[LeMans headlight adjuster question...]

I was just noticing the headlight adjustment hole on the front of my fairing, then I looked inside to see how it worked and I noiced that their was no screw nor adjustment bolt aligned with the hole. In fact no screw or bolt whatsoever. Just the two big adjustment arms, one having a nut attached. I tried to move the adjustment arm by hand and it was solid, would not budge.

So my question is: Was there ever a screw/bolt there from the factory? If so, mine has vibrated loose and fell out.

[Gustafsson Plastics screen on V11 Sport?]

Quota screen holes didn't line up on bike. Had to virtually beat him to get a replacement which was undrilled and the thing was wavy molded and looked like, well, crap. I wound up giving it away to a new Quota owner looking for windshield options on the net. As down on Gustaffson's junk as I am, I am very, very happy with the MRA windshields from Germany as imported by Twisted Throttle. Wick

 

I found this posting and couldn't believe my eyes when I read it. Leif Gustaffson is one of the most friendly, customer oriented, hard working individuals I have ever met! I have bought several windscreens from him for various bikes and all of them have served me great! He has been making bike windshields in this country since 1978, and in Sweden prior to that. Leif is a hard worked. He works 8 till 5 five days a week and has for over 30 years. Go try and find another windscreen manfacturer/owner that has such commitment... let alone one that makes EVERY screen himself!

Leif is so customer oriented that during my last trip to Biketoberfest in Daytona I visited his shop. He made me a custom windscreen for my Kawasaki on site. In fact he ask me to assit him in the process, and I got to create my windscreen with my own hands. How cool that was!

Upon this visit to his shop I saw windscreens that he had manufactured over 20 years ago & installed on two of his bikes. Even thought they were 20+ years old these screens looked great.

Leif doesn't drill any of his screens because not all bikes are the same, and he showed me various STOCK windscreens where when placed on top of each other their factory holes didn't align.

 

You obviously must have been having a bad week when you posted these negative statements, or you have some association with Twisted Throttle or MRA.

[Spring is sprung]

ohhh.... so now I understand why when shopping for a used Lemans I found so many 2002's with 4000 to 5000 miles For Sale. (including the one I finally purchased).

 

So I wonder what the likelyhood is of mine breaking soon as it has 4300 miles on it now? Geez.... live and learn.

[Havng to re-learn maintainence]

Thanks to everyone for helping me thru my first Guzzi crisis. It is much appreciated.

[Oil Filter HELP]

If it's white and none of your wrenches fit it's probably the OEM UFI filter.

 

To remove a rounded hex socket screw:

Get a "torx" bit (thats the star type) that is just slightly too large to go into the hex socket. Align the star flutes with the corners of the rounded hex and tap it in with a hammer. The Guzzi bolt is soft steel and most decent "Torx" bits are hard.

Then carefully turn the bolt out.

 

I finally was able to count the number of flutes (sides) on the white oil filter. There appears to be only 8.

It would have a flat flute area, then a rounder area, then another flute, and so on. Therefore the sides/flutes do not meet each other. Now if I can find such a filter wrench/socket to place on it next time.

 

As time was running out I went ahead and refilled with new oil, and sealed her up until a later date 2000 miles from now. Then I will have to tackle this problem once again.

[Havng to re-learn maintainence]

OK... no luck... so i just went ahead and refilled with fresh oil, and cleaned up my mess. I will worry about the solutions in say 2500 miles.

My friend came by and he or I could identify a way to remoe the filter with the risk of damage to it, as as that was an uncertainty I didn't wish to proceed as I had no way to get the pan off at this time.

 

I did discover that the filter appears to have 8 flutes. I tried to mark each with magic marker as I viewed them while using my flashlight to peer into the darkness of the sump.

 

 

White filter with 8 flutes... anybody got any ideas as to it model and make so i can find a wrench next time.

