RoadVitals

2010 Can-Am Spyder RS

Recalls, owner-reported complaints, investigations and safety data

Data refreshed

Owner complaintsComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
8
Latest Jun 20, 2017
Safety recallsA safety recall is issued when a manufacturer or NHTSA determines that a vehicle has a safety-related defect or does not comply with a federal motor vehicle safety standard. Recall repairs are free. Whether a specific vehicle is covered depends on its VIN — a recall listed for a model year does not necessarily apply to every vehicle of that year.
3
Latest Dec 12, 2012
InvestigationsNHTSA opens an investigation to examine whether a safety defect may exist. An open investigation is not a determination that a defect exists, and many investigations close without a recall. Investigations can, however, lead to one.
0
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
2
1 injuries, 0 deaths reported

Overview

Our database contains 8 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 2010 Can-Am Spyder RS, most frequently naming the driver assistance, steering and electrical categories. 3 safety recalls have been issued covering this model year; and 15 manufacturer communications are on file.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

What owners report

Complaints grouped by the component NHTSA recorded

  • Driver assistance426.7%
  • Steering320.0%
  • Electrical213.3%
  • Engine213.3%
  • Exterior lighting213.3%
  • Fuel system16.7%
  • Powertrain (other)16.7%

Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.

Safety recalls

3 campaigns cover this model year

Recalls apply to specific vehicles, not to every vehicle of a model year. Check your VIN with NHTSA or your manufacturer's dealer to confirm whether a recall affects your vehicle.

Check a VIN on NHTSA.gov

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY:FILLER PIPE AND CAP

Dec 12, 2012
33,700 units potentially affected
The defect: Bombardier Recreational Products Inc. (BRP) is recalling certain model year 2008-2012 Can-Am Spyder GS, RS, and RT series vehicles. The fuel cap may not fit onto the fuel tank filler neck, preventing it from sealing properly.
The risk: If the fuel cap does not seal properly, it may leak fuel vapors. Fuel vapors in the presence of an ignition source could result in a fire and personal injury.
The remedy: BRP will notify owners and send them a replacement fuel cap, free of charge. The safety recall is expected to begin in mid-January 2013. Owners may contact BRP AT 1-888-638-5397.
Bombardier Recreational Products Inc.View on NHTSA.gov

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE

Dec 12, 2012
9,600 units potentially affected
The defect: Bombardier Recreational Products Inc. (BRP) is recalling certain model year 2008-2009 Can-Am Spyder GS and model year 2010 Can-AM Spyder RS vehicles. Fuel vapors may exit the fuel vapor canister vent hose in the enclosed engine compartment.
The risk: Fuel vapors in the presence of an ignition source could result in a fire and personal injury.
The remedy: BRP will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the fuel vapor canister vent hose and replace and re-route it, as necessary, free of charge. The safety recall began on December 26, 2012. Owners may contact BRP AT 1-888-638-5397.
Bombardier Recreational Products Inc.View on NHTSA.gov

POWER TRAIN:CLUTCH ASSEMBLY

Jun 1, 2010
1,200 units potentially affected
The defect: BRP IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2010 SPYDER RS SE5 2ND SERIES AND RT SE5 ROADSTERS. WHEN BRINGING A VEHICLE EQUIPPED WITH THE SE5 SEMI-AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION TO A FULL STOP, THE CLUTCH MAY REMAIN ENGAGED STALLING THE ENGINE. ONCE THE ENGINE IS STALLED, IT COULD BE IMPOSSIBLE TO RE-START AND THE REAR WHEEL COULD BE BLOCKED.
The risk: IF THIS HAPPENS, THE VEHICLE MAY NOT BE ABLE TO BE PUSHED OFF THE ROADWAY INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
The remedy: BRP WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND DEALERS WILL REPAIR THE VEHICLES FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JUNE 7, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT BRP AT 1-888-638-5397.
BOMBARDIER RECREATIONAL PRODUCTS INC.View on NHTSA.gov

Recent owner complaints

Reports submitted to NHTSA, shown in the owner's own words

Steering
Filed Jun 20, 2017

I PURCHASED MY CAN-AM SPYDER IN 2013 IT WAS BRAND NEW. IT NOW ONLY HAS 5,000 MILES ON IT. I GOT THE DPS ERROR AND TOOK IT TO THE CAN-AM DEALER THEY SAID IT IS GOING TO COST ME 2500 TO GET IT FIX (AND THAT THIS ERROR ISN'T ONE THAT COULD BE PUT OFF). I ASKED IF IT IS COVERED BY WARRANTY OR A RECALL SYSTEM THEY SAID NO THAT MY VIN # DIDN'T FALL IN THAT CATEGORY. I LOOKED IT UP ON THE CAN-AM WEBSITE AND ALL THE WEBSITE SAYS IS THE MAKE AND MODEL AND YEAR OF THE RECALL NOT THAT IT IS LIMITED TO A VIN # RANGE.

