Spyder Loyalty

[Way2Fast]

It's easy for those who have never experienced a steering failure on their Spyder to simply write it off as something that is of no concern to them. But believe me, if and when it happens to you it isn't something that can easily be forgotten. I have owned and ridden many motorcycles in the 45 years I have been in the saddle. The only one that I have ever had a very real fear of is my Spyder and this was only after living through two steering incidents that could have easily killed me. It is a grave cause for concern when a steering system developes a mind of it's own and decides it knows best where to blindly steer the vehicle. I road my Spyder twice since the steering incidents and during both rides I was afraid....very afraid that it would happen again. My rides were no longer enjoyable, but full of tension and sweaty palms for fear of a repeat performance at any moment. It seems that the steering malfunction might happen at any time, on any Spyder, with any mileage, so just because it hasn't happened to YOU yet, don't be too confident that it never will happen !!

 

[Way2Fast]

Back in the 1930s the Morgan sports car company developed a reverse trike sports car which featured steering that was 3/4 of a turn lock-to-lock, and they did it without any help from the mighty electron. Couldn't Spyders be made without all this electronic junk? I'm sick of nanny, canbus, purge valves that open at inappropriate times, limp mode, multiple downloads, B.U.D.S., wonky sensors, burnt bulbs that affect engine running, and 'out of lane excursions' caused by robots that decide to take steering control out of my hands. I have ridden motorcycles, lo these many years, without this sort of "assistance" and always with more confidence than I have in my Spyder.

No one could have sumed up my exact feelings any better :clap::clap::clap:

 

[retread]

Back in the 1930s the Morgan sports car company developed a reverse trike sports car which featured steering that was 3/4 of a turn lock-to-lock, and they did it without any help from the mighty electron. Couldn't Spyders be made without all this electronic junk? I'm sick of nanny, canbus, purge valves that open at inappropriate times, limp mode, multiple downloads, B.U.D.S., wonky sensors, burnt bulbs that affect engine running, and 'out of lane excursions' caused by robots that decide to take steering control out of my hands. I have ridden motorcycles, lo these many years, without this sort of "assistance" and always with more confidence than I have in my Spyder.

The Mog trike was before tort lawyers, and had nowhere near the performance of the Spyder. That said, I'd much rather have something I could wrench on, play with, retune, modify to my heart's content, so I'm saving up for a Mog replicar with maybe an S&S Xwedge, 6 speed, and an auxillary forward reverse box.

john

 

[Putt-Putt]

Back in the 1930s the Morgan sports car company developed a reverse trike sports car which featured steering that was 3/4 of a turn lock-to-lock, and they did it without any help from the mighty electron. Couldn't Spyders be made without all this electronic junk? I'm sick of nanny, canbus, purge valves that open at inappropriate times, limp mode, multiple downloads, B.U.D.S., wonky sensors, burnt bulbs that affect engine running, and 'out of lane excursions' caused by robots that decide to take steering control out of my hands. I have ridden motorcycles, lo these many years, without this sort of "assistance" and always with more confidence than I have in my Spyder.

Add me to your thoughts.

 

[HD2CANAM]

I agree completely with NEEZ. With all the "safety" features on the Spyder, it would seem that the "tort lawyers" would have more of a field day if an accident was caused by one of these features going bad.:dontknow:

 

[Desert Spyder]

It's easy for those who have never experienced a steering failure on their Spyder to simply write it off as something that is of no concern to them. But believe me, if and when it happens to you it isn't something that can easily be forgotten. I have owned and ridden many motorcycles in the 45 years I have been in the saddle. The only one that I have ever had a very real fear of is my Spyder and this was only after living through two steering incidents that could have easily killed me. It is a grave cause for concern when a steering system developes a mind of it's own and decides it knows best where to blindly steer the vehicle. I road my Spyder twice since the steering incidents and during both rides I was afraid....very afraid that it would happen again. My rides were no longer enjoyable, but full of tension and sweaty palms for fear of a repeat performance at any moment. It seems that the steering malfunction might happen at any time, on any Spyder, with any mileage, so just because it hasn't happened to YOU yet, don't be too confident that it never will happen !!

If you have had 2 documented catastrophic steering failures as you have had, I would suggest for BRP to pick up your bike and replace it. No questions asked. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. Replacing a $20K bike is pennies compared to a lawsuit and bad PR.