[Oil Filter HELP]

Des anyone have any idea what brand and part number oil filter might be on my 2002 Le Mans. It's white in color is all I can tell you. Not sure if it's the original or even a Guzzi filter. All I know is none of the 6 wrenched I have bought and tried on it fit. All of differ number of flutes or size.

 

And NO... I can't get the sump pan off due to a stripped allen hex head on ONE freakin bolt.

[Havng to re-learn maintainence]

I have now spent nearly 5 hours and 40 miles in trips to the store, and still no oil changed !!!!

 

I decided to leave the sump pan on until I can get an expert at stuck bolt removal to tackle it in a shop. So i go to the auto parts store and get 5 different oil filter wrenchs just knowing when I returned home the filter removal would be a breeze. To my surprice none of the 5 new tools fit the freakin filter! They are either slightly too small, possibly the right size but a different number of flut or slightly to large! I have now tried 6 of these and nothing fits !!! Does anyone have any idea of a proper wrench size and flute # ? The filter is white in color but I do not know its the brand. I'm liken this Guzzi less and less each hour!

[Havng to re-learn maintainence]

WHAT A FREAKIN JOB !!!

 

Geezz. I just tried my first sump pan clean & oil change. Could they have made this more difficult...

placing hex screws in the same location at the drain plug so that you hex won't align into the bolt head without removing the plug! ANd making the hose hexs so that you can't get a freakin wrench on this without the pan fins stoping you!

Anyay, I get all the way around loosening the sump pan bolts. I notice that some break loose very easily and another section of them actually POP when they break loose as they required more pressure. I get to the last one (back right hand side). It won't budge and the hex appears to start rotating inside the head of the bolt. I STOP. Take it out double check my hex and get a new one that hopefully will be tighter. I take time to drive it in with careful taps from a small hammer. I try again. It won't budge ! I abandon the pan removal and retighten all the bolts (appearently the dealer that serviced this bike the first time also abandoned this process... that is why some bolt poped loose and other just came loose more easily).

Now I have to remove the manhole and I haven't a wrench ! What a freaking job just to change oil !

Gotta clean up and go hunt or have make something to remove the manhole cover with!

Geeezzzzz !!!

[Havng to re-learn maintainence]

Yep. I use the same one f'er years, even with a very light application of gasket dressing, which cleans right up with lacquer thinner and renews 'em just fine. Some guys go lots longer. Others re-use 'em dry. Depends on how you feel about Seepage, and his cousin, Weepage.

Personally I have never liked any members of the Page family !

 

Thanks for the info... tomorrow will be my first attempt and Guzzi maintenance.

 

So the process is.... 1)Drain oil via rear sump pan drain plug. 2)remove sump pan. 3)change screw-on oil filter. 4)clean screen filter. 5)clean up sump pan bottom if necessary 6) make sure sump pan gasket looks OK. 7)reinstall pan then plug. 8)refill with Castrol Syntec 20W/50. 9)check oil level after running. 10)admire your work and feel proud.

[Havng to re-learn maintainence]

- on earlier, "non-broad sump" bikes (like all the tonti models), the oil filter is in the sump and removing the oil pan is necessary to change the filter- there's no other access. Not a bad design necessarily, but it does have it's drawbacks. That's what I was trying to allude to and obviously was not clear. My apologies.

 

Thanks for all the info.

I have another question... if the previous owner chande the oil at 2500 miles, and I wish to change it again this week (@ 4400 miles). Is it a deffinate that I need to have a new sump gasket? I know that common sense would be to replace it, But I don't want to wait until next week when I could have a new gasket ordered and here. Normally... Can you reuse the gasket?

[Havng to re-learn maintainence]

It's not submerged on the V11. On earlier models it was, but nowadays with these-here modern machines, you can access the oil filter directly. On the bottom of the oil pan is a "manhole cover". Remove that (a 22 or 24mm bolt head fits it...same size as the axle nut, I think), and use an appropriate tool to reach up and unscrew the filter. Some people (like me) just advocate removing the pan entirely. That way, you can see if there is any particulates that are just swimming around in the oil.

