2011 RTS Impressions

[SpyderAnn01]

Glad to hear you got the RR. I'm sure you'll put a bunch of miles on today and I hope you don't find anymore issues with it.

 

[NancysToy]

nice update for us...

i am guessing the engine running stronger is due to the temperature you were riding in. the warm weather the engine will run different.

my 2 wheel cycles always loved the colder temps when running once (warmed up of course).

sounds as if no game changers for me to wish to upgrade to 2011 model... once I cut down my front windshield...

I don't think so. I had plenty of cold weather time on the Hippo to judge the difference. It is night and day! Granted, performance can fall off in warmer weather, especially with these lean running smog motors, but apples to apples this one runs remarkably better.

 

[Mr. White]

glad to hear you got the red rocket now if george every gets his you both will be happy.:congrats::thumbup:all i can say about the paintis:gaah::cus:

I am getting tired of sitting at the side of IH10W waiting for the Can-Am truck to go by. I guess I will have to borrow Scotties Rocket until mine gets in.

I am sending my dealer Scotties comments on the dealer prep. I won't stand for crap like that. I told them to ride it 25 miles and try everything out to make sure it ALL works before I get it.

I fixed one dealer's clock, legally, for jacking me around as I pay my money and I want a well running/tested machine when I leave a dealership. My dealer said "OKAY, just as you say"!

It is the golden rule with me. I pay gold and they follow the rules.

Scotty, you give them hell for me. Stuff not working is not acceptable under any circumstances as far as I am concerned. Poor paint job does not speak well of BRP with as many machines they produce....just a "don't give a crap attitude at the plant"!

Rant over.

Scotty, how can I test or check that the "Manual Thing" is or is not working...I realize this is an adjustable rear shock, but what happens when you "hit" the adjust button??

I also wonder what BRP did to make the engine run better...smoother or ???

 

[fordguyupnorth]

scotty, congrats on your rts! as you know we share the same dealer. since i took delivery of what was supposed to be yours and you took delivery of what, i assume, was supposed to be mine you can take a little satisfaction in knowing i shared the same issues as you have. i am convinced the air suspension issue is 100% dealer prep related. i took mine to cement city and they straightened it out. i have not had any issue with the gas gauge and the paint on mine is issue free. ( maybe i have an untrained eye though). i would be happy to send you the repair order from when cement city fixed my suspension so you can see the part number they replaced, just let me know. i , personally, will not go back to the dealer you and i bought ours from as cement city has been FANTASTIC and i feel neither you or i should have had to deal with the suspension issues immediatly upon delivery. congrats though and glad you like it for the most part!:2thumbs:

 

[Dudley]

Good to see you back on 3 again, Scotty. If this Spyder runs like mine, you're gonna be smiling so much your cheeks will get creases. I know cosmetics are important to you, but they are much easier to live with until corrected if the Spyder performs like you want it. I rode 230 miles yesterday, for the first time reaching 100F ambient and the RT never showed any signs of running different. Was even 15 minutes in a Border Patrol check point line and the temperature bars never passed 4. Ride safe, my friend.

 

[Mr. White]

scotty, congrats on your rts! as you know we share the same dealer. since i took delivery of what was supposed to be yours and you took delivery of what, i assume, was supposed to be mine you can take a little satisfaction in knowing i shared the same issues as you have. i am convinced the air suspension issue is 100% dealer prep related. i took mine to cement city and they straightened it out. i have not had any issue with the gas gauge and the paint on mine is issue free. ( maybe i have an untrained eye though). i would be happy to send you the repair order from when cement city fixed my suspension so you can see the part number they replaced, just let me know. i , personally, will not go back to the dealer you and i bought ours from as cement city has been FANTASTIC and i feel neither you or i should have had to deal with the suspension issues immediatly upon delivery. congrats though and glad you like it for the most part!:2thumbs:

You and Scotty should report that dealer to BRP. Another don't care attitude. I would also tell the owner (s) of that dealership why you will not trade with them again. I have done this two or three times in my 60+ plus years of buying scoots. I don't cuss them, just the facts with proof when available...it might help the next Spyder guy....JMHO

 

[fordguyupnorth]

understood george, but after getting "tore up" after expressing my opinion on the whole fred rau book thing i am a little gun shy of sharing anything remotely negative. i am sure scotty will take care of them though. :thumbup:

 

[Mr. White]

understood george, but after getting "tore up" after expressing my opinion on the whole fred rau book thing i am a little gun shy of sharing anything remotely negative. i am sure scotty will take care of them though. :thumbup:

Here is the email I received 5 minutes ago from my Spyder dealer. As I said, I forwarded Scotty's impressions upon delivery.

