Bummed.....

[taggtr]

Finally was stranded yesterday. Luckily I was at a shopping center and my brother was able to pick me up. Rode the Spyder to the store and when I came back out to go home she wouldn't start. It turned on like it usually would, but when I went to start it, she would turn over once then the screen would turn into a rainbow of vertical lines. I turned the Spyder off, but instead of turning off the main screen came back on and the radio came on blaring at full volume. Couldn't turn it off. Turn the key a few times back and forth and finally it shut down. Tried to start again and it did the same thing, but this time an orange screen came on saying "check transmission". Shut it off and it did the ghost thingy again with the radio coming on blaring loud, even with the key removed!
Put the key back in and turned it back and forth a few times and she shut down. Tried to start again and it did the same thing, this time the screen showed a code that I looked up in the manual. It said it had something to do with the VSS and take to dealership. Well, Tucson had a nasty monsoon storm the day before yesterday and my dealership sits smack in the middle where the storm caused most damage. 18 power poles split like toothpicks causing all the businesses there to be shut down. I think they're still gonna be closed today. Hate to call the other dealership across town, but maybe I'll have to. Anyway, I was suppose to hit the road to Ohio next week, but looks like I'll be hanging around longer until we find out what's up with the Spyder. Kind of scared now to take it cross country if they do fix it. Hope it's nothing major. But she sits in the Safeway parking lot and probably turning a lot of heads this morning!

[ARtraveler]

Lots of funny stuff going on--out of the blue. Try checking battery connections and fuses for tightness for starters.

[taggtr]

Yup, did all that and even tried to jump it, nothing. The dealership is finally going to tow it tomorrow after sitting in parking lot almost 3 days. Hope they can figure it out and get me on the road soon!

[MouthPiece]

I hope all will be well and please please please give us a "follow up" on diagnoses and fix. Please?

Chris

[SteveMac]

Yes, please do let us know what it is. Question, you said there was a "monsoon" the day before. Was the Spyder garaged or covered? Not that it should matter but just curious about the timing of your problem. Scary when something hits out of the blue. My RT has never let me down. Hope it never does! Keep us posted. Kinda sounds like the gauge cluster went bad.

[GeoffCee]

Scary when something hits out of the blue. My RT has never let me down. Hope it never does! Keep us posted.

There's no disputing that this is the place to come when you have an issue with your Spyder. There are a lot of really great people here who will do their level best to help. The other side of the coin is that this forum is a gathering place for folks with Spyder issues to solve. There are so many problems reported that it undermines the confidence I used to have in my Spyder even though my own RT is running fine and, like yours, has never let me down.

I mean, imagine three days with your dead Spyder parked in a Safeway parking lot. How would you sleep worrying about it?

[Dtryke]

I live in Tucson as well, with a 5x14 trailer with a ramp and a Ford F150. If this happens again, we can probably get it out of the parking lot!!

[Dtryke]

I live in Tucson as well, with a 5x14 trailer with a ramp and a Ford F150. If this happens again, we can probably get it out of the parking lot with a little help

[MouthPiece]

I live in Tucson as well, with a 5x14 trailer with a ramp and a Ford F150. If this happens again, we can probably get it out of the parking lot with a little help

Good luck getting it (an RT-S) in a trailer only 5' wide.

Chris

[taggtr]

The Spyder was in the garage during the storms.

Yes, please do let us know what it is. Question, you said there was a "monsoon" the day before. Was the Spyder garaged or covered? Not that it should matter but just curious about the timing of your problem. Scary when something hits out of the blue. My RT has never let me down. Hope it never does! Keep us posted. Kinda sounds like the gauge cluster went bad.

[taggtr]

There's no disputing that this is the place to come when you have an issue with your Spyder. There are a lot of really great people here who will do their level best to help. The other side of the coin is that this forum is a gathering place for folks with Spyder issues to solve. There are so many problems reported that it undermines the confidence I used to have in my Spyder even though my own RT is running fine and, like yours, has never let me down.

I mean, imagine three days with your dead Spyder parked in a Safeway parking lot. How would you sleep worrying about it?

I'm very thankful for all those here with ideas and problem solving tactics. It is crazy leaving the Spyder in the parking lot there. I covered it to protect from the monsoon weather and have a Low Jack security system on it. My brother lives next door to the Safeway and keeps an eye on it for me also (thank God!).

[taggtr]

I live in Tucson as well, with a 5x14 trailer with a ramp and a Ford F150. If this happens again, we can probably get it out of the parking lot with a little help

Thank you for the offer! But let's hope it never happens again though! We gotta get some Tucson ryders together and hit the road! When abouts do you live? I'm at Shannon and Magee near the Tucson Omni golf course.

