe just the switch itself) was getting finicky. If I tried to step up the speed or drop it down it would usually shut off the cruise. It got a little worse with time. Now I have to ride for about 20 miles before the switch will hold the bike on cruise at all. When I try to turn the cruise on, it will flash the green "on" for a split second, then turn off. Holding it in position for several seconds does not help. However, after about 20 miles of warm up, it works. This makes no sense to me but yet it happens time and time again. I've been testing. Its a 2011 RT-S. I've had it for 4 years and it was fine for the first 3. If anyone has experienced this or has information I would be grateful. Thanks

[Bfromla]

Switch could very well be a problem but check your rpms if not over 3300 it will not engage, if you shift it will kick out as well few lil quirks I've found out on my '13 anyway, G'luck

[blacklightning]

When I first bought my 2014 RT, the cruise would not engage. After about 100 miles, it worked fine. Then, when I took it in for it's 3000 mile service, it stopped working again. After about 100 miles, it worked again. I am not sure if it had something to do with it being put on the computer, and everything having to reset, but I have not had any problems since. Guess I will see what happens when I take it in for it's second service.

[ARtraveler]

When I first bought my 2014 RT, the cruise would not engage. After about 100 miles, it worked fine. Then, when I took it in for it's 3000 mile service, it stopped working again. After about 100 miles, it worked again. I am not sure if it had something to do with it being put on the computer, and everything having to reset, but I have not had any problems since. Guess I will see what happens when I take it in for it's second service.

Are you trying to run cruise and Eco Mode at the same time? I don't think they work together.

[granpa in Cincy]

Are you trying to run cruise and Eco Mode at the same time? I don't think they work together.


Yes it does!

[blacklightning]

Yes it does!
What he said. I did use cruise and eco mod in the beginning, but now i never use eco mode. Might use it if I do some interstate riding, but I prefer the 2 lane highways.

[Magdave]

My switch did the same thing. Bad switch replaced under warranty.

[Deanna777]

When I first bought my 2014 RT, the cruise would not engage. After about 100 miles, it worked fine. Then, when I took it in for it's 3000 mile service, it stopped working again. After about 100 miles, it worked again. I am not sure if it had something to do with it being put on the computer, and everything having to reset, but I have not had any problems since. Guess I will see what happens when I take it in for it's second service.

I bought my(first spyder) 2012RTS-SE5 the cruise control did not work right from the get-go, even the guy at the dealership could not get the cruise control to work. Since then I have traded up to a 2014RTS-SE6. Good luck with the cruise control. Deanna

[C3517C]

Well, I took the handlebar assembly off and poked around in there as best as I could. I couldn't see anything that looked broken or wrong. I then reassembled and figured I would take it to the dealer. As soon as I started riding it I found that it now works ! I must be a mechanical genius ! Sometimes taking something apart and putting it back together works. It doesn't make sense but I'll take it.

[Craniac]

There are two springs in the back of the switch. One just holds the switch in the on/off position. You can feel the spring move when you slide the switch from off to on.
The other spring is actually pushes the "on" switch. If the spring is too weak, the cruise may not stay on.
http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=90286&d=1403221032
This is what the switch looks like. This was my first attempt at making mine work. The spring was not strong enough to hold the "On" part of the switch. I later changed to a stronger spring and a BB. Now my cruise works great.
http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=90288&d=1403221853
Here is the actual electronic portion of the cruise switch. It is the white pad approx 2"x1" above my hand. The larger white dot (left center) is the "on" button. The spring/BB simply pushes the button. When the cruise is set to "on" the BB pokes through the hole in the black piece in my hand. When you rock the switch up or down, the BB moves a little. If the spring is not strong enough it won't push the contact that is inside the white panel and the cruise turns off. It must have pressure all the time the cruise is on.
The two smaller dots to the right side are the speed up and down buttons. In the first picture you can see two little ears on the right side of the black plastic piece. When the switch rocks, it presses one of the buttons. These only require momentary contact.

So, your spring is too weak or the black rocker assembly is not screwed in the whole way. It will not get better.

