Gremlins or trouble? Limp Mode and Fault Codes

[gkamer]

I encountered my first real issue with my 2018 Spyder RTL. I have run into periodic cases where my cruise control would not engage. Maybe it was just my imagination, but it only seemed to happen when the engine was hot. But after numerous attempts it usually woke up and decided to play nicely. Well anyway I was coming home from a ride today.

I was on the interstate cruising along at about 65 mph with the cruise control on. All of a sudden the bike bucked slightly and began to slow down. I thought maybe I tapped the brake pedal by accident, so I got back up to speed and set the cruise again. A few minutes later the same thing happened. This time I was sure I never tapped the brake.

I continued on my way and about 25 miles from home I noticed the Check Engine light was flashing. Then a message appeared on my screen saying Limp Home Mode. I know from reading other posts about the Limp Home Mode problem that sometimes the bikes speed drops dramatically, but in my case my speed was not affected. I had no trouble keeping the speed at 70 and increasing to 75-80 to pass traffic.

I decided to just continue on and check for codes when I got home (See photo 1).

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I also noticed a strange symbol on my dash that I had never seen before. (See photo 2.)

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Then after dinner when it had cooled down a little I went to take the bike back to the storage shed for the night. Started with no problem. The Check Engine light was no longer flashing and the little symbol I had not seen before was gone. The cruise control engaged with no complaint, however the two fault codes were still showing when I checked.

Any thoughts on what mischief my bike might be up to?

[Peter Aawen]

That little Spyder symbol with squiggly lines behind each of the wheels is usually an indicator of some speed difference between the wheels has been detected & the VSS has stepped in. I see it a lot when I'm pushing thru the twisties &/or sliding the Spyder around a little, or when I'm lifting one front wheel for more than just a moment; but if I don't push it/lift it for too long, it usually goes away when the wheels all start turning at the same speed again.

I haven't pushed it as far seeing 'Limp Home Home' mode or getting any codes to appear for years, but both used to occur fairly regularly earlier on in my Spyder riding journey, until I learned not to push it quite so far/as hard as that. It's certainly a fine line, but all it takes is juuuust a little less 'push' & only the symbol comes up, usually momentarily, but no codes etc.

I've also seen that symbol pop up when one of the Speed sensors has some mud or crud on it; or when one of the castellated discs on the wheels has been clagged up with something for a while - a bit of road debris or mud caught in one/a few of those notches on the castellated discs/wheel things & the speed sensor can't tell properly what speed that wheel is actually rotating at, so the symbol comes up on the dash warning you the VSS is detecting wheel speed variations that could mean you're spinning wildly down the road... And if the wheel speed sensors go on reporting a condition like that for long enough, the Nanny steps in & triggers a 'Limp Home Warning' that's not quite a full on 'drive slowly and carefully home at the reduced speed that's all you're getting now cos somethings dangerously stuffed up' type mode, but more of a 'don't push your cornering quite so hard buddy, or you'll spin off the road cos I can't protect your butt from your own exuberance &/or stupidity' thing!! In other words, the Nanny's saying 'BEHAVE, or I'll slow you up forcibly; but for now, just watch it!'

And the Check Engine Light could be specifically related to those codes, or maybe it was just one of the 'I really don't know what's going on' warnings that the Check engine light is used for - if the systems can't specifically identify anything else, but the sensors aren't reporting what &/or as they should, the Check Engine Light gets triggered as a Catch-All.

I believe those C006C & C0040 codes are related to intermittent communications with the ECM/VCM or a Brake Light Switch or globe failure, so this ALL could easily have been triggered by you riding thru some crud on the highway & picking up a bit on one or more wheel speed quadrants &/or the brake pedal switch, or maybe it was just that your brake pedal was being vibrated/bounced around too much so it triggered a warning...

Are the codes still 'active', or are they just showing that you triggered them once a while back?? If they're not still active, ride on, things are under control - for now, but do watch for that little 'Spydey with squiggly lines' symbol if you can without taking too much attention from riding safely - you might be surprised at how often you trigger it if you push your Spyder a bit.

[Peteoz]

Peter has gone into detail above, but the C0040 is -

C0040 module:VCM
Brake pedal switch failure (BLS).
Mechanical defect or wrong mounting of BLS.
Brake Light circuit open or defective brake light bulbs.
Check BLS (brake light switch) fault on ECM .
Check brake light bulbs.
Check BLS.

which would certainly explain why your cruise control is turning off, Greg.

Pete

[Mikey]

By any chance have you done anything to your brake peddle to make it heavier than normal? Like a bigger cover to step on or such! Maybe it's time to put an extra return spring on that brake arm, I had to put one on mine the darn brake light would come on after I left my bike at work in the parking lot, freinds would come in and say mike your lights are on!

[K80Shooter]

I agree with the others. Check your brake light switch to make sure that it is not sticking and clean if you can.
There have been a few posts on here about that I believe.

[IGETAROUND]

And of course if you still have the original battery in your 2018 it may be voltage generated faults, have you checked the tightness of your battery terminals?? do you have star washers on the battery terminals??

Al in Kazoo

[gkamer]

And of course if you still have the original battery in your 2018 it may be voltage generated faults, have you checked the tightness of your battery terminals?? do you have star washers on the battery terminals??

Al in Kazoo

I don't know if it's the original 2018 battery, but it was in there when I brought it used on 2021. I'll look at those washers tomorrow. Thanks.

[gkamer]

Well went for a ride today. No issues. I checked for fault codes and there were none. I'm thinking gremlins with nothing better to do then give me more stress then I already have.

[safecracker]

You could have a bad/dirty switch. I believe 2018 and newer had some issues with those. Bruce

[gkamer]

Well it happened again. Cruising down Interstate 90 on my way to Moses Lake, WA I got a Limp Mode message on my gauge cluster. The Check Engine light was on, as well as the VSS symbol. I was pretty close to an off ramp so I took it and made my way to a back road that would let me get home. I was barley able to maintain 58 mph, which would not be great on the interstate. And again I got the C006C and C0040 fault codes.

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After the last time this happened I was focused on making sure my foot was not even close to the brake peddle. Once I got home I called my dealership. I explained to my guy there, Eric, what the problem was and that I was planning to go to Deadwood for the rally next month. He juggled some stuff around and was able to squeeze me in on the 15th for a diagnostic to see what the the cause might be. I'll leave it there for a couple of days and see what develops.

[chipveres]

I was doing some other work on the cycle when I noticed that the brake light switch was just plain loose. Please check it.