Lex

I'm using about the same set-up as Daniel Cooper and am also happy. With the touring restrictors in place the Staintunes are a bit louder than stock but based on my somewhat subjective head turn/ dirty look index do not seem to bother people as I pass. I would compare the sound to a stock bike from the Seventies, nice and throaty but not too loud. Combined with the relived air box the net result is very pleasing to my ear. With the touring baffles removed and the pipes "open" the bike sounds even better but is a good deal louder, more like the average after market cans. I will disagree with Daniel on one point, my mufflers are also less than perfectly aligned but I think the problem is the Stucchi crossover, not the Staintunes. Things seem to line up pretty well when I held the stock crossover in place but not with the Stucchi. I didn't actually install the stock crossover so I could be wrong. I agree about the color of the mufflers. One difference is that my headers and the Stucchi are now pretty close in color, the polished finish of the mufflers is a strong contract to the gold color of the rest of the exhaust. The lead in pipe of the mufflers has taken on a slightly yellow cast so the difference is not as marked as it once was. I'm hoping this will continue with more use. Given that the mufflers run a good deal hotter with the touring baffles in place riders who do not use the restrictors may not see this coloring. I'm a happy customer, I would buy the Staintunes again. I didn't want a cobby, short lived, race bike looking product. The Staintunes look like factory parts and seem to be built to last a long time. As a tip for people who change parts in a stainless steel exhaust system I've found Blue Magic metal polish (I'm sure other brands would work but I don't know what brands) does a nice job of removing the yellow/ gold/ blue color. Give the old parts a good polishing and the color difference is not noticeable. With use the color tends to start dark at the exhaust ports and fades as the gases cool moving down the pipes. Personally, I really like that effect. Lex

twhitaker, Yes to the problems but I do not think this is related. I think (only think) my bearing failure was caused by the bearing getting very hot (the paint on the disc carrier is burned!) and the limited grease supplies by the factory making an exit. The bearings were knackered at about 3700 miles, I have 5600 miles on the replacements with no problems. This is just my theory, the root problem could be the width of the wheel/ wheel bearings. I'm keeping a close eye on the wheel bearings, if they last I think my spacer is OK. If they fail again I'll look into the length of the spacer. Lex

twhitaker, Thanks for the try. I resorted to my crude self and made a shim out of 0.032" (0.81 MM) aluminum stock. I put the shim between the wheel and the caliper mount and the problem is gone. The caliper drops in place like it was intended to. I'm thinking I am a victim of Moto Guzzi (total lack of) QC. Will the next person who makes it the factory please bitch slap the first quality inspector you find for me? This is kind of funny story now, how funny would it be if the wheel had locked up in mid corner? I hate hospitals. Lex

I did a quick search and didn't find anything on this. So I am hopping one of you can help me. Background: I had the problem several others have had with my rear brake on my 2001 V11 Sport over-heating when the bike was new. This is in spite of the fact that I very seldom use the rear brake. I installed a spring to push the brake pedal down so I could have some movement between the normal position and the application of the rear brake. I figured the problem was my foot brushing the pedal as I rode. I haven't had a problem since. Problem: Recently I changed my rear tire. I checked the thing you would normally check and found the rear pads to be worn-out. I got a new set of pads today and got ready to install them. The first thing that bothered me was the inside pad was only half worn, the outside pad was worn out. OK, that is not good but given the problem I've had maybe the outside pad was over heated or something. So I started to install the new pads. A nice, easy job, knock out the pin, pull the old pads, put the new pads and the little spring that goes under the pin and put the caliper back. Everything went well until I tried to put the caliper back in place. With the pistons fully retracted the inside pad has plenty of room, maybe 1/16" (1.5MM) of play. The outside pad is so tight it is very difficult to install the caliper and once you do the outside pad drags on the disk. The disk fits between the pads just fine, put the caliper in position and tighten the bolts and the outside pad drags. I can only conclude the caliper is offset toward the center of the bike. Question: Why is the caliper offset toward the center of the bike? I believe I have the wheel mounted correctly. From the drive side the order is swingarm, thick washer, final drive, spacer, rear wheel, rear brake mount, swingarm, washer, axle nut. Am I missing a spacer? The manual is useless as it doesn't even shop some of the parts that are there. It seems like a thin spacer would move the caliper over just enough to make things work. If I'm not missing a spacer is this another Moto Guzzi screw-up? Ideas Please! Lex