NHTSA ID
11000262
Incident
Jun 9, 2017
Mileage
5,000 mi
Fuel system
Filed Jul 25, 2016

ON SUNDAY, JULY 7, 2016, WHILE RIDING FROM OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA TO TAOS, NEW MEXICO, I STOPPED FOR GASOLINE AT A GAS STATION SOMEWHERE IN NORTHEASTERN NEW MEXICO, POSSIBLY AROUND CLAYTON. WHEN I BEGAN TO UNSCREW THE GAS CAP, I HEARD A HISSING SOUND COMING FROM THE GAS TANK. THIS IS NOT UNUSUAL, AS THE GAS FREQUENTLY BOILS IN THE TANK, LIKELY DUE TO THE CLOSE PROXIMITY OF THE EXHAUST SYSTEM ON EACH SIDE OF THE FUEL TANK, BUT THIS TIME THE HISSING SOUNDED LIKE THE PRESSURE MAY HAVE BEEN HIGHER THAN NORMAL. I WENT AHEAD AND REMOVED THE GAS CAP, AT WHICH POINT GASOLINE AND/OR GAS VAPORS SPEWED OUT OF THE GAS TANK, KNOCKING THE GAS CAP FROM MY HAND AND HITTING ME IN THE FACE, NECK AND SHOULDERS, AND SPRAYED OVER THE GAS PUMP AT WHICH I PARKED AND RAINED DOWN ON MY BROTHER'S MOTORCYCLE WHERE HE HAD PARKED TO PURCHASE FUEL. THE SPYDER WAS STATIONARY WITH THE PARKING BRAKE APPLIED AND THE IGNITION SWITCHED OFF AT THE KEY. THE ENGINE WAS NOT RUNNING AND HAD BEEN SWITCHED OFF FOR LESS THAN ONE MINUTE. WE HAD BEEN RIDING IN EXTREME HEAT, MY BROTHER'S BMW READ 106 DEGREES WHILE THE SPYDER READ 117 DEGREES. THE SPYDER'S TEMP IS NORMALLY CONSIDERED TO RUN HIGHER THAN THE ACTUAL TEMPERATURE, SO WE BELIEVE THE 106 DEGREE TEMP TO BE MORE ACCURATE.

NHTSA ID
10888403
Incident
Jul 17, 2016
Mileage
30,600 mi
Driver assistanceElectricalEngine+2 more
Filed Oct 27, 2014

TOOK BIKE TO INTO BERT'S MEGAMALL IN AZUSA, CA. TO HAVE COOLANT TANK REPLACED AS FOUND COOLANT DRIP ON DRIVEWAY FIRST WEEK OF OCT 2013. HAD TO LEAVE BIKE SO THEY COULD ORDER PARTS. WAS CALLED BY SERVICE MGR. SEVERAL DAYS LATER AND WAS TOLD THAT THEY RAN VIN AND DPS SAFETY RECALL HAD NOT BEEN DONE AND COULD NOT RELEASE BIKE UNTIL DONE. I SAID IT WAS OK! TO DO RECALL. PICKED UP BIKE SEVERAL DAYS LATER AND TURN SIGNAL WOULDN'T CANCEL AFTER TURN. RETURNED TO DEALER. THEY HAD NOT ZEROED STEERING. FIXED! LEFT DEALER GOT ON FREEWAY AND WENT ABOUT 3MILES CLUSTER LIT UP AND BIKE WENT INTO LIMP MODE. RETURNED BIKE. MORE PARTS TO ORDER. SPARK PLUG WIRE GROUNDED TO HEAD. ANOTHER WEEK PICKED UP BIKE AFTER REPAIR. SERVICE MGR. SAID THEY HAD DONE A CLUSTER UPDATE (FILE 215800215) TEMP. BAR GRAPH - ENGINE TEMP. HIGHER AFTER UPDATE. MAY 14, 2014 TRAILERED BIKE TO LOCAL DEALER IN LAFAYETTE, LA . CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON AND RUNNING ON ONE CYLINDER. DIAGNOSED AS ECM CORRUPTED. REPLACED ECM. BIKE RUNS BUT TO HOT TO RIDE MORE THAN 3 MILES. AS SOON AS TEMP BAR GRAPH REACHES 5 BARS. CAN FEEL BIKE RADIATING HEAT FROM STANDING SEVERAL FEET FROM BIKE BIKE NOT SAFE TO RIDE. UPDATED 11/18/14*CN *TR *JS

