guido

There is a small filter in the tank above the pet-cock. It can be cleaned. the external filter under the tank can be blown out with compressed air. It will certainly improve matters, if it is dirty. If you want to see, then blow unto a clean rag and see what comes out. Blow against the direction of petrol flow, and use a bit of feel. Sounds to me as if you might have had a tank of contaminated petrol. that can happen if the service station has been almost running dry, and they have sucked from the bottom of the storage tank where you often have suspended solids (rust, dust, sand etc) It is easy to se if this is the problem though, loosen the fuel pipe before the throttle body and switch the bike on. See what comes through. Let us know what you find. good luck.

Clean your fuel filter in the tank.

Saying the rear brake locked up was a good thing to tell his wife, friends and his ego. Just on the odd chance he was right, check your box. I might well have had a similar experience. This is what I found when I took the box to pieces. In case you can't see, there is a pick up from 4 of the six flanges on the secondary lower shaft on to the sixth gear. Look carefully at the top of the flange, you can see a blue area where the thing has got awfully hot. That means, as far as I can tell, when driving in sixth, the gear follows the shaft rotation, when I geared down to fifth, sixth and fifth would have been engaged simultaniously because 6th gear (which then should rotate freely against the flanges) welded itself to the flanges for a split second, until the dog (which you see at the bottom of the shaft), which is far more substantial than the fused together parts, would rip the gear free again. Shifting a gear lower is typically what you do when entering a corner or slowing down, to keep the engine on the cam, and sudden unexpected braking in these conditions can be seriously unpleasent. I felt a roughness for a split second before I went down, and I didn't know what hit me. I still don't, but I am starting to believe this could explain a lot. After the accident we tried the box, and it was free, so it was not suspected as having contributed to the accident. I only found the problem because I wanted to change the shift rings (mandatory recall) recently, 2 years after the event. I would never have known, had I not opened the box. I don't know the cure yet, as my dealer has taken the shaft to Italy and MG, but I should know more soon. The bike has 1100km on the clock. I don't want to alarm you, but you should know. Apart from that, I have also had a rear brake seize on me, but that came more gradually and felt almost like the bike was running out of petrol, and it happened in a straight line on the highway. That was a test bike (V11) , where the free play on the brake pedal was insufficient, and the brake pads were dragging slightly, not enough to be noticeable at first. As the components got gradually hotter and expanded, the thing fairly rapidly, but, in this case not dangerously so, started to seize. However had it happened in a corner or on gravel, it might well have been worse. Adjusting the freeplay, cured that one quickly. Lastly, there seem to have been other people with other experiences with both bearings and rear brakes, so I would, - just to feel better-, give them a very careful check. I have been riding bikes for 32 years. If there is one thing I have learnt over these years, then it is to trust my instincts. If I feel that things sound or feel a little different, experince have tought me to take it seriously and not laugh it off. Thus, if an "old" guy told me he had a problem, I would make damn sure that I checked it.!! And apart from that, congratulations with your bike, I hope you will enjoy it, they are nice, aren't they!.

I have lost part of the angle drive as well. Housing bottom falls off innards escape. Cheaply made, incorrectly assembled, cheap materials. And it costs a fortune. I would strongly recommend that you try and secure the base stays in place as suggested.

I'm a bit worried we mostly seem to fall below the line to the left. Action and reaction??, are we all conditioned to resist the torque reaction of the Guzzis reving at the traffic light And I thought I was fairly conservative. I'd like to see where the BMW drivers are, not to speak of the Harley boys http://politicalcompass.org/printablegraph...8&soc=-1.38

