IMPORTANT NOTICE: BRP SAFETY RECALL NOTICE 7-19-09

[Motza]

ATTENTION ALL SPYDER OWNERS CHECK OUT BRP SITE FOR RECALL INFORMATION
Reference to the Dynamic Power Steering (DPS) problems

 

[zzneonzz]

ATTENTION ALL SPYDER OWNERS CHECK OUT BRP SITE FOR RECALL INFORMATION
Reference to the Dynamic Power Steering (DPS) problems

I had the recall done yesterday and the stearing is a bit stiffer and the little play that it had prior is now gone completely.

 

[3wheeldemon]

From BRP:

by SpyderTeam
Date: July 17, 2009
Re: Dynamic Power Steering (DPS)
Dear Can-AmTM Spyder Roadster Owner,
This notice is being sent to you in accordance with the requirements of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act, the Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Act and other applicable laws. Bombardier Recreational Products Inc. and BRP US Inc. (“BRP“) have decided that a defect which relates to motor vehicle safety exists in certain Can-Am Spyder Roadster models and are conducting a voluntary safety recall.
What is the potential problem?
A situation may occur where you may need to exert a force greater than expected to initiate the turning of the steering handlebar of your vehicle in order to correct its trajectory. At this increased level of force the handlebar may be turned more than you had intended. If this occurs you may steer your vehicle out of lane which increases the possibility of a crash with other traffic or of a drive off the road.
What should you do?
Call an authorized BRP Can-Am Spyder Roadster dealer and make an appointment to have your vehicle repaired. We will re-program the dynamic power steering systems to improve the smoothness of operation. This software update does not involve the replacement of part and should take less than twenty minutes to complete. The dealer will perform this work at no charge to you.
In the mean time be aware that a condition may arise where you need to use more force then expected to steer your vehicle. Stay alert and give yourself enough distance and time to react. BRP encourages you to pass on this information to any other driver of your vehicle.
What to do if you feel this notice is an error?
This notice was mailed to you according to the most current information we have available. If you no longer own this vehicle or some information in this notice is incorrect, please contact BRP at your earliest convenience.
For US residents only
If you believe that the dealer or BRP has failed or is unable to remedy the defect within a reasonable time, you may submit a complaint to the Administrator, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue S.E. Washington, D.C. 20590, or call the toll free Auto Safety Hot Line at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY: 1-800-424-9153), or go to http://www.safecar.gov.
For Canadian residents only
If you believe that the notification or correction is inadequate, that the manufacturer fails to correct the situation in accordance with the notification or it fails or is unable to correct the situation within 60 days, you may submit a complaint to the Road Safety and Motor Vehicle Regulation Directorate of Transport Canada at 1-800-333-0510.
If you are a vehicle lessor, federal law requires that any vehicle lessor receiving this recall notice must forward a copy of this notice to the lessee within ten days.
If you have questions, need assistance, or to find your nearest authorized BRP dealer:
• Visit www.can-am.brp.com
• In the US and Canada: 1-888-638-5397, 8:00 to 18:00 Eastern time

Sincerely,
After-Sales Service Department,
Bombardier Recreational Products Inc.

 

[Motza]

Thanks for the full post...

 

[vt228]

recall

BRP called me today told me to go to my brp service dept, and have my spyder fixed all spyders are to be recalled for updats so everyone call dealer and have them plug your :spyder:in so bike runs well.

 

[Trickie Dick]

ground wires

Did I read somewhere there is a recall now dealing with the ground wire kit on the SE's? My dealer told me several months ago they wouldn't do the ground wires unless there was a recall. I thought I read on one of the threads that recall has in fact happened. Can't find it now.:dontknow:
Dick

 

[Motza]

Did I read somewhere there is a recall now dealing with the ground wire kit on the SE's? My dealer told me several months ago they wouldn't do the ground wires unless there was a recall. I thought I read on one of the threads that recall has in fact happened. Can't find it now.:dontknow:
Dick

What is a ground wire kit and what problem does it cause? :dontknow:

 

[NancysToy]

Did I read somewhere there is a recall now dealing with the ground wire kit on the SE's? My dealer told me several months ago they wouldn't do the ground wires unless there was a recall. I thought I read on one of the threads that recall has in fact happened. Can't find it now.:dontknow:
Dick

There have only been two actual recalls. One for a brake problem on the very early PEs (part of 2007 production), and this one for the steering. All other issues are handled by service bulletin, what BRP calls "campaigns." The ground wire repair for SEs first appeared on Bossweb, but I don't know if an actual service bulletin was ever issued. Maybe one of our Spyder dealer or Spyder tech members can help us out here with the facts again. BTW, this fix is for shifting problems, so if you have none, they wouldn't do it anyway.
-Scotty

 

[Firefly]

Going in Wed. morning to have the steering update done. Will post my findings after.