[taggtr]

Dealership finally picked up the Spyder and checked it out. I guess the battery was dead, wouldn't even take a charge. No wonder it wouldn't start up with a jump. Had just enough juice to turn on the lights and dash. They haven't determined why the battery died, but suspect that it was just a bad battery. I had nothing tied directly to it for power and my LED lights are installed per directions and not enough to totally kill a battery. Unfortunately they do not have a new battery in stock but have one ordered and on the way. I feel relieved and they are going to service it and do an all out check on everything before my trip cross country next week. Glad it wasn't anything major!

[Dtryke]

Thank you for the offer! But let's hope it never happens again though! We gotta get some Tucson ryders together and hit the road! When abouts do you live? I'm at Shannon and Magee near the Tucson Omni golf course.

I live up I Oro Valley at la Canada and lambert..... My spyder SE fits on the trailer just fine. That's how I got it from Vegas to tuscon.

[boborgera]

I live up I Oro Valley at la Canada and lambert..... My spyder SE fits on the trailer just fine. That's how I got it from Vegas to tuscon.

RT-S, 61.9 inches' Wide

[MouthPiece]

Dealership finally picked up the Spyder and checked it out. I guess the battery was dead, wouldn't even take a charge. No wonder it wouldn't start up with a jump. Had just enough juice to turn on the lights and dash. They haven't determined why the battery died, but suspect that it was just a bad battery. I had nothing tied directly to it for power and my LED lights are installed per directions and not enough to totally kill a battery. Unfortunately they do not have a new battery in stock but have one ordered and on the way. I feel relieved and they are going to service it and do an all out check on everything before my trip cross country next week. Glad it wasn't anything major!

Again, would you please ride it for say 2 to 3000 miles and give us a follow up on how it is doing. That way many of us can use this information in the future.

Chris

[azrn8285]

Wow, sorry to hear that your spyder battery messed up. Glad to hear it stayed in the parking lot and didn't turn up missing. It is Tucson after all. I took mine in for the 600 mile check up and they lost my key the day before the monsoon so I had to wait to see if they found it. Now I will have to have a new set of keys since they couldn't find it. Hey we Tucsonans need to do a meet up. I am free in the eves and on weekends. How long are you going to be gone? How about one when you get back if you are leaving soon? Have a great trip!

[ulflyer]

These kind of electronic issues surely do not make me feel warm and fuzzy with the advent of a 3k or so ride coming up for me on 10 sep.
My 2011RT, with 4500 miles, had been flawless untill last thursday when it did similar as the one on this thread. Ran perfectly that morning, but when I got on that PM the batt seemed too low to start. Once charged, it started but was in limp mode. You ain't lived till you hear the banging, knocking noise the transmission makes when put in gear!

I had taken out the BEST insurance so I called for a tow and the dealer tells me its the infamous(my word not the dealer) throttle body assembly that has to be replaced and may take a week to 10 days to get one.
And this failure was causing the batt to drain!

To top it off, they said it started a couple of times and ran perfectly before they put it on the computer to diagnose the problem. Thats just plumb weird...and scary. Imagine being far from home on a trip and the throttle body (or whatever electronic widget these things are blessed with) goes bad; you can bet the dealer will not have parts on hand. My confidence factor has taken a big hit.

Sounds to me like they have faulty throttle bodys and even a new one might do the same. After all, my RT was built, best as I can tell, late this spring so its very likely got the same part as the one being replaced.

Edited to add: I should have noted that the 2011-7 update was done on mine within days of it being announced here. Its apparently gone bad despite that.

[NancysToy]

...Sounds to me like they have faulty throttle bodys and even a new one might do the same. After all, my RT was built, best as I can tell, late this spring so its very likely got the same part as the one being replaced.

The throttle body problem for the 2011 RT is being caused by a programming error that causes some throttle bodies to fail. This was addressed by Warranty Campaign 2011-007. As has been discussed here previously, all 2011 RT owners should have this service bulletin performed ASAP, to prevent possible throttle body failure of this kind. Those exhibiting fault codes showing that the throttle bady may already be failing, will have to have the throttle body replaced in addition to the programming update. I urge all 2011 RT owners to visit their dealers and have this important update done before they experience problems such as this.

[M109Dreamer]

Wow, sorry to hear that your spyder battery messed up. Glad to hear it stayed in the parking lot and didn't turn up missing. It is Tucson after all. I took mine in for the 600 mile check up and they lost my key the day before the monsoon so I had to wait to see if they found it. Now I will have to have a new set of keys since they couldn't find it. Hey we Tucsonans need to do a meet up. I am free in the eves and on weekends. How long are you going to be gone? How about one when you get back if you are leaving soon? Have a great trip!

