low ground clearance for 2014 RTL

[teninospyder]

Didn't find anything in searching posts, so here goes the question to all. On an evening run yesterday we (always ride 2 up) noticed a "more than usual" number of times it sounded like we were bottoming out on the front end skid plate. It may have been BAD railroad crossing paving, but not sure right now. I decided to check things at home and can find nothing loose, broken, etc., but I do see scrapes on the underside plastic. Just now I measured the unloaded clearance from the garage floor to the underside of the lowest skid plate surface and it is +/- 3.5". I looked up RTL specs on the web, and found that BRP says on a sales flyer, 4.5" for a 2014 RTL. :yikes:

Question is......Have I lost an inch of clearance somewhere and if so suggestions on where and why? Also, what are other 2014 RTL Spyder owners seeing? :banghead:

Added note: not looking for any mods to suspension, just "original condition" inputs.

 

[Easy Rider]

Added note: not looking for any mods to suspension, just "original condition" inputs.

Any chance that there is a mounting point broken for the "skid plate" and it is hanging down lower than it should be ?

Also a careful inspection of the front suspension components would certainly be in order. If you have put on a lot of miles of 2-up riding, the springs might be sagging.

What front tires do you have ? Their dimensions might be different than stock. Pressure up to snuff ??

Wild idea: Depending on where that measurement is taken, if something is making the back end HIGHER than it should be, anything in front of the front wheels might be lower.

 

[teninospyder]

thanks for input.

Any chance that there is a mounting point broken for the "skid plate" and it is hanging down lower than it should be ? Skid plate mounts look OK.

Also a careful inspection of the front suspension components would certainly be in order. If you have put on a lot of miles of 2-up riding, the springs might be sagging. 22,000+ miles 99% 2 up.

What front tires do you have ? Their dimensions might be different than stock. Pressure up to snuff ?? Still Original Tires.

Wild idea: Depending on where that measurement is taken, if something is making the back end HIGHER than it should be, anything in front of the front wheels might be lower.

see notes above for replies.

 

[BajaRon]

I believe that height spec. is for an unloaded Spyder. You can lose a fair amount of clearance as you add weight. As mentioned above, the coil springs may have lost a bit of strength. But if your shocks have no pre-load adjustment there isn't much you can do about it in the present configureation.

Also, you can get a fair amount of difference in height depending on how the Spyder settles at any given time. We found this out when developing the Shock Adjuster Kit. If you bounce the suspension up and down a bit you may find the measurement changes when it settles again.

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

SPYDER OEM HEIGHT

Didn't find anything in searching posts, so here goes the question to all. On an evening run yesterday we (always ride 2 up) noticed a "more than usual" number of times it sounded like we were bottoming out on the front end skid plate. It may have been BAD railroad crossing paving, but not sure right now. I decided to check things at home and can find nothing loose, broken, etc., but I do see scrapes on the underside plastic. Just now I measured the unloaded clearance from the garage floor to the underside of the lowest skid plate surface and it is +/- 3.5". I looked up RTL specs on the web, and found that BRP says on a sales flyer, 4.5" for a 2014 RTL. :yikes:

Question is......Have I lost an inch of clearance somewhere and if so suggestions on where and why? Also, what are other 2014 RTL Spyder owners seeing? :banghead:

Added note: not looking for any mods to suspension, just "original condition" inputs.

Ray without any suspension mods on my 2014 RT ( basic ) w /40,000 miles is 4 3/8 inches.... I don't ride two-up, but have loaded up the Spyder with weight from purchases. Are you sure the bottoming you feel is NOT do to the OEM Shocks maxing out their Travel ( ie the rod is completely collapsed into the shock body ) ......I don't think you mentioned EXACTLY how much weight you have while Normal riding, the Total not for each person .... Now's not the time to be SHY :roflblack::roflblack: ...............Mike :thumbup:

 

[teninospyder]

Ray without any suspension mods on my 2014 RT ( basic ) w /40,000 miles is 4 3/8 inches.... I don't ride two-up, but have loaded up the Spyder with weight from purchases. Are you sure the bottoming you feel is NOT do to the OEM Shocks maxing out their Travel ( ie the rod is completely collapsed into the shock body ) ......I don't think you mentioned EXACTLY how much weight you have while Normal riding, the Total not for each person .... Now's not the time to be SHY :roflblack::roflblack: ...............Mike :thumbup:

