Intermittent Front End Shaking

[Spyder Dawg]

I have a 2010 RT SE5 and I have experience the front end and handle bar shaking back a forth. This does not happen all the time. It has happened three times over last summer. The shaking starts between 41 to 43 mph. If I go lower than 41 mph or higher than 43 mph the shaking stops and when you drop back to 41 to 43 it does not shake. I have checked all connections and they seem to be all secured and no problems. I have talked to my service manager at the dealer and he didn't have an answer as he was puzzled by it. He's only suggestion was to rotate the front tires. Has anyone experience this or have an idea in want is causing the shaking?

 

[SpyderAnn01]

In my opinion rotating the tires is a waste of money, especially if you are having tire issues. You will just move the issue from one side to the other. Check your tires and see if they are cupping, the shaking you describe happens when the tires have started to cup. Time for a new set of tires.

 

[Y Rider]

I had the same issue with the original set of tires on my 2011 RTL. After about 4K miles on the front tires when moving between 40 and 45 mph the front end would start shaking. Turned out to be a bad set of out of round tires. A new set of OEM tires corrected the problem. That set was good for about 10K miles.

 

[Jeriatric]

If you rule out tire issues

I had the same issue with the original set of tires on my 2011 RTL. After about 4K miles on the front tires when moving between 40 and 45 mph the front end would start shaking. Turned out to be a bad set of out of round tires. A new set of OEM tires corrected the problem. That set was good for about 10K miles.

Set down facing a front wheel, grab the front and rear of the tire at 9 & 3 o'clock position. Gently push and pull on the tire. What you'll be looking for is any freee play 'any'. On both sides. If there is? See your dealer.

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

POOR DEALER SERVICE

I have a 2010 RT SE5 and I have experience the front end and handle bar shaking back a forth. This does not happen all the time. It has happened three times over last summer. The shaking starts between 41 to 43 mph. If I go lower than 41 mph or higher than 43 mph the shaking stops and when you drop back to 41 to 43 it does not shake. I have checked all connections and they seem to be all secured and no problems. I have talked to my service manager at the dealer and he didn't have an answer as he was puzzled by it. He's only suggestion was to rotate the front tires. Has anyone experience this or have an idea in want is causing the shaking?

If that's the best answer they can come up with find another dealer ASAP ..... did they even test it ???? or was this purely SWAG :lecturef_smilie: :roflblack: :roflblack: :roflblack: .............. Mike :roflblack:

 

[2Paw]

I hate to be a downer but I had the same issue on my 2012 RTS and nothing seemed to fix it balancing, alignment, Lazar alignment, new set of tires (yet nothing seemed wrong with the old ones) made it better but did not fix. I have found that if I am diligent about keeping the proper inflation and the belt tightened everything seems to be much, much better. I am almost inclined to believe that the problem is the belt tightness (I really don't know why this would be the case). Someone much smarter than me would have to figure this out.

 

[BajaRon]

I hate to be a downer but I had the same issue on my 2012 RTS and nothing seemed to fix it balancing, alignment, Lazar alignment, new set of tires (yet nothing seemed wrong with the old ones) made it better but did not fix. I have found that if I am diligent about keeping the proper inflation and the belt tightened everything seems to be much, much better. I am almost inclined to believe that the problem is the belt tightness (I really don't know why this would be the case). Someone much smarter than me would have to figure this out.

Could be bad wheels, as long as your A-Arm bushings and tie-rod ends are good.

 

[2dogs]

Do as JerBear said..........

Then jack up the front and spin the tires and check for a bent wheel or out of round tire. Then take the front wheels off and go have them balanced. That may help to solve the vibration problem, it did on mine. I also got Squared Away which helped too. Good luck and happy trails. Also check for warped rotors.

 

[Spyder Dawg]

Thank you all for your answers. I will take a look at each one and do the process of elimination. Again Thank You for taking time to answer me.

 

[Thedragsman]

2011 RTS front end shake

I have the same problem with speeds over 43 mph. It seems like the front right tire shakes and causes the left tire to shake. I have been to 4 different dealerships and have had no luck; spending $k's in the process.