[Spyder2012]

Just before the end of my factory warranty, I noticed my kill switch, which had always been slow to engage failed to kill the engine. I had questioned a delay in this switch since I owned it, and the dealer, of course, said this was normal. BS. I had the entire right switch assembly replaced under warranty, and riding home from the dealer, the cruise would switch to off, and not engage. The day this happened the weather was cold and wet, and so was I. I turned around to go back to dealer, and mysteriously, the cruise started working, so I went home to dry out and warm up, thinking this might have been just some packing material or the like in the new control module. Two weeks later, after a couple of short rides, the cruise would not stay on, just a brief flash of the on light. The dealer checked it out, and found the cruise switch was bad, and contacted Can Am, who refused to replace the new switch, since the spyder was now 24 months and two weeks old. Finally, after me personally sending emails, and making calls to Can Am, the situation was elevated to a level 2 tech, and it was replaced as a "good will" matter.
Short story is, the cruise switch is weak on spyders. I like the post where the guts of the switch were taken out and user repaired. Yours may be repairable in this manner. Some owners never seem to have problem, and I think these controls are just a bit under engineered.
Wish I had the technical expertise to fix this, and other problems I have had with mine, but, I am a bit leery of doing my own thing on this machine due to the complexity of it.

Wish Can Am would step up and provide more quality in the manufacture of these, as they are not inexpensive toys, and, in my estimation, should be more dependable for the dollars they cost.

[C3517C]

Thank You Crainiac and Spyder2012. Those are both great pieces of information, and seem to be the exact problem I'm facing. I'm sure my temporary "fix" will be short lived and I will have to switch the switch.

[SpyderAnn01]

I never turn my cruise control off. It does no harm in leaving it on and I've never had a problem in over 100,00 Spyder miles. A quick tap of the brake will take it off SET and back to ON.

[finless]

I never turn my cruise control off. It does no harm in leaving it on and I've never had a problem in over 100,00 Spyder miles. A quick tap of the brake will take it off SET and back to ON.

Same here. It's never off.

Bob

[CherryBomb]

Same here, I always leave mine on.


Same here. It's never off.

Bob

[Spyder2012]

There are two springs in the back of the switch. One just holds the switch in the on/off position. You can feel the spring move when you slide the switch from off to on.
The other spring is actually pushes the "on" switch. If the spring is too weak, the cruise may not stay on.
http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=90286&d=1403221032
This is what the switch looks like. This was my first attempt at making mine work. The spring was not strong enough to hold the "On" part of the switch. I later changed to a stronger spring and a BB. Now my cruise works great.
http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=90288&d=1403221853
Here is the actual electronic portion of the cruise switch. It is the white pad approx 2"x1" above my hand. The larger white dot (left center) is the "on" button. The spring/BB simply pushes the button. When the cruise is set to "on" the BB pokes through the hole in the black piece in my hand. When you rock the switch up or down, the BB moves a little. If the spring is not strong enough it won't push the contact that is inside the white panel and the cruise turns off. It must have pressure all the time the cruise is on.
The two smaller dots to the right side are the speed up and down buttons. In the first picture you can see two little ears on the right side of the black plastic piece. When the switch rocks, it presses one of the buttons. These only require momentary contact.

So, your spring is too weak or the black rocker assembly is not screwed in the whole way. It will not get better.

My question is if these springs can be changed and/or upgraded. This is great information, and I had forgotten about this until the most recent issue with my speed control began, and it is getting worse. Interesting that the speed will set when holding the resume/accel position for a few seconds. However the set/decel kills the control and it shows OFF on the lower left of the display panel on the dash.

[4 MARIE]

Are you trying to run cruise and Eco Mode at the same time? I don't think they work together.

IT works fine with ECO mode.

