Tire Belt Question

[waynerho]

After 30+ years riding 2 wheels (the latest ride a 2010 GL1800; bought new, put ~35,000 miles on it), I traded in this past June and bought a new 2015 RT Limited. I've racked up ~4500 miles on it so far.
I've always enjoyed cornering aggressively, though it's definitely different on this machine.

Shortly after I purchased the bike, I installed an aftermarket sway bar. Great improvement!

At about 2500 miles, I noticed some front end shake or lateral bounce around 60 MPH. As I racked up more miles, it seemed to get worse. Additionally, it seemed as if it was more pronounced after cornering. I assumed it was my imagination. I watched the right front tire as I rode; it looked like it was not straight. I assumed it was an illusion due to rubber flash or dirt.

Last Saturday, I took the bike in for a Laser Alignment. Again, great improvement! I mentioned my concerns about the tire, but was told the symptoms I was experiencing were probably caused by the belt and that would be fixed once it was properly tensioned. I said I thought this was different than the belt vibration -- I've felt that before.
While waiting for the alignment to be finished, as you can probably guess, I was notified by the Service Manager that the right front tire was bad. They could see it was out of round with the naked eye. I approved installation of a replacement. They are submitting it to BRP as a warranty claim.

I left with a smooth running, well-tracking Spyder. Life is good! I was amazed how much smoother it ran on the freeway.

Now it is the following Wednesday. I've put 350 miles on the bike since the work was done, and I think this tire is now suffering the same issue. I'm not sure what to do about it now.

So all of that being said, does it seem reasonable to assume that the stiffer sway bar and links combined with hard cornering can result in belt "displacement" on a stock tire?

 

[Highwayman2013]

The tire should not be damaged by cornering unless the air pressure is too low. The best way to do away with this is get some aftermarket tires in the stock size like Federal EVO 595's. Keep the front tires around 20 psi.

 

[waynerho]

I would agree with the tire pressure comment. I have been running 20lbs, but I'd better go check to see what the dealer aired the new one to.
Honestly, after reading what I've read about the stock tires, I think the smart move is to use up the original left front and replace both. It would be nice if the replaced tire was covered under warranty, but I'm not counting on it.

 

[JayBros]

So all of that being said, does it seem reasonable to assume that the stiffer sway bar and links combined with hard cornering can result in belt "displacement" on a stock tire?

I doubt it but Kenda tires are very far from the top of the line. I think if you were cornering hard enough to damage a correctly inflated front tire Nanny would be screaming at you and you would know it every time you dove into a corner.

 

[waynerho]

I've had Nanny complain numerous times. Partly due to me feeling out and learning the handling of this machine, partly due to old habits being hard to break.

 

[happyspyder2039]

After 30+ years riding 2 wheels (the latest ride a 2010 GL1800; bought new, put ~35,000 miles on it), I traded in this past June and bought a new 2015 RT Limited. I've racked up ~4500 miles on it so far.
I've always enjoyed cornering aggressively, though it's definitely different on this machine.

Shortly after I purchased the bike, I installed an aftermarket sway bar. Great improvement!

At about 2500 miles, I noticed some front end shake or lateral bounce around 60 MPH. As I racked up more miles, it seemed to get worse. Additionally, it seemed as if it was more pronounced after cornering. I assumed it was my imagination. I watched the right front tire as I rode; it looked like it was not straight. I assumed it was an illusion due to rubber flash or dirt.

Last Saturday, I took the bike in for a Laser Alignment. Again, great improvement! I mentioned my concerns about the tire, but was told the symptoms I was experiencing were probably caused by the belt and that would be fixed once it was properly tensioned. I said I thought this was different than the belt vibration -- I've felt that before.
While waiting for the alignment to be finished, as you can probably guess, I was notified by the Service Manager that the right front tire was bad. They could see it was out of round with the naked eye. I approved installation of a replacement. They are submitting it to BRP as a warranty claim.

I left with a smooth running, well-tracking Spyder. Life is good! I was amazed how much smoother it ran on the freeway.

Now it is the following Wednesday. I've put 350 miles on the bike since the work was done, and I think this tire is now suffering the same issue. I'm not sure what to do about it now.

So all of that being said, does it seem reasonable to assume that the stiffer sway bar and links combined with hard cornering can result in belt "displacement" on a stock tire?

I had same issue & tires were replaced under warranty. My guess is more an out of balance issue. Or brake issue. Might try ride-on or balancing beads for a fix.

 

[pegasus1300]

I think your machine is still under warranty, so I would be heading for the dealer to find out what's going on. Those of us who like to DIY sometimes get trapped into forgetting that we have a warranty that will take care of this stuff. I know it is a pain to go there but that is who should fix this.

 

[Lew L]

Tire pressure

My 2014 RTS was deliverd to me with 13 PSI in the fronts and 20 on the back tires. The :spyder2: handled BAD. Also at speed the hole front end shook like the wheels were out of round/balance. The dealer replaced both the tires and wheels( they said), because the tires were not round?????

So that could be your problem. Crappy tires, poor mounting /balancing, but not the anti-sway bar, they are GREAT.

Good luck with your dealer.

Kaos

 

[waynerho]

The tires are balanced with beads, and were before the replacement.
I run 20psi in the front tires. Though I have to admit, I didn't check the new tire after they installed it.
As I stated in the original post, when I left the dealer it was incredible the difference in the way the bike felt. Smooth as glass. I got 5 miles up the freeway, and realized there must have been an issue with the tire all along. The ride was that different.

I'm not faulting the swaybar at all. I love it. BRP should include an equivalent from the factory.

I just wonder if it could result in enough tire distortion that a belt could break or slip. I've had car tires which have had that happen. At low speeds, the car would roll laterally because a tire was out of round or had displacement in the sidewall due to the slippage. I trusted the diagnosis of that problem at the time, because it came from my father who was a master auto mechanic until he retired.

It may be that tighter roll control + marginal tire + aggressive riding = tire belt damage. You double the horsepower of a car, and other stock pieces start failing.

 

[JayBros]

Abything's possible! I think pegasus1330 has the right idea. Although it's a pita, take it back to the dealer.

 

[Peter Aawen]

.......It may be that tighter roll control + marginal tire + aggressive riding = tire belt damage. You double the horsepower of a car, and other stock pieces start failing.

Given the number of others who've had significant issues with the crappy Kenda Tires, it's way more likely that even 'stock Spyder roll control + dodgy Kenda crap tires + any riding at all = a significant potential for tire belt damage', & you quite marginally sped up the process - my front tires were doing that on a completely stock RT that hadn't been ridden particularly hard by the time it reached 4000 miles....

A set of Kumho's all round completely resolved that issue plus a bunch of others I blame on the Kenda's & the Kumho's have now done twice the miles I got from the Kenda's, plus they feel better, the bike handles better, grips the road better, handles in the wet & on the dirt better & more -in fact, I can't understand why BRP don't realise that a lot of the complaints they receive about Spyder ride & handling stem directly from the sub-standard tires they insist on putting on them?!? My Spyder is SOOO much better on a higher quality tire that it isn't funny - & the BajaRon Sway bar is another magnitude of improvement too!! :thumbup: