First Ride after Repairs on my 2014

[bluestratos]

It was cold today but I was able to get my power hooked up for my heated clothing and off I went. I filled the tank then drove 11 miles to Bellingham on the highway and as I was warm enough I decided to head to my dealer, another 34 miles away. The wind is gusting to 35 but I was surprised to find it very stable and very little effect on the bike. The heated grips really work great on this bike, I had to turn them down to low! I drove the speed limit and took it easy on the shifts to let her break in a bit but over all I am not impressed by the power so far but time will tell.

The tranny is smoother but not as smooth as I have heard tell by others. Off the line it rattles a bit this may get better as the clutch wears a bit. The eco shift indicated I could drive in 6th at 45 so I did and it seemed fine. To pass you need to drop a few gears but it hummed along fine otherwise. The repair definitely fixed the flaring issue that it had so kudos :-)

The power steering takes a lot of effort at low speed, I really noticed it in my drive way when I got back and put her to bed. Breaking is definitely better, it is not grabby and is predictable as you apply more pressure.

My biggest concern so far is how loud the intake sound is right now. It is very loud and I have to turn the radio up to hear over it. It is not as bad at 70 but then the road noise drowns it out. Compared to the videos I watched on the internet mine is far louder but I don't know if the camera really capturing the sound or not. I will have to wait until some one else I know gets one to compare against.

The fuel mileage was great for the first tank, 33.8 miles on a head wind most of the time. I drove 86.4 on 2.56 gallons, mostly 50 and over to max of 74 or so.

Over all I am impressed but need to let her break in some to really nail it down. So, now I am looking for a place to install a custom fuse panel I am building. I think I will use the rear saddle bag this time, left side as I never really found that side to be too useful due to the hump. I plan to run the main harness from the fuse panel out and into a 20 pin connector so I can quickly disconnect for removing the trunk module. From there it will branch out as required. I will do the same with the ground harness.

So many farkels to install so little time!

[ARtraveler]

Glad to hear your report. Thank you for posting.

[Bob Denman]

Keep those reports coming in!

[NancysToy]

Did they remember to put the air filter back in (and connect everything right) when they put it back together?

[bluestratos]

Not sure but it was just as loud on the first ride when it broke down. I understand the snorkel runs into the Frunk intake now and it sounds like the noise is coming from up front. Sam is getting his soon but he is will likely not ride until the weather gets warmer. I wonder if any one has a picture of the intake system on the 14's? I will check the parts fiche on the web sight to see if that helps.

[SpyderAnn01]

I'm glad that you got back on the road.

[spyder-dude]

Glad to hear you got your spyder back. The engine noise will get better or at least mine did after 200 miles. Also the shifting seem to get better. Hope to get out and ride mine this week if the weather gets above 35 degrees

[Chupaca]

Glad they got you back on the road and you had the right gear to go out and ryde. Always good to get reports on the new machines. Keep us posted...

[mindman]

Thanks for posting your experience. My 2014 Limited is in and being built now.
Can't wait to go for a ride

[Jeriatric]

Thanks for sharing your personal experience. Glad you are up and running. Keep us posted.

[Tango]

Happy to hear that you are good to go. Tom

[Bob Denman]

Tom,
Just WAIT until you hear that engine from the cockpit...

[stewartj239]

I drove the speed limit and took it easy on the shifts to let her break in a bit but over all I am not impressed by the power so far but time will tell.

Glad to see that you're back on the road and that the problem was easily resolved. There are a few online reviews that pretty much say the same thing regarding the power difference. There is more torque and HP, but from the seat of the pants feel, it doesn't seem that there is substantially more motor. One review even went as far to say that since the new motor adds 60 lbs of weight, that the power to weight ratio has remained the same. This is just what I've read. I have set up a test drive with my dealer for the spring, so that I can evaluate things myself. Down the road, I'm sure I will be upgrading to the 1330, so I want to start getting an idea for what to expect from it and possible changes that I might want to make.

[spyderbirds]

Glad they got you back on the road. Interested in more of your impressions after break in.

[bluestratos]

Interesting on the sound getting better after 200 miles, do you have any idea where it is coming from?