moto pierre

Harper's Moto Guzzi in Missouri lists replacement V-11 shift and brake levers. Machined from bilet and stonger looking than the factory parts. Moto Pierre Thanks everyone! Man, you guys's help really make a guy feel better about a bad situation. Mine did break right in the middle of the whole thing. (it was cracked from where I was hit from behind, at a stop light.....by my wife, who was suppose to be following me and watching out for me, because my brakelight was out) Personally..i think its the insurance shes after. jk Thanks again everyone!

I have the same problem with my Teo Lammers centerstand--nothing to grab to help lift the heavy rear end on to the stand. The design of the V-11 precludes mounting the centerstand where it needs to be at the balance point near the center of the wheelbase. I fastened a piece of nylon web on the left passenger peg bracket which I can grab when trying to get the bike on the stand. I welded a footpad on to the stand to help put my (meager) weight on it to help it roll under the bike. But on a level surface it takes three pre-heaves and a hernia-inducing heft to get it up. Useful in an emergency for tire repair on the road, but for general use, not much help. PS I weigh 122 lb in my workout clothes. I may try to put curved feet on the Lammers stand to help it roll under the bike. Also, the return spring on the Lammers stand is a very poor fit, interfering with the frame and exhaust collector. All in all, a very poorly thought-out design. My V-7 Sport stand has curved feet and it is very easy to get on to the stand. But, it was designed with a centerstand so the stand is properly positioned on the frame. Moto Pierre Hi the Becker stand although quite clever does not look like it has any leverage points to help you get it onto the stand. I have fitted a centre stand to my V11, but before I fitted Hepco and Becker luggage to it and gained a few rails as grab points, it was nearly impossible to use. There are no really solid grab points von the rear of a V11, they are all shrouded by brittle plastic. It is very difficult to use now as the balance points which are in the same pivot area as the Becker stand are too far back so you are effectively trying to lift 100 kilos onto the stand. The Guzzi stand is better as it comes with a long lever which makes flicking it onto the stand far easier, definitely a one man job. Last time I bought one was in 2001 and it was £60. If you know a friendly welder it would be easy to reproduce.I'm not sure you could buy one now that the bike has been out of production for 4+ years. It comes with a bar to but under the front of the sump to put the front wheel up too. Good luck Guzz

I guess I wasn't clear enough. The regulator is not in the circuit. You are the regulator by folding the tube the is attaced to the regulator input thereby restricting return flow to the test tank and/or line to the fuel pump. For more precise control of back pressure, use a clamp on the return line. Motopierre

I checked out those Koso gauges. VERY NICE, but have you seen the price...! I think I now have the Vapor working ok. Just ran the bike with the tank off after re-mounting the temp sensor again and using a new tach sensor line from Trailtech with a built-in resistor. Seems to bounce a lot less and the temp was not so high as to over-range, but haven't tried it on the road.. too cold here. See my latest post for how to run the bike with the tank off. Motopierre

I looked at Harper's site and the only stand I see is one for a Breva. This doesn't seem likely to fit a V11 as the Breva frame is about the same as the old small block V-50 frame. If they say it will work, I defer to them, but... I have a Teo Lammers stand on my 2000 V11 Sport. It was fairly easy to install, but took some "adjustment" to make it fit. I don't recall if it came with any instructions but I'll look around. I may also have some pics. I think there was as forum string on it that I looked at when I installed mine. The big problem is that the stand is mounted WAY to far rearwards so it takes all my weight and strength to get the bike up on the stand. I therefore mostly only use it in the shop. I only weigh 125, so if you are bigger this may not be such a problem. Good luck.... Motopierrre

We sometimes need to work on our bikes with the tank removed. With gravity feed to carbs this is easy, but harder with fuel injection which must recirculate fuel through a back pressure regulator to maintain pressure at the injectors. Here’s my solution: Drill a hole near the bottom of a small metal can and solder in a half inch brass hose barb fitting. I used a gallon Coleman fuel can because the weight and size make it balance better and the handy bale makes it easy to hang above the bike; but a smaller can would work fine. Connect this fitting with vinyl tube to a half inch barb T and run two tubes to a half inch nylon double barb and a half inch-quarter inch double barb. These connect to the fuel pump inlet and the regulator inlet hoses respectively. Suspend the tank and let the lines fill, then restrict the regulator side with a clamp or simply hold the tube folded as shown in the pics. The engine will start, run, and rev normally and you can see the return flow bubble past your restrictor. Tighten all hose clamps, especially on the regulator side as pressure is considerable and a blown fitting will shoot a nice geyser of gas around your shop (big fun). I wired the barbs for the same reason. This rig is a big help for jobs that would be impossible with the tank in place, and it is dirt cheap. Winter fun…. Motopierre

Here are some pics of my vapor installation. Hope they upload OK. December Cycle World review of new Hyde Harrier (Hinkley Bonneville in replica Rob North frame, tasty !)shows Hyde using the Vapor for instruments, so perhaps I was hasty. Finally got under the tank and re-routed wires. Tach pickup closer to coil with less than .75 in. in contact with plug wire seems to be much steadier. Need to ride it for final assessment. Temp pickup is ID 14 mm to fit around spark plug. No way to fit it on the valve cover. I'll know soon if my bodge on the bottom fin works or not. While I was in there I covered the fuel pump with .75 in. synthetic foam rubber insulation topped with aluminum foil tape. Hope that ends the dread vapor lock that has occurred just often enough to be a real pain. Thanks for everyone's replies.