Brian, The bolts are "tamper proof". The little square bit on the head was attached to something the factory tightened until it broke. You need to let the bolts get fairly loose and then get crude to remove them. I had good luck with vise grips. Once you work the bolt out go to the hardware store and find an allen bolt on the same size. Add a little loc-tite and replace the bolt. Yes, this makes it easier for the thief to get to your ignition switch but they wouldn't be stopped by the stock parts either. Good luck, Lex

I've been told Italian wheels are soft, just hearsay, I don't have any solid information. I do know my Ducati bent a wheel in a fairly high speed impact with a pot hole. I'm sure there is somebody in So. Cal but if you strike out locally I can recommend The Frame Man in Sacramento. I've used him once myself and sent lots of parts to him when I was around BMWs. Lex

I spoken plenty on dyno stuff before so I will keep it to this: 1. Al is 100% correct, thank you Al. Lex

Antonio, No need to calm down, I am curious. Like said, there may be a better tire since I have only tried three. Maybe there is a Pirelli/ Metzler/ Avon/ etc. tire I would like better. I don't know since I haven't tried them. I can say the D 205 is the best of the three I have tried and by a pretty good margin. For all I know I have tried the three worst tires and the D 205 is simply the best of the three. I defiantly don't want to get a tire thread (lots of opinions, some with little basis) but I would be very interested in "I tried tires A, B and C, this is what I found..." type reports. There is a subjective element to tires but if you get enough reports I think it would be valuable. I couldn't see what kind of tires you posted, what are they? Lex?

This may or may not have any relevance but from the poor electrical systems on BMW air heads I have a practice of putting a bit of dielectric (non-conductive) grease on any electrical connection I take apart. Besides similar mechanical issues (loose sockets, notice I didn't say female connectors ) the Bavarian Murder Weapons will also get a bit of corrosion on the connectors that can give you very weird problems. The grease keep moisture from the metal, reducing the possibility of corrosion. Lex

Antonio, According to whom? I'm just curious where you got the information that the tire "doesn't match the V11". The person who talked me into the D205 (Todd Egan) said I am the fifth person he knows who is happy with the tire on the V11. I have a bias in favor of Metzelers (or Pirellis, these days they just about the same tire) based on lots of happy miles (close to 150,000) and a slightly anti Dunlop bias. Between Todd and a friend who really like the D205s I figured maybe it was time to try another Dunlop. I am not claiming to be an expert, I can't rate the tire except against the Bridgestones. It may well be true another tire is better in some way. I can say the first thing I did after scuffing-in the tires in was ride 80 miles (about 120 Ks) on the Big Sur section of Highway 1 and then nearly 320 miles (close to 500 Ks) of US interstate (motorway) I am happy with the tire. I found myself more confident than I have been on the bike since I bought it two years ago. The front end no longer feels loose, it has the planted, solid feel I need before I relax and enjoy riding a bike quickly. Your Mileage May Vary, Lex

Nice solutions, especially the Rizomas. I'm a big fan of throttle locks and have a set of Throttlemeister bar ends on my bike so the "clamp on the bar end weights" approach will not work as my right side bar end rotates. I had a set of Napoleons mounted on my clutch and brake pivots but the limited rear view drove me crazy. I came up with a simple solution. With a little file work Napoleon bar ends can be adapted to work with the throttlemeister bar end weights. On the left you just have to shave the "key" slightly and it fits into the Throttlemeister, add a longer screw (add about 30 MM) and you are done. On the right you also need to add a bevel to the end of the mirror that fits into the hole in the throttle lock. If you do not add the bevel to the inside of the mirror mount the mirror contacts the rotating part of the throttle lock and tries to move when you adjust the throttle lock. My set-up isn't as pretty as the Rizomas but for much less than the price of two Rizomas I have a throttle lock, heavier than stock bar end weights and a clear view to the rear. As I view my V11 as a sport touring bike I'm very happy. More sport riding types don't need a throttle lock and probably aren't bothered as much by the vibration with the stock bar ends. Just another approach, Lex

