Shop time for no Reverse - The long wait is almost over!

[2dogs]

As I and others have mentioned here, BURP's dealer network will become their achilles heel.

[Debbie]

Hi there…
My 2018 is currently in shop with exact same issue. I left my bike at dealership 3rd week of September 2021, each time I would check and be given a new date… finally was told the date for part delivery would be July. I really want to ride my bike.

[mecsw500]

My brand new 21 RT LTD was in from thanksgiving (the US one) until the end of last month. Mostly waiting for a variety of rear suspension air parts, culminating in a new compressor. The weather didn’t cooperate for testing though which delayed things some what. Perhaps finding a used one for a temporary solution might be an avenue to pursue?

[gkamer]

Hi there…
My 2018 is currently in shop with exact same issue. I left my bike at dealership 3rd week of September 2021, each time I would check and be given a new date… finally was told the date for part delivery would be July. I really want to ride my bike.

I also was given the July release date. Which is exactly the reason I went back and picked my bike up. In my neck of the woods, July is pretty much half the riding season. And no guarantee the part will actually arrive and be released come July. It may get pushed back yet again to Aug, Sept, Oct or doomsday. Since these issues do not adversely affect the safety or road worthiness of my bike I decided to get it back and ride it till that part does come in. When I picked it up the Service Manager assured me that part was ear marked for me and would not be passed along to another customer. So in the mean time I’m just gonna ride and enjoy life.

[CloverHillCrawler]

Sorry to hear this and know the feeling after missing almost the complete summer season last year only to get it back on the road as the temps were on a downward swing.

Hopefully something will come up soon for you.

I am really dreading if anything goes wrong as far as parts in the next year or two for all of us. China is locking down again in industrial areas as well as in Shang Hai.

Hopefully this experience will nudge manufacturing back to North America and other countries that lost jobs and factories to cheap Asian labor.

[mecsw500]

I’m starting to have second thoughts about my decision to leave my Sypder at the dealership while awaiting a part. Here’s a quick recap:

Problem: 2018 Can Am Spyder RT Limited.
Would not shift into reverse.
Would not downshift manually.
Would not shift into Neutral without first turning off engine.

Diagnosis: Faulty Left Hand Control Module. Will replace under warranty.

Took the bike to dealership on Oct 19, 2021. Was told it would be 8-10 days for part to arrive. On Oct 20th, dealership called back reporting part would not be in until mid December. Might arrive sooner. On Nov 26, 2021 called dealership for update. Informed expected delivery date of 12/10/2021. Might arrive sooner.

On 01/13/2022 called dealership. Was advised new expected arrival date from BRP would be sometime in June. Eight months to get a part from Can Am? Are you kidding me? I left it there because my concern was the problem might get worse where it would stop shifting altogether and leave me stranded some place. My Spyder is only like three years old. It’s not as if I’m trying to find a part for a 1903 Model A for crying out loud.

We’ve gotten a lot of snow so far this year, so it’s not been a major problem for me, since I couldn’t ride anyway. I don’t let cold interfere with my riding, but snow/ice is another story. I have been hoping to attend the rally in Deadwood in July. Waiting until June for a part is simply unacceptable.

I understand things are backed up due to this global supply chain fiasco, but surely somewhere in the country there has to be a left hand control module for a 2018 Can Am Spyder RT Limited.

Rant Over.

I was looking online for some items and "https://www.canampartshouse.com/oemparts/p/can_am/710006574/housing-switch" indicates they have one on the shelf ready to ship. Merely $469.99" but there you go. It does show the updated part number, to presumably replaces the ones that keep failing.

Don't know if that is any use to you? I would check with the dealer to see if this later part number is the suggested replacement for the earlier one, but boy - $470 - seems a little steep.

I had a left hand cluster replaced under warranty for my Triumph T120 and I think it was not quite as expensive as this, but to be fair the part was a lot less complicated. It shipped overnight from their spares center back east though, so the bike was only down for two days. Good on Triumph in this instance.