[Spyder2012]

Well, I got brave and took the right control module apart to get inside.
I was able to get the control working again by stretching the springs when I had them out.
I am sure there is wear on the contacts as well, but, that little white circuit board is not replaceable.
Hoping to find springs as these are probably weak, and the contacts on the white circuit board possibly worn as well.
I have not yet been able to find replacement springs for this project, but stainless steel balls, or BB's are available, although I had to buy an assortment to get the ones I did need, but only a few bucks on ebay.
Taking photos of these as you go helps to remember how to re fit it all. I had no extra hands and could not manage a video or step by step photos.
Please note that these internal parts are NOT available from BRP, so be VERY careful not to lose anything, screws, stainless steel balls and springs. I am sure they are available somewhere, but not in my area. As previously stated, I did order a stainless steel ball bearing assortment from EBay and was glad I did as one of the little ball bearings got away in the disassembly/reassembly process.
Tricky since the right hand controls cannot be easily disconnected from the bike. Battery should probably be disconnected as well.
Note the kill switch must be in the OFF position for all of this to come apart well, and the oblong plastic switch cover that you see on the outside of the control must be carefully removed by using a couple of thin bladed screw drivers or similar to pop it off before disassembly.
The next step is to take out the four torx screws which secure the back cover to the right hand controls. One of them is deeply recessed. Then the cover can be gently removed. Note how the throttle lines up with all of the plastics so that assembly is not a problem.
Next step is to remove the two screws which secure the control to the handlebar assembly. These are on the back of the assembly and accessible since the back cover has been removed. On my unit, these two screws are brass and screw into brass fittings. There is a washer on each of these which you should save.
Next, with the controls exposed you will see small torx heads inside. Only the black ones need to be removed. If my memory serves me there are five of them, and a magnet or magnetized screw driver will be a huge help. I do have a photo of this which I will post later.
Now the fun. On the front of the now released controls, you will see the actual switch mechanism. This is where springs and stainless balls can easily be lost! There are three screws which hold the switch slide and rocker (for set decel, accel resume) are located. Since the entire control is still attached to the bike, I found this a challenge to deal with. Removing these screws will allow the last pieces of this to come apart, and the two springs will be pushing things apart. So carefully remove these screws and do not lose any springs or stainless balls. Using some sort of drop cloth under the work area is helpful.
While all this was apart, I used an electronic contact cleaner to remove and dirt and or residue. Don't allow the cleaner to get on the paint, it may cause some dulling.
Once apart, I stretched the springs as much as possible, and began to reassemble. Holding the switch mechanism with the springs and balls together while reattaching the switch slide/rocker mechanism with limited space and fingers was challenging, but, with patience and luck, possible. If the cruise switch is in the OFF position at this time, it helps as that spring and ball are not trying to slip through the hole in the control.
Then reassemble the switches to the control using the black screws, then reattach the controls to the handlebars being sure to align the throttle stop properly and reattach the back cover.
It is tedious and tricky, but if I can to it, most anyone can. There are only two sized or torx drivers (the screwdriver type with attached handle and shaft) are best, since some of these screws are recessed.
My cruise, which would not set (without turning the cruise quickly to OFF) is now working like new. I still hope to find some new stainless or chrome springs to have on hand.
The right hand control cluster is about $300 from BRP or parts houses, and the wiring harness goes deep within the bike, about five hours labor at a dealer, so this has saved a bunch of money for a few hours of tedious aggravation on my part. Well worth it!
If I find springs, and repeat this process, will try to have another person to take more photos and post.
I can not get a photo to upload and attach! Will try again later.172654

[Frankf]

I've got a 2014 RT-S with SE6 tranny having cruise control issues too. The Cruise in intermittent, sometimes it will connect and sometimes not. I called my dealer to order a replacement switch, but he could not find a part number for it. I too, looked on line for OEM replacements and could not find a part number.

Does any one have or know the part number for the Cruise Control switch? Is it listed in an assembly?

[Plarimer]

I know many of the switches are sealed, but at least once a month or so I blow all the switches out on my RT and on my car with canned air. You would be surprised what comes flying out, especially on door switches. When I used to buy and sell Corvettes I would run across many that one or two of the switches would not work, especially on the center armrest. That of course would affect the price but nine out of ten times when I got home I blew all the dry skin out of them and they work like a charm.

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

I've got a 2014 RT-S with SE6 tranny having cruise control issues too. The Cruise in intermittent, sometimes it will connect and sometimes not. I called my dealer to order a replacement switch, but he could not find a part number for it. I too, looked on line for OEM replacements and could not find a part number.

Does any one have or know the part number for the Cruise Control switch? Is it listed in an assembly?

The CC switch is not a replaceable part in the handlebar switch module. You have to replace the entire module.