I fear this may turn into the dreaded tire thread but I can't help myself... I just got talked into a set of Dunlop D205s. I've been anti-Dunlop for a long while (bad experiences in the past) but the D205s seem to be a very good tire for a sporty (as opposed to full on sport) rider. 500 miles so far, no rain mileage yet but great feel on dry, moist (foggy/ misty day) and sand covered roads. I've heard mileage claims from 5000 to 8000 miles. If you are looking for maximum grip you can do better without leaving the Dunlap catalog but the D205s are a huge improvement of the OEM BT57s and the BT020s I've had on my short wheelbase/ narrow rear rim 2001 V11 Sport. Mine are 120/70 F and 160/70 R. A final comment, I've used a couple of sets of BT020s on another bike and loved them. It just seems like they do not work with the V11, at least not one I'm riding. Lex

MotoM, I am not saying you can't build an air cooled four valve motor, I'm saying you can not make competitive power with an air cooled four valve motor. Note I said "The only solution is to back off on the power (power is heat, after all) until the parts have an acceptable life". The Victory is a perfect example, an engine with over liter and a half of displacement that makes what, 75 HP? There are many air cooled four valve engines. All the Japanese companies built them in the Eighties. A few dirt bikes and cruisers (the Victory, Yamaha makes some, etc.) are still being built with four valve, air cooled engines. None of these engines makes competitive power for its displacement. When the engineers went for more power they all changed to water cooling. Suzuki worked with air/ oil cooling on the GSXRs up to the early nineties, even they gave up when they hit the thermal limits of oil cooling. I can only guess at what is happening in Guzzi HQ but I think they may have come to the conclusion that reviving the cam-in-head motor would take too much of the limited capital available. Building a new (water cooled) engine that will still be viable in ten years makes more since than dumping money into an old design. If it matters to anyone I'm sad to hear this, I love my V11 but (basically) the same engine with another 20 HP would be great. I like air cooled engines, unfortunately physics doesn't give a damn about what I like. JMHO, Lex

See gthyni, I knew we could find common ground. Go Rossi! Unfortunately, I think his lead is down to 14 points after the crash in Qatar. That shouldn't be a problem, I can't see Gibernau picking up 15 points in two races unless something very strange happens. If there was any doubt about who is the best in racing today (and maybe ever) Rossi taking the championship on the Yamaha would end the discussion. The guy is amazing. Lex

Paul, From what I've read the problem is that the more holes you put in an air cooled head the harder it is to keep everything straight and keep the head from developing cracks. Liquid cooling lets the designer even out the temperature between the very hot parts exhaust parts the much cooler intake side. I understand that in an air cooled four valve the bit of metal between the exhaust valves is the big problem, the valve seats can distort and the head crack because this area is getting hot gasses on both sides and has trouble shedding the heat. The only solution is to back off on the power (power is heat, after all) until the parts have an acceptable life. The above is just what I have read, I have no personal experience in this area. Lex

Octane has no effect on mileage (or power) unless the engine management systems uses knock sensors to run as much advance as the fuel will tolerate. The Guzzi doesn't have this kind of system so your mileage will not be effected. Engine wear is in no way connected to octane rating. That you think either of these might be true shows you what a great job the oil companies have done lying to the public about fuel. What lower octane can do is allow the fuel to either burn before the spark (pre-ignition) or spontaneously explode while the mixture is burning. Both of these will produce a sharp sound like somebody hitting your bike's head with a hammer. It sounds like that because that is basically what is happening. Instead of smooth burning and expansion the force of the abnormal combustion is like a hammer blow in the cylinder, strong enough to crack a piston or head. This is especially nasty since the pinging (American slang, I think the Brits call it pinking) also exposed your cylinder, piston and head to more heat. Since heat is part of the problem the next time around pinging is more likely. Finally, aluminum gets weaker quickly as temperatures rise. This a vicious cycle that can destroy an engine. Priced a set of pistons and heads lately? How much octane do you need? Enough to stop abnormal combustion. On the type of short rides you are talking about (very short) you could probably run 87 octane without problems since one of the major factors is heat. On a short ride your engine doesn't have time to get hot. You can also add air temperature, the cooler it is the less octane you need to avoid problems. Other factors are time, the slower the engine is turning the longer the fuel has to explode, and throttle, the bigger the throttle opening the more mixture you get into the cylinder making the pressure higher spontaneous combustion more likely. Airhead BMWs have a truly poor combustion chamber. Even with an 8.7 to 1 compression ratio on 91 octane fuel they ping at certain throttle position/ RPM combination on a hot day. The solution is to cool the combustion chamber by adding fuel (normally changing the needle jet from a #266 to a #268) since this is illegal here in the Golden State people often deal with this by not riding in the RPM range (around 3500 RPM) where this happens. An interesting side note is that adding a second spark plug lets the needle jet be reduced to a #264, even leaner than stock, and banish the pinging. Why? Because the timing is retarded since it takes less time to burn the fuel when the burn starts in two places. I've seen the combination of dual plugs and bit more compression, jetted properly and with the timing adjusted, add a nice power increase and a 30% improvement in mileage. Hum... My GS had a 9 gallon tank, at 35 MPG I could go a bit over 300 miles on a tank, with a few modifications I could have done a 1000 mile day on only 2.5 tanks... The bottom line is how risk adverse you are. You can take a chance and run lower octane fuel. If you engine runs well you will save a few bucks, if you let it ping your potential down side is huge. Feeling lucky? Lex

