CanAm Spyder question

[pointman]

I own a 2003 Harley Electra Glide that I was going to convert into a trike until the other day. I drove a 2011 Spyder that belongs to a friend of mine and was inpressed. The thing that I have a question about is the cost factor in doing maintainance to the bike. It seems that it is very costly, as per entrys in this forum, to just maintain more then for my Harley. Please help me about this question. Thank you

[Bikerbozo]

If its more expensive to maintain than a Harley, I would be suprised. And if HD got wind of that, they would probably raise their prices.

[Mo Lee]

Some dealers overcharge, when I bought mine back in Jan 09 I had and still have a great dealer, I must admit I do nearly all my own work of course my warranty run out along time ago. I would suggest buying extended warranty and get the dealer to tell you what he charges for each type of service, might even consider buying a service package as part of the deal. Also check the dealer out with other customers.

[rhino 2]

I had a spyder for 3+ years, and yes it is more expensive than a Harley.
And buy the extended warranty you wont be sorry you did. , It's called [BEST].....

[bikerbillone]

Get the warranty, you'll probably need it......I have a friend in NC, traded his Ultra in on a new Spyder RT during Myrtle Beach Bike Week, he says it has been in the shop more than in his garage. He is not happy.

[Bill Reber]

I feel the Spyder is a great concept , but needs refinements in both cost of repair and preformance (MPG sucks ) JMHO wait a few years until inprovements are made then it may be the best kid on the block ??

[MangoMike]

Having owned both a Spyder and an HD Ultra Classic, I found the Spyder to be much more expensive. BRP just increased the oil change interval to 4500 miles which is a big help, since my oil changes (plus general maintenance) was around $300.

[427dave]

3 people in our club had spiders and all now have Harley's. Complaints were very poor gas mileage around 20 mpg, expensive service, poor riding position, it seamed broke more than running and long time getting parts.

[Oldmsocko]

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<img src="images/misc/quote_icon.png" alt="Quote" /> Originally Posted by <strong>427dave</strong>
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<div class="message">3 people in our club had spiders and all now have Harley's. Complaints were very poor gas mileage around 20 mpg, expensive service, poor riding position, it seamed broke more than running and long time getting parts.</div>

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</div>The biggest complaint I have heard about the CanAm is the riding position and lack of dealer network.

[John Luciano]

Polaris Patent Reveals a Side by Side Three Wheeler – Updated – Is This the Polaris Slingshot?
Saw this you may want to wait. Just a rumor now. Will give Stallion a run for the money.... Dependability may be better??????.?

[THEREALTRIKKY]

I know things like oil changes are a bit &quot;ouch&quot; on the pocketbook with these. Good friend is a service tech, and said it SUCKS to do an oil change on one even. If memory serves, he said the &quot;flat rate&quot; for an oil change is 2.5 hours?

[rhino 2]

The biggest complaint I have heard about the CanAm is the riding position and lack of dealer network.

The riding position can be changed to suit, First thing i did to mine, But it isn't just lack of dealers It's lack of competent dealers poor company surport with long waits for parts, . That always seem to be on back order. When the spyder has to go in the shop expect a lot of down time.

[scoby]

I just bought a 2013 CanAm and gas milage isn't much different then the Harley Triglide

I agree that a 6 speed would be better than the 5, Don't know about service yet. I might be a short lived CanAM owner. It sure rides better than the Tri Glide over rough roads.

[Bill Reber]

Enjoy your new ride , best of luck with it.

[Cal777]

Back in May 2010 my buddy and I were going to WV for our spring RZR ride when we met a Spyder. I called my daughter and told her to find me a Can Am dealer in the area. There was one in Bluefield. We went and I tried one out and 2 weeks later I had one. I brought a manual and shortly realized that I wanted an automatic. Well 3 years later and I have never looked back. 27,000 miles later I have had a few things go wrong but none of the horror stories I have heard about, and my 600 mi service was not as expensive as my 1,000 mi service on my Harley Trike. I love them both but the Spyder is a lot more comfortable ride.
Rudy

[Diesel-Dawg]

I just sold my 2011 Harley TriGlide Ultra Classic. Too darn hot on the legs and maintenance was not cheap. Harley has a great service network...but BRP will get there...they are adding more dealers and have a major dealership expansion plan in the works. I now own a 2013 Spyder RT Limited. The Harley and Goldwing trikes were not as comfortable as this trike and the ABS Brembo brakes are fantastic. BRP did a great job on the refinements in the 2013 model year. It will only get better. I think Harley will stay the same for more years to come. They are still producing the old Lehman type rigid axle trike. Had enough of them.

The spyder is fun to ride....really fun.

[spydercatjohn]

600 mile service on my spyder was $300. For my Honda Metropolitan scooter the 600 mile service was $200!!! Figure that out. Anytime you roll your bike, boat or motorhome into a dealers shop bring lots of cash. Only very expensive maintenance on the spyder is the 12000 mile valve check $1000 and surprise the valves almost never need adjusting. Reliability of spyder is good 82 percent have no major problems.

[heavyD]

I've had my RT about 3 months now and really enjoy riding it. I won't bore you all with the list of bikes I've owned in the last 40 years. I seem to enjoy wearing the new out of a bike and after wearing it down I look for something else. Buying a bike is a fun thing for me and not an exercise in frugality. I empathize with those who have to watch the bottom line to enjoy motorcycling. I'm just glad that at this point in my life its not too big of an issue. Keep the handlebars up and the rubber down folks! Gumbo and jambalaya for supper along with jalapeno gator snacks! See pepper

[oldbear]

I looked at an RT when they came out. Ride was pretty good, though the steering seemed (to me) to be very sensitive. I came close, but the horror stories I kept seeing about the computer system failures finally scared me off. Hopefully that is something they have resolved in the past couple years. If they can get the computer bugs out and do something about mileage I'd consider one again.

[Tango]

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<img src="images/misc/quote_icon.png" alt="Quote" /> Originally Posted by <strong>oldbear</strong>
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<div class="message">I looked at an RT when they came out. Ride was pretty good, though the steering seemed (to me) to be very sensitive. I came close, but the horror stories I kept seeing about the computer system failures finally scared me off. Hopefully that is something they have resolved in the past couple years. If they can get the computer bugs out and do something about mileage I'd consider one again.</div>

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</div>The computer and sensor issues have been worked out. BRP now uses Bosch which is a top quality company. <img src="images/smilies/lurking smilie.gif" border="0" alt="" title="lurker" class="inlineimg" /> Tom <img src="images/smilies/trike 1 smilie.gif" border="0" alt="" title="Trike1" class="inlineimg" />