 

[NancysToy]

Back in the 1930s the Morgan sports car company developed a reverse trike sports car which featured steering that was 3/4 of a turn lock-to-lock, and they did it without any help from the mighty electron. Couldn't Spyders be made without all this electronic junk? I'm sick of nanny, canbus, purge valves that open at inappropriate times, limp mode, multiple downloads, B.U.D.S., wonky sensors, burnt bulbs that affect engine running, and 'out of lane excursions' caused by robots that decide to take steering control out of my hands. I have ridden motorcycles, lo these many years, without this sort of "assistance" and always with more confidence than I have in my Spyder.

Maybe BRP could have, but they didn't, plain and simple. I'm not sure any reputable company would have done so, or if they did, if they could have received certification to put it on the road. The bottom line is that BRP did not hide the massive amounts of electronics, in fact they advertised it heavily. We all bought it knowing what it was. If we did so thinking we could change it magically, shame on us. If people want something plain and simple, with three wheels, maybe they should consider a vintage Harley Servicar. I have been riding for over 50 years. I have a large quantity of old and simple bikes. The Spyder was purchased, in part, because it had these sophisticated electronic features. I had a fear of possible failures, and accordingly purchased the BEST warranty. I did not go in with my eyes closed, and I don't think anyone else really did either. It is perfectly acceptable to regret a decision and have buyer's remorse, but to wish the Spyder was something it will never be is an exercise in futility.

 

[Smylinacha]

:2thumbs: You said it!

Back in the 1930s the Morgan sports car company developed a reverse trike sports car which featured steering that was 3/4 of a turn lock-to-lock, and they did it without any help from the mighty electron. Couldn't Spyders be made without all this electronic junk? I'm sick of nanny, canbus, purge valves that open at inappropriate times, limp mode, multiple downloads, B.U.D.S., wonky sensors, burnt bulbs that affect engine running, and 'out of lane excursions' caused by robots that decide to take steering control out of my hands. I have ridden motorcycles, lo these many years, without this sort of "assistance" and always with more confidence than I have in my Spyder.

 

[jabba11]

Worries

This new rash of steering issues also has me very concerned. My own feeling is that the problem appears to be casued by a failure to do the update procedure correctly at the dealership. It also seems to me that a major issue is that apprently the bike doesnt "sense" anything is wrong. If it did, the simple fix might be to have the bike disengage the DPS when it has this error. I am not sure if that is even possible. Losing ones power steering at speed, while not the greatest thing, is certainly much less dangerous than having the bike steer you into oncoming traffic. This is also one reason why I didnt run down and have the second update done. I have been waiting to hear the NEW problems associated with the new update. In all honesty IF this happens to me I am not sure what I will do. I too unfortunately may have to weigh my options legally. I am not about to sell a vehicle that I KNOW is unsafe to someone else. I mean seriously how are you going to feel if you sell you spyder and the next week you read about the deadly spyder crash that killed or injured the driver and you get to see a picture of your OLD spyder on the front page. At this point i plan to keep riding and hope these things sort themselves out. I also sense that while a major concern there are probably a lot more riders out there experiencing NO problems at all and lets hope that BRP is listening. If they make things right we are their best salesmen , if they ignore these issues we are gonna be their worst nightmare

 

[Smylinacha]

Scotty - I don't have a problem with high tech gadgetry but I didn't think it was going to be this "busy" to maintain this machine. Downloads, re-downloads, codes, my car has all this and it doesn't require that much attention. You can still have extensive gadgetry but maybe some better "programming" so it wouldn't throw codes, steer by itself, limp modes, whatever error we've ended up with. At this point I am very confused - is it the actual parts in the machine that cause computer glitches, or do the computers cause the mechanisms in the Spyder to run wild (steering - and I did have that problem and it was very scary). And what bothers me more is I had the two steering updates and am I lucky because my steering has been fine since or am I next in having a mishap? People have had mishaps after BOTH updates. So did the updates fix my steering problem or not? Nobody can answer that question.

I also didn't realize that things get rusty quickly - like in 2 yrs time. That sort of bothered me, along w/ wheel bearings.

What I'm saying- I expect little things here and there but some of the mishaps going on are big things in my mind which I did not think would happen so quickly. So bottom line w/ me, regardless of who has good running spyders versus bad running ones, these problems are happening too soon - things should not break and potentially hurt or kill people. BRP did a great job in marketing the machine, it is a cool machine but my mind is not at ease now anymore. Probably a good thing about this forum, lots of honesty in here, even when people get mad. But at least I'm finding out how I feel about keeping it or not.