Politics isn't good for you. See it stems from to words, poli which means many, and tics, which are small blood sucking insects. Stay away. nevertheless, as someone said, it affects us all. And if you want to discuss it, be man enough to be told things you don't like. And don't forget, that most of us will tend to move further right as we "mature". So in a parallel universe, if such a thing exists, you could have a nice argument with yourself! Now that's an idea? The only sane solution in todays world seems to soldier along alone, because most other people are just too, well, weird. Bush a murderer or a defender of western values? or maybe both??? I find it difficult to decide. We have fought that part of the world, and they us, for the best part of a thousand years, only to be told now that they are our equals. I find it difficult to understand, and accept. I find their outlook on life alien, and I don't particularly want to have anything to do with it. Let them do as they want, but let me be. But will they? I don't particularly like what is going on, and I don't see it getting better. One thing I do believe, though, Is that most people in the free world owe USA and England an enormous debt of gratitude for defending Europe and it's people when no-body else were willing and/or able to. This was an act of sacrifice on behalf of millions of people, who could have turned their backs, yet didn't. In hindsight it was the right thing to do, I think, but at the time, it was no an easy choice. I wonder if there are not some of the same considerations to be made today.

Well: short of having holes in the block, the engine can be re-built, fairly simple to do. But, unless you give the thing a bit of attention, you'll be in the soup again in a short while. There are people who have a sense for things mechanical, and people who don't. for the latter there is the service manual to be followed like some read the bible. And, a check, from time to time, to see if there is petrol in the tank, oil with the cranck and any tyres left, whill not be amiss. I know some things are lubricated for life, but that does not apply to gearbox and motor! And for what it's worth, I think a F1 would have called it quits much earlier, to be honest.

Ratchet, I know I am ratteling your cage, which I don't intend. However, you are looking for an answer, and I can give you this. There is a problem with the gearbox. It shows signs of having fused on the lower secondary shaft, on the sixth gear. It was free after the accident, because the bike was started and run through the gears on a stand. So it has been a friction induced nip, and things must have returned to normal after the box cooled down. You can see the picture of the damage. And a picture of the road. The bike has been standing since the accident, and I have only recently had the time and inclination to start getting the bike restored. The damage has nothing to do with the recall, as all the recall parts are still in fine shape. As a matter of fact, the box is as new, it has done 1100km, apart from the damage to the sixth gear and the splines. The gearbox problem is thus not directly related to the recall, but discovered, because the recall had to be done. It seems as if this is a heat seizure, caused by incorrrect tolerances. Remember before the fall I noticed for a split second a sudden roughness, or vibration? this can explain it. (You can go through the write-up from then) As you may also recall, the best explanation for the crash seemed to be a tankslap, although I could not recall such an event. But a combination of a bad road surface, a broken steering damper bolt (fatigued) and also a problem with seizure of the box, you take your pick, all could have worked in unison. Fact is I came off, and I was driving very carefully at that particular moment. I was looking for answers, because the thing was so unexpected, unprovoked and frankly baffling. As to the handling of the bike. 1. I am going to modify the suspension. 2. I am going to install a narrower rear tyre As for the handling generally. Well, I can't really comment on the green V11 currently, because I have not been riding it for two years. But I can say this, the Breva 1100 is more stable, more predictable, less wobbly and easier to live with than my later model (2002 long wb.) V11 sport. And from memory, my "new" V11Sport is better than the green one ito handling. The green bike has a lot of character, but it was never the best handler, it would particularly wobble in corners, unless powered through, and it was very sensitive to a change of mind in the corners. This is in absolute contrast to the Breva. Don't get me wrong. I enjoy my motorbikes, all of them, and I am looking forward to driving the green V11 again. especially since I can now explain, at least partly, what went on during the crash. And Ratchet, remember, all the good advice and knowledge that has been bandied around here for the last couple of years. I had this bike on the road for about 14 days before the accident. I was breaking the bike in, gently. I didn't have the knowledge of this model I have now, I was just a happy new owner of the first bike I had ever bought new in my life. It is not to be expected that an average rider should be a suspension expert, or any other type of expert for that matter, to take a stock motorbike for its break-in milage. Checking oil, tyre pressure and safety issues (and loose screws, it is a Moto Guzzi ), is all you should be able to do to the bike to ride safely! Remember also, that this was an accident at a speed of maybe less that 100km/h, on a straight road, no Diesel, gravel etc, no changes, no (active) breaking, and you might understand my surprise, shock, disbelief etc. And I know how strongly you feel about the handling of the early V11. I don't want to be drawn into an argument. Just satisfying your curiosity, I hope

