shifting delay

[MIKIE & DEE]

after riding at constant speed and you stop at a stop sign and you take off again (not all the time) do you get a hesatation when you shift fome 1 st to 2 or from 2 to 3 if you are not ready fo the delay you can almost hit wind shield !!!

[NancysToy]

What rpm are you trying to shift at? Too low and the Spyder will hesitate.

[ARtraveler]

too low on rpm's and it will delay.

[MIKIE & DEE]

about 3000 rpm

[ARtraveler]

It will shift above 2500 or so--but likes 4500-5000 better. I had a delay today at 3000 on mine.

[NancysToy]

The centrifugal clutch does not begin to engage until 2,000 rpm +/- 200 rpm. It is not fully engaged until 3,200 rpm +/- 200. If you shift up at 3,000, the engine would drop about 1,000 rpm to 2,000...possibly below the clutch engagement point. The Spyder doesn't like this! It will refuse to shift until your rpm is high enough. You should really shift at 4K-5K for good results, and always above 3,500 to assure positive clutch engagement.

[emoney230]

I havent really watched the rpms but i will. Its happened to me. I have a SE5 , and was wondering if its only the people with automatics , that have this problem. Also never had this problem in the first 600 miles till the oil filled the air filter. ( fixed warranty) Then I noticed it happen. dont know if one has to do with the other unless people say ,yep ME too..

[SpyderAndy]

I have a RS SE5 and had the same issue. Shifting at around 4000 - 5000 RPM will defiantly help. I keep wanting to shift too soon but I read another thread that suggested the higher RPM and it helped a lot. You will notice the shifting is much smoother overall when you shift at the higher RPM too

[NancysToy]

I havent really watched the rpms but i will. Its happened to me. I have a SE5 , and was wondering if its only the people with automatics , that have this problem. Also never had this problem in the first 600 miles till the oil filled the air filter. ( fixed warranty) Then I noticed it happen. dont know if one has to do with the other unless people say ,yep ME too..

Yes, it is an SE characteristic. It is not a problem...just the way the SE centrifugal clutch works.

[Bob Denman]

I've noticed that bumping the shift rpm up the rev scale starts to really impact fuel economy... The trick is balancing decent and predictable shifting with fuel economy.
And I STILL catch an unexpected delay once in a while!

[CyncySpyder]

I've found that if you are low on oil, it will also give you the aformentioned shifting delay characteristics as well, no matter how high of an RPM level you shift at. On our previous 2010 RT-S, if we didn't keep the oil level at the top FULL line on the dipstick, we would get these shifting anomolies frequently, but it could also "buck" when downshifting, delaying for a moment, then rapidly downshifting and causing an almost "bucking like a horse" sensation. Not sure if this was just a one off of that particular machine, or if others have experienced it, but just thought I'd throw this into the wash since it is on topic of the thread from the Original Poster.

Just to see if it would happen on Teds Red Sled, which is a 2011 model, with a little trial and error sluething, I was able to replicate this scinerio, so it is also a plausible cause for the delayed shifting issue, along with trying to up-shift at to low of RPMs. Just thought I'd share this with all those interested.

So, if your experiencing delayed shifting anomolies with your SE5 equipped Spyder, make sure your RPM levels are above 4200 (give or take) & if your still experiencing the anomoly, make sure to check your oil level, CORRECTLY & BY THE BOOK, with the engine warm, like after a ryde, not just started up sitting for a few minutes.

dav n ted~

[Bob Denman]

Very good point Dave!

[MIKIE & DEE]

thanks for all the input

[emoney230]

Rode alot today and was watching my shifting.. Shifted at 4500 and not once did it delay.. i did notice that I mentally wanted to shift at 3000 but paused myself. But I noticed I was only mentally tring to shift that low from first to second. So Shifted at 4500, all seems ok. Thank you guys for your input