Bad Luck? =(

[nikki.ullis]

I purchased my 2014 Spyder RSS SE5 in april of this year. Immediately I went out and bought lots of farkle and took the plastics off the bike more times than i want to remember installing all manner of fun items.
Keep in mind my other halfs theory on bikes is to buy it with all the accessories already on it and dont touch it afterwards. He hates working on his own bikes or cars because he just wants to enjoy something and not fix it. He's a mechanic, fixing things all day and coming home to fix things doesn't make him happy.
So i've had a few self inflicted issues with the computer throwing codes (juice box) and the battery (JL audio kit not hooked up right)
but i got those all worked out
got ready to leave for the spyder rally this past weekend and found antifreeze on my garage floor. it took two glasses to fill the tank back up. Richard was NOT happy that a 6 month old bike was leaking antifreeze.
While we were up in the mountains we decided to go to the casino for a few hours. came back out and the bike had a DESS error. A bad key. Took over an hour of fiddling with it to get the bike to start up.
Then add to the mixture that my bike with 3,600 miles on it needs a new tire already.

Richard hates my bike. I love my bike but I must have terrible luck to get a brand new bike with so many issues.
Called the dealership up and told them I would bring it in saturday to have it looked at. First thing he says is that it may be a water pump issue. 6 months old and there may be a water pump issue!? I sure hope not!
He also mentioned replacing the ignition system which may take a few weeks. Not happy about that since these are my last few weeks before I have to go out of town for a few months without my baby. But i'd rather have it fixed than risk damaging it further or not getting it to start.

Doesn't help matters that the only other vehicle i've ever bought new was a 2005 honda civic that i had to take to the dealership over 30 times to repair a window regulator on the drivers door just in the first year of owning it (I was an kid and didn't know i could lemon law it at the time)

Perhaps i just have bad luck =(

 

[Magdave]

I purchased my 2014 Spyder RSS SE5 in april of this year. Immediately I went out and bought lots of farkle and took the plastics off the bike more times than i want to remember installing all manner of fun items.
Keep in mind my other halfs theory on bikes is to buy it with all the accessories already on it and dont touch it afterwards. He hates working on his own bikes or cars because he just wants to enjoy something and not fix it. He's a mechanic, fixing things all day and coming home to fix things doesn't make him happy.
So i've had a few self inflicted issues with the computer throwing codes (juice box) and the battery (JL audio kit not hooked up right)
but i got those all worked out
got ready to leave for the spyder rally this past weekend and found antifreeze on my garage floor. it took two glasses to fill the tank back up. Richard was NOT happy that a 6 month old bike was leaking antifreeze.
While we were up in the mountains we decided to go to the casino for a few hours. came back out and the bike had a DESS error. A bad key. Took over an hour of fiddling with it to get the bike to start up.
Then add to the mixture that my bike with 3,600 miles on it needs a new tire already.

Richard hates my bike. I love my bike but I must have terrible luck to get a brand new bike with so many issues.
Called the dealership up and told them I would bring it in saturday to have it looked at. First thing he says is that it may be a water pump issue. 6 months old and there may be a water pump issue!? I sure hope not!
He also mentioned replacing the ignition system which may take a few weeks. Not happy about that since these are my last few weeks before I have to go out of town for a few months without my baby. But i'd rather have it fixed than risk damaging it further or not getting it to start.

Doesn't help matters that the only other vehicle i've ever bought new was a 2005 honda civic that i had to take to the dealership over 30 times to repair a window regulator on the drivers door just in the first year of owning it (I was an kid and didn't know i could lemon law it at the time)

Perhaps i just have bad luck =(

Unfortunately there are 2 causes of lost af. The easy one is the lower clamp that can be tighten by the owner. The second is the WP seal. Both have been known to occur. Sorry to hear your having to figure out which one. Usually if it is the seal there will be some oil mixed in.

Take a look at the following links

http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/search.php?searchid=4267342

 

[nikki.ullis]

well, that reminds me... when we did the 500 mile oil change we noticed it was low on oil and that we had about 2 tablespoons of oil in the air box. richard just figured it was burning oil and was concerned about the oil in the air box. I asked the tech about the air box oil and he said don't worry about it.
Now i'm wondering if i'm leaking both oil and antifreeze and don't realize it.

i've only checked the oil once since then around 3,000 miles and had to put almost a qt of oil back into the bike.

hmm.... well... Guess i'm going to find out on saturday =/

 

[Magdave]

These bikes do tend to burn some oil but it sounds like improper filling on your part if oil was in the air box. Only check after a ride and check it 3 times. DO NOT add oil cold. I always fill to 1/8" below full and have used 1/2 Qt. in 4k mi. Over filling will cause it to make it's way into the filter for sure.

