2013 ST - Has anyone else had this Factory ECM/ECU defect? Any advice?

[Marek]

Recently, while in France, I had a problem starting my Spyder. The starter motor simply did not work. The last time I had a similar case was three years ago. Later, it seemed to repair itself, so I did not worry about it. I gave the Spyder to the service in Dijon, thinking it was the starter motor or starter relay. They checked it there - everything was OK. They contacted the BRP representative for Europe in Belgium, who explained to them that about 80% of these models have a factory defect in the ECM (called ECU in Europe). They do not know the cause of this defect. You can replace the ECM, assuming that the replaced one will not have this defect. Unfortunately, new ones are not available. So now it is like this that sometimes the starter works and sometimes to start it you have to short-circuit the solenoid contacts in the starter relay. Has anyone encountered this problem? Any experiences?

 

[Columbia]

Marek
I have a '15, which, I believe, has a number of different parts from the '13. Apparently BRP figured things out over those two years. I've never had the bike not start.
Good luck sorting this out. Parts are a challenge, the age of our rides is a challenge too. Heck, for some of us, OUR age is a problem!

 

[Bfromla]

Personally no, not that problem, & my understanding is that no, you cannot short the starter as described because of the DESS security. So it's likely a security issue more than a starter problem. I would definitely be replacing the relay as precaution as well. Another common cause of failure is operator error - not getting the sequence correct, forgetting the kill switch, or not having the brake pedal depressed (if parked in gear). Unfortunately, because of the age of the ST, lack of parts, & shops willing to service it availability, it’s gonna be hard. Good luck.

 

[Marek]

I want to replace the ECM in my Spyder. I found the following numbers in the service manual ROTAX 420 666 636; 420 666 477. However, I found an offer with the number 666 063. I checked and my Spyder has exactly that number on the ECM. Can anyone explain to me how this is possible?

 

[Peter Aawen]

... Can anyone explain to me how this is possible?

Superseded Part Numbers; different manufacturers, hence a different Part Number; cut-and-paste info from different years resulting in confused or outright incorrect info wherever you found it...

All of those have meant different Part Numbers on BRP Products in the past, and probably will in the future too. Have you asked any BRP/Can Am Parts Interpreter yet, to see what they have to say might be the correct piece of kit; or had anyone else look at it & got a second opinion??

And just as an aside, I can't recall there being any such 'widespread defect' on the ECU's for any 2013 models here in Oz; and generally, our Spyders are considered to be AUS/EU Spec, so the vast majority of components tend to be pretty much identical, albeit some of the electronic components (like ECU's) sometimes have different settings... So I wonder if that '80% of these models have a factory defect' comment is actually for real?? But then again, my "Forgetory' occasionally does work better than my 'Memory' these days - it seems that I've stood too close to too many things that go 'bang' over the years, so maybe there is something to it... Or not?!

 

[Marek]

As I wrote earlier about this defect - this is what the BRP representative for Europe says according to the information I received from a dealer in Dijon/France... My Spyder is imported from the US. My Polish dealer also claims these are replacements, so they'll fit. I bought them and I hope he's right...