:yikes: Mike, OK...…..somewhere around 185 passenger and 210 me. This has been true for all of our miles on the spyder, and total weight has probably been "right at" Spyder limits on our long trips each year. To clarify, my reading of 3.5" (a section of 2x4 on edge, fit "just right) was done this AM in the garage after sitting overnight. Nothing in Frunk. 50psi in air bag. Know of a good test for the shock spring rebound (while it is in place) to assure it is coming to original extension distance or not?? As always....your thoughts appreciated.

 

[Bob Denman]

Look at it this way: now that you know... you know to slow down a bit more! :thumbup:

 

[ARtraveler]

You folks are close to that 400 and change max recommeded for the Spyder. Add gear and you may be pushing the limit a bit. Beefier shocks may be worth looking at.

 

[Chupaca]

Cut and dried....

It will all be the shocks....if non-adjustable get the adjusters from BajaRon and set them up a bit higher. If they are adjustable set them up higher, change the springs or replace the shocks. You can check with BLUEKNIGHT911 about shock relocators. Although mine is an RS I do have 6" up to the bumpskid with the shock adjusters. :thumbup:

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

WELLLLLLL NOW THAT YOU MENTION IT

You folks are close to that 400 and change max recommeded for the Spyder. Add gear and you may be pushing the limit a bit. Beefier shocks may be worth looking at.

I don't think newer and or better shocks will fix this issue ........... SPRINGS that are rated for more Lbs. - will .... think of it this way ....if you take any OEM Shock and remove the Spring ....the shock will slowly collapse even without the Spyder being loaded, however the Spring without the shock will support the weight of the Spyder ( at least 90% of the weight +/- ) .........jmho ..... Mike :thumbup:

 

[teninospyder]

After further investigation..........................

Thanks to ALL for taking the time to provide valuable inputs and suggestions on possible causes and fixes.
Today, after emailing you good people, we took a ride (1.5hrs out, lunch at godfathers Pizza, and 2 hrs back.....a different way around JBLM and got to watch a C-17 Fly directly over us on takeoff !!!).
Anyway, I digress.
On the way home I stopped at my local Spyder dealer and took a "new" measurement on ours, to compare to theirs, without having to crawl under. That measurement is from the ground to the vertical center of the "rolled edge", and at the horizontal center of the nose piece. Our spyder nose measured 6" to ground at that point.

On the 4 RTL machines he had there:

1. 2014 like ours in color, but with trailer hitch on back. It was 5 5/8ths"
2. 2018 White, Measured 6"
3. 2018 Dark Silver, Measured 6"
4. 2018 Dark Silver, Measured 6"

When I got home I rechecked my "underbelly" reading and it is still 3.5", and the nose edge is 6", so I "assume" all of theirs would be the same or extremely close. Leading me to conclude the BRP statement of 4.3" in my RTL owners manual is certainly not correct for the "minimum" underneath (skid plate area), but must be OK and my issue is elsewhere.

For those of you who may have recorded different clearances on yours, I don't disagree with you and in fact I'm actually jealous, if yours is greater as it came from the factory, and doesn't bottom out. As for any required fixes, the "local jury" is still out.:shemademe_smilie:









;

 

[BajaRon]

Static height is one thing and a good place to start. But there are a lot of dynamics involved when your front end strikes the ground. The nose, being ahead of the front wheels, needs to be relatively higher because it does not raise up until the center of the wheels start to rise with the pavement (driveway ramp, etc.). As you get closer to the wheel center you can get away with less clearance as it will come up the wheels.

But when you hit a driveway ramp, for example, a great deal of inertia has to be absorbed. This is done by collapsing the front suspension. This initial, momentary reduction in ground clearance is where you get your ground strike. Usually about 1/2 way between the nose and the center line of the front wheels.

There are a number of ways to correct this. Some better than others. With a definite price range involved. The main thing is you want to correct the problem without ending up with a harsh ride. Done right, you can get both.