George
I can promise you what ever we can set up will be done properley and will be tested prior to you picking you bike up. As far as paint if there are major flaws then that is something we will handle with BRP however I have never had any issues.

[FONT=times new roman, new york, times, serif]Kelley Haney[/FONT]
[FONT=times new roman, new york, times, serif]Owner- General Manager[/FONT]

Kelley and her husband own South Texas Suzuki in Lytle, TX. I have talked to many of their customers and found only good stuff is said about them.

Fordguy, I think this and other "scoot forums" are very helpful. If a person posts his opinion, I see no reason for someone to take them to task. They may not agree, and that is fine as long as they are not hurtful about it. We all love and defend our scoots. I love my Gold Wing trike....and looking forward to my Spyder. I enjoy all of the comments on this board....good, honest opinions are very helpful. I have just gotten into "Spyders" the last two months and have learned a great deal from you guys. Keep up the good work.

I use my real name, George Lewis, and hometown, Boerne, TX, so that if anyone does not like what I say, they can find me easily. I have a flag pole outside and will offer to meet them there at high noon (CST) and will have my pants down for them to address their concerns.....

 

[MouthPiece]

"Sic em George"!!!!! :yikes::yikes::yikes:

Chris PE# 0004

 

[fordguyupnorth]

good attitude george,,good for you! hope your new spyder treats ya well! i probably could have shown a little more diplomacy when i started the whole fred rau thread but its over now so i will let it be. good luck to ya and thanks for all you bring to the forum!

 

[baldman902]

:welcome:Congrats on your new:spyder2:. The longer you ride it the more you will love it. :2thumbs:

 

[NancysToy]

IScotty, how can I test or check that the "Manual Thing" is or is not working...I realize this is an adjustable rear shock, but what happens when you "hit" the adjust button??


I also wonder what BRP did to make the engine run better...smoother or ???

To test the air suspension (on an RTS), start the engine, put the Spyder in gear, then hit the suspension "up" or "Down" button. On "Up", you should feel the suspension rise and hear compressor run. A gauge will appear in your display, showing the ride height selected. If "Down" is pushed (with the ride height raised), you should hear the air releasing through the solenoid-operated valve. If an orange "Manual" warning appears, there is a problem. The suspension adjustment is inoperable with the engine off, or the Spyder in neutral.

Please note that under normal circumstances, in this "Manual" warning mode, the air suspension can still be raised or lowered manually, by pressing the appropriate button again, while the warning is displayed. This does not render the Spyder suspension completely inoperable, only automatic adjustment.

The smoother engine is partly an absence of problems I had with my previous machine. Most Spyders do not have these same problems! The absence of vibration around 4,000-5,000 rpm is due to correction of an error, in which a torque rod was hitting a frame bracket, transmitting vibration. This has been corrected for 2011.

i would be happy to send you the repair order from when cement city fixed my suspension so you can see the part number they replaced, just let me know.

I would like to see what they replaced. I'll PM you.

Any beefs I have with my dealer are minor. Yes, some of these difficulties could have been caught during the PDI. That would be ideal. Most of these problems should have been found during manufacture, however, so the PDI is just a second line of defense, IMO. The test rides that were mandatory last year, expired, so there is no requirement for a dealer to do so. Here in Michigan, it is impossible part of the year, anyway. Frankly, I would rather have the Spyder delivered and sitting in my hands, with the parts on order, than to not be able to take delivery because they found a problem. My dealer ordered most of the parts, some even before I signed the papers, and that is good enough for me. This dealer has bent over backwards to make me happy, and I am grateful.

 

[dabreitbach]

I use my real name, George Lewis, and hometown, Boerne, TX, so that if anyone does not like what I say, they can find me easily. I have a flag pole outside and will offer to meet them there at high noon (CST) and will have my pants down for them to address their concerns..... [/QUOTE]


I like this guy.hyea:

 

[Mr. White]

The suspension adjustment is inoperable with the engine off, or the Spyder in neutral.

