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I picked up my silver SE5 on 8/8/08 in the mid afternoon. I had the 1” riser, hindle, fog lamps, 12 volt outlet, and 6 spoke wheels installed on it. Looked nice – and the dealer had done a great job with the setup. We went over the bike, he gave me some pointers and tips, and we finished up the paperwork.
I live about 4 miles from the dealership (yes, I am lucky) so I was ready to ride it home. Being August in Las Vegas, it was 100+ degrees out - and knowing that getting the engine too hot during the break in period was a huge no-no, I just rode it home and parked it in the garage – having to wait until morning to actually ride it.
On the ride home, a few things I noticed. First, the gear shifting was excellent. Virtually instantaneous and I had complete control over the up/down shift whenever I wanted. If I just let it downshift on it’s own, it worked perfectly. The mirrors, I though, were awful. I don’t know if I am exceptionally wide or not, but I was looking at more of me, than the road. I adjusted them later for a little better view – but I am, without a doubt, putting on the mirror extensions. When I got on a semi-highway and I cranked it up to 50+ mph, it felt like it was “darting” on the road. Having read enough about this sensation, I realized that I must be doing the minute adjustments that I would normally be doing when riding my Virago – so I took a deep breath and relaxed my hands on the handlebars a bit, trying to let the bike go where it needs to without these tiny corrections on the handlebars. I was still darting a little – but by the end of the first hour on the next morning ride – this was all gone. I had adjusted.
The hindle sounds a LOT better than the stock muffler (they had to start a stock spyder to move it out of the way for me). The dealer had not installed the upgraded wheels before, and they (and I ) were impressed on how they looked. It’s not exactly cheap, but it does improve the overall look.
Over the next couple of days, I was getting up at 5:30 am so I could be on the road by 6 – when it is still in the 80 – 90’s here in Vegas. I used the non-gentle but purposeful break in method found here: http://www.mototuneusa.com/break_in_secrets.htm
Although I have been riding in hot weather, the engine never got above 6 bars for more than just a minute when stopped, and 95% of the time it was at 4 bars. The other time it was at 5 bars – usually when I was at a stop light or running the rpm’s up for the break in.
During this whole time, the bike performed excellently. The shifting is smooth, it is relatively quiet in operation (hindle aside) – but there is an odd vibration at the key during certain rpm’s. I’m assuming the belt is a little tight – they do that during break in to accommodate setup variances. Hopefully this will be gone after my first service. I did burn a bit of rubber taking off from a few stop lights Lots of fun – this bike has a ton of get up and go.
I’ll be putting in a better air filter for air flow, an O2 sensor, and putting on the mirror extensions I have ordered in a few weeks.
Now with a few 100 miles under my spyder belt, I can say that the 100th mile was more fun than the 10th mile – and it keeps getting better and better. I don’t miss two wheels (the Virago is going to go up for sale I bet) and although I was a bit unsure about getting the SE over the SM model, the SE actually lets me do everything I do with a manual, plus more. I would highly recommend the SE if your looking at the spyder.
I live about 4 miles from the dealership (yes, I am lucky) so I was ready to ride it home. Being August in Las Vegas, it was 100+ degrees out - and knowing that getting the engine too hot during the break in period was a huge no-no, I just rode it home and parked it in the garage – having to wait until morning to actually ride it.
On the ride home, a few things I noticed. First, the gear shifting was excellent. Virtually instantaneous and I had complete control over the up/down shift whenever I wanted. If I just let it downshift on it’s own, it worked perfectly. The mirrors, I though, were awful. I don’t know if I am exceptionally wide or not, but I was looking at more of me, than the road. I adjusted them later for a little better view – but I am, without a doubt, putting on the mirror extensions. When I got on a semi-highway and I cranked it up to 50+ mph, it felt like it was “darting” on the road. Having read enough about this sensation, I realized that I must be doing the minute adjustments that I would normally be doing when riding my Virago – so I took a deep breath and relaxed my hands on the handlebars a bit, trying to let the bike go where it needs to without these tiny corrections on the handlebars. I was still darting a little – but by the end of the first hour on the next morning ride – this was all gone. I had adjusted.
The hindle sounds a LOT better than the stock muffler (they had to start a stock spyder to move it out of the way for me). The dealer had not installed the upgraded wheels before, and they (and I ) were impressed on how they looked. It’s not exactly cheap, but it does improve the overall look.
Over the next couple of days, I was getting up at 5:30 am so I could be on the road by 6 – when it is still in the 80 – 90’s here in Vegas. I used the non-gentle but purposeful break in method found here: http://www.mototuneusa.com/break_in_secrets.htm
Although I have been riding in hot weather, the engine never got above 6 bars for more than just a minute when stopped, and 95% of the time it was at 4 bars. The other time it was at 5 bars – usually when I was at a stop light or running the rpm’s up for the break in.
During this whole time, the bike performed excellently. The shifting is smooth, it is relatively quiet in operation (hindle aside) – but there is an odd vibration at the key during certain rpm’s. I’m assuming the belt is a little tight – they do that during break in to accommodate setup variances. Hopefully this will be gone after my first service. I did burn a bit of rubber taking off from a few stop lights Lots of fun – this bike has a ton of get up and go.
I’ll be putting in a better air filter for air flow, an O2 sensor, and putting on the mirror extensions I have ordered in a few weeks.
Now with a few 100 miles under my spyder belt, I can say that the 100th mile was more fun than the 10th mile – and it keeps getting better and better. I don’t miss two wheels (the Virago is going to go up for sale I bet) and although I was a bit unsure about getting the SE over the SM model, the SE actually lets me do everything I do with a manual, plus more. I would highly recommend the SE if your looking at the spyder.