Jaap, Not just good power but a near perfect power curve. Add me to list of the jelouse, great set-up. I'm hoping to get my bike on a dyno soon, I doubt it will be as strong as yours due to still having the (relived) air box and more restrictive (and quieter) mufflers but I hope my power curve is as smooth as yours. Enjoy! Lex

I guess we have to admit a 4-valve air cooled engine mounted in-line with a drive shaft is silly and throwing more money at an engine/ drive train with a very limited future is probably a good business move but I am still sorry to see this news. I guess all we can hope is that the water pumper will at half as much fun as the 2-valve motor and they keep the old engine around as long as pollution and noise laws let them. Come to think of it, start with the Breva 1100, take another shot at the styling (I don't dislike the Breva like some folks but the V11 Sport/ Le Mans and the MGS-01 clearly show Guzzi can do better), beef up the chassis for another twenty HP and I could easily see my garage converting to all Guzzi. I think the SP series would be up to an SP IV now, sounds like a good home for the water pumper after it is proven in the (probably chain drive) MGS-02. Trying to see the bright side, Lex

Carl, Thanks for the site. I think I had it but lost it. Lots of good info. Lex

I keep saying this but I'll say it again. Dynos very, operators very. Don't get too excited about the numbers. The best use for a dyno is measuring change. If the dyno says you had 70 RWHP and now you have 77 you have a 10% gain. Another dyno could measure the same bike as making 75 RWHP stock and 82.5 modified. The important thing is you gained 10% more power, not the exact number. I've seen the same bike differ more than that on two dynos. The most common dyno in the US is a dynojet, they are notorious for being optimistic, I don't know what they use of the other side of the small ocean. Just trying to keep a little reason in a world obsessed with numbers, Lex

Tim, In answer to your question, yes your battery can have 13+ volts and not spin the starter. Voltage and amperage are like torque and RPM, you need both to make power. Power is what moves things, be it your bike or the starter. What does the bike do why you try to start it? Does the starter click or try to work but not spin the engine or does nothing happen at all? If it is the former that points to the battery being weak (likely) or the current not getting to the starter (not likely)or the starter being bad (not too likely but it is a merd, sorry, Valeo). It is the latter look into the side stand switch, relays, ect. as suggested above. One more test, can the bike be bump (push) started? If the engine spins freely and you have sparks and fuel it should run. If it does that points to the battery or starter. It takes a lot less current to run the overhead (lights and such), injection and ignition than the starter plus the overhead, injection and ignition. Assuming the battery is weak the suggestions you check the voltage while the battery is under load is a good one. If the voltage drops more than one or 1.5 volts the battery is dead. I'd say your battery is probably shot but the results of the load tests say it is not. Assuming you did your tests on an autoranging DVM or you were on a very low scale your bike not showing any draw with the ignition off says the problem is not drain. The only way to be sure would be to charge the battery off the bike, let it sit for a day or two and put it in the bike. If it acts like it is too weak to turn the engine it is shot. Good luck, Lex

Mr. Bean, If you do, would you be kind enough to take a picture of the two bulbs shinning on something (like a wall) at night? My very basic understanding of this subject says there should be no difference between any two high quality bulbs. This is backed up by test in the US magazine Motorcycle Consumer News. This is contradicted by reports like the one from our red necked friend above. I'd really appreciate it if could take some time "shed some light" (sorry) on this issue. The V11 desperately needs more light but the alternator's weakness makes me very reluctant to add more lights like I would with almost any other bike. Lex

jerroldt, My first oil change was pretty similar other than that I planned to take the oil pan off from the start. My oil filter was either brutally over tighten, put together dry or both by the factory. Changes since have gone much more smoothly. Lex

