Not Going To Riding For A While

    Was merging onto the highway this morning when it started to fish-tale badly. Tried to get it under control but my main concern was to avoid rolling and not hitting other vehicles. Ended up going off the highway and into a tree. Luckily, I did not hit any other vehicles and no one hit me as I swerved across traffic. I'm ok, just a little stiffness in my neck, but what's eating me is WHY this happened. Road conditions were great. I was accelerating and merging lanes as I entered the highway and getting up to highway speed.


    My first thought was I blew my rear tire or my swing arm busted but it was intact. Now I'm completely stumped and really damn curious if it was mechanical. I recently had a ton of recall and warranty work done on the machine. The brake pressure switch was replaced, swing arm replaced, upper ball joints replaced and steering angle sensor reset. I've never had the back end completely lose it. So many questions going through my head right now.

    First.... glad your ok... It does get your attention when they whip around...


    I am wondering if maybe there was some slight dew on the asphalt. I'm talking about very slight... That would cause it to release. And you probably would not even notice it by looking at the pavement. I know it may not be the same weather tomorrow but you could stop on the shoulder of the road at about the same time the accident happened and see if the pavement has a slick feel to it.




    Sent from my SM-N950U using Polaris Slingshot Forum mobile app

    Quote from Bigdog

    Glad you’re ok. What about a traction control failure?


    Get the dealer to see if it shows any codes. Could be useful to prove its the dealers fault. Be there to watch them do it.

    Great Idea!!!!


    Hasn't rained here in 75 days and the temp at the time was over 65F. Even so, I whipped back and forth a good 4-5 times. The SS never felt like it was getting under control.


    Quote from tguy543

    Thankfully you're OK. How many miles Between the work done and the crash?

    About 1,200 miles.

    .


    Firstly, glad you are OK ..please get your neck checked out if you haven't ...



    So .... did the rear wheel not track anywhere near center all the way until you hit the tree ....




    From my armchair position, with no indication of sliding in the gravel, and it crabbing, looks like something mechanical failed .....


    .... nerd-squared


    .

    :REDSS: The ghost of SLingshot past ......

    Initial reaction...



    2nd... Glad you're safe!


    The feeling of totally losing control of the rear and then spinning all over the place is one I never want to repeat... And yesterday, hitting the curves in the Hill Country with the ESP light on, kept me white-knuckled, but it was dry, so I risked it...


    Definitely need to get to a dealer and see what's up with mine, but likewise, I'm following this and your findings as well...


    Again, glad you are still breathing!

    First thing I wanna say is wow that's gotta be a scary ride. I'm glad you made it "safely" without much injury or worse to your self or other cars hitting you in the process.


    2nd I'm calling dibs on the shocks.


    RNJ12

    If your rear tire is OK, then it was probably something on the surface of the road. Sounds like you were accelerating and changing lanes when the rear tire broke loose and in those circumstances it's pretty easy to quickly get sideways before it finds traction again. And then you're fishtailing.


    Losing traction at the rear while there are any cornering forces... that's a sure way to quickly change direction in a Slingshot. Unlike a car where the 4th wheel will tend to keep you going in a straight line even if one rear tire spins. Glad you're OK.

    One possibility


    ELECTRONIC STABILITY PROGRAM
    PROGRAM OVERVIEW
    The ESP system gives the operator the ability to select between three different vehicle stability settings with one
    button.
    During normal operation (e.g. the vehicle is started and driven away without touching the ESP button) the ESP
    system is fully active. During this time ABS, Traction Contol and Stability Control are all ACTIVE.
    Touch and hold the ESP button for two seconds to shut the Traction Control OFF. The TC light on the tachometer will
    be illuminated. During this time the Traction Control characteristics will be disabled. Acceleration will be governed in
    slippery conditions.
    Touch and hold the ESP button for five seconds to shut the Traction Control and Stability Control OFF. Both the TC
    light and ESP OFF light will be illuminated. During this time the Traction Control and Stability Control characteristics
    will be disabled. The ABS is always ON and cannot be shut off.
    Touch the ESP button one more time to return to a fully active ESP system. There should not be any ESP lights
    illuminated at this time unless a traction/ stability event occurs and the ESP system intervenes. When the ESP
    system intervenes, the ESP light flashes at 2.5 hz.



    YAW RATE TEST/
    Overview
    The Yaw Rate sensor is used by the Electronic Stability
    Program (ESP) to determine lateral and longitudinal
    vehicle acceleration. Direct CAN signal from the Yaw
    Rate sensor to the ESP module is used in conjunction
    with other ESP inputs (steering angle, wheel speed and
    gradient) to determine vehicle stability. The hydraulic
    modulator is activated during stability control events to
    control individual wheel speed and braking needs to
    correct vehicle attitude.
    Testing
    The Yaw Rate sensor provides a direct CAN output to the
    ESP module and cannot be reliably tested using a
    DVOM. If the Yaw Rate sensor should fail (e.g. short to
    +/- or open circuit), diagnostic trouble code(s) will be set
    and stored in the ESP module. If Yaw Rate sensor failure
    is suspected, the sensor must be replaced.


    STEERING
    Overview
    The Steering Angle sensor is used by the Electronic
    Stability Program (ESP) to determine steering wheel
    position in relation to a calibrated central location. Direct
    CAN signal from the Steering Angle sensor to the ESP
    module is used in conjunction with other ESP inputs
    (wheel speed, gradient and yaw rate) to determine
    vehicle stability. The hydraulic modulator is activated
    during stability control events to control individual wheel
    speed and braking needs to correct vehicle attitude.
    The Steering Angle sensor must be calibrated any time
    a major steering component has been replaced or
    steering alignment has been performed.
    Testing
    The Steering Angle sensor provides a direct CAN output
    to the ESP module and cannot be reliably tested using a
    DVOM. If the Steering Angle sensor should fail (e.g.
    short to+/- or open circuit), diagnostic trouble code(s) will
    be set and stored in the ESP module. If Steering Angle
    sensor failure is suspected, the sensor must be replaced
    and calibrated.

    the wheel on the right lost contact and flew pretty far...before making contact again...and bounced a few times...

    Could you guess when the front wheel came off? I would take an educated guess that the front wheel was the problem. How many miles did you put on the bike after all that work was done to it. Sorry so many questions but it's informative to me.


    RNJ12