Difficult steering??? Anyone has the same problem with F3?

[Martin Slovakia]

Hi Guys,
as the new season is almost here, I am trying to get my bike ready.
Yesterday my friend asked me if I do have the same issue as he does with his F3s.

Issue is:
Sometimes the handling is very smooth, its easy to turn from left to right. (I do have aftermarket shox and BajaRon swaybar)
Now from time to time, i feel like the bike gets heavy, like the handling gets super hard to turn. It can happen in the middle of the curve or one curve can be smooth the other can have problem.

Now, the question is obvious...
Anyone is/was facing the similar issue?

All I am thinking of is:
old battery (this is 5th season),,, so the DPS (Dynamic Power Steering) has not enough power,,,,
or DPS itself... but i think if it would be bad, there would be an error message in the system
last are shox,,, but same problem is on other bike, and he does not have Wilbers... +, ok you should service them every 25.000km or every 2 years... so i did 30.000 with them.. cannot be a problem.. i doubt.. hmm??

any advice would help...
M.

[Grandpot]

I've had the same problem. Clean and tighten the battery connections and ground. If problem persists, do the same at the power steering unit itself. It's the easiest and cheapest thing to do before sinking money into the problem and it will most likely fix it.

[Martin Slovakia]

I've had the same problem. Clean and tighten the battery connections and ground. If problem persists, do the same at the power steering unit itself. It's the easiest and cheapest thing to do before sinking money into the problem and it will most likely fix it.

hmmm... good idea!!! i will be on it, over weekend!!!!!!!
thanx

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

Power Steering & Battery issues ??? ….. IMHO once the bike is running - the Charging system should be supplying ALL the juice for ALL the electrical items ….. including the Power Steering …..or am I missing something ????? …………….. Mike

[Kds111]

Once running, the alternator is supplying the required voltage.
Is this unique to the Spyder?

[Grandpot]

If there is an issue with the charging system, such as poor battery and ground connections, the battery will not fully charge or output the correct amount of current

[ARtraveler]

It is time to change out the battery. They can and will crash at the most inopportune time.

Mine get changed out at four years...whether they need it or not.

[SpyderAnn01]

I have had an issue with the DPS going out on my 17 F3T but each time I would get a check DPS Error. There was no noticeable difference in steering at high speed, only at slow speeds.

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

Power Steering & Battery issues ??? ….. IMHO once the bike is running - the Charging system should be supplying ALL the juice for ALL the electrical items ….. including the Power Steering …..or am I missing something ????? …………….. Mike

The battery serves as a reservoir of power to supply the momentary deficiency between what the alternator is supplying and what the short term power need is. The alternator is sized to adequately supply the average power draw over time, not the total load for any particular instant time period. The DPS sucks up a lot of juice when it's providing turning assistance. And of course, this happens at low speeds when the engine is throttled down and the alternator output is lowest. At road speeds the alternator probably does more than cover the DPS draw since the DPS is providing less assistance and the alternator is at high output.

It would be interesting to know how the DPS assist level varies with voltage and current in. If the output is very sensitive to input power, which I think it may be, then that would be a reason why the connections need to be clean in order to avoid any voltage and current drop.

[Richardv]

Hi Guys,
as the new season is almost here, I am trying to get my bike ready.
Yesterday my friend asked me if I do have the same issue as he does with his F3s.

Issue is:
Sometimes the handling is very smooth, its easy to turn from left to right. (I do have aftermarket shox and BajaRon swaybar)
Now from time to time, i feel like the bike gets heavy, like the handling gets super hard to turn. It can happen in the middle of the curve or one curve can be smooth the other can have problem.

Now, the question is obvious...
Anyone is/was facing the similar issue?

All I am thinking of is:
old battery (this is 5th season),,, so the DPS (Dynamic Power Steering) has not enough power,,,,
or DPS itself... but i think if it would be bad, there would be an error message in the system
last are shox,,, but same problem is on other bike, and he does not have Wilbers... +, ok you should service them every 25.000km or every 2 years... so i did 30.000 with them.. cannot be a problem.. i doubt.. hmm??

any advice would help...
M.

....I agree with Grandpot. Had the same problem, one spring after re-installing the battery for the new season. No error code, just heavy steering at low speed only. Thigthen battery connection, and all as been fine since. We do not remove the batteries anymore for the winter. We just leave them on a battery tender.

[Martin Slovakia]

Guys thank you for all of the advice!!! I will change the battery, as 5th season, I dont have to risk it to be stuck somewhere in Albania or Romania on my crazy trips
also I will ask to clean all the connectors tight them up etc..
Have an awesome day,
Martin

[exwinger]

Had the same problem ...bet you a dollar to a donut that once you tighten connections the problem goes away. I would still change the battery too , 5 years is pushing it .