It takes some serious courage to make a vehicle with three wheels, many have tried, all have failed, bar one. Can Am, under the BRP group, have actually made a pretty good go of it, and love them or hate them, the Spyder has become a top-selling model for the company. It is to say the least a niche product, it isn’t a motorcycle, and it certainly isn’t a car.
If anything it is more like an on road ATV, it feels a lot more like that when you ride the thing, and we suspect the only way you will truly figure out if you love or hate it, is if you got on one and took it for a test ride. We love it though, it is that “something different” the market needs and there are enough buyers that love it to keep it around for some time to come.
8 Unique
Nothing on the road looks quite like it, and that is a good thing because in our view it is good to be different.
It also feels different to ride, it certainly doesn’t feel like a car, and it doesn’t feel like a motorcycle either. It feels like a snowmobile, because it is a snowmobile, just with wheels.
7 Bold Styling
In this sense, form follows function, and naturally if you build a snowmobile for the road it will look a lot like a snowmobile. If you love the way they look, that's great, but you will find yourself in the minority.
The vast majority hate the way it looks, but even if you do hate the way it looks, that doesn’t mean you need to hate the way it goes. Just like so many of us own and love ugly cars/motorcycles, if it gives you joy, then who actually cares what it looks like?
6 Wide Selection
When it first came out back in 2007 there was only one model, now you have a selection of 11 different three wheelers to choose from.
Within that already wide selection, you have a few different engine options to choose from and a seemingly endless level of customization. You can pretty much do what you want to your Ryker/Spyder straight from the factory, at a cost, of course.
5 Comfortable
Between the semi-automatic transmission and the relaxed, upright riding position, the Spyder is very much a highway cruiser and will rack up thousands of miles with ease. It will also serve well as a commuter from a comfort and ease of use standpoint, but not necessarily in terms of fuel efficiency. 30 MPG is good for a car, but not great for a bike, pricing is also pretty conservative.
For newer riders it will also be pretty easy to adjust to, as the foot brake will feel natural and there is no concern about seat height as the third wheel renders that particular point moot. For more experienced riders who haven’t ridden an ATV or snowmobile it will take quite a bit longer to adjust to, the fact that there is no brake lever or clutch lever makes it feel a little unnatural.
4 Rotax Engine
Although they technically own Rotax, they tend to leave them well alone to do what they do best; making engines, good, solid engines.
The Spyder might not make the best horsepower, but thanks to them being in a class of their own anything is technically class leading, so its 115 horsepower triple is class leading in that sense but also not earth-shattering compared to some motorcycles making more from less displacement, but it still has more than enough torque to be fun.
3 Rider Aids
Any three-wheeler might feel a little disconcerting at first, so it helps a lot that the trike offers the mandatory ABS and the less mandatory, but extremely valuable in this application, traction control.
It is a system developed by Bosch, and incorporates stability control too, so there is a great big electronic safety net for those with reservations, or fears of the missing wheel.
2 Technology
One rather big advantage the Spyker has over any motorcycle competition (if they are even competing, we are not sure) is space. Being more like a car in this respect, they are able to include a lot of tech on the trike without really worrying too much about added weight.
It gets a pretty awesome looking 7.8 inch panoramic LCD which can connect to your smartphone, it has power assisted steering and a ride by wire throttle. It has it all because it has space for all of it, including any accessories you might choose off their vast list of options.
1 Fun
Above all else the thing is fun, it is all about fun, truth be told. It certainly isn’t the fastest or the most powerful, but it does everything it can to keep a smile on your face.
From the moment you look at it and hold back a chuckle, to the moment you get off it grinning like an idiot, it is just fun.