CAN-AM Complaints

WHEN STOPPED TO GET FUEL. THE GAS CAP IS ALMOST TOO HOT TO TOUCH. TAKE CAP OFF AND GAS SPEWS OUT AT YOU. SO I STARTED RELEASING CAP SLIGHTLY AND THEN TAKE CAP OFF. GAS WOULD SPIT BACK AT YOU AS YOU WERE TRYING TO FILL TANK. HAPPENS FREQUENTLY. *JB

THE PANELS ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE GET EXCESSIVELY HOT, TO THE POINT OF BURNING MY LEG. THE EXHAUST IS TOO CLOSE TO THE PANELS AND THE PANELS AND SCREWS GET HOT TO THE POINT YOU CANNOT TOUCH THEM WITHOUT BEING BURNED. AND CANNOT RIDE WITH YOUR LEGS AGAINST THE BODY. END UP SPENDING TOO MUCH TIME NOT TOUCHING THE PANELS AND NOT ENOUGH TIME ON THE ROAD. ALSO,THERE IS AN EXCESSIVE AMOUNT OF HEAT TRAPPED UNDER THE PANELS.*JB

MY MOTORCYCLE SUFFERS FROM EXCESSIVE HEAT BUILD UP DUE TO CHANGES MADE TO THE 2013 MODEL INCLUDING THE MASTER CYLINDER AND GAS CAP. SOMETIMES THE GAS CAP IS TOO HOT TO TOUCH AND WHEN OPENED IT IS BOILING GASOLINE. YOU CAN BARELY TOUCH THE FRONT OF THE SEAT DUE TO ELIMINATION OF HEAT INSULATION MATERIAL IN FRONT OF IT FOR THIS MODEL YEAR. I HAVE SEEN AND SUSPECT THE MASTER CYLINDER IS STARTING TO MELT ON MANY 2013 RT & ST MODELS. BRP HAS ACKNOWLEDGED THIS IN A CANADA RECALL. AS SOME OF YOU MIGHT ALREADY KNOW, TODAY TRANSPORT CANADA PUBLISHED A RECALL NOTIFICATION FROM BRP ON ALL 2013 CAN-AM SPYDER RT AND ST SERIES ROADSTERS. BRP HAS PROPOSED A SOLUTION TO THE ISSUE RAISED BY THE RECALL; THIS RECALL NOTIFICATION HAS BEEN APPROVED FOR AFFECTED MOTORCYCLES WITHIN CANADA BY TRANSPORT CANADA. AGENCIES IN OTHER COUNTRIES ARE ALSO REVIEWING THE SOLUTION FOR THEIR OWN JURISDICTIONS, INCLUDING THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION (NHTSA) IN THE UNITED STATES. ALL OF THE DETAILS ON THE ISSUE, THE RECALL AND THE SOLUTION ARE BEING COMMUNICATED TO BRP'S CANADIAN DEALERS AS WELL AS TO ALL CANADIAN OWNERS OF A VEHICLE THAT IS AFFECTED BY TRANSPORT CANADA'S. AS SOON AS WE HAVE THE GREEN LIGHT FROM AGENCIES IN OTHER COUNTRIES, WE WILL RELEASE THE SAME INFORMATION TO THE DEALER NETWORK AND OWNERS OF AFFECTED VEHICLES WITHIN THOSE COUNTRIES, INCLUDING NHTSA IN THE UNITED STATES.

BRP CANADA HAS ISSUED A RECALL ON ALL CANADIAN SPYDER RT'S FOR HEAT RELATED MELTING OF THE SECONDARY MASTER CYLINDER PLASTIC TOP WHICH COULD CAUSE FIRE. I JUST RETURNED FROM A 300 MILE TRIP TODAY ON MY 2013 CAN-AM SPYDER RT-S AND HEARD ABOUT THE CANADIAN RECALL. I CHECKED THE SECONDARY MASTER CYLINDER AND DISCOVERED THE PLASTIC TOP PIECE HAD BEGUN TO MELT. IT IS VERY CLOSE TO THE EXHAUST PIPE. I HAVE COMPLAINED TO THE DEALER THAT THERE WAS A HEAT ISSUES AND WAS TOLD THE HEAT WAS NORMAL. I HAVE ALSO HAD TO USE A GLOVE TO REMOVE THE GAS CAP AS IT WILL BURN YOUR FINGERS AFTER RIDING FOR ANY DISTANCE. YOU CAN ALSO HEAR THE GAS BOILING IN THE TANK WHEN REFUELING. I HAVE PHOTOS OF THE MELTED PLASTIC TOP OF THE MASTER CYLINDER. PLEASE DO A RECALL ON THESE CAN-AM SPYDERS. BRP SAYS IT IS UP TO NHTSA TO DO THE RECALL. THE DEALER WILL NOT COVER THIS UNDER WARRANTY AT THIS TIME. I WAS TOLD NOT TO RIDE OR RIDE AT OWN RISK. I HAVE HEARD OF SEVERAL CAN-AM SPYDERS ERUPTING INTO FLAMES FOR UNKNOW REASONS. *JS

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 CAN-AM SPYDER ROADSTER GS MOTORCYCLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 30 MPH AROUND A CURVE, THE ENGINE AND POWER STEERING WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED WITH THE LOSS OF POWER STEERING ASSIST. THE VEHICLE WAS MANEUVERED TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND THE ENGINE WAS TURNED OFF. THE POWER STEERING WAS RESET UPON RESTARTING THE IGNITION. IN 2010, THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED UNDER A RECALL RELATED TO NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER: 09V162000 (STEERING). THE FAILURE RECURRED TWO AND A HALF YEARS LATER. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED FOR THE MOST RECENT FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE PROBLEM. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 9,500.

