Thought I’d take a moment and send out my impressions of the bike for people looking at the threads and wondering if they should buy a spyder. First off I rode Harleys for 12 years this was not an easy purchase for me in that regard but I loved the idea of a more functional ride for touring and for day to day driving and so I took the plunge after reading quite a bit about the Spyder. Anyway here goes:
I live in central KS. No dealer within 100 miles and so purchasing one was a trip in itself. I am pretty handy with a wrench and knew pretty much right off that I would have to work on it myself barring any unforeseen serious issues. If you are not mechanically inclined or not prepared to possibly void your warranty by working on it yourself and don’t live near a dealer you might need to reconsider. One GOOD thing about Harleys is there seems to be a dealer within 50 miles of everywhere (good or bad). As for dealers I have spoken to more than a few already and have read plenty. There are good and there are bad as in anything. The one I bought mine from was subpar if ya ask me but I won’t go into details on that here so if you need a good dealer go and spend some serious time talking to them about the spyder and “test” them on their knowledge of product. Also the spyder is in my opinion, expensive to operate so if you are looking for a high mileage low cost solution to your gas guzzler this aint it folks.
Now the good stuff. It is not like riding a motorcycle save for the wind in your hair. It is however a great deal of fun to drive. I felt at first like I was fighting the bike in the curves etc but the more time I spend on it the more at ease and knowledgeable I become with it. It has been said, and I do believe, that someone who has never driven a motorcycle will pick up how to drive a spyder faster than one who has, and I whole heartedly agree with that summation. I am constantly amazed at the technology involved in this thing and despite the kinks it has (and you’ll find plenty of em here in this forum) it is truly a step forward in design and function on the open road. The first time I drove it in the rain I couldn’t believe the way it hugged the road. Also while it has some problems there is evidence that many have little to no problems at all and of course those with problems yell louder than anyone. While not set up properly for long distance driving with some more money of course it can be. I am slowly setting mine up more for the upright position and of course with the new RT you can spend all that money and get a true touring bike but I would say that they seriously need to re-gear the bike for 6 gears and possibly a bigger motor in the RT. Also I don’t think I would have bought an RT because I like the looks of my phantom better and would still have bought it and made the conversion so to speak. The bike is a serious attention getter and if you don’t like being asked questions then don’t get one. I almost consider myself a salesman now but I speak what I believe to folks telling them the good and the bad. Overall I am happy with the bike and thoroughly enjoy riding it (everyday).
In closing a big thanks to Lamonster for this forum. It definitely helped me in making my decision and has helped me in other ways as well as far as maintenance and finding what I need to set up my ride, and continues to be THE source for info about what is going on in “spyderland”.
I live in central KS. No dealer within 100 miles and so purchasing one was a trip in itself. I am pretty handy with a wrench and knew pretty much right off that I would have to work on it myself barring any unforeseen serious issues. If you are not mechanically inclined or not prepared to possibly void your warranty by working on it yourself and don’t live near a dealer you might need to reconsider. One GOOD thing about Harleys is there seems to be a dealer within 50 miles of everywhere (good or bad). As for dealers I have spoken to more than a few already and have read plenty. There are good and there are bad as in anything. The one I bought mine from was subpar if ya ask me but I won’t go into details on that here so if you need a good dealer go and spend some serious time talking to them about the spyder and “test” them on their knowledge of product. Also the spyder is in my opinion, expensive to operate so if you are looking for a high mileage low cost solution to your gas guzzler this aint it folks.
Now the good stuff. It is not like riding a motorcycle save for the wind in your hair. It is however a great deal of fun to drive. I felt at first like I was fighting the bike in the curves etc but the more time I spend on it the more at ease and knowledgeable I become with it. It has been said, and I do believe, that someone who has never driven a motorcycle will pick up how to drive a spyder faster than one who has, and I whole heartedly agree with that summation. I am constantly amazed at the technology involved in this thing and despite the kinks it has (and you’ll find plenty of em here in this forum) it is truly a step forward in design and function on the open road. The first time I drove it in the rain I couldn’t believe the way it hugged the road. Also while it has some problems there is evidence that many have little to no problems at all and of course those with problems yell louder than anyone. While not set up properly for long distance driving with some more money of course it can be. I am slowly setting mine up more for the upright position and of course with the new RT you can spend all that money and get a true touring bike but I would say that they seriously need to re-gear the bike for 6 gears and possibly a bigger motor in the RT. Also I don’t think I would have bought an RT because I like the looks of my phantom better and would still have bought it and made the conversion so to speak. The bike is a serious attention getter and if you don’t like being asked questions then don’t get one. I almost consider myself a salesman now but I speak what I believe to folks telling them the good and the bad. Overall I am happy with the bike and thoroughly enjoy riding it (everyday).
In closing a big thanks to Lamonster for this forum. It definitely helped me in making my decision and has helped me in other ways as well as far as maintenance and finding what I need to set up my ride, and continues to be THE source for info about what is going on in “spyderland”.