 

I'm still confussed... you say its not submerged, yet you say oil is on the pan (which you remove the manhole from to access the filter). How can it not then be submerged in oil?

[Havng to re-learn maintainence]

Having always owned Aisian & American bikes I'm having to relearn how to perform bacis upkeep on my new LeMans. Take for example Oil Changes & Fork Compression adjustments...

 

? So the screw-on oil filter is actually submerced in the engine oil? I'm having trouble with that one.

 

also...

 

The owners manual states that the top center adjustment screw on the left for is for compression dampening, and the same screw on the other fork is for rebound dampning! How can that be as the forks aren't connected ?

[North Carolina Roll-Call]

Members east of the mountains are apparently all quiet and reserved while those of us west are rather intense in our road manners. Avatars speak for themselves and , I wonder, if you should have moved further to the dark side. ( No Scura intended.)

 

Look for the 'South'n Spine Raid' next early summer. So far , North Carolinians have avoided the event. Something about outstanding warrants, perhaps?

 

Oh the envy I have for you westerners.... especially your availability to see Rock City (and it's numerious barns & billboard advertisements.)

 

My avatar model is family and I took the photo... but as I'm east of the mountians, it's not my sister... it's my wife! Ha.

[Technical knowledge ???]

All I can "smell" from what you are saying and form so far away is that perhaps your injector throtle bodies-are not synchronised , perhaps would be a nice idea to check it out.

Snchronising the TB\s correctly (not only the vacum ) but as well as the TPS voltage will lead to a perfect running bike. Better TB synchron is with rocker clearences set.

I hope you have not messed this big white head screw under your left TB while you were cleaning the bike , did you? How about your fuel consumption, and what do your spark plugs say? I bet the one is darker than the other. As about being a bit rich in start up I agree with Pete 100% longer rides with stabilized higher engine temps will have your motor running at the fuel mixture that is more

to the "normal standard"

 

No I haven't adjusted the big white headed screw... but it was tempting.

Thanks for the information. My problem is that there are not any knowledgable Guzzi mechanics locally. Nearest dealer is 55 miles.

From what I've learned this week...and since it's cold here now.... it's will be a good practice for me to warm-up the Lemans for several minutes prior to exiting the garage.

 

Oh... what is TPS voltage?

[Technical knowledge ???]

Remember, it's a fuel injected bike. It doesn't have a choke. The mixture is controlled by the ECU which judges if the engine is cold via the engine temperature sensor which is plugged into the back of the right hand head at about 10 o'clock as you look down on it from above. You'll probably find it's a clip in fitting in a sort of plasic *thingy* screwed into the head. When you start the bike up it sends a signal to the ECU saying 'Hey! I'm cold! Gimme some more fuel for the amount of air I'm using.' The ECU obliges by telling the injectors to deliver more fuel and lo and behold, a rich starting mixture.

 

The thing is that the ETS has itself to get hot before it changes the signal to the ECU saying 'Lean me out now please'. Since the head is a substantial chunk of alloy it takes a while to heat up and anyway, Guzzis are so good at dumping heat that even in coldish weather they may run a bit rich due to the ETS still telling the ECU the motor is cold.

 

Moto International, among others probably, will sell you a brass holder for the ETS rather than the spoogy piece of plastic crap the factory uses. I need one for my Griso which has the same POS sensor holder I could make one but why bother when you can buy one. How much are they Greg?

 

The main thing is 3 miles is nowhere near enough for the head to reach true operating temperature, it actually takes about 25 miles for the engine to get up to some sort of thermal equilibrium, so my guess is that the reason it was still smelling rich at the end of your short ride was because it was! The ECU was still delivering more fuel than was strictly neccessary.

 

BTW. The 'Choke' lever on the handle bar is not a choke at all. All it is is a fast idle that opens the throttle a bit. As previously stated all the enrichening is done by small rodents that live in the silver box with fins on

 

Pete

 

Oh the pride that I now feel to be a member of such a knowledgable forum!!!