Am I missing something here or have you lost your mechanic? I thought we were going to actually hear what was wrong with the bike? Or, did you take the Ducati with the dry clutch by mistake??? That surely sounds like a bucket of nuts.

as the length of the member goes up, the stiffness goes down [get yer minds outta the gutter!... Failing that, post your replies over in the Silly Banter section! wink.gif HM, interesting topic, and good pictures. This is an early frame, because of the colour, the later frames are the same except for the angle of the head stock. They are thus equally long, or short, if you want, but because of the position of the front wheel, they have different wheel bases, thus "short" and "long" frames. And callison should be changed to collision

Well, it has started to bother me, a lot. I can't find a good reason for what I see. The issue is more than bluing as there has been fusion and pick-up (welding). The box has got 1100 km. It is brand new. There are no other signs of wear, what so ever. It was full of oil, it was clean and everything looks fine, except for four tops of the flanges. The rest of the flanges are perfect. The gear is supposed to rotate here, and I can't quite phatom what could possibly cause only some of the flanges to be affected. The bearings are fine, the shaft can't? be bent, and in any case it is brand new. I had a feeling of roughness, or vibration, just before I crashed the bike. I wonder if this can explain what happened. I have given the shaft, complete, to the Guzzi importer, he will (he says) try and get a reply from Italy, when he is going there in about a week. Should be interesting! I will not put the box together again before I can explain what has gone wrong. One experience of this nature in a lifetime is enough. On another track, I have done the mods to the shiftspring arm, the boss was 16.2, now it has been filed to about 14.8mm, and the edge of the support sanded nice and round. Thanks to Belfast and dlaing for good info on this subject and to the others in the forum.

So, I have started to rebuild my green V11. It has not yet had the gearbox up-grade done, so out with the engine and box. Box is now in pieces, and I have re-placed the two shift rings. The originals look fine, the new ones look much the same, but have a cut groove around the circumference. Are the originals cast and the replacement milled? The job, so far, has been easier than I feared. Just a couple of things. The sixth gear has been rubbing against the fixed sliding sleeve on the lower secondary shaft. See picture. You can just notice the bluing at the top of the splines. It looks to me as if the splines are not exactly the same height, and 3 or four have been in close contact, to the point where they have blued, and and started to fuse with the gear. I have filed the rought patches and smoothed it with fine paper, I hope that will do. Just before I had the accident, I felt a roughness in the bike, I wonder, can this explain it? It seems too minor to me to be able to cause a significant force on the back wheel,but I am no expert on gearboxes, yet! Secondly, there are two extra items in the factory re-call pack, apart from the two sliding rings, namely part of a flexible coupling and another shim (for the internal cushion drive) Both look absolutely identical to the items already there. They are a bit trickier to get at, because you have to compress a stack of special springs to be able to get at them, and all my efforts to improvise on that front, so far, have yelded no success. I wonder, is it necessary to replace them ( I have never noticed these items being mentioned before) and, are they supposed to be changed because of another design, in which case I already seem to have these items installed, or are they also prone to failure of disintegrating

As for the ratios, its easy to look those up, but driving it, it feels pretty much like the V11. However, thats the least worrying point. I can bet you it won't fit, it is shorter and off set differently to the V11. Apart from that, it is a nice box, mechanically. It shifts fine and with small movements, but it is cluncky and, when everything is said and done, not as nice to use as the V11S. There is more play (maybe in the shaft, i don't know) and double cluncks, from the box and or shaft and or clutch. No big issues here, but the box on the V11 gives me as good shifts, less back-lash and no cluncks. IOW unless the new box is more reliable (time will tell) there is no good reasons to want to shift (pun intended)! There are surely more worthwhile things you can do with your time

[i think Guido does not put oil on the seal ring which causes it to glue itself to the mating surface. I use Mobil 1 filters and have a socket that fit) Please leave me out of this one. I deny ever, ever having had anything to do with the filters in the factory! But clearly there seems to be a problem, and it can almost only be a lack of tightening, most likely because few have the right tool and you can't apply a lot of torque with stretched fingers in the confined space left by the cover under the filter.