The wife and I are out in Gilbert. We would be up for a meet and greet. Haven't seen to many Spyders in the south valley area.
Shane

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk

[GeoffCee]

Reading stuff like this shouldn't undermine your confidence but enhance it.

I know you posted this before the solution was known but now we all have a little bit better understanding of these beasties.
That's what makes this forum so great!

I agree the forum IS great and I enjoy my membership of it immensely.

We used to be motorcyclists until I suffered a stroke a couple of years ago. Now, because my sense of balance is impaired I can no longer handle a two wheeler, so we bought a Spyder RT-S SE5 in March this year.

We have been riding BMW bikes continuously since 79 and we've always had them dealer serviced. None of our bikes have ever broken down, not once, the only mechanical problems we've had to deal with ourselves were two rear wheel punctures. When you experience reliability like that you tend to become used to it and take it completely for granted.

But the bottom line is that the Spyder isn't a reliable machine. There are so many faults reported by Spyder riders on this forum that breaking down isn't a question of if it will happen, but when. "Understanding these beasties" is a double-edged sword. My better understanding of the Spyder has led me to one conclusion, namely that our days of BMW-style reliability are over. BRP engineering competency and mass production quality can't come anywhere near that high standard, more's the pity.

Despite all of that we love our Spyder. We are having fun owning and riding it. So far so good.

[MouthPiece]

I just wonder what the reaction would be if everyone who has NOT had any problems started threads on this forum expressing their pleasure and trust of their spyder.

Chris

[boborgera]

I just wonder what the reaction would be if everyone who has NOT had any problems started threads on this forum expressing their pleasure and trust of their spyder.

Chris

Let the first one who had no problems as in ''none'', Throw the first pleasure thread. [repaired under warranty is still a problem]

[Lamonster]

Let the first one who had no problems as in ''none'', Throw the first pleasure thread. [repaired under warranty is still a problem]

You got to wonder how long a Spyder owner would last on a Harley forum throwing stones like you do.

I know you had problems and sold your Spyder and that's great but we don't have to post a "no problems with my Spyder" post to prove anything to anyone. I have over 80,000 miles with very few problems and most of the ones I did have were self inflected. I got no problem jumping on either one of my Spyders today and heading cross country on them. They have never left me stranded. I'm sure there are plenty of Spyder owners that can say the same thing. Like someone posted before "motorcycles come with tool kits for a reason". I think there are a lot of Spyder owners that are new riders and never had anything that they might have to work on. This can be a little much for some folks and others just deal with it.

Do I wish there was absolutely no problems with any Spyders and that all parts were always in stock and all dealers treated their customers right and never kept their Spyder in the shop when they did have a problem longer than a week? you bet, but that's not the case. Your slant is negative because of your experience and I can understand that. What I can't understand is why you hangout here when you disliked your Spyder enough to get rid of it. When I get rid of something I move on to whatever the replacement was.

You know there are folks that have had bad marriages too but that doesn't make all marriages bad. Just because you had a bad Spyder, dealer and maybe BRP experience that doesn't mean everyone has or will at some point.

[bikeguy]

I guess I've been lucky with my 2010 RT. I've had a few minor problems like going into limp mode which was probably due to slightly loose battery terminals and this year's record heat in Texas. Very simple fixes in each case. Had two side panels blow off which were replaced under warranty. Nothing that even remotely would have stranded me on the road.

Before I bought my Spyder I rode mostly BMW's. Bought my first one, a 1973 R75/5 in 1975. It was a good bike and I loved it. Of course, I wasn't too happy with it the day I literally rebuilt the alternator rotor with a sewing needle while sitting in the dirt in front of the beer joint in Luckenbach, Texas. (There's a pic of the beer joint in BIG RED 1's avatar.) I wasn't too happy with it the 25 degree morning that it wouldn't start after we spent the night in sleeping bags in a roadside park between Ft. Stockton and Marathon, Texas. Those bikes had both kick starters and electric start so I used up the battery, then used up my leg and it never even fired. Luckily, that roadside park was the highest point in that country so I rolled it off the hill and it finally bump started after maybe a half mile.

My point is not to downgrade BMW's - not at all. BMW quality and reliability is legendary and well earned. My point is that machines are not infallible. Not Spyders and not BMW's and not Yamahas, Hondas, Chevrolets, Fords, Pontiacs, Plymouths, or Suzukis. I've had problems with all those brands and a few more as well. Can-Am Spyders seem to me to be at least as reliable as any of the rest of them.

The two most reliable vehicles I ever owned were a 1966 Volkswagen Bug and a 1980 Ford Courier pickup. They just ran and ran and never had any trouble. Oh, by the way, they weren't any fun, either.

Cotton