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Spyder F3 brake pedal is too high - any ideas/recommendations? Anyone tried SE Performance Adjustable Brake Pedal Rod?

Howie333

New member
My Wife (5'2") recently became the owner of 2019 Can-Am Spyder F3. I just installed the (A) short reach bars and the position 1 brake linkage. The bar placement is correct for her size; but the pedal is too high as it creates a braking delay lifting her foot to the brake pedal. I and my wife, coming from motorcycles, are used to a standard motorcycle peg to pedal arrangement having superior control vs a board and pedal setup on the Spider. I understand there's a distance the brake pedal must travel to get full braking and that could be dangerous if it's a struggle to get the right foot from the floorboard to that pedal continuously while driving. Not being familiar to this machine, I rode it before the bar and linkage exchange; I've been a 2 wheel rider for over 50 years and found it only safe if keeping my right foot hovering over the brake pedal in order to brake quickly unless I can angle the pedal keeping my heel on the board. There should be an easier transition for safety. I've read on forums that there's an adjustable rod available, and also a hand brake option that will work in conjunction with the brake pedal. I'll be considering these two options, but are there any other ideas/recommendations?

Please reply,

Thank You.
 
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Is anyone here using this SE Performance Adjustable Brake Pedal Rod kit or the solid brake rod from Lamonster? Any issues with quality? I'm concerned that's the only link for braking. I'm sure the solid would give more peace of mind, but it only brings the pedal down an inch (according to their shop tech) and is only as short as position 2, and I'd rather have position 1 for a short rider. I'm not sure if the adjustable rod would bring the pedal down enough.

Thank You..
 
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There are MANY F3's out there safely using either of those ^^ options successfully, and so far, we haven't seen the reports of ANY safety concerns, failures, or even issues beyond the OEM height of the pedal being a pain in the ankle - not in what must by now be at least an accumulated few million miles of ryding by all the F3 Ryders! And then there's all the RT Ryders too, especially those with the 2020+ versions, who probably have more of a 'foot raise' concern than F3 Ryders with their OEM pedal position, but pretty much all of these Spyder Ryders either get used to the OEM pedal height or use whichever one of the pedal height change methods takes their fancy and then they basically have no more significant concerns from there on in! Neither have there been any safety issues reported about Spyders &/or any of the numerous other bikes out there running floor boards rather than foot pegs, and I'm pretty sure that not too many of any of the riders with floor boards (or pegs!) ride around with their foot raised in the air hanging poised over the pedal just because it feels as tho that's what they need to do to be quick enough to operate the brakes in an emergency - while it certainly might feel like that initially, it's just not necessary, especially if you adjust the pedal by whatever your preferred choice may be in order to reposition the pedal where you feel comfortable!! And you might ask yourself if you or anyone else you know of has ever felt the need to adjust the pedal height in their car or truck cos it didn't feel right initially, or did you/they just get on with it and now don't even notice it any more?? 🤔

I will admit that the majority of those commenting here recently that I've seen have suggested that the OEM Pedal height isn't ideal, but most either simply get used to it as it is from the factory or they use one of the many methods available to fix the pedal height to their satisfaction and then they just get on with enjoying ryding their Spyder, a machine which, just by the way, has far better braking capability than just about any other vehicle on the roads!! So much better that I'd strongly suggest you (or your wife) pay close attention to who/whatever is behind you if you ever need to stop in a hurry, cos if you do need to and there's something close behind, your Spyder WILL be able to significantly out-brake it regardless of your pedal choices and if you do fully apply your Spyder's brakes, you need to be careful not to become the following vehicle's bonnet ornament - altho maybe not so much so if you choose to go the handbrake lever method, cos there isn't hand lever option available that I've seen or heard of yet that applies quite the same braking force as that provided by any/all of the foot operated pedal options!

So I reckon that you're probably being a little over-concerned about all this - try doing a search by entering something like 'brake pedal' in the Search field (up near the top right of the screen); ticking the 'Search titles only' box; submitting the search; and then using the titles in the listed results to help you choose which threads to spend a few hours on reading - there's a LOT of info already available here about Spyder brakes & pedal height modifications (and Spyders in general - there's not much that hasn't already been at least touched upon since the Forum started waaaay back when Spyders first came out!) including heaps of detail & discussion about how people have adjusted their pedal height; some discussion on the various options and methods of adding a hand lever for the brakes, with either hydraulic or mechanical linkages, and even some DIY methods; info on swapping the brake pedal to the other side; and a bunch of other stuff besides.