List of actions taken: Wheel bearings replaced, front right rotar replaced, wheels balanced x 3 times, a new set of wheels/rims installed as a test (no luck), A-Arm bushings replaced (all linkage is tight), the belt tension has been adjusted from 150 - 600 (no rocks in belt), supsension and tire pressure has been adjusted (+/-), alignment has been checked, and lastly, Can-Am actually paid to replace the Power Steering Pump.

It still shakes.

I am replacing the stabilzer bar next. After that, its time to find a field and a match; unless someone has any other suggestions.

 

[Peter Aawen]

'Not Enough' Caster can prouce this intermittent violent shakes at a specifc road speed, usually triggered by hitting a bump or articulating the suspension during cornering. If this is the problem, slowing below the 'trigger speed' should let the shakes stop, & you can often speed up & drive on thru that 'trigger speed' again without any issues - unless yo hit a bump or articulate th suspension during cornering while at that critical speed once more!

With the 'fairly rudimentary' suspension design & the minimal adjustment features on our Spyders, plus the fact that as th suspension compresses & extends from its OE set static ride height during normal use, the only time the suspension & wheel alignment is at 'Manufacturers spec' is when the Spyder sitting EXACTLY at its originally designed static ride height - if you've adjusted the shocks or springs, wound the suspension up or down, increased or lightened the load on the front suspension, or pretty much done anything that means its now not EXACTLY where it was set during construction, then there's a good chance that your steering geometry, front suspension, &/or wheel alignment specs are now no longer set how they were meant to be by the designer.... and that can include reducing the amount of caster (or the tendency of the wheels to return to straight ahead once you release steering effort or once they are no longer pointed anywhere but straight ahead for any reason, such as hitting a bump or turning a corner) and that reduced caster can mean your Spyder gets the shakes intermittently when those 'insufficient caster' conditions are met!! :shocked:

If you have this 'lack of sufficient caster' issue, you might need to find a suspension & wheel alignment guru to fix it, or maybe returning everything to EXACTLY how it was set during construction can resolve the issue, but I expect we'll see more & more of this sort of problem arising as our Spyders age & their springs & shocks start sagging over time & therefore move away from the designed OE settings as they do so!! :sour:

 

[Thedragsman]

'Not Enough' Caster can prouce this intermittent violent shakes at a specifc road speed, usually triggered by hitting a bump or articulating the suspension during cornering. If this is the problem, slowing below the 'trigger speed' should let the shakes stop, & you can often speed up & drive on thru that 'trigger speed' again without any issues - unless yo hit a bump or articulate th suspension during cornering while at that critical speed once more!

With the 'fairly rudimentary' suspension design & the minimal adjustment features on our Spyders, plus the fact that as th suspension compresses & extends from its OE set static ride height during normal use, the only time the suspension & wheel alignment is at 'Manufacturers spec' is when the Spyder sitting EXACTLY at its originally designed static ride height - if you've adjusted the shocks or springs, wound the suspension up or down, increased or lightened the load on the front suspension, or pretty much done anything that means its now not EXACTLY where it was set during construction, then there's a good chance that your steering geometry, front suspension, &/or wheel alignment specs are now no longer set how they were meant to be by the designer.... and that can include reducing the amount of caster (or the tendency of the wheels to return to straight ahead once you release steering effort or once they are no longer pointed anywhere but straight ahead for any reason, such as hitting a bump or turning a corner) and that reduced caster can mean your Spyder gets the shakes intermittently when those 'insufficient caster' conditions are met!! :shocked:

If you have this 'lack of sufficient caster' issue, you might need to find a suspension & wheel alignment guru to fix it, or maybe returning everything to EXACTLY how it was set during construction can resolve the issue, but I expect we'll see more & more of this sort of problem arising as our Spyders age & their springs & shocks start sagging over time & therefore move away from the designed OE settings as they do so!! :sour:

That is something to consider. I have no unusal tire wear, otherwise, I thought that maybe the shake was due to the Toe alignment. I do notice the shake is reduced at the "trigger speeds" when I move the handles slightly.

 

[Sarge707]

I had the same issue with the original set of tires on my 2011 RTL. After about 4K miles on the front tires when moving between 40 and 45 mph the front end would start shaking. Turned out to be a bad set of out of round tires. A new set of OEM tires corrected the problem. That set was good for about 10K miles.

