Brake Failure Error

[chellini2]

Has anyone else had problems with the brake failure error on there spyders? mine has been in the shop 3 times now they can't seem to fix it. Been with out my baby most of summer now ugh.

[azjerbear]

My brakes just had this happen today. It's extremely hot outside, I was riding and had to do two "panic" stops in about 5 minutes time. I now have the brake light on constantly, and I have a scroll message that speaks of brake failure. So far the brakes are still working "normal", but I will take it to the shop for inspection/repair.

[Latemarch]

Believe it or not but this is usually because the fluid in the reservoir under the seat is ever so slightly low. Looks OK but if you add just a little the error will go away.

As for the panic stops causing it. If you press far enough down on the pedal there's a switch down there and if the pedal gets that far down it triggers the error code. With enough adrenaline you can get there
A reset by the dealer will fix it but they might want to bleed the system just to be sure there's no air in the system.
Do not attempt to bleed the brakes yourself! The procedure requires the Spyder be hooked up to the dealers BUDs computer or it will be completely bollocked.

[Bob Denman]

Thanks for that tidbit; LateMarch... I had a couple of moments on mine yeaterday and thought that the brakes were a bit spongy... I was gonna open things up and try to bleed the system... Now it'll have to hold for the next trip back to the dealer.

[pmdave]

I had some repeating "brake failure" codes until I checked the brake lever leaf spring, which was just slightly out of adjustment. I bent the spring a smidgen at a time until I could hear the microswitch trigger when pressing the pedal down, and another audible click when the pedal had returned up against the rubber bumper. In my case, the brake failure code caused a VSS fault and a "limp home" mode. Just a bump in the road could cause the pedal to drop down slightly, triggering the fault.

Apparently the Steering computer is the logic filter for brake faults, and if there is a fault in the brake system, the computers gang up to get your attention. You can also get a brake failure fault from a burned out or loose tail/stop bulb.

In the event of a limp home mode, all you need to do to keep truckin' is to shut the engine down for maybe 5 minutes--just long enough for the computers to remove the fault from current display to stored memory.

All the same, check the brake fluid reservoirs, and note if the brake pedal seems to go down farther than needed to apply the brakes. A shade tree measurement is when the brakes are firmly applied, there should be about 10mm between the top of the brake arm and the bottom of the rubber pad.

To check this out, take your measuring stick to the local Can Am dealer and check the brake "firm" point on several different Spyders.

There is an official and very involved way to adjust the pedal to factory specs, but that requires an official tool and an hour or two of labor. My own measurements showed different "firm" points on different Spyders, but they averaged about 10mm.

pmdave

[Bob Denman]

...Thus saving all of us a trip to our dealers and maybe wads of good green cash... Thanks Dave!