Scotty, thanks for this info. I would have put it in neutral and it would not have worked....ha ha and I would have got worked up.. hyea:

I use my real name, George Lewis, and hometown, Boerne, TX, so that if anyone does not like what I say, they can find me easily. I have a flag pole outside and will offer to meet them there at high noon (CST) and will have my pants down for them to address their concerns.....

I like this guy.hyea:[/QUOTE]

I am a very sweet, easy going guy and friendly to all....except when someone tries to screw over me....then I call 1-800-AARP-KICK-ASS and they send out some retired mafia and they burn your house down with the doors nailed shut.....:yikes: :joke:

 

[clueless]

Any beefs I have with my dealer are minor. Yes, some of these difficulties could have been caught during the PDI. That would be ideal. Most of these problems should have been found during manufacture, however, so the PDI is just a second line of defense, IMO. The test rides that were mandatory last year, expired, so there is no requirement for a dealer to do so. Here in Michigan, it is impossible part of the year, anyway. Frankly, I would rather have the Spyder delivered and sitting in my hands, with the parts on order, than to not be able to take delivery because they found a problem. My dealer ordered most of the parts, some even before I signed the papers, and that is good enough for me. This dealer has bent over backwards to make me happy, and I am grateful.

yepp and most dealers charge for PDI as the units arrived assembly required ... forget my PDI fee but it was not cheap.

 

[Raptor]

Congratulations on finally picking up "Double R", Scotty. It is my sincere hope that this new machine will allow you to put the nightmare of the Hippo far behind you. That machine should be brought back to BRP and thouroughly analyzed to see just what happened there. But for you, that's all over now.

Enjoy the ride, Sir! hyea: Looking forward to future reports. Oh, and I must say I do like that Red very much. It's an eye-grabber!

 

[DynamoBT]

I'm very happy to see you have taken delivery of your new RT-S, Scotty!! I hope you and Nancy enjoy the heck out of it!! Hopefully, all your concerns will be addressed. For so much engineering in these machines, you'd think they could put a decent paint job on them. No complaints about my RS. But red is a revealing color. I know. I have a red truck. Only color worse than red is black. I have a black sports car too. I honestly wish I had gone with another color on that one. I have to have it detailed in order for it to look good. It shows every spec of everything.

Hope you are able to put lots and lots of miles on the RR this year!!!

 

[Eraser]

:congrats: on the new toy Scotty!!Looks great,and many thanks for your review! Love that colour...A true Testarossa!

 

[fastfraser]

:congrats: Scotty. Looking foreward to your updates after you put a few more miles on her .

 

[NancysToy]

Update 3/17/2011

Put on a few more miles today. I hate the first few hundred miles and the need to keep the rpm down and baby the brakes. (No break-in theories for this thread, please!) Not much new to report.

Vibration:
I am sure they have fixed the torque-rod interference for good. Very smooth in the trouble area. You can feel a slight additional vibration around 4,200 rpm, in what is probably the natural harmonic range for this engine, but that is no longer transmitted to the frame...and magnified in the process. BRP listened!

Display Cluster:
The tach was better today, but still screwy. The dealer put a cluster on order. I wish it didn't set the mileage back to zero. That absolutely affects resale value. It would be neat if BRP could enter the correct mileage, like someone said Harley did, the send the dealer the cluster.

Gauges:
The gas gauge is steady as a rock. Definitely the Gen 2 gauge.

Windshield/Deflectors:
The most noticeable change in the wind is at your legs. The slipstream is very near my skinny legs now, and my pants flap in the wind, where they never did before. There is no cold wind blowing on them, but there could be if you are not a tank-hugger like me. With mesh riding gear in the summer, it will be possible to catch some ventilation air now. I think you guys down South and out West may like these defectors a lot! For cold weather riding, the 2010 deflectors may be better, but they would definitely increase the amount of backdraft wind.

Rear Suspension:
Still stuck in manual mode. I can find nothing loose, misplaced, or disconnected. It will take BUDS to troubleshoot further. As I said before, the suspension is still operable in manual mode. When the orange "Manual" warning is displayed, press the "Up" or "Down" button again to change the setting. There will be no display of the ride height or pressure, you just put it where you like the ride and attitude.