Alignment.

[rloumiet]

Hey friends, new to this forum and have a quick question. Being a new Spyder F3 owner I am curious about front end alignment. Do these tires look like normal wear for 7,000 miles ? Another rider said it’s always a “good idea” to have your alignment checked but I’m not sure I need to spend the $$$’s.
Thanks 😊

[JayBros]

The tires look fine to me, at least on my computer, but I agree with the other rider. BRP does not do a superior job aligning Spyders on the assembly line. Find a dealership that uses the Rolo alignment system and have them check it. There should be no charge if it is within spec and if it does need alignment it shouldn't be more than $125 - $150 to have it done by a technician WHO KNOWS HOW TO CORRECTLY USE THE ROLO SYSTEM. You can find dealers at this link: http://www.spydercomfort.com/. Click the second link in the Menu column. You may pay a bit more depending on local labor costs but it shouldn't break two Benjamins.

[trikermutha]

Unless you are darting around or pulling to one direction leave it alone.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

Hey friends, new to this forum and have a quick question. Being a new Spyder F3 owner I am curious about front end alignment. Do these tires look like normal wear for 7,000 miles ? Another rider said it’s always a “good idea” to have your alignment checked but I’m not sure I need to spend the $$$’s.
Thanks ��

From those pics I think your left front has more inside edge tire wear ..... BRP alignment History is not good - most Spyders from the factory ( from 08 to 2006-7 ) were mis-aligned ..... I don''t think they are perfect about that yet ...... Forget the " just rotate them " hooey " if not corrected any tire you mount will wear early ...... once they are Lazer aligned, I have found they stay aligned for a very long time .... unless you hit a very serious hole or a curb ...... Mike

[canamjhb]

A quick easy way to check for proper alignment is to ride the bike at a reasonable speed (50-60 MPH) on a reasonably good road. You should be able to comfortably ride with one or two fingers on each handle grip. If you need to fully grip the handle bars in order to control the bike, you are most likely fighting misalignment..... Jim

[BajaRon]

I highly recommend getting any Spyder/Ryker Rolo Laser Aligned. These machines are very sensitive to alignment. And few come from the factory correctly aligned. It's one of those things that you don't think you need until you get it done. As mentioned above. Many places will not charge you if you're within spec. It's less a matter of them being magnanimous and more to do with the fact that very few are actually within spec.

A properly aligned Spyder/Ryker is much more enjoyable to ride. Not to mention, you save on tire wear.

[rloumiet]

Thanks to all for the valuable input !!

[MeudtPG]

Do you need to have an alignment done anytime stock shocks are replaced with Elka2 shocks?

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

Do you need to have an alignment done anytime stock shocks are replaced with Elka2 shocks?

No, swapping shocks ( with exact size re-placements ) won't have an effect on the alignment. What Will change the alignment is more than minor height adjustments. ie. ground clearance ...... Mike

[BajaRon]

Do you need to have an alignment done anytime stock shocks are replaced with Elka2 shocks?

I agree with BlueKnight (which is common). Unless you change the ride height by a fair amount. You'll not need to do an alignment with a shock swap.

[PMK]

Do you need to have an alignment done anytime stock shocks are replaced with Elka2 shocks?

From experience, I say yes, unless the ride height remains unchanged.

FWIW, when I installed Fox front suspension on our RTS, I measured the unladen ride height prior to the swap. After the swap, I rode a bit to settle the suspension, then rechecked the ride height. The increase was minimal at 10mm.

Since I accomplish my own alignments, I knew the toe settings prior, and after the upgrade of suspension. Dimensionally, the toe change was significant and was reset for best performance.

[BajaRon]

From experience, I say yes, unless the ride height remains unchanged.

FWIW, when I installed Fox front suspension on our RTS, I measured the unladen ride height prior to the swap. After the swap, I rode a bit to settle the suspension, then rechecked the ride height. The increase was minimal at 10mm.

Since I accomplish my own alignments, I knew the toe settings prior, and after the upgrade of suspension. Dimensionally, the toe change was significant and was reset for best performance.

This is surprising to me. In my experience. With the same loading. I've found that Spyders typically settle out 1/4"-3/8"+/- from ride to ride. That works out to between 6mm & nearly 10mm+/- right there with no hard part changes at all.

[PMK]

This is surprising to me. In my experience. With the same loading. I've found that Spyders typically settle out 1/4"-3/8"+/- from ride to ride. That works out to between 6mm & nearly 10mm+/- right there with no hard part changes at all.

FWIW, needing to accomplish some work on our Spyder using the ROLO laser alignment equipment and BUDS. If I remember, I will stuff a floor jack under the fwd center of the frame and raise the front of the Spyder a measured amount while recording Toe In change.