OK, I understand... but why only smell rich from the right side ?

[Technical knowledge ???]

OK.. here's the deal. After I brought my newly purchased 2002 home this weekend I only had 2 days to feel it out before the work schedule and below freezing temps hit the area. Have been out in the garage each night familurizing myself with the bike, cleaning, ect...

Because it's my 1st Guzzi, and due to my limited experience with them, its sort of hard for me to tell if it's tuned & running at it's best. For instance, tonight I cranked it and it just didn't feel as smooth as it did, or as maybe it should. After I turn it off I notice a fairly strong smell of gas coming only from the right exhaust. So I coated up and took it down the road for a 3 mile run. It seemed to run OK, but I'm not 100% certain its performing to its max. Then upon returning it to the garage and turning it off, I sniffed the exhaust tips again. Right one still smelled of gas, left one did not.

Am I being parinoid? If not, then whats up?

[Fairing ?]

Where can one procure a lower chin fairing such as this one:

http://www.v11lemans.com/gallery/details.php?image_id=453

 

The small lower fairing that mounts under the engine.

[Stucci cross over install]

All this info is great... I'm learning a little more each day. HOWEVER... I have yet to see a clear-cut answer to the question "will removing the canister and plugging or tying together the tubes from the throttle bodys change the engine performance/cranking/ect... ?

Additionally, does it make any performance difference what-so-ever if when removed the tubes to the throttle body's are plugged vs tied together?

[Stucci cross over install]

Others may have done it differently but....

 

I removed the whole setup that ran to the throttle bodies and then simply connected the two throttle body connectors together with a length of vacuum hose. The one that runs up under the tank I left basically in place in case I overfill the tank or something it will drain onto the ground below the bike. I just lashed the hose into place behind the crossover.

 

R

Thanks for the quick reply. Just as I suspected... but wanted to be certain of the tuning air flow issues.

 

You would think that some air is drawn into the throttle bodies thru the stck canister set-up and when its bypassed some intake airflow will be lost (althought very slight). So no retuning is necessary after the removal? Correct?

[Stucci cross over install]

The charcoal canister is there to draw gasoline vapors that would be normally vented to the atmosphere. The vapor is stored in the canister until the engine is running. The vacuum of the engine then will pull the gas vapor out of the canister thus saving the earth. When I remove the canisters, I box them up and store them in the garage for safe keeping. Just incase California starts to do emission checks on motorcycles.

 

Please clarify. My canister has two tubes running upward. One tee's off to each throttle body, the other larger tube run on the frame under the seat and disappears under the tank. Where does it go, and what do I do with this when removed? I plan on connecting the throttle bodies with a venting line to balance them. But an uncertian of this larger line. Help please.

Also.... this removal will in no way alter the performance / running of my bike... right? No adjustment necessary? Please confirm. Thanks...

[Motor Oil question...]

Its 20w50....I like Castrol full synthetic myself. Everyone else will have their own opinion on the brand, but the manual calls for 20w50.

Thanks... I check the oil level tonight and it appears to be a bit low. That's why I was asking... so I could add some tomorrow before I ride again.

[Motor Oil question...]

As the owners manual to my new V11 purchase has yet to arrivevia US Mail ... I was wondering what type & grade of motor oil is recommended in this bike.

The previous owner of this bike (with 4300 miles) stated that the dealer had last serviced it with some sort of fully synthetic oil at 2500 miles, but that was over 1 year ago. I plan on calling the dealer in Florida tomorrow to see what they normally use... In the meantime, what the going favorite or recommended oil folks are using?

 

Thanks...

[North Carolina Roll-Call]

Hi. New member & Guzzi owner here from N.C. Located between Charlotte & Hickory.

[Looking for an Exhaust upgrade....]

Since I have 3 bike to support, and a daughter in college currently... I believe I'll just look into getting the factory pipes (not the cans) refinished with some sort of heat coating. That should be way less exspensive.