the pro and cons of se5 or sm5

[spacetrucker]

like info from you all on se5- over sm5 pro and con what like and donn't like about them will help me buy bike for wife and me will be buying soon.also what dealer is good and bad. live in portland,or thks this will really help us...

[Blue Star]

like info from you all on se5- over sm5 pro and con what like and donn't like about them will help me buy bike for wife and me will be buying soon.also what dealer is good and bad. live in portland,or thks this will really help us...

I have a RS SM5, and the only thing I don't like about the SM5 is when I am stuck in traffic having to hold in the clutch. Another good thing (for me) is my wife won't ryde a SM5

Sorry, but I can't help with the dealer part.

[fastfraser]

Take them both for a test ryde before you decide and buy. We can all tell you what we think ,but bottom line is it's your wife that will be stuck with our decisions . That being said I know there are a lot of die hard clutchers here that have switched or wished they switched to the SE. Some have complained about holding the clutch in with small hands in stop and go traffic as it becomes fatiguing . To me it doesn't take anything away from the ryde in fact it's just one less thing to do.

[rcdurango]

I always enjoyed bikes with a clutch in the past. But when I went to buy my Spyder two things my wife put to mind. #1 when doing long rides and even short rides in the city in the car would you want Auto or Standard? and #2 Since wife never used a standard before
and she wanted to learn how to ride this bike there was only one choice for me. Although she doesn't really drive it much she feels better knowing that if something happened to me she could get it to safety. Die hard motorcycle guys make fun but truthfully I'm glad I spent the extra money for it. Not to mention I think its much safer.
Good Luck with your choice and get out there and enjoy.

[Pennyrick]

like info from you all on se5- over sm5 pro and con what like and donn't like about them will help me buy bike for wife and me will be buying soon.also what dealer is good and bad. live in portland,or thks this will really help us...

We have both. Mine is a manual and my wife drives the semi auto. We like them both. Hers because of surgery on her left hand that makes it difficult to pull back the clutch. Mine because I just like to feel the engagement of the clutch when driving. (despite that, I can shift my RT without using the clutch once I am underway by matching engine speed to road speed. I learned to do this on my old Austin Healey and find it is very easy to do on the Spyder).

You can't go wrong with either choice but be sure to test drive both before you buy.

[DynamoBT]

It's what you and your wife like best between the two. I test drove the SE5 and did not like the feeling it was trying to move forward in 1st when stopped. Idle could have been set wrong. But, you'd think on a BRP Demo Ryde they would have them adjusted correctly. But, I suppose it's not different than a car wanting to creep forward in Drive. Your foot needs to be on the brake. But, when I drove the SM5 it was like the old familiar. I like having the clutch. And yes, I am one of those people who has complained about the clutch in stop and go driving. Still, I'd rather have the clutch than not.

But we can tell you what each of us likes. It only matters what you and your wife like. You will be the ones living with whatever you choose. So, test drive both. Get what you like best.

[SPYD1]

It definitely is a matter of choice as others have said. It is great that both are offered as choices. I am a SE fan and probably wouldn't be able to ryde if my only choice was a SM. Thanks BRP.

[r1100rider]

For me the sm I've rode. Bikes all my life and like the positive feel of a clutch but I live in open. Country in the city I mite feel differant but city riding isn't safe I get out of the city ASAP look in the forum and you will see the issues with the se are 20 to 1 over the sm and there is $1500 diff in price Sk northwest is a good dealer in your area you should buy where you will expect to get warranty work done its not fair to the dealer to buy 2 states away then take it to them and get it fixed I'm an appliance dealer and I live this everyday there was a GM dealer in my town years ago and he had a a man come in with a new caddy that he bought somewhere else and he says your the dealer and you HAVE to take care of my warranty work the dealer looked at the man and said you are right but I don't have to hurry or put my best man on the job just something to think about

[CyncySpyder]

For me, the Spyder was my first motorized byke ever, and with cheufferring Teddy around, I wanted it to be as easy & less complicated to ryde as possible. I also knew we were going to get a camper & I didn't like the thought of being on an incline with a camper & dealing with the clutch issue. All my other vehicles in the past have been manuals & since we live in an urban area, with much stop & go traffic, well, that kinda made it a no-brainer for us.

I've never ridden an SM5 myself & I honestly don't know any benifit to it, besides being able to coast while moving (better fuel economy) & personal choice. The choice is yours & many of the posts you get here (like mine) are going to be biased. If its for your wife, make sure she rydes both.

For me personally, the SE5 was easy to get used to & it works very smoothly & you still have control. I think many SM5 fans think you lose control of shifting, but that isn't so. You have to up-shift every gear(thumb shifter, just no clutch) and the auto part only kicks in, if you choose NOT to downshift on deceleration. If you don't down-shift by a certain RPM (I think around 3200) then it will downshift by itself. The only other caveat, is that it will not allow you to UP-Shift if your not at a high enough engine speed, or RPM, usually around 3600 I believe. Many SE5 ryders find it very spirited to shift above 5000 RPMs, but the higher your shift points, the lower your fuel economy. I personally have found that Bob Denmans short-shifting pattern at 4000 or under works well, and helps increase your fuel economy, albeit a more casual ryding experience. When I was shifting around 5000 RPMs we were averaging around 24-27 MPGs, but with short-shifting around 4000 RPMs, we've gone up to 28-30 MPGs.