Maybe BRP could have, but they didn't, plain and simple. I'm not sure any reputable company would have done so, or if they did, if they could have received certification to put it on the road. The bottom line is that BRP did not hide the massive amounts of electronics, in fact they advertised it heavily. We all bought it knowing what it was. If we did so thinking we could change it magically, shame on us. If people want something plain and simple, with three wheels, maybe they should consider a vintage Harley Servicar. I have been riding for over 50 years. I have a large quantity of old and simple bikes. The Spyder was purchased, in part, because it had these sophisticated electronic features. I had a fear of possible failures, and accordingly purchased the BEST warranty. I did not go in with my eyes closed, and I don't think anyone else really did either. It is perfectly acceptable to regret a decision and have buyer's remorse, but to wish the Spyder was something it will never be is an exercise in futility.

 

[NancysToy]

Kim - I'll grant you that things have gotten confusing fast, as far as the electronic systems go, and that the failures may have surprised a lot of us. I also concur that it is ridiculous to have a burnt out bulb throw a machine into limp mode, instead of merely giving a warning. Poor programming there..."Technology for the sake of technology," I call it. As to whether or not that robs an owners of their confidence, I'm afraid that depends pretty much on the individual. When even a hardened old digger pilot like me has to think about it a while, there is certainly a confidence problem. Can't help you with your eventual decision, but I feel bad for your need to worry. I don't like to see anyone have to wonder if they made a bad decision in a major purchase, no matter what the cause. I hope you can at least continue to enjoy your Spyder until it is paid for. Try to remember that it hasn't really let you down, and that it seems to be running fine now. I'll bet you had a scary moment or two on two wheels in the past, too. I hope you can get past this one.

 

[Neez]

Maybe BRP could have, but they didn't, plain and simple. I'm not sure any reputable company would have done so, or if they did, if they could have received certification to put it on the road. The bottom line is that BRP did not hide the massive amounts of electronics, in fact they advertised it heavily. We all bought it knowing what it was. If we did so thinking we could change it magically, shame on us. If people want something plain and simple, with three wheels, maybe they should consider a vintage Harley Servicar. I have been riding for over 50 years. I have a large quantity of old and simple bikes. The Spyder was purchased, in part, because it had these sophisticated electronic features. I had a fear of possible failures, and accordingly purchased the BEST warranty. I did not go in with my eyes closed, and I don't think anyone else really did either. It is perfectly acceptable to regret a decision and have buyer's remorse, but to wish the Spyder was something it will never be is an exercise in futility.

We all bought it knowing what it was? No, Scotty, I bought it assuming that BRP had all the issues worked out before offering it to the public. Many autombiles have a lot of electronics without all the grief. I did buy the Best warrentee out to 5 years, thank goodness, but that wont help me if the DPS jerks me into the oncoming traffic. I have already had an unpleasant incident and the DPS unit replaced. I suppose I could pull the DPS fuse but wouldn't that affect the remaining vehicle stability system? I would not be so anti-electronics if BRP had gotten it right, but I believe they made a dog's breakfast of it. As for wishing the Spyder was something it will never be, I wish it was safe and reliable, and I sincerely hope that is not " an exercise in futility."

 

[Smylinacha]

If there was only a way to get rid of the VSS on this thing. It would actually put some manhood back into it and let the rider control the ride. Not saying it's a wimpy machine but it would restore my confidence in my own ability to ride. Right now I feel that the Nanny controls everything I do. Nothing wrong with safety features but when there is a glitch, software related, my confidence in this machine goes down the toilet.

I didn't buy this for the stability system and I did not think a system like this would throw all sorts of codes and cause problems so often. Although I haven't had to limp home, I haven't hit a tree yet and my breaks have allowed me to stop on a dime, I am wondering when it's gonna be "my turn" when it sits at the dealer or even when it's not a huge problem but it sits due to no parts available.

My riding season is basically over - I don't ride much in the winter so I have time to think about what I'm going to. Guess I just better make a decision before I plunk down $900 for an extended warranty.

I can work a deal w/ trading my Spyder in - I'm not worried about that but I am disappointed because I expected to own this for a long time and I won't own anything that doesn't give me confidence and makes me worry.

