F3 Limited wheel camber problem

[F3unlimited]

I purchased a new 2021 F3 the end of July. While riding, I noticed it wanted to pull to the right, so I had the dealer realign it. Upon getting it back, it still pulled to the right. The dealer said it’s the slope of the road, but after riding it another 1000 miles, I knew it wasn’t. The tires are showing signs of uneven wear on the right side of the tread on both front tires, and now when I take my hands off the handlebars, the bars shake. I took a level and held it vertically on each wheel, and the top of both wheels are tilted to the right. The left one 1/8”, and the right 1/4”. So the camber is off. An alignment specialist told me that there is no way to adjust this on the F3. Has anyone else had this problem, and if so, how was it corrected? I’m taking it back to the dealer under the warranty. I’d like to know a little more about it when talking to my dealer.

[Jetfixer]

There are no other alignment adjustments besides toe-in. It sounds like it is way out of alignment and/or defective tires, which is quite common with the factory Kendas. Find someone near you that can do a laser alignment, and have a reputable tire dealer examine the tires. If the tires are bad, you've got a warranty claim. If it cannot be aligned, it may have been damaged in shipping, or during assembly by the dealer. If it's damaged, that's a warranty claim possibly if you can prove it was done before you took possession. If it just needs a proper alignment, you'll be happy!

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

There are no other alignment adjustments besides toe-in. It sounds like it is way out of alignment and/or defective tires, which is quite common with the factory Kendas. Find someone near you that can do a laser alignment, and have a reputable tire dealer examine the tires. If the tires are bad, you've got a warranty claim. If it cannot be aligned, it may have been damaged in shipping, or during assembly by the dealer. If it's damaged, that's a warranty claim possibly if you can prove it was done before you took possession. If it just needs a proper alignment, you'll be happy!

.... it sounds like a " dealer TECH " issue ..... I recently discovered a wear issue on my right front tire .... I had it Lazer aligned and it was perfect ..... He said it was a CAMBER issue. the tires have over 37,000 mi. on them and the additional wear really wasn't much. As I thought back to recent riding area's I have been using, I did an in depth analysis of the turns ..... I figured out that 80% of my left turns were much, much tighter than the following righthand turns ..... so I was stressing the outside of the right front ( where the wear is ) 4 time as much as the left ..... go figure .... Mike

[Peter Aawen]

F3unlimited, while there is no way to specifically adjust the camber, if you've got adjustable height shocks or adjustable pre-load on your shocks, it might be that which is upsetting things. Winding either of those adjusters up too much can raise the Spyder/Ryker suspension enough to cause excessive positive camber, which will make your steering fairly direct on an absolutely smooth flat road in a straight line, but it'll usually be really twitchy & uncomfortable on anything but that absolutely smooth flat road!!


So if the shock height/pre-load adjustment has anything to do with your problems F3un, you'd hafta have the Right hand shock adjusted so that it's too high/got too much pre-load; and the Left hand shock adjusted so it's too low/got too little pre-load....
DO you have any adjusters on the front shocks??

There again, maybe you should just check how much weight/load you're carrying in/on the left hand side of the Spyder - too much weight on that side might just settle that side front down enough to cause your lopsided camber by lowering the Left side of the F3 & in turn, raising the Right a touch..... or it could be that you've got a worn or loose bush or two on the anti-sway bar or some other suspension components (inboard end of the 'A' arms maybe?); or maybe you've got a bent suspension arm or anti-sway bar?? . There's quite a few things like that which MIGHT be causing or at least contributing to your F3's lopsidedness...

Still, it IS a new machine & I'd hope it's still under warranty, so really, it's something that your dealer &/or BRP should address. I just hope it doesn't get dragged out interminably and turn into a prolonged saga of you/your Spyder/it's problems being ignored by both of those parties in the way so many of these things seem to end up! It seems to be becoming an identifyable trait of the brand!

Good Luck!

[F3unlimited]

There are no other alignment adjustments besides toe-in. It sounds like it is way out of alignment and/or defective tires, which is quite common with the factory Kendas. Find someone near you that can do a laser alignment, and have a reputable tire dealer examine the tires. If the tires are bad, you've got a warranty claim. If it cannot be aligned, it may have been damaged in shipping, or during assembly by the dealer. If it's damaged, that's a warranty claim possibly if you can prove it was done before you took possession. If it just needs a proper alignment, you'll be happy!

Thanks for your advice, I had the dealer do a laser alignment about 1000 miles ago, and my problem continues to manifest with signs of improper tire wear. I’m hoping BRP & my dealer will stand behind their product.

[F3unlimited]

I never thought about shock adjustment. I don’t know if they are adjustable. I am new to the Spyder world and when I first picked it up, I noticed the steering was very twitchy. It took a while to get used to. I don’t notice it now. I thought it was normal. The weight is evenly distributed, so that’s not the problem. Thank you for your input; a lot of good things to consider!

[F3unlimited]

Wow! I have no idea how many turns I did and in what direction. I would be extremely happy if I got 37,000 miles out of my front tires! Thanks for responding.

[PMK]

When you did your informal camber check, did you verify the Spyders suspension was settled and you were on a flat area with wheels pointed straight ahead?

Realize that, if you do not have the wheels pointed straight, or you were using a level vs a large carpenters square you can see these differences in camber.

It does sound as if you do have an alignment concern. If you care to do an informal alignment check, this is not difficult. If possible, slightly raise each front tire, spin the tire, and using a pen or similar mark the tires tread as you spin the tire. Do both tires.

Then, on a flat area, place folded large plastic bags under each front tire by rolling the Spyder onto the bags. Settle the Spyder by turning left / right and rocking the Spyder somewhat. Position the wheels pointed straight ahead. Use a tape measure. Have a helper hold the end of the tape on your drawn line at the tires forward location. Note the dimension. Next measure the aft dimension and note it. Ideally both measurements were the same distance up from the flat surface.

In simple terms, the front dimension must be less than the rear.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

Wow! I have no idea how many turns I did and in what direction. I would be extremely happy if I got 37,000 miles out of my front tires! Thanks for responding.

If this was directed at me ( use " reply with quote ", it helps ) ... I know how many turns, left or right, how tight they are or arn't ..... it's a loop I do almost everyday .... on Oval race tracks, running counter-clockwise, the right side tires will wear much faster than the inside .... To address what Peter said. I changed the Angle of my front shocks, however I kept the OEM ride height using the OEM springs which are non-adjustable..... Mike

[peatmoss]

So I’m jumping in late here but I was searching for information because the bars on my 2020 F3L shake when I let go if them and you can feel it in your hands while riding. I have about 2,700 miles on it. Tires look ok though so far.

[PMK]

So I’m jumping in late here but I was searching for information because the bars on my 2020 F3L shake when I let go if them and you can feel it in your hands while riding. I have about 2,700 miles on it. Tires look ok though so far.

After ensuring your tire pressures are set correctly using an accurate gage, and equal pressures left vs right, next step could be.
Essentially two options. These assume you are not feeling a vibration from the drive belt.
Option 1, with the tires presently installed, which are likely the oem Kendas, have them dynamically balanced.
Option 2, replace the oem tires with quality front high performance tires such as Federal Formoza tires and have them dynamically balanced.
As a general rule, expect your dealer to offer up opposition to any of your requests. Most owners find tire shops that are capable of a good balance without much expense.