MY CAN AM SPYDER RTS-SM5 2013 CAUGHT FIRE TODAY AS I WAS TRAVELING ON A FREEWAY IN CALIFORNIA. I SAW SMOKE COMING FROM THE RIGHT SIDE NEAR MY KNEE AND WAS ABLE TO PULL OFF THE ROAD. WITHIN 30-60 SECONDS THE ENTIRE ROADSTER WAS ENGULFED IN FLAMES. *TR

TURN SIGNAL SWITCH DOES NOT CANCEL PROPERLY (MANUALLY). WHEN SIGNALING A RIGHT TURN (FOR EXAMPLE), DEFINITIVELY PRESSING THE SWITCH TO CANCEL FREQUENTLY CAUSES THE LEFT SIGNAL TO FLASH. IN SOME CIRCUMSTANCES, THE LEFT SIGNAL BEGINS TO FLASH AS IF IT WAS PRESSED TO SIGNAL A LEFT TURN. THE ISSUE CAN BE REPRODUCED WHEN THE VEHICLE IS STOPPED, SAFELY ENSURING THE SWITCH IS BEING PRESSED PROPERLY. WHEN DRIVING, THIS RESULTS IN A POTENTIALLY HAZARDOUS SITUATION. IT IS NECESSARY TO LOOK AT THE DASH TO VERIFY THAT THE SIGNAL HAS BEEN PROPERLY CANCELED; TAKING THE RIDER'S ATTENTION AWAY FROM THE ROAD AND TRAFFIC AHEAD. OFTEN TIMES, GETTING THE TURN SIGNAL TO CANCEL TAKES SEVERAL TRIES; AND CONSUMES SEVERAL SECONDS WHILE DRIVING. DEALERSHIP HAS ALREADY REPLACED THE SWITCH ONCE. IT IMPROVED FOR A SHORT TIME - NOW ITS BACK TO MALFUNCTIONING REGULARLY. THIS FAILURE HAS OCCURRED SINCE THE VEHICLE WAS PURCHASED. *TR

WHEN BRAKES WERE APPLIED WHITE SMOKE WOULD COME OUT OF THE VENTS AND THERE WAS AN ODOR. THE NEXT DAY WHEN THE SPYDER WAS STARTED WITH THE BRAKE APPLIED MORE SMOKE STARTED POURING OUT AND THE "BRAKE FAILURE" LIGHT CAME ON THE LCD PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TRAILERED TO THE DEALERSHIP AND WHEN IT WAS UNLOADED FROM THE TRAILER THE BRAKE FLUID STARTED POURING OUT. THE DEALERSHIP SAID THAT THE MASTER BRAKE CYLINDER HAD MELTED. *TR

THE HEAT BUILD UP UNDER THE BODY COVERINGS HAS MELTED THE TOP COVER OF THE BRAKE MASTER CYLINDER. THE MASTER CYLINDER IS LOCATED INCHES FROM THE EXHAUST PIPE FROM THE REAR CYLINDER. CONTINUED DEGRADATION OF THE PLASTIC COVER WOULD LEAK BRAKE FLUID DIRECTLY ONTO THE EXHAUST, AND COULD LEAD TO A FIRE HAZARD, AS THE BRAKE FLUID WOULD LEAK ONTO THE EXHAUST PIPE JUST BEFORE THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER. *TR

PLASTIC CAP ON TOP OF MASTER CYLINDER MELTED CAUSING BRAKE FLUID TO POUR OUT ONTO THE GROUND. THIS COULD HAVE BEEN A DANGEROUS SITUATION CAUSING A FIRE OR EXPLOSION, SINCE THE MASTER CYLINDER IS TO THE RIGHT AND BELOW THE GAS TANK. ALSO, A RIDER COULD BE TRAVELING AT A HIGH RATE OF SPEED AND SUDDENLY LOSE BRAKE PRESSURE AND HAVE NO WAY TO STOP. ABOUT 3-4 INCHES IN FRONT OF THE MC IS AN EXHAUST PIPE THAT GETS VERY HOT. BRP, THE MANUFACTURER, SHOULD ADDRESS THIS PROBLEM WITH A HEAT SHIELD OR SOME OTHER REMEDY TO KEEP HEAT OFF THE PLASTIC CAP OR REPLACE THE CAP WITH A MORE HEAT-RESISTANT MATERIAL. MORE AND MORE RIDERS THAT OWN 2013 SPYDERS ARE REPORTING THIS PROBLEM. THIS LOOKS LIKE A DESIGN DEFECT. *TR