But seriously, for most new ryders/owners, the best thing you can do is get yourself some saddle time - LOTS of saddle time!! And remember, your Spyder's brakes are pretty damn good, likely better than just about anything else you've ever experienced, especially once you get used to them &/or whatever pedal arrangements make you feel comfortable in using them! So I'd suggest that you (&/or your wife) should Ryde More, & Worry Less - at least until you get comfortable on the Spyder and can clearly identify those things that you really need to fix/modify, rather than those things that are likely just 'different' to what you're used to?! Just Sayin' ;)
 
Is anyone here using this SE Performance Adjustable Brake Pedal Rod kit or the solid brake rod from Lamonster? Any issues with quality of either esp. the adjustable brake Rod? I'm concerned that's the only link for braking. I'm sure the solid linkage rod would give more peace of mind, but it only brings the pedal down an inch (according to their shop tech not as advertised) and is only made for the position 2, don't have it for position1 and I'd rather have position 1 for a short rider. I'm not sure if the adjustable rod would bring the pedal down enough. I'm trying to contact them, not returning calls.
 
This lot isn't ALL of the discussion here on changing the pedal height by a long shot, some of it may even be a bit old (but the F3's haven't changed too much since 2015) and it might not include the rod you're specifically asking about, but check out some of what's here on the Forum already - there's this thread:


And this thread:


Or this thread:


And even this thread:


;)
 
My 2015 F3S is a manual.
When I bought it the floorboards were at position #5.
I could ride it, but it wasn't ideal for me.

After finding that BRP didn't even list the optional shifter rods anymore, and the brake rods were overpriced, I decided to make my own.

I ended up using threaded aluminum hex shaft, with LH and RH heim joints and jam nuts at each end.
I moved the footboards to position 4 and now I can adjust both the shifter and brake pedal to whatever position is best for me.
The heims also reduced the slight play in the original clevis pins.
 
Welcome to the forum, Howie333. I've read nothing but good about the adjustable brake rod, but we'll soon know for sure, I bought a 2019 F3S Wednesday and ordered the brake rod yesterday:

Tracking says I'll have it Monday. I intend to use it for position 1, I'll post back here and let you know how it goes. Stay tuned :)

Sarah
 
I have used Lamonster shorter rods for multiple positions I have set my footboards up with, and the quality of the rods is equal to (or IMHO better than) OEM. I own both a 2018 and a 2022 F3-S and employ Lamonster's shorter rods on both.
 
I also wanted the laMonster brake rod to lower the pedal 1.5", but doesn't have a rod for position 1 of which my wife needs for proper foot positioning. I'll probably purchase the Spider extras or Sling mods adjustable which would reduce the pedal height by an inch, or mod it to go lower. I just need to confirm if the adjustable rod will lower the brake arm from the lowest position.

Thanks for reply...
 
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Anyone interested in shortening a brake rod, be sure to cut the section with right hand threads, as those taps are commonly available.
Left hand taps can be expensive and hard to find.
 
I also wanted the laMonster brake rod to lower the pedal 1.5", but doesn't have a rod for position 1 of which my wife needs for proper foot positioning. I'll probably purchase the Spider extras or Sling mods adjustable which would reduce the pedal height by an inch, or mod it to go lower. I just need to confirm if the adjustable rod will lower the brake arm from the lowest position.

Thanks for reply...
Hi Howie. Yes, I can confirm that the SlingMods adjustable brake rod will lower the brake arm from the lowest position -- i.e. the height of the brake pedal will be lower than it was with the Position 1 brake rod. No concerns with quality, either. The instructions are quite good, and if you're careful and pay attention you should have no trouble.

BTW everything you say in your first post sounds like me: coming from 50 years of bikes, wanting to cover the brake lever to reduce reaction time, etc. And the SlingMods adjustable rod (with the Lamonster handlebar riser) is what dialed the ergos in for me. Except it sounds as if your wife's machine has floorboards, whereas I like pegs in order to "lock in" with my heels (again, coming from bikes).

Good luck! (y)
 
I also wanted the laMonster brake rod to lower the pedal 1.5", but doesn't have a rod for position 1 of which my wife needs for proper foot positioning. I'll probably purchase the Spider extras or Sling mods adjustable which would reduce the pedal height by an inch, or mod it to go lower. I just need to confirm if the adjustable rod will lower the brake arm from the lowest position.

Thanks for reply...

Brake rod finally arrived yesterday, so much for USPS estimated delivery. Anyway, I hope to install it today and have a follow up for you. Per the instructions we are to remove the jam nut altogether if we wish to adjust the pedal lower than the # 1 position. I'm thinking this brake rod will be the ticket.

Sarah
 
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