Spyder F3 ltd. 2020 - frame cap broken

Hello,

without any warning the frame cap holding the right tube (the one holding the floorboard and the brake, see attachments) on my Spyder F3 ltd. 2020 (about 6 months old, driven about 5,000 km) broke.

This happened after a ride when arriving at home (thanks god) - without stressing the Spyder, just braking for the parking lot.

I know, that I still have warranty and that this hopefully will be fixed without any difficulties when bringing the Spyder to my vendor/shop.

But I wonder if this is something 'really bad' or if it can be fixed as easy as replacing the broken frame cap or not.

I am concerned that this tube is part of the frame and that it is important for the overall integrity of the build?

So I would be very glad if someone could give me a hint or could share his experience with such damage and could tell me what to look out for when I talk to the dealer about the repair.

Should I be worried, or not?

Does the Spyder needs to be realigned etc.?

Thank you very much in advance, and sorry for entering this forum without a proper introduction, but I am in a slight panic, since I never expected something like this to happen.

BigG

I have never read on this forum of this happening before. It appears the backside of the "cup" broke off. It's not a major job to replace that part. The worst part is waiting for it to come in.
I think you can make it temporarily ridable by placing inside the "cup" a steel disc, the outside of which will just fit and the hole for the bolt is also a close tolerance. That could possibly be a permanent fix. Paint it so it won't rust.

Yeah, I dunno about riding your F3 with that end cap broken like that AT ALL!! :shocked:

That 'out-rigger' frame is a serious part of the main frame's torsional rigidity as well as providing a stable base for the rider's feet & all the forces ryding imposes on both of those - and since our Spyders put a LOT of torsional forces on the frame even if you're just ryding gently, and the put a whole lot more thru the footplates AND the frame if you are ryding any harder than a just doing a doddle, that frame cap is going to be a pretty integral component in ensuring your Spyder's safety! :lecturef_smilie:

So even with a washer holding the frame cap in place, because the guts of the bush itself is broken, your F3 will be SEVERELY LACKING in torsional rigidity, especially on that side, which I'd think means that until it's fixed properly with an undamaged replacement, then ryding your Spyder AT ALL would hafta be an accident looking for somewhere to happen!! :yikes:

Just sayin'!! :dontknow:

Hi, thank you both for the feedback!

I totally agree with you, Peter.

I would not consider riding the Spyder in this status. It clearly needs to be transported to the dealer to get it fixed - this should be covered by the warrenty.

In addition in Germany/Europe we have a 'Roadside Assistence' which will cover this for the first 2 years of ownership (in case it happens in the middle of nowhere).

So even in the worst case scenario I would not recommend to try to fix this by yourself - it is just not worth the risk (unless your life depends on it, anyway).

And as you mention, the stability of the Spyder is exactly what concerns me the most. It looks very fragile now and I am glad that this happened when almost standing still.

But I am still not sure if something else might be affected by this or not (the tube (better: the connection at the front) was bent when the cap broke, since my foot was on the floorboard, braking).

The fact that this 'outer frame' is not the main frame helps me a little, since the F3 will not be moved in this status.


In the meantime, the dealer organized the transport and the Spyder is at his shop, already. Hopefully everything else is fixed as good and as easy as this (even my confidence in the Spyder).

I will keep you posted.

BigG

Here we go again. :shocked:

That part looks like it is die cast. It would appear to be a defect in the casting. Bubble or contamination likely. It is listed as $20 part. So the dealer should be able to fix it in 10 minutes when they get the part.

It would be unsafe to drive like that because the brakes will not work properly. But with all due respect I do disagree with the assessment that that part offers any strength or rigidity to the frame. It is not even listed in the frame section of the exploded parts view. Just a place to mount the footboard, brake pedal and air deflector.

Hello,

riding the Spyder without the cap still is nothing I would recommend. And not only because of the break.

Nevertheless, a short update: the dealer managed the transport from me to him and vice versa.

As a precaution, he replaced all 4 caps (even the 2 listed in the frame section of the exploded parts) and tightened them carefully with the torque wrench according to the regulations to make sure nothing has been over-tightened.

The caps are sent to BRP to examine them - maybe we will find out what exactly broke them.

In the meantime I also was out for a ride (or two :)). Still slightly suspicious and trying to not stress the floorboard too much, but I guess the confidence will come back after a while.

Hopefully.

Take care everyone and always have a good ride!

Cheers, BigG

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BigGFromG

Hello,

riding the Spyder without the cap still is nothing I would recommend. And not only because of the break.

Nevertheless, a short update: the dealer managed the transport from me to him and vice versa.

As a precaution, he replaced all 4 caps (even the 2 listed in the frame section of the exploded parts) and tightened them carefully with the torque wrench according to the regulations to make sure nothing has been over-tightened.

The caps are sent to BRP to examine them - maybe we will find out what exactly broke them.

In the meantime I also was out for a ride (or two :)). Still slightly suspicious and trying to not stress the floorboard too much, but I guess the confidence will come back after a while.

Hopefully.

Take care everyone and always have a good ride!

Cheers, BigG

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Glad you are back riding again. Although I would be a bit suspicious too, I would really be stressing the floorboards, just so I could see if there was a possibility of this happening again. Keep us updated and let us know if it feels solid or not.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by billybovine

That part looks like it is die cast. It would appear to be a defect in the casting. Bubble or contamination likely. It is listed as $20 part. So the dealer should be able to fix it in 10 minutes when they get the part.

It would be unsafe to drive like that because the brakes will not work properly. But with all due respect I do disagree with the assessment that that part offers any strength or rigidity to the frame. It is not even listed in the frame section of the exploded parts view. Just a place to mount the footboard, brake pedal and air deflector.

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:agree: .... this looks like what occurs to the " windshield arm " on the RT's that had them .... Looking at that part makes me wonder why they designed it with all that material re-moved .... I have opined in the past that the " windshield arm " probably would never Break if they had left the ARM without all the missing material from the cadting mold ..... jmho .... Mike :thumbup:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by blacklightning

..., I would really be stressing the floorboards, just so I could see if there was a possibility of this happening again. Keep us updated and let us know if it feels solid or not.

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Do not get me wrong, I stressed them before the rides to feel as comfortable as possible. They feel solid again (as they did before), holding all of my weight etc.. you would not expect them to break.

But during the ride it was a different story: I caught myself being very careful - time will heal this, I guess :)