 

[Bob Denman]

Nikki,
Sorry to hear that you've had so much trouble with your RS-S. :shocked:
Here's to hoping for a better Season; NEXT year! :cheers: :2thumbs:

 

[nikki.ullis]

found oil in airbox before the first oil change, Richard took airbox off thinking we were going to have to move it to install juicebox, ended up not moving it. haven't checked since I did the oil change. Though I know what your talking about =) we made sure we followed the oil change suggestions on this forum when we did the first oil change.

 

[crazyspyder]

yeah I know the feeling, it's the nature of these spyderz. let the dealer handle it under warranty. its after the warranty where it should be concerned!:shocked:

 

[SpyderAnn01]

You need to check your oil more often the 998 motor. They do consume oil.

 

[Bob Denman]

:agree: I found it best, to just check it every two weeks... :thumbup:

 

[Chupaca]

Leaks..!!

are a pain and finding them even more so...check radiator cap making sure it is at the second detent or it will leak from there. The reservoirs are known to crack though not so much now. Then the radiator hose you saw above and the water pump seal. Oil in the air box usually comes from overfilling at some point. This engine does use oil and gets better with mileage. Checking after a long ryde is the best. Hope they get you going soon...:thumbup:

 

[nikki.ullis]

My other half is concerned that my spyder isn't reliable after having these issues. Told him we just need to be checking the oil more often and just keeping an eye on the mechanical side of it.
He's of the opinion that if you spend 23k on a new motorcycle you shouldn't have to nanny the bike to make sure you can take it for a ride.
Kinda in an agreement,however he does realize that the spyder is the only motorcycle I'm willing to ride at all. So either deal with it, or I stay home.
Now he's talking about getting the f3. I'm not convinced that things will be different with the f3, but...I might not argue with him if he wants to get me another new spyder

 

[Bob Denman]

Actually...
The F-3 might be a step in the direction. :thumbup:
The 1330 engines don't seem to be using oil anywhere NEAR as much as the 998s do.
There are absolutely NO heat issues whatsoever with them, and they even get much better fuel economy!

Will this help you present your case to your "Hugsband"?

 

[DrewNJ]

...

 

[OJ UK]

Now he's talking about getting the f3. I'm not convinced that things will be different with the f3, but...I might not argue with him if he wants to get me another new spyder

I've owned an RS-S and have just used it as a down payment on an F3. On 'spec' the F3 is likely to give less trouble with no heat issues and great performance and handling.

If you can live with its bad-boy looks then I would suggest you get a test ride. You won't be disappointed. If your fella's buying say YES!

 

[nikki.ullis]

Well, I was supposed to get my bike back this weekend. They called to tell me it was done but kinda glazed over the fact that they didn't replace the ignition system. They did however fix the water pump seal.
Called Friday to get a status and the guy told me they replicated my issue but they also found that my battery was low and he thought it might have to do with that
Some what of a reoccuring issue that i'm convinced is due to my JL audio system but my other half refuses to agree with me, we are installing an interrupter switch to prove it one way or the other soon as the bike gets back
Only thing is ... once my bike recognized my key, i started it up 5-6 times no problem. I've had that bike dead as a doornail four times and i've jump started it and have never had an ignition problem until recently. So, I'm not inclinded to believe the battery is the problem right off the get go. So I told him about that and he just said "well, our tech just came back from school and this is the new thing with the 2014s" I'm like..uhhh...okay...
It still sounded like from my conversation with him that they would replace the ignition switch anyways just in case.
Saturday they call and tell me they were done and couldn't replicate the ignition problem so they didn't need to worry about that. I'm like "that's not what you told me yesterday, you said you replicated the issue but thought it was something else". Then their story changed three times on the phone and my other half finally got pissed and talked with the manager and they finally agreed to replace it as a one time thing.
So once again my bike is making my other half pissy -_- this F3 thing might actually happen rofl. Not that i'm against it... but I dont like the look of the F3 at all and I'm not excited to use a first year model of anything.

Only thing I'm not happy about is that it took Richard getting on the phone with the guy before they would admit that they replicated the issue in the shop (which they told me the day prior). Richard has been working on cars and bikes for 22 years, owned and managed shops for the last 18 of them. I trust his judgement over a guy that just got out of tech school. Granted, he does't work on my bike yet, since its 6 months old! However, after a bit of learning at the teachers knee, it makes sense that the ignition system shouldn't be failing even with a low battery.