NHTSA ID
10650514
Incident
Oct 14, 2013
Mileage
25,074 mi
Driver assistancePowertrain (other)
Filed Sep 16, 2013
Crash reported

AS I WAS DRIVING MY SPYDER WOULDN'T SLOW DOWN AND I WAS AT 66MPH.. I DOWN SHIFTED AND IT STILL STAYED AT 66MPH. NO MATTER HOW MUCH I PRESSED ON THE BRAKE IT STAYED AT 66. LUCKY I HAD ENOUGH SENSE TO TURN THE BIKE OFF, BUT BY THEN I WAS IN THE WOODS BECAUSE I HAD TO AVOID HITTING OTHER CARS. MY POWER STEERING WASN'T WORKING AT THE TIME AND I CALLED BRP ON JULY 3 TO ASK THEM IF IT WAS STILL UNDER WARRANTY BECAUSE IT WAS REPLACED IN APRIL OF 2011. THEY TOLD ME IT WAS. SO I HAD THE ACCIDENT TWO WEEKS LATER NOW BRP WONT PAY FOR MY POWER STEERING UNIT. THEY SAID IT WAS DUE TO THE ACCIDENT EVEN THOUGH THEY HAVE NOTES ON ME CALLING IN ABOUT IT TWO WEEKS BEFORE THE ACCIDENT. MY BIKE IS ALWAYS IN THE SHOP. I CALLED BRP AND SPOKE TO A REPRESENTATIVE THERE AND HE TOLD THAT HE HAS NEVER SEEN SO MANY NOTES ON A BIKE. WHEN I FIRST GOT THE BIKE I HAD IT FOR TWO MONTHS AND THEN IT WAS IN THE SHOP FOR 9 WEEKS AND WHEN I GOT IT BACK NOBODY COULD TELL ME WHAT WAS WRONG WITH IT. I NEVER HAD THE BIKE FOR A WHOLE SUMMER YET WITH OUT A PROBLEM AND BRP DOESN'T SEEM TO B WORRIED ABOUT IT. AND TO TOP IT OFF THEY DON'T SEEM TO BE CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR PRODUCT BEING STUCK AT 66MPH. THEY ACT LIKE ITS NORMAL FOR THEIR PRODUCT TO DO THAT. THEY GAVE ME NOTHING AND REFUSE TO LET ME SPEAK TO A MANAGER. I PAID OVER 20,000 FOR THE BIKE AND I WOULD THINK YOU WOULD GET BETTER CUSTOMER SERVICE. I LOVE THE BIKE BUT ITS JUST TO MANY PROBLEM WITH IT AND BRP KNOWS IT BUT REFUSES TO HELP. *TR

NHTSA ID
10543959
Incident
Jul 14, 2013
Mileage
26,000 mi
Driver assistance
Filed May 30, 2013

WHILE TRAVELING ON HIGHWAY AT APPX. 70 MPH, MY CRUISE CONTROL DROPPED OUT REDUCING VEHICLE SPEED TO SUCH A DEGREE TO BE A DANGER TO ME AND ANY FOLLOWING VEHICLES. I PULLED OFF THE HIGHWAY IN ATTEMPT TO DETERMINE PROBLEM; I WAS UNSUCCESSFUL. IT HAPPENED SEVERAL MORE TIMES SO I QUIT USING CRUISE CONTROL. DEALER LATER DETERMINED IT WAS THE HOUSING-SWITCH. IT IS OUT OF WARRANTY AND CAN-AM WON'T STAND BEHIND THE PRODUCT EVEN THOUGH IT HAS LESS THAN 6000 MILES ON IT. I BELIEVE PART IS DEFECTIVE. *TR

NHTSA ID
10514316
Incident
Apr 24, 2013
Mileage
5,150 mi
ElectricalEngineSteering
Filed Jan 4, 2012

