Five years with the Thing

Setembro 2023

Fifth year with the “Thing” and only about 3,107mi5,000km added to the odometer. Definitely the year we rode the least. We had planned a Pyrenees crossing in June, but at the last moment had to do it by car due to the weather forecast. Three or four days of downpour would have ruined the trip had we gone by Spyder.

We spread out our rides across the country. A highlight was the Rota Norte (Nothern Route, a circular route connecting several national roads in the North), nearly 497mi800km (excluding connections), done during Easter week.

We also dedicated some time to the Can Am On-Road Portugal Riders group, organizing two rides: a one-day trip around the Zêzere River, and a weekend ride in the beautiful region of Arouca.

In terms of maintenance, it was a year of expenses. First, the usual annual oil change — a ritual that never fails. This year I decided to stick with the formula from the past two years: Amsoil Metric SAE 10W40, ordered from everymotors.pt in Ponte da Barca, priced at €91.60 for about 6.0qt5.7l. The oil filter was ordered from Martin The vLogger Shop in Slovakia, along with a set of washers and seals. I also took the opportunity to order new drain plugs for the engine and transmission. Not that it was needed — the originals were fine — but the price made it worthwhile. The new plugs are magnetic, unlike the originals where only the transmission side was. The magnet (on the engine side) helps capture metallic shavings circulating in the oil due to internal friction.

Every 24,855mi40,000km, the transmission filter needs replacing. It’s a cartridge-like part that fits on the right side of the engine where the transmission is located. It’s a factory-specific part, and luckily it was in stock at Martin’s shop (cheaper than the dealership), so I ordered it from there too.

During the Rota Norte, I noticed that on colder mornings the Spyder had trouble starting and showed the screen flickering… A clear sign the 12V battery was dying. Thankfully, it held up until we got home, and I immediately ordered a new one. The Spyder’s battery is about 21Ah — quite generous, justified by the machine’s electrical demands (like the electric power steering). From what I’ve seen, the 5-year lifespan (which this one reached) is above average, with 3 years being typical. Three years seems short to me, five feels more acceptable, especially since the machine sits idle between trips but is always connected to a smart charger (Optimate), which I believe helped extend its life. The original battery is Japanese (Yuasa), and although there are cheaper alternatives, I didn’t want to risk it and ordered the same model — Yuasa YTX24HL BS — directly from lubricantes-online, a Spanish store in Murcia with over 10 years of experience, for €95.95.

But the expenses didn’t stop there. The rear tire was nearing the end of its life, so I ordered not one, but three tires from Slovakia (Martin’s shop). I took advantage of a good deal (€446) and ordered a full set, even though only the rear tire needed replacing. This one, like the previous, lasted about 13,049mi21,000km. It could probably do another 2,485mi4,000km, but I don’t like pushing tires to the limit.

I took the wheel to the tire shop Egipneus in Lisbon for the swap (€6). Although they also service motorcycles, the Spyder’s rear wheel is too unusual and couldn’t be calibrated on their machine. So manual calibration was the only option. Honestly, an uncalibrated rear wheel doesn’t bother me much — the worst you might feel is a slight vibration. But I opted for another solution: a sealant and balancer that goes inside the tire — Ride-On. It’s an American gel-like product (not easy to find here in Portugal) with two functions: it acts as a sealant, drastically reducing punctures (claims of 85-95%), and it distributes inside the tire to function as a dynamic balancer. I’ve used it before and never had a puncture (whether due to the sealant or not…). This time I also wanted its balancing effect. The Spyder’s tire is huge, so I needed two bottles (16.9oz0.5l total), at €24.90 each, bought from Longitude 009 in Lisbon.

I also had to replace the front brake pads. They had been changed at 22,000 km and were now close to the 1 mm wear limit (maybe good for another 621mi1,000km-1,243mi2,000km), so with the wheels already off, I went ahead and swapped them. I chose EBC again instead of the original Brembo (which I believe are slightly inferior), and got them at a great price — €49.20 (2 sets) from Eurobikes, about half of what I paid three years ago.

According to the maintenance manual, spark plug and coolant replacement are still pending — likely to be done at the end of the year or early next.

With around 26,719mi43,000km, nothing major to report. Overall fuel consumption rose slightly compared to last year (34.9mpg(US)6.7l/100km to 34.7mpg(US)6.8l/100km), possibly due to a bit more highway riding (+1%).

Cost distribution shifted slightly this year, easing the fuel component (-3%) in favor of increased maintenance