[DuckDodgers]

I also have this left-hand switch assembly on order. My spyder only last week experienced this same problem with the no manual downshift/ reverse. For what it's worth, I did check with my local dealer to look in their system to see if anyone had this part in stock -local or otherwise. Only 2 locations indicated any in stock and a phone call revealed that wasn't true in either case. I also called CheapCycle and Canamparts house but neither have any in stock. They don't update their website inventory for all the items that are going out of stock rapidly it would seem. I did also learn that there is a "newer"'part number for this assembly (710008164 if I recall correctly), that has a price increase associated with it. The number isn't anywhere I can see however in the parts diagrams. I placed my order online using the number at the lower price and began my wait. Each place I contacted gave the July 1 date as estimated shipment from CanAM.

[mecsw500]

Looking at a few You-tube videos, I was curious as to if the problems with switch clusters were just dirty and corroded switch contacts or something else that could be mechanically repaired. Looking inside the ones on various videos, it looks like each switch is wired to a circuit board, encapsulated in resin, in order to connect to, I presume, the Can-bus system. This would explain why they all seem to have the same failure mode, don't seem to be easily mechanically or electrically fixed, how they are replaced as a unit part, why they are so expensive, and why they are likely to be so subject to supply chain issues.

My guess would be the replacement part number changing is probably for the circuit board rather than just some mechanical or electrical problems with the switches themselves. I couldn't understand why problems with a single switch not making contact could cause such multiple faults but after looking at people dissecting them I think perhaps the operation is more complex than I was thinking. With the circuit board encapsulated in resin it probably makes it difficult for an electronics technician to readily fix it, after all folks can readily fix things as complex as iPhones and Macbooks etc but they aren't waterproofed in the manner this circuit board is.

Strange how these days even a simple item like a switch cluster can be so complex. Can-bus can be both a blessing and a curse I suppose?

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

That's right, mec. The left switch module is a major component on the Can Bus network. On the 2014 RT, and probably on all since, the only functions on it that are not running on the CanBus are the headlight hi/lo switch and horn. The right switch cruise control function is wired to the left switch circuit board and is a CanBus function. My suspicion from the time I read of the first issues with the right switch module was that it was probably a firmware problem in the left switch circuit board.

The same sort of thing happened in the early 2014 RTs when a CB signal mucked up the DESS and/or cluster and caused Limp Home errors.

[gkamer]

I wonder if this was a my problem all along

As some of you regulars may be aware, I’ve been having trouble with my left hand Multi Function Switch. I was not able to shift into Reverse, I could not manually downshift and I could not shift from any gear into Neutral without first shutting the bike off and restarting.

In the past, when setting out on a ride I would start the bike so I could release the parking brake and then try to shift into Reverse, which never happened. But now that I was in Neutral with the parking brake released it was easy to push it out of the parking spot in front of my apartment.

But for the last two days, when going though my pre-departure dog and pony show , the bike actually shifted into Reverse. Of course I was pleased . Today I decided to try a few tests while out on my ride. The couple of times I tried shifting into Reverse it worked fine. Then I tried a manual downshift with no joy. I tried again, only pressing the Minus paddle harder and lo and behold, it down shifted.

So I pulled over and tried shifting into Neutral from 1st gear, pulling hard, but not overly hard, on the minus paddle and it performed flawlessly. Same with going from Reverse to Neutral.

Before, when I was having trouble shifting into Reverse and it didn’t work, my instinct was to press harder on the R button. I’m now wondering if maybe the problem was I was not pulling hard enough on the Minus paddle?

Now the big question….. I already have a new left hand Multi Function Switch on order from the dealer to be replaced under warranty. I’m expecting it to come in July. Do I go ahead with the replacement, just in case, since it is a known problem with the 2018 RT and F3?

[EdMat]

If you feel you are having to press very hard to make it work, replace it.

[canamjhb]

Greg,

If the dealer is replacing the multi-function switch under warranty, I would think they, too, experienced a problem when they did their diagnosis. Even though you are able to massage the system to make it work doesn't mean it is working correctly. I'd have it replaced..... Jim

[Pirate]

Ditto on the replacement.

[Bfromla]

Definitely get replaced, better now while prepared

[Peter Aawen]

.....

But for the last two days, when going though my pre-departure dog and pony show , the bike actually shifted into Reverse. Of course I was pleased . Today I decided to try a few tests while out on my ride. The couple of times I tried shifting into Reverse it worked fine. Then I tried a manual downshift with no joy. I tried again, only pressing the Minus paddle harder and lo and behold, it down shifted.