Same thing with my 2012 RT after about 4,000 miles -One tire cupping or problem meant replacing BOTH tires and 13,000 miles later they are fine and balanced with little wear on either tire. Most of the time the 40-43 mph shake is TIRES?

 

[LLSailor]

Kansas has started milling it's concrete roads. Some sections end up with a pattern that has caused the original equipment tires to shimmy around 40 mph. Check the road.

 

[south GA Farm Boy]

front end shake

I have a 2010 RT SE5 and I have experience the front end and handle bar shaking back a forth. This does not happen all the time. It has happened three times over last summer. The shaking starts between 41 to 43 mph. If I go lower than 41 mph or higher than 43 mph the shaking stops and when you drop back to 41 to 43 it does not shake. I have checked all connections and they seem to be all secured and no problems. I have talked to my service manager at the dealer and he didn't have an answer as he was puzzled by it. He's only suggestion was to rotate the front tires. Has anyone experience this or have an idea in want is causing the shaking?

I am very concerned about my front end shaking and pulling to the right! I have tried about everything and it is at the second dealer now getting a new right wheel bearing installed! Mine is a 2016 RT Limited with only about 1200 miles on it! If car dealers sold cars like this, they would be out of business very soon! Hope to get my spyder back today or tomorrow, will let you know if the wheel bearing helped! Looking for Federals tires at probably 20 locations, and everyone has them on backorder! Will get help from Joe if we are ever close enough to carry it to him! Yes it has been Rolo aligned twice, front tires has had 5 tires changed, and has had a set of rims and tires off a brand new spyder tested on it! Back wheel as been aligned, and proper belt tension set! Yes, I am running out of ideas!

 

[DGoebel]

I'm wondering if any of the folks having this shaking have tried the Centramatics Dynamic balancers, my RTL never did this to me, but since putting them on the front only, the last 800 miles do seem to have been smoother riding. Got mine from Lamonster in a matter of hours it seemed (like 2 days).

 

[Peter Aawen]

I am very concerned about my front end shaking and pulling to the right!.....

That sounds very much like you have 'cross caster' issues or poor toe or camber settings; & YES, these can be adjusted/corrected on your Spyder, but it needs to be done by someone who knows what they are doing with this type of suspension!! These issues can also be made worse or even created on vehicles with this type of suspension simply by adjusting the standard or set static ride height, & it's pretty much impossible to remedy completely once you've got the problem without correcting the caster, camber, & toe in/out at your specific static ride height! :dontknow:

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

WELLLLLLL NOW THAT YOU MENTION IT

I have the same problem with speeds over 43 mph. It seems like the front right tire shakes and causes the left tire to shake. I have been to 4 different dealerships and have had no luck; spending $k's in the process.

List of actions taken: Wheel bearings replaced, front right rotar replaced, wheels balanced x 3 times, a new set of wheels/rims installed as a test (no luck), A-Arm bushings replaced (all linkage is tight), the belt tension has been adjusted from 150 - 600 (no rocks in belt), supsension and tire pressure has been adjusted (+/-), alignment has been checked, and lastly, Can-Am actually paid to replace the Power Steering Pump.

It still shakes.

I am replacing the stabilzer bar next. After that, its time to find a field and a match; unless someone has any other suggestions.

.... If you have KENDA tires on your Spyder .....this may be the problem ..... they have a BAD reputation for all sorts of manufacturing Defects ..... You have covered most of the other possibilities ...... If you haven't, take your front tires and wheels to someone with a high speed SPIN balancer and have them check them, they should be able to tell if the tires are the issue ..... good luck .... Mike :thumbup:

 

[Jeriatric]

Intermittent shaking

Update?

 

[Ryan12]

Shaking

I have a 2012 RTS SM5 with 12K miles that I just noticed today that I have the shakes at 40 MPH going up to or down to 40 MPH. Handle bar and fenders vibrate very badly. If I speed up past 45 it smooth out. I currently have the Dynamic balancers installed and worked great until now. I don't know if the colder weather has any impact on these. I do have the original wonderful (NOT) tires on this. After reading this post it looks like I need to replace my front tires.