Would removing the rear mud flap reduce Dust on Pillion Passenger?

[sgerksinwi]

Would it help to remove the mud flap on a 21 RT to help with the vortex of dirt.
I know in the rain the passenger may see/feel it more.
Not sure if the vehicle behind me would either like if it's off.

[spyderdave]

I don't think it will change the flow of dust; IMO, it has more to do with two tires and the airflow around the cowling, you, the side compartments & top case.

In the rain, my wife gets much wetter because she sits so much higher than I, not because of the mudflap or topcase.
And if the vehicle behind you doesn't like it....., he's too close!

I you want to try..., there are two visible plastic expansion bolts, one on either side to remove. Then take a butter knife (I wouldn't tell the Mrs.) and work your way along between the upper & lower pieces, twisting to pop the four bulb shaped pins from their retainers. The mudflap is very soft and can then be twisted out of the the upper piece.

Re-attaching it is much more difficult!

[Peter Aawen]

I significantly reduced the dust, rain, spray, & exhaust fumes sucked up behind my 2013 RT & dumped down my pillion rider's back by adding a 'whale tail' type rack projecting backwards out from the top edge of the Trunk lid, & adding a flat piece of 1/8th ply to the top of the deck to fill in the gaps helped even more!

In my case/for the same shaped RT's, I used a Rivco Expandable Trunk Mounted Luggage Rack for Spyder RT, but there are others available, even one solid tray type specifically marketed as a 'Spoiler' intended to reduce the turbulence behind these things caused by the front wheels & the airflow along the sides/around the panniers into the low-pressure area created behind the trunk!

So I wouldn't be cutting off/painstakingly removing the mud-flap just yet... Maybe later tho, after trying the 'spoiler' idea!

[Isopedella]

Himm trying to picture that.

Got some snaps Peter?

[Peter Aawen]

Himm trying to picture that.

Got some snaps Peter?

Sorry, got none on this device Iso

But if you type 'Rivco Expandable Trunk Mounted Luggage Rack for Can Am Spyder RT' into your browser address line:; hit enter/submit; and then select the results shown from www.rivcoproducts.com you'll be able to see it clearly I'm sure.

[Hound]

I drive a mile of gravel each time I leave and come home. I found that lowering the windshield all the way helps some but not a cure for dust.

[GORP]

I also live on gravel and the resulting dust is my only major complaint and frustration with my 2021 RTL. Even traveling at 10 mph, still get dusty! So any suggestions for improvement would be greatly appreciated here as well!

[Gwolf]

Ride faster than the dust............

Looks like what this calls for is some posts, and sticks, with a big tarp, and a big fan for some amateur wind tunnel testing.

I don't have any saddlebags, or windshield. I live on a limerock road. If it stays dry for a couple weeks, the dust on the road is like talcum powder. If I ride fast enough, the dust don't bother me, but then I meet some big 4x4, with monster mudders all the way around, and when we pass going in opposite directions, there is 5 minute white out.

[Peter Aawen]

Ride faster than the dust............

Looks like what this calls for is some posts, and sticks, with a big tarp, and a big fan for some amateur wind tunnel testing.

.....

I didn't do that, I just stuck heaps of 3-4 inch long tassels of wool all over my RT & then rode, watching which way the tassels blew... it's a great look, especially if you choose a variety of wool colours to add some accent to the air-flow patterns... I even went to the extent of getting videos made of the bike with tassels riding along the road at various speeds/conditions to see where the tassels blew &/or didn't blow; then once I had a good idea of where the airflow around the Spyder was going as it moved along, I started playing with cardboard cutouts & spoilers duct-taped onto the bike to work out how/what worked best, and on the original body style RT's, that Rivco adjustable rack was waaayy ahead of anything else I tried!

When it's got something on it, the rack works pretty much like the 'Whale Tail' spoiler on the back of a Porsche Turbo, and for when there's nothing on it, I made up a thin plywood tray (ie measured it, cut out a rectangle of 1/8th ply, & painted it black! ) that sits on the rack to convert the 'open lattice carry-deck' into a flat shelf, so the Rivco Rack sticking out horizontally from the top of the trunk actually performs/works almost like it HAS been 'wind-tunnel tested & designed'! We have since done quite a few looooong rides on dirt roads &/or in the rain (and we've done some involving both dirt and rain at the same time! ) and the Child Bride & I are both convinced that it's made a massive reduction in the turbulence that was lifting dust, rain mist, exhaust fumes, & other road debris/crap up behind the Spyder and dumping it down our backs, so much so that we no longer notice any of that!

And just between you'n me, I can tell you that after just one experience of riding 16 hours in solid rain on dirty muddy roads without the rack there... there's absofreakinlutely NO WAY that the Child Bride would EVER put up with getting ANY of that stuff, let alone ALL of it dumped down her back EVER AGAIN!! Anand, I'm living & breathing testimony that she's very happy with the improvement the Rivco Rack has made! - Sure, we haven't tested it out with another 16 hours of riding in the rain on marginal roads - that was a bit of an 'isolated incident' that with any luck, will never need to be repeated again! But we HAVE done a few good 8 hour runs since without any dramas, a couple of them both on dirt roads and in the rain, AND I'M STILL HERE to tell you this, so she hasn't ever felt the need to rip one of my arms off and beat me to a pulp with the wet end since, which is something that she very seriously promised me that she'd do if we didn't fix that turbulence dumping crap down the back of her neck pdq after that 16 hour ride!! And when she gets THAT look in her eyes....

Just Sayin'

[Partzman23]

You can see the rack Peter is talking about on the back of my Spyder. I copied his idea.. works great
See my Spyder below

[ThreeWheels]

Would it help to remove the mud flap on a 21 RT to help with the vortex of dirt.
I know in the rain the passenger may see/feel it more.
Not sure if the vehicle behind me would either like if it's off.

I would say absolutely not.
I had a 2014 and added an additional mudflap to help eliminate the rooster tail effect from the back wheel.
I was very pleased to find that my 2020 RT had the mud flap extension built in from the factory.

Remember, the OP has a '21 RT.

As always, my free advice comes with a double your money back guarantee.