Crooz, I have read some of your suffering. Just one piece of advice. If the sump baffels you to this extent (no pun intended) then you should consider leaving it well alone. Pop a valium and chill out in the sunshine. Leave the bike to someone with a bit more patience, or, as some would say, "don't fix if it ain't broke." My greatest mistakes have occurred when doing un-required chores, sour, short tempered and out of ale.

I'm trying to quote from the V11 service manual but somehow it seems not to work.In any case it says you must "hand screw" to avoid overtightening. So there you go.

Sounds like either your box or your shaft. Maybe the engine has become less noisy after the cam replacement, and you only notice it now. If you haven't got any backlash, I would not worry at the moment. Keep an ear (or an eye) on it and see if it gets worse. If your engine was out of the frame for the repair, it could well have something to do with the repair, maybe an extra load on the universal joint. If the engine was not out, it would be difficult to connect the two events. Don't let it ruin your enjoyment of the bike.

I have now covered more than 3000km on my 1100 breva, and I am very pleased with the bike.! One thing annoys me a bit, though, and that is the fact that I cannot achieve silent gearshifts. The box is very nice to use, short precise movements. But, dreadfully!!, it sounds like a 1980s BMW. I get a clonk shifting up or down from the box, and then another upon engaging the clutch, I think from the shaft, and only sometimes, by pure luck, can i get a silent shift. What is going on.??

With the clip ons, if your hands or your back hurts, chances are you are going too slow for the sitting position. On my V11 i need to do about 150km'h for the wind to take the weight off the steering. On my Breva, with high wide bars, it becomes uncomfortable above 120 owing to wind pressure. horses for courses. I don't think this is caused by vibration.

To the hooligan that posted the clean your engine paint with a steam cleaner. I only now read the text correctly. I thought you were cleaning your engine paint off, with a steam cleaner, and paint remover. Anyway, I bought one of them machines because of your letter, and paint stripper too. And, it does not work. the paint just sits there!!! But after two solid days of scraping and toiling, most of the engine is now clear of the shite paint. However, the wife loves the steam cleaner. the house is spotless and I haven't had sex for two weeks!!! Thanks a lot!!!t

Twin plugs would reduce the flame-travel above the piston. IOW start a controlled combustion from two fronts. It would thus cut the combustion time in half, other things equal, (which they never are ) But yes, it certainly would help. The pinking phenomenon starts when you have conditions (temperature, pressure) which will make the mixture explode. That is what you hear, at low speed. High speed pinging is what you don't hear. It causes rapid loading of the piston, localized heat transfer at a multiple of the normal, as it breaks down the boundary layers, and it will ruin your engine, if severe and prolonged. Have a look at the new Breva 1100 engine. Twin plugs, and no, it has never made a wrong noise with me. My EV often does, My V11 occasionally.

Ratchet. Your friend should install a couple of thicker gaskets, and lower the compression that way. It is really that simple. Fiddling with the mapping is not going to achieve much. You can only richen the mixture so much and fiddle the timing to a certain degree. If he hasen't installed a second sparkplug, you simply have a long spark travel, high temperature and pressure, and the the mixture will self ignite somewhere far from the spark plug. It is really limited by the quality of fuel available, and if he doesn't want to run on race gas, lowering the compression with a set of thicker gaskets is the simplest and cheapest method.

Just to let you know. started the engine and got oil-pressure within a couple of seconds.

After having had the engine out, the sump off and a new oil filter installed, in order to cure my stuck clutch, all is now together again and I'm ready to start up. After having cranked the motor on the starter with no spark plugs, the oil light is still on. Do you have to prime the oil pump, or will it prime itself? Any sure signs of oil pressure besides the light and measuring equipment which I don't have

Hi Greg. Thanks for advice. I turned one in brass, fits perfect, looks much better too.