So I pulled over and tried shifting into Neutral from 1st gear, pulling hard, but not overly hard, on the minus paddle and it performed flawlessly. Same with going from Reverse to Neutral.

Before, when I was having trouble shifting into Reverse and it didn’t work, my instinct was to press harder on the R button. I’m now wondering if maybe the problem was I was not pulling hard enough on the Minus paddle?

Now the big question….. I already have a new left hand Multi Function Switch on order from the dealer to be replaced under warranty. I’m expecting it to come in July. Do I go ahead with the replacement, just in case, since it is a known problem with the 2018 RT and F3?

Whatever way you look at it, there was something decidedly WRONG going on inside your Left Hand Multi-Function Switch, even if you occasionally could massage it or by some other fluke get some things to do what they should bloody well do first time all the time!!

So as far as I can see, the answer to your 'Do I go ahead & get it replaced under warranty?' question is not just Yes, it's more of a 'HECK YES! Of COURSE I get it replaced under warranty!!' And I reckon you should probably do that as soon as humanly possible, just in case it triggers something else that might be more of an issue!

Just Sayin'

[rgus]

I would

[Mikey]

I would assume the dealer tryed your switch before he went through the process of doing the paperwork for brp, so that being said he must feel that some things wrong with your switch!! Change it and don't feel guilty!!

[mcalva]

I'd change. I think it should work in all situations and pressing in all "fingerpower" range.
Whether the problem is electrical or mechanical could repeat or more probably go to worse in the future so I wouldn't risk.

[K80Shooter]

Not only would I let the dealer replace it but in no way would I mention that if you press hard on the paddle that it works.

[mecsw500]

My left hand switch gear all works with a moderate level of force, just the level of force you would expect. It feels the same on mine as on previous Triumphs and BMWs. If you have to put anything but the level of pressure your brain would expect, compared to the right hand cluster, I would replace it. The up-shift and downshift should feel about the same in my book. I would replace it as the chances of you are getting out in the middle of nowhere sometime in the future, when even a hammer won't get it to operate, are not zero.

When you were in law enforcement, would you trust your life to your firearm if it worked as long as you used 30 lbs of trigger pull. It would probably work every day at the range but the day you really needed it to work in the field, that trigger mechanism would fail for sure.

[gkamer]

The long wait is finally almost over. As some of you may remember, I posted about a BRP known issue with the left hand multifunction switch on the 2018 F3 and RT going bad. It would not shift into Reverse, Manually Downshift or Manually Shift into Neutral. I had the dealer work to get a replacement switch in Oct of 2021 and have been waiting ever since for the part to arrive.

Unfortunately, between the pandemic which basically shut down the world compounded by the global supply crises, all of which was beyond BRP or the dealerships ability to do anything about, there was nothing I could do but wait until the situation worked itself out.

Well this morning I got a call from the dealership telling me the long awaited part had arrived. I am scheduled to bring my bike in on the 27th of this month to have the replacement part installed, under warranty I might add. It is about a 75 mile ride, one way, so I was told it would take a few hours but they have a very nice customer waiting area with a soda machine. I plan to pack my laptop and a couple of bologna sandwiches and camp in the waiting room till my bike is done. At that point I will be so happy I will do the dance of joy.

[mcalva]

Congratulations!
I admire your patience and humor sense

[gkamer]

The long wait is finally almost over. As some of you may remember, I posted about a BRP known issue with the left hand multifunction switch on the 2018 F3 and RT going bad. It would not shift into Reverse, Manually Downshift or Manually Shift into Neutral. I had the dealer work to get a replacement switch in Oct of 2021 and have been waiting ever since for the part to arrive.

Unfortunately, between the pandemic which basically shut down the world compounded by the global supply crises, all of which was beyond BRP or the dealerships ability to do anything about, there was nothing I could do but wait until the situation worked itself out.

Well this morning I got a call from the dealership telling me the long awaited part had arrived. I am scheduled to bring my bike in on the 27th of this month to have the replacement part installed, under warranty I might add. It is about a 75 mile ride, one way, so I was told it would take a few hours but they have a very nice customer waiting area with a soda machine. I plan to pack my laptop and a couple of bologna sandwiches and camp in the waiting room till my bike is done. At that point I will be so happy I will do the dance of joy.

[OldAge]

Well Greg, with your parts repaired and your bikes parts repaired, you should be right in hog heaven!!