Having been a tech writer in another life I'm not real big on posting someone else's hard work on the web. I still strongly recommend the book but if you can't get it maybe this will help: Carl Alison covers the basics on this page: Carl's TPS settings I'll add the following: Don't take the reading at the CPU, look on the "How to measure TPS voltage" thread on this forum. The zero throttle reading is 150 millivolt + or - 15 millivolt. I didn't find the 20 millivolt drop Carl refers to so I did my setting as per Guzziology with the engine off. Guzziology recommends taking of the fast idle mechanism under the right TB as well as removing the throttle linkage. I don't know if it matters but it couldn't hurt. Please note the little "C"-clip that holds the mechanism in place is apparently very hard to get, don't lose it! After you set the zero position, reconnect the linkage and set the idle by adjusting the normal adjuster screw set the idle voltage to 378 millivolt (also + or - 15). After that you do a normal adjustment, set the bypass crews to 1 turn, sync with the plastic adjuster knob, etc. Unfortunately, you will need to go to a dealer for the final step, setting the CO2. I hope this helps, Lex

Like a lot of you I am a fairly experienced rider/ amateur mechanic but I am new-ish to Guzzis. Also, I never used a Dynojet product before I bought the PC III for my 2001 V11 Sport. I've been messing with my injection based on things I've learned here, Guzziology, and a few other places. For those of you who are experts in these areas, please don't laugh too loud, you were ignorant at one time. Here is What I've learned: Set your TPS! You can find instructions in various places, I found the instructions in Guzziology the most useful. The TPS should read about 150 millivolts DC at closed ( zero) throttle and around 378 millivolts at the idle setting. See the instructions in the book for details. Anyway, mine was set at 80 millivolt at zero throttle, half of the correct setting! It only takes a few seconds to get it adjusted correctly. Second, I found the instructions for setting the throttle position on the PC III. Look at the end of the PC III (serial port version) on-line training for the information. Again, what I found was way off. You see a number on the screen, this is, I assume, a digital representation of the number of millivolts coming from the TPS. At idle my "black box" was set at 25. After setting it correctly it was set at 17, almost a 33% change! Wide open throttle was nearly as dramatic, the PC III was showing 225. After resetting the position it showed 250. In other words, the PC III thought was at closed throttle when I had 25 to 33% throttle and never at more than 90% wide open throttle. The big question is how did the bike run so well up to now? I made the above changes and took the bike for a ride. The improvement was stunning. It might not make any more power on top but it is really strong in the middle and it delivers the power much, much more smoothly and predictably. Also, in a way that is hard to define, it just ran better, especially at high RPM. Clearly, I am now getting the full benefit of the Stucchi X-pipe, Staintune mufflers and open air box. A little more diddling... I liked the power improvement and intake roar of removing the air-box lid but not the mechanical noise that came with it. Since I knew I was going to keep the "relived" intake I did what I almost never do and modified a standard part, the air-box lid. I drilled three large (1 1/4" (31 MM), 1" (25 MM) and 3/4" (19 MM) on each side. I have to believe this provides more air than the motor can use (a total area about three times the stock inlets and no long tubes) but having the air-box lid between me and the air cleaner has knocked the noise down a bunch, just what I wanted. Score one for dumb luck. At the same time a found a new map on the net, at the Guzzi Tech site. I down loaded it and took my Palm along for a ride today in case I needed to go back to an older map. End result, I took a 250 mile ride today (highway 58 to beautiful Buttonwillow raceway to see my ridding buddy's son run the 125 GP class at the AFM races) and my bike ran better than it has ever run AND I got more than 5 MPG (2.1 km/L) more than I have been getting. I did a little better than 37 MPG (15.7 km/ L) in some pretty high speed riding. Score two for dumb luck and persistence. I'm still looking forward to Todd Eagan opening a branch here in SLO town (happening soon) and having a custom map made but this seems to be as good as it will get until then. Sorry this is so long but I urge anybody who hasn't either adjusted these settings or had someone adjust them to look into this. Very happily, Lex