 

[teninospyder]

just clarify measurements

It will all be the shocks....if non-adjustable get the adjusters from BajaRon and set them up a bit higher. If they are adjustable set them up higher, change the springs or replace the shocks. You can check with BLUEKNIGHT911 about shock relocators. Although mine is an RS I do have 6" up to the bumpskid with the shock adjusters. :thumbup:

Chupaca,,,,,,,,,,My 3.5" ground clearance measurement of concern is at the REAR EDGE of the belly pan/skid plate. Are you saying that is where you have 6" of ground clearance, or are you validating
what I measured at the NOSE of the front end?

 

[wmh9680]

Didn't find anything in searching posts, so here goes the question to all. On an evening run yesterday we (always ride 2 up) noticed a "more than usual" number of times it sounded like we were bottoming out on the front end skid plate. It may have been BAD railroad crossing paving, but not sure right now. I decided to check things at home and can find nothing loose, broken, etc., but I do see scrapes on the underside plastic. Just now I measured the unloaded clearance from the garage floor to the underside of the lowest skid plate surface and it is +/- 3.5". I looked up RTL specs on the web, and found that BRP says on a sales flyer, 4.5" for a 2014 RTL. :yikes:

Question is......Have I lost an inch of clearance somewhere and if so suggestions on where and why? Also, what are other 2014 RTL Spyder owners seeing? :banghead:

Added note: not looking for any mods to suspension, just "original condition" inputs.

Check your air suspension psi. Higher psi raises the spyder and lower lowers it, maybe more in rear but ck it. Book says for me riding 2 up should be 70 psi

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

CLEARANCE

Check your air suspension psi. Higher psi raises the spyder and lower lowers it, maybe more in rear but ck it. Book says for me riding 2 up should be 70 psi

:agree: ..... however the height change will be mostly at the rear .... take a 12in. ruler, raise the end one in. .... how much does it go up at the at the one in. mark ....... Mike :thumbup:

 

[Chupaca]

Little checking.....

Chupaca,,,,,,,,,,My 3.5" ground clearance measurement of concern is at the REAR EDGE of the belly pan/skid plate. Are you saying that is where you have 6" of ground clearance, or are you validating
what I measured at the NOSE of the front end?

Down at the lowest point you mentioned I have 4" of clearance to the bumbskid with the original skid would be 41/2" ... :thumbup:

 

[Lew L]

I've also got 4" clearance in between the front wheels to the bump/skid. ( unloaded ). 5" clearance at the front of the bump/skid.

 

[teninospyder]

OK, my final assessment of the noises I heard after rough road jolts.

First off, thanks to all who provided useful inputs.
After further review of the belly pan inputs I received, and measurements I myself made, I believe The front end of our Spyder has the same dimensions under it, that "most" RTL spyders in stock configuration - including brand new units on the showroom floor - have. I therefore don't believe anymore that we were doing any abnormal bottoming out in the front.

The cause of noises up front was most likely fueled by things I had in the frunk at the time....water bottles, coffee thermos, coffee cups, and battery jump start kit - all loose packed. We did not hear any relevant amount of noise from that area after emptying the frunk and taking a 3hr ride today - which included over bumpy RR crossings and potholes. I consider that mystery solved and lesson learned about things that can "move around" and cause unwarranted concerns while riding.

As for the noises that appeared to be from the rear of the Spyder, I made 2 changes before our ride today. First off - I did not find ANY location where rubbing or bumping of any parts was taking place. I did however find a small amount of movement possible at the muffler/body mount location, and I could make the system "squeak at the converter", if I moved the muffler around enough. I took the muffler off completely, inspected all parts for fit, reassembled per the service manual instructions, and made sure to align and "torque to factory specs" the converter/muffler clamp and the body mount bolt. Redoing this made the muffler mounting feel tighter and more secure than it ever had before. The effort to do this appears to have worked because we only experienced "1 other strange noise" all the time we were out today.
I had suspected the cause of that noise before, and it was easily cured. Lesson learned here too. Plastic bottles with pills in them, and loosely put into the side cargo hold areas, can make a rattling sound when
jolted around that approaches "tire tread rubbing on body part". I removed those items to other spaces and the annoying noise stopped. I hope all this experience helps someone else along the way.