72 Hours with my Spyder RT-S SE5

[JonGalt]

I sent this email below to my dealer, but they are closed on Mondays. My Spyder was delivered Saturday morning. Here it is Monday and it won't start & is missing a piece. Any suggestions would be helpful.

Dear Dealer,

I noticed a mesh piece missing on the right side that goes in the radiator exhaust vent panel behind the can-am logo. I tried to call today, but forgot your dealership is also closed on Mondays. I know people in the forum mention the entire panels coming loose, but this is the grey colored insert that goes in the radiator exhaust vent. I noticed the opening on Saturday, but didn’t realize there was piece missing until I noticed there is a mesh piece inserted on the left vent opening.


More concerning is that the engine will not turn over this morning. The computer simply resets when I attempt to hit the starter button. I assume the battery is not holding a charge, is discharging, or there is drain somewhere? I mentioned a high pitch sound to the guy when he delivered it which seemed odd after the key is pulled and it is off and this continues for 30+ minutes after it is turned off whether you start the engine or not. Seems the guys in the forum claim this is normal for 2011 Spyders?


I do notice a slight smell of gasoline when I am sitting on the Spyder which is kept in my garage, but I don’t see any leaks. The cold and rainy weather kept it in the garage all weekend with exception of a 15 min drive around my subdivision on Saturday around 4:00PM. I cranked it up a few times Sunday just to make sure the battery was okay and to familiarize myself with the controls and display, but when I went out Monday afternoon it wouldn’t start at all and the computer system just reboots after the electronic starter attempts to turn the engine over. I see no diagnostic errors when this happens. I can play the radio, but as soon as I attempt to start the engine the starter quits immediately and the system reboots. I haven’t opened the storage compartments, but I checked them all and they were all tightly secured. Not sure what to do at this point, please advise.

[CyncySpyder]

&

Sorry your having issues with your new SPyder Thats Not a Good thing for sure.
1st- That open spot that looks like the mesh is missing- Believe it or not, that is the way they are built from the factory. Nothing is missing, tho many owners choose to put in after marker mesh inserts to MATCH the other side. I believe ESI &/or Kewlmetal both make versions for this.

2nd- Even tho the radio and other instruments will turn on, it sounds like you may have a LOW BATTERY You may want to check for loose connections. Adding a battery tender/charger may help to get you running.

Only other thing I can reccomend is to wait for your dealer to contact you on Tuesday. I wish you luck & hope they get you running soon enough

Dave & Teddy

[BikerDoc]

i agree about the "missing part"... My dealer even tried to order it for my Spyder only to confirm that it is indeed one of those "those page is intentionally blank" deals. I have left the hole completely open for max air flow and now I don't really notice it...
Also had battery problems at the beginning but after getting all cables tightened and one charge, I have not had another problem for the last nine months , and that is without a tender.. Of course if I lived in cold weather area like you do I would recommend the tender for any motorcycle product.

[JonGalt]

i agree about the "missing part"... My dealer even tried to order it for my Spyder only to confirm that it is indeed one of those "those page is intentionally blank" deals. I have left the hole completely open for max air flow and now I don't really notice it...
Also had battery problems at the beginning but after getting all cables tightened and one charge, I have not had another problem for the last nine months , and that is without a tender.. Of course if I lived in cold weather area like you do I would recommend the tender for any motorcycle product.

Is there a tender that is compatible with the Spyder that will charge correctly, but is available locally at a pepboys or autozone. The dealership is a hour away and closed on mondays.

[Gordy]

I would check battery cables to make sure they are tight sounds to me like this is your problem.Critical on spyders

[dltang]

& on your new RT. I wish I could be more helpful but I do not have an RT. I will tell you that sometimes, I do have a little gas smell on my 2008 sm5 sometimes. It has never been an issue though.

[NancysToy]

Dealer is full of baloney! The front cargo light operates only when the engine is running...via the load shedding relay. The first thing to do is check the battery connections, the ones at the battery terminals, not the jump start terminals under the seat. The battery terminals are often left loose during the PDI. The second thing necessary is to completely and slowly charge the battery. The dealer should have done this overnight, initially, not for two hours. Get a good battery charger made for motorcycles, like a Battery Tender, Accumate, Optimate, or Xtreme. If the battery fails to properly take a full charge, it is faulty, and should be replaced. Most common causes of battery failure in a new Spyder are improper battery initialization by the dealer, or failure to keep the new battery charged while the vehicle sits on the floor. I hope you get things resolved soon. You may want to search for a better dealer.

[JonGalt]

Okay so the missing piece is not missing! Okay, no worries there! I thought maybe I lost it on my maiden voyage or it was never installed. I thought it came that way, but when I noticed the piece on the left I just started to worry.

The dealer thought the low battery was cause from the light in the storage compartment was left on because it wasn't closed tightly the night prior to delivery. They said they charged it a couple of hours and warned me to make sure I close the storage compartment lid tightly. Well I have not even opened it, but I noticed the light seems to stay off when the key is pulled. At least it is now when I open the compartment with a low battery.

I don't think the low battery is caused by that light. I think the battery is defective, never was charged enough, or there maybe still a drain somewhere.

Okay I'm down to a one problem. Do you guys ever smell a little gasoline smell?

I notice it once in awhile.

Thanks for the info. I feel better already.

Any recommendations on chargers? The nearest Can-Am dealer is an hour away. Maybe one that will not ruin the Spyder, but is available locally at an Auto-Zone or Pep Boys?

[Slybird]

Okay I'm down to a one problem. Do you guys ever smell a little gasoline smell?

I notice it once in awhile.

The only time I smell a little gasoline smell is when I space out and don't put the gas-cap back on after fueling the .....like I did 3 of the first 5 times I filled it up. (I've learned, though!)

[2Gunns]

First let me say and fellow Carolina Spyder Ryder.

I believe we all have been victims of the "missing grill" syndrome, don't let that one bother you. I have installed right side after-market from Custom Dynamics (Winston-Salem).

As for your battery issues, My 2010 RT-S did the same thing you describe days after I picked her up.... and NancysToy nailed the problem, loose connections (specificlly the negitive "false" post)

I had to bend a open-end wrench to reach, but was able to tighten it myself. Never an issue since.


Hope to see you on the road....enjoy that RT