It is always best to refer to the Operator's Guide for your Can-Am for fuel requirements for your specific model and engine. For Spyder models, your machine will perform to its highest potential and best performance on 91-octane fuel with no ethanol.
That said, you will not damage anything if you use 87-octane fuel with no more than 10% ethanol, it just won’t perform top its full potential. Ryker models perform well on 87-octane fuels. Do NOT use E15 or any fuel with more that 10% ethanol in any recreational vehicle as this will damage the engine.
Using the E10 ethanol fuel isn’t all that bad, but letting it sit in the fuel tank and the fuel system can lead to long term problems. Typically, you do not want to leave ethanol fuel in your Can-Am Spyder or your Can-Am Ryker for more than 30 days. The reason for this is due to the water-absorbing nature of ethanol fuels and the corrosive nature of the ethanol.
So, if you do choose to use fuel with ethanol, try to add a fuel stabilizer if you will be leaving the fuel in the vehicle for longer than 30 days. If the vehicle is going into storage for a longer period of time then it is pretty much mandatory to treat the fuel with the appropriate heavier dosage of stabilizer to prevent problems when you go to start and use the vehicle.
A FEW TIPS TO HELP YOU FUEL UP:
- Make sure you are in a well ventilated place, far from flames, sparks or smokers!
- Don’t add fuel while sitting on vehicle. If the tank should fill quickly and spill you don’t want to get fuel on you or your clothing, so it is always best to be standing alongside the vehicle while fueling.
- Never fill your tank completely; the fuel tank has been specifically designed with a certain amount of “head space” or air volume at the top of the tank to allow for an expansion in volume of the fuel as its temperature changes. If you overfill the tank and the fuel warms up, the volume of fuel will increase and the extra fuel will be released though an air vent which is wasteful and harmful to the environment.