Whichever you choose, You've found the BEST place on the WWW for anything Spyder Related. Welcome to the Spyder-Hood.

[Campverdefela]

SE5 is the way to go. As others have said, one less thing to worry about especially in a panic situation, and I know I couldn't shift as fast manually, so I like the extra oomph.

[daveinva]

I took a trike class on an RT SM5. I bought an RS SE5. The SE5 was my way to go.

I'll never buy an automatic in a car, I love driving stick, but on the Spyder, the SE5 is just so dang useful, smooth, and polite. It's actually genuinely fun to use, and I don't care how fast you are with a clutch, the SE5 shifts faster. Marvelous little piece of engineering from BRP.

[dancogan]

I like the positive feeling of a downshift on my SM5 when I'm slowing and entering a corner and the ability to upshift positively when I come out of the corner and accelerate. But I've never driven the semi-auto so I don't know how it would feel.

Another thought is that since I also ride a 2 wheeler I like to keep the controls of the 2 bikes as similar as possible so instinct can take over when needed.

[Yeochief]

You didn't mention your ages, or prior experience with motorcycles, that makes recommendations a little more difficult as they need to be more general. If you are experienced motorcycle riders, and have no physical limitations, a SM5 might be your best choice, unless you will be doing a lot of urban driving, the SE5 makes urban driving much more pleasant. At normal idle, 1400-1450 RPM creep shouldn't be a problem with the SE5, but you really need to maintain pressure on the brake pedal when stopped, not massive panic pressure, just hold it down.

I have a SE5 mainly because i have carpal tunnel syndrome in my hands and pulling levers gets painful quickly. I can go 0 to 60 in what seems like nothing flat when I crank the throttle and thumb the shifter every time I hit 4500 to 5000. You can also use the engine to brake into turns or approaching signals. At 60+ a flick of the shifter down and the engine brakes for you.

Remember the SE5 isn't an automatic up shift like a car, you need to tell it which gear to hit. Downshift can be automatic or manual, your choice.

Whichever you choose, I think you will be very happy.

[SteveMac]

I have the SM5 because I wanted to shift. Been a few years since I owned a motorcycle and I wanted that old feeling. I do like mine but I see no real big benefit in having the SM5. It was just a personal preference.

I have ridden an SE5 and I liked it fine on flat roads. I'd like to see how it is on an incline like a steep parking lot exit onto the highway or a steep incline sitting at a stop sign. I assume it is fine because I have never heard any complaints. I am just used to feathering the clutch in those situations.

Cons for my SM5 is definitely slow-and-go traffic. On a trip to Milwaukee this past summer, I was in a couple of miles of bumper to bumper on a highway due to an accident up ahead and I was wishing for the SE5 at that moment.

Based on the slow-and-go traffic alone, if I were to buy today I would probably go with the SE5 instead of the SM5.

[NorthStar]

As others have suggested, try both out mimicking your driving habits as best as possible. I drove 2 wheelers for 45 years and don't miss manual shifting at all. For me the SE5 on the Rt is the best decision I made when purchasing my vehicle 2 years ago.

Shifting with the paddle shifters is effortless and holding the RT on steep inclines is far easier than with the SM5. I especially like sitting at a stop and simply rolling the throttle to get the bike rolling. I know I can't burn rubber on take off with the SE5 unless I go in reverse but who wants to do that with a touring vehicle.

All this being said I think if I owned an RS I might have been tempted to go with a manual shift because I know I would have done more one up driving at a higher rate of speed.

Again, try them both out and you will know what fits you. Good luck.

[spacetrucker]

I just want say thank you all for the great info. one outher thing iam also looking at is weight load on bike book says 525lbs.so putting better schocks for weight has any done that to their bike. i fig out with all my things hers and our weight would be around 655lbs so let me know abouth this part of the bike >>... thks all for your times and info

[ARtraveler]

It boils down to what you folks like best. Test ride both flavors.

My experience: Have had both. SE5 much easier for new riders that have not been on traditional motorcycles. No change in performance for me--so I can go either way. $1500 extra to go semi auto.

My next Spyder? Most likely SE5 again.

I have a Vulcan--so when I feel the need to clutch and shift--I can ride that.

[Spyder Couple]

We got the SE 5 as we didn't want to have the stress of shifting and having to hold clutch in. We love our SE5 and it is nice to be able to ryde and see around you and not have to worry about shifting.

Test ryde both and see what you and wife are comfortable with.

Enjoy the ryde

[markjperry]

To beat a dead horse a different way, I have the SE-5 because I'm paralyzed and cannot use the foot shift. But the better result is my wife (who never rode a motorcycle her whole life -52 years) now drives the Spyder because it's easy and fun to drive. Good luck with whatever you choose. Be safe

[Leslee]

I love my SE! So easy to upshift and don't have to downshift at all. Quick stops take less thinking. Often when I ride behind a Gold Wing friend, I have to be careful not to run into the bike because I seem to shift faster. My Spyder shifts very smoothly. Well worth the extra cash to me.