 

[NancysToy]

We all bought it knowing what it was? No, Scotty, I bought it assuming that BRP had all the issues worked out before offering it to the public. Many autombiles have a lot of electronics without all the grief. I did buy the Best warrentee out to 5 years, thank goodness, but that wont help me if the DPS jerks me into the oncoming traffic. I have already had an unpleasant incident and the DPS unit replaced. I suppose I could pull the DPS fuse but wouldn't that affect the remaining vehicle stability system? I would not be so anti-electronics if BRP had gotten it right, but I believe they made a dog's breakfast of it. As for wishing the Spyder was something it will never be, I wish it was safe and reliable, and I sincerely hope that is not " an exercise in futility."

I didn't say we all bought expecting bugs or failures, just that we knew it had a lot of sophisticated electronics. All electronics have some failures, which are far beyond the average owner's ability to address, hence my decision to buy the BEST. I can't possibly be the only one who had worries about electroncs failures before I bought. Most auto electronics are a bit less sophisticated. Some of the fancier ones, like certain Mercedes, are fraught with problems. Sorry that your confidence in the Spyder has been shattered, but to wish it existed with no electronics at all is less realistic than wishing you would win the Lotto. Personally, I still consider our Spyder safe and reliable. Maybe I am just naive, or maybe it's just comparing to the vintage bikes I'm used to. At any rate, I wish all Spyder owners could feel the same.

 

[Firefly]

If you have had 2 documented catastrophic steering failures as you have had, I would suggest for BRP to pick up your bike and replace it. No questions asked. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. Replacing a $20K bike is pennies compared to a lawsuit and bad PR.

They aren't documented unless the proper reports were filed---- ask me how I know.

Unfortunately only about 6 of us took the time to file reports with the NHTSA. I'm not sure if Desert did or not - but it takes filing those reports to get real action - which we have now had.

For me the GPS sensor was the problem.

Rode all over the Smokies and never felt in danger from my steering going out again. It did take a month or so of riding to get back to that level of confidence.

 

[boborgera]

After 5,000 miles i raised the front shocks one noch. broke the previsous
noch [jacked up and lubed] But thats ok i'm keeping it where it is now.
The reason i'm saying this is as soon i pulled off my driveway the steering
locked up. But as drove it 100 miles or so little by little it went back to normal. I did bring it in at 6,500 miles for the recall, 8,700 miles now no
problems, The brakes still squeal belt still wines but i guess thats the nature of the beast?? When ask how do i like the Spyder i tell them i
love it;;; BUT because of all it's idiosyncarsies as soon as somebody else
comes out with one [reverse trike] It' gone.hyea:
P/S I know this post will upset some in the crowd, but then i think some will agree.

 

[Firefly]

For those really concerned about the DPS - you can yank the fuse and run 100% old school with manual steering.

Wanting to disable the VSS and other features is just nuts - we all knew the Spyder came with all this from day one.

It would be pretty nice if the Spyder could fly too ---- but it ain't gonna happen - it wasn't designed to do it.

 

[Smylinacha]

Good idea - yanking my dps!

Now if anyone knows how to yank the VSS, let me know - I'm all for riding with everything manual! That will open up a whole nother form of riding.:2thumbs:

For those really concerned about the DPS - you can yank the fuse and run 100% old school with manual steering.

Wanting to disable the VSS and other features is just nuts - we all knew the Spyder came with all this from day one.

It would be pretty nice if the Spyder could fly too ---- but it ain't gonna happen - it wasn't designed to do it.

 

[Firefly]

Good idea - yanking my dps!

Now if anyone knows how to yank the VSS, let me know - I'm all for riding with everything manual! That will open up a whole nother form of riding.:2thumbs:

Just remove all the wheel sensors (one on each front, 2 for the rear) - zip tie or tape them somewhere up inside the bike.

Problem is you won't know how fast you're going - or put any miles on the bike. You could just use a GPS for speed as they are more accurate anyway.

I wouldn't recommend removing the sensors--- you'd be surprised just how much that nanny really saves your butt. Mine doesn't go off as much since installing the swaybar - but did have it go on while on the dragon. I can still pull a tire up off the ground close to a foot before it kicks on--- which is far enough for me.

Shutting the DPS off is different - not sure I would recommend it for everyday riding - but many rode without for many thousands of miles.

Perform these changes at your own risk------

 

[Big Arm]

lets hope that BRP is listening. If they make things right we are their best salesmen , if they ignore these issues we are gonna be their worst nightmare

:agree: