Downshifts occur at very low rpm's

[Scarlet]

Being new to Spyders and coming from the 2 wheel motorcycle world, I noticed on my first ride on our recently acquired 2015 Spyder RT S that the automatic downshifts occurred at very low rpm's after backing off the throttle. The downshift going from 4th to 3rd occurred around the 1000 - 1200 rpm range. It did eventually get to 1st gear. I test drove a 2021 Spyder RT Limited and the automatic downshifts occurred at much higher rpm's. My concern is if one were to let the bike downshift automatically and then one had to get on the throttle to accelerate out of a potentially dangerous situation, you would still be in a high gear at low rpm's resulting in not much torque and power. I found I was downshifting manually to stay in a reasonable power band. I shift upwards between 3500-4500 rpm and I ride in the 4000-5000 rpm range under normal riding conditions.
Is this automatic downshifting at such a low rpm normal for this model year? Should I be doing something different so as to achieve the same downshifting experience I had on the 2021 Spyder I test drove?

 

[MONK]

That's normal. It's not an automatic transmission. It's only meant to downshift to keep the engine from stalling out. Other than the occasional time when I let it shift into 1st when coming to a dead stop, I ALWAYS downshift myself so that I can keep the bike in a gear high enough to accelerate out of trouble, if necessary.

 

[RICZ]

I'm sure you know to keep the revs above 3,000 rpm. To do that, I both manually upshift and downshift so that I am in a proper gear and rev range for acceleration or deceleration. This is especially true when on hilly and/or curvy roads. These engines love to rev, so twist your wrist and have some fun.

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

In the past I have been very vocal about what I think of some of BRP's engineering staff ( not great ) .... but as far as the Semi-auto transmission, I have only one issue ... I feel the time lag between MANUALLY downshifting it could be improved. .... My 14 RT SE-6 downshifts at 1850 +/- rpm's if allowed to do it as designed by the engineers, it never goes below that RPM level without shifting..... Some hear claim the SE-6 NEEDS to be in the 3000 to 3500 rpm range at a MINIMUM, when shifting. ... If this were the case why would the Corporate lawyers allow the engineers to use 1850 +/- rpm's as a minimum. .... Money rules the industry and the Lawyers rule the money ..... Rant over .... Mike :thumbup:

 

[Steve W.]

As already mentioned, the SEMI-automatic transmission will downshift when necessary to preserve itself.

It has no idea what might be in your mind or on the road ahead, all it knows is "engine speed is too low, let's change gears".

Yeah, the earlier v-twins needed to be kept at a higher RPM, but the triples aren't so critical. 3k+ RPM will definitely get you out of trouble quicker, but anything over 2k will do the job. Watching ahead (and all around) will minimize the times that you need "emergency" power. :thumbup:

.

 

[Scarlet]

Thank you all for your insights and advice. Glad to know that no damage is or has been done to the bike. Looks like I will be doing the downshifting most of the time since I like to be in the proper power band at all times.

 

[Baron14y]

As already mentioned, the SEMI-automatic transmission will downshift when necessary to preserve itself.

It has no idea what might be in your mind or on the road ahead, all it knows is "engine speed is too low, let's change gears".

Yeah, the earlier v-twins needed to be kept at a higher RPM, but the triples aren't so critical. 3k+ RPM will definitely get you out of trouble quicker, but anything over 2k will do the job. Watching ahead (and all around) will minimize the times that you need "emergency" power. :thumbup:

.

The torque is flat from 2500 to 4000. So, anywhere in that range will be good. I, personally, try to keep the RPM in the 2500 - 3000 range unless on the interstate in 6th gear. I almost always downshift manually to 2nd then let the machine go down to 1st by itself.

 

[Motogordo]

July 25, 2021

I bought the 2021 Sea to Sky a month ago and the downshift rpm's are around 1750 rpms.