3tracs
Member
Hello SpyderLover Family!
I just wanted to get some opinions from you about my recent turn of bad luck with my beloved Spyder; 3Tracs. (For the record, he is a 2008 Can Am Spyder GS SM5; currently with 13,400 mile on the odometer. I purchased him new on August 27th, 2009, with only 14 miles on the odo). BEST warranty expired 10 months ago.
On the afternoon of July 15th, 2013, I was on the interstate doing 60-62 mph (in a 65 zone) when I suddenly heard a loud ticking noise coming from the motor. I immediately rolled off the throttle when the bike lurched twice. I instantly pulled in the clutch and the engine died. I coasted to the side of the interstate, put the transmission in neutral and pressed the start button when all I heard was a high pitched whine of the starter and knew the engine was locked up tight.
Right away I had him towed to my local dealer, and was told that they would try to take a look within the week, as they were very backed up. I totally understood and said I would check back. They called me a day later and said that the preliminary exam showed "major front cylinder damage" and that they would have to look into it more.
The next week I stopped in and they had 3Tracs on the lift with the front cylinder off. Here are the pics, but I warn you, they are not for the faint of heart :yikes: :
http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/album.php?albumid=2991
So far, the technician believes that a valve dropped, striking the cylinder, and it broke it off creating the mess that you see.
I asked what kind of "failure" could cause such a thing and they told me that they'll have to dig into it deeper to find out for sure. I asked about a timing issue, and they don't think that is the case as there isn't any damage to the other valves. To me, this looks like a cut and dry valve failure of some sort. I had 700 mile to go to the manufacturer scheduled valve check per the new updated maintenance schedule from BRP, but of course that doesn't guarantee that it could of been diagnosed before hand... I know that metal doesn't break until it breaks. Meaning; any metal fatigue may not have even existed.
My dealer is in contact with BRP on how to proceed as they haven't come across anything like this with a Rotax motor before. I'm hoping to have some good news by the end of the week...
So, that is quite a lot to throw out there. What does everyone think? I'm remaining positive as I have a lot of faith in my dealer and with BRP. The Spyder is a great machine and this is hopefully my only "bump in the web".
Thanks for listening, (reading)!
I just wanted to get some opinions from you about my recent turn of bad luck with my beloved Spyder; 3Tracs. (For the record, he is a 2008 Can Am Spyder GS SM5; currently with 13,400 mile on the odometer. I purchased him new on August 27th, 2009, with only 14 miles on the odo). BEST warranty expired 10 months ago.
On the afternoon of July 15th, 2013, I was on the interstate doing 60-62 mph (in a 65 zone) when I suddenly heard a loud ticking noise coming from the motor. I immediately rolled off the throttle when the bike lurched twice. I instantly pulled in the clutch and the engine died. I coasted to the side of the interstate, put the transmission in neutral and pressed the start button when all I heard was a high pitched whine of the starter and knew the engine was locked up tight.
Right away I had him towed to my local dealer, and was told that they would try to take a look within the week, as they were very backed up. I totally understood and said I would check back. They called me a day later and said that the preliminary exam showed "major front cylinder damage" and that they would have to look into it more.
The next week I stopped in and they had 3Tracs on the lift with the front cylinder off. Here are the pics, but I warn you, they are not for the faint of heart :yikes: :
http://www.spyderlovers.com/forums/album.php?albumid=2991
So far, the technician believes that a valve dropped, striking the cylinder, and it broke it off creating the mess that you see.
I asked what kind of "failure" could cause such a thing and they told me that they'll have to dig into it deeper to find out for sure. I asked about a timing issue, and they don't think that is the case as there isn't any damage to the other valves. To me, this looks like a cut and dry valve failure of some sort. I had 700 mile to go to the manufacturer scheduled valve check per the new updated maintenance schedule from BRP, but of course that doesn't guarantee that it could of been diagnosed before hand... I know that metal doesn't break until it breaks. Meaning; any metal fatigue may not have even existed.
My dealer is in contact with BRP on how to proceed as they haven't come across anything like this with a Rotax motor before. I'm hoping to have some good news by the end of the week...
So, that is quite a lot to throw out there. What does everyone think? I'm remaining positive as I have a lot of faith in my dealer and with BRP. The Spyder is a great machine and this is hopefully my only "bump in the web".
Thanks for listening, (reading)!
ray: they delve into it and find the source of the problem. Agree with the tech does not look like a timing problem but the would have to check the broken valve in depth..good luck..!! 
. Hopefully they can get him back on three wheels soon.