THE VSS FAULT LIGHT CAME ON AND THE ENGINE BEGAN RUNNING ROUGH AS IF IT WAS NOT HITTING ON ALL SPARK PLUGS WHEN I WENT INTO A TURN. I PULLED OVER AND SHUT OFF THE ENGINE, WAITED A FEW MINUTES, AND RESTARTED THE VEHICLE. THIS ALLOWED THE COMPUTER TO REBOOT. THIS HAS OCCURRED THREE TIMES SINCE. LATER, MY FRONT TRUNK RELEASE BUTTON QUIT WORKING AND THE RIGHT FOG LIGHT QUIT WORKING (BULB IS FUNCTIONAL) AND MY GAS MILEAGE HAS GONE DOWN. I HAD NONE OF THESE PROBLEMS UNTIL THE DYNAMIC POWER STEERING UNIT WAS REPLACED DURING A RECALL. *TR

NHTSA ID
10442360
Incident
Nov 24, 2011
Mileage
4,670 mi
Exterior lighting
Filed Aug 18, 2010

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2010 CAN-AM SPYDER ROADSTER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE HEADLIGHTS EXHIBITED THREE DIFFERENT COLORS AND WOULD CONTINUOUSLY FLASH WHILE ON LOW BEAM. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER WHERE THE LIGHTS WERE CHANGED BUT DID NOT CORRECT THE FAILURE. THE CONTACT STATED THE LIGHTS WOULD APPEAR AS IF HE WAS AN EMERGENCY VEHICLE AND OTHER VEHICLES WOULD QUICKLY MOVE OUT OF HIS WAY WHILE DRIVING. THE CONTACT FEARED THE FAILURE COULD POTENTIALLY CAUSE A CRASH. THE FAILURE PERSISTED. THE MANUFACTURER WOULD NOT PROVIDE ANY ASSISTANCE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 5 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 1,200.

NHTSA ID
10350309
Incident
Jun 25, 2010
Mileage
5 mi
Driver assistance
Filed Jun 14, 2010
Crash reported1 injury reported

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2010 CAN-AM SPYDER RS MOTORCYCLE. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE ATTEMPTING TO ACCELERATE FROM A TRAFFIC STOP, THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED AT A HIGH RATE OF SPEED. THE CONTACT WAS UNABLE TO CONTROL THE VEHICLE AND FELL OVER AND SLID A FEW INCHES WITH THE MOTORCYCLE. THE POLICE ARRIVED ON SCENE AND ADVISED THE CONTACT THAT A MORE EXPERIENCED DRIVER WOULD DRIVE THE VEHICLE TO HIS RESIDENCE. THE PERSON WHO DROVE THE VEHICLE THE REMAINDER OF THE WAY STATED THAT HE DID NOT EXPERIENCE ANY FAILURES IN THE VEHICLE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 54 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 145.

NHTSA ID
10336146
Incident
Jun 8, 2010
Mileage
54 mi

Manufacturer communications

A bulletin sent by a manufacturer to its dealers. Not a recall, and repairs are not necessarily free.

SB-129289

SERVICE BRAKES

SUMMARY TO BE PROVIDED ON A FUTURE DATE.

REV87480

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING

Air scoop retrofit kits.

D109338

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Trailer module may fail.

POSTING 12-20

FUEL SYSTEM, OTHER

POSTING DISCUSSING THE TWO RECALLS POSTED ON TRANSPORT CANADA AND NHTSA CONCERNING THE FUEL VAPOR CANISTER VENT HOSE TO BE REPLACE OR RE-ROUTE AND FUEL CAP REPLACEMENT BECAUSE THE FUEL CAP MAY NOT FIT ONTO THE FUEL TANK FILTER NECK.

Article 10-25

ENGINE

Technical Service Tip (TST) addressing that on some SE5 engines a high pitched or whining noise may be heard under specific RPM only. After investigation the cause of this noise is from a thrust washer vibrating and spinning in the HCM. Inspection of the HCM housing for wear is proposed; it may need to be replaced.

SB-420611493

ENGINE

BRP: SOME ENGINES (SE5) HAVE A HIGH PITCHED OR WHINING NOISE, LEFT HAND SIDE, CAN BE HEARD UNDER SPECIFIC RPM. MODEL ROADSTER. NO YEARS. *PE

Manufacturers file copies of the bulletins they send to dealers with NHTSA. These often describe diagnostic or repair procedures for a known condition. They are not recalls: repairs described in a bulletin are usually only free if the vehicle is still under warranty or the manufacturer has extended coverage.

Compare model years

Complaint and recall counts across every year of this model

Can-Am Spyder RS by model year
YearComplaintsRecallsInvestigationsIssue Index
2016100
2015000
2014100
2013400
2012610
2011510
2010Viewing830
2009131047.0
2008370042.6

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers. Older model years have had longer for reports to accumulate.