 

[Saluda]

BRP called me yesterday. I've never had a problem and was going to wait for some feed back from others who have had it done.

 

[Longlegs]

In reference to the ground wire bulletin, my dealer said he ordered some factory made harnesses BRP has for this now.

 

[bjt]

dltang's steering recall was done without a hitch. Mine didn't work right and I'm not really surprised. Last week my steering assist suddenly quit working but I had no faults on the dash display. I tried a fuse and relay swap with no success. When he hooked up their computer to my Spyder, it wouldn't recognize the DPS module. They tried a few quick things to get it to work but had no luck. I had to leave the Spyder there so they can dig into it farther. I'm thinking worst case is a new DPS module and best case is a poor connection somewhere in there, something they can clean and reseat. I'll find out later.

After riding that way for a few days, I got used to the heavy steering for the most part. Since dltang and I had to ride back home together on her Spyder, I got to drive a Spyder with a working DPS and immediately noticed the difference. It's much better with it than without it. :thumbup:

 

[Arachnid]

Nothing wrong with my steering.:spyder:
I hope I don't still have to go in.
This dealer doesn’t like his boat repairs to be interrupted by Spyder work this time of year. But their the only game in town. Maybe they will notify me which would be more of a green light from them.

Mike

 

[Capt John]

Anybody know how long this fix takes? BRP call me yesterday and said 20-30 minutes. I just got off the phone with the service manager. He said it takes about 20-30 minutes per computer (5). He said it took him 3 hours to do 1:spyder2:. I may wait to let them do the fix at 6K service in a couple of weeks.

 

[DynamoBT]

Maybe all of 20 minutes per Spyder. Yes, more than just the DPS gets tweaked. We all know a change in one system upsets other systems. So any number of systems in the VSS get an update.

I was in and out in no time. Even got to watch the computer when it was hooked up to my Spyder.

 

[BRPjunkie]

From posts so far, it looks like some owneres have been called by dealers and other have just taken their Spyder in for the fix. Has anyone actually received the official recall letter from BRP yet?

 

[TwinPeaks]

My dealer got the notice and fix Friday (17July). He sent a postcard asking to bring my SPYDER in for the recall fix. I'm scheduled for tomorrow morning. (Virginia Beach, VA).

 

[bjt]

Maybe all of 20 minutes per Spyder. Yes, more than just the DPS gets tweaked. We all know a change in one system upsets other systems. So any number of systems in the VSS get an update.

I was in and out in no time. Even got to watch the computer when it was hooked up to my Spyder.

+1 dltang's took about 20 minutes. Multiple systems are updated. The service guy did say that the first one they did caused problems and took longer. BRP re-sent him the software update to get that Spyder back up and running.

 

[aubierules]

There have only been two actual recalls. One for a brake problem on the very early PEs (part of 2007 production), and this one for the steering. All other issues are handled by service bulletin, what BRP calls "campaigns." The ground wire repair for SEs first appeared on Bossweb, but I don't know if an actual service bulletin was ever issued. Maybe one of our Spyder dealer or Spyder tech members can help us out here with the facts again. BTW, this fix is for shifting problems, so if you have none, they wouldn't do it anyway.
-Scotty

not true...my dealer told me that the groundwire is a Recall and to bring mine in...he look up my vin and said brp had issued a recall for certain vins, mine being one. he said the steering recall also applies to my bike

 

[bjt]

dltang's steering recall was done without a hitch. Mine didn't work right and I'm not really surprised. Last week my steering assist suddenly quit working but I had no faults on the dash display. I tried a fuse and relay swap with no success. When he hooked up their computer to my Spyder, it wouldn't recognize the DPS module. They tried a few quick things to get it to work but had no luck. I had to leave the Spyder there so they can dig into it farther. I'm thinking worst case is a new DPS module and best case is a poor connection somewhere in there, something they can clean and reseat. I'll find out later.

After riding that way for a few days, I got used to the heavy steering for the most part. Since dltang and I had to ride back home together on her Spyder, I got to drive a Spyder with a working DPS and immediately noticed the difference. It's much better with it than without it. :thumbup:

Update: I just got back in contact with the service manager and the DPS is bad. I expected that but I'm still disappointed that it'll take time to fix. He ordered it from BRP late yesterday so he said the order would be processed today. He checked the BRP parts website for me this morning and it shows 82 units in stock. Hopefully I'll get my new DPS quickly (he said it's usually 4 - 5 days to get BRP parts, depending on the warehouse they ship from) and I'll be back up and running early next week.