I have installed the Trailtech Vapor on my 2000 V-11 Sport because the speedo was grossly inaccurate and the tach never worked. Pics to follow. This is a different unit from the one pictured that has tach function too. Some comments: Speedo is correct if you measure and enter the correct wheel diameter. Tidy installation of speedo sensor on fork leg is difficult. It will work but looks ugly and added-on. Tach signal is jumpy, an approximation at best. I got some feedback from Trailtech, but have not yet found the right solution to eliminate the tach jumping at least 1000 rpm around the true reading. They are really responsive to customer questions, but the inductive pickup seems to be hyper sensitive. Naturally this imprecision makes the shift light function totally useless. Wiring is straightforward if you know your wiring harness, but the supplied wires are really thin. I made a dedicated ground on one valve cover screw to be sure everything worked. The supplied indicator light holders will take the stock Guzzi lights if you wrap them with one or two layers of electric tape. I needed 2 extra lights to use all six Guzzi indicators, but I fitted them into the bracket I made. The engine temp sensor is designed for water cooled bikes and over-ranges at 400 F, so it is useless on an air-cooled bike when the sending unit is mounted under the plug as Trailtech suggests. I wired mine to a spot on the lowest fin of the left cylinder. It might work there but will not provide very useful information. The Trailtech unit is smaller than it looks on their web site, but the display is bright and easy to read, so the size is not a problem. In summary, The Vapor Trailtech is a good try, but not sufficiently well-developed to make a good substitute for the crappy stock Guzzi instruments. There is a German company that makes really nice looking alternative isntruments with the same functions, but they are very very expensive. I'll try to relocate their site for my next post with pictures of the Vapor

When I first tried running my 2000 V11 engine with the tank off I quickly found that the aux tank I made would not work because it did not provide any back pressure the way the in-tank regulator does. What I did was crude, but it worked. I simply squeezed the return line enough so the engine would run above idle, but of course I then didn't have my hands free. Eventually I will make some kind of adjustable flow restrictor. I just made the tank by soldering a brass fitting into the side, near the botton of an old Coleman fuel can. Then I used nylon T connectors to take one clear vinyl line to the fuel line on the bike and another to the line to the regulator. If all the connections are wired or hose clamped they won't pop off with back pressure. Just compress the return line from the regulator with a small C-clamp or similar device. Could luck.

Yes, It's the same problem. I ran the bike yesterday and the "new" tach didn't work either. I have continuity from the ECU plug to he instrument in the signal wire (yellow/black). The black ground wire is truly and thoroughly grounded. Oddly, with the key off the tach power wire (red/black) shows continuity to ground, but with the key on it shows 12 volts and there is no short to ground. I assume a relay opens when the key goes on, but I can't figure out which it is. Does anyone have a chart showing which of the 5 relays on my bike (2000 V11) is which. I remember seeing one, but can't find it. Gene I'll call you as you offered to talk about this mystery.

Well I guess I'll try it since I own it now. The connector is different but I can work around that. Also no case ground as the entire shell is plastic. Just the dinky black ground wire in the harness. Fuel warning light has miraculously returned I did get colored idiot lights covers which were missing on my salvage V-11, but the later version has 2 turn indicators (R & L) and no gen light, so now a left turn indicates no alternator output. Very Italian, n'est pas? I'll report on the tach when It's hooked up

Think twice... I installed the Teo Lammers center stand and it it very hard to use. It takes all my weight and two or three rocks back and forth before the bike will come up. It's useful when I need it, but musch too hard to use regularly. Lots of weight for not much gain. Motopierre

Will the tach from a Balabio work on mo 2000 V-11? Why has my fuel level light stopped working? The bulb is good and wiring is complete from sensor to dash? Has anyone installed the Vapor speedo/tach instrument cluster

WANTED Small Block Guzzi any condition. I need a V-50 or other small block for Diesel conversion. Need bike and flywheel, clutch & transmission, engine is optional. Any condition but prefer a bike that is mostly complete. Rat bikes and junkers preferred if they're cheap. Email Moto Pierre at pyronwode@mchsi.com

I am looking for a small block Guzzi V 50, V65, V 35, I don't care. I need everything but the engine, but a complete bike would be better. This is for a project to build a Diesel powered Guzzi. Reply here or e-mail directly to pyronwode@mchsi.com Thanks

Or just take the stupid sidestand switch and pitch it. My salvage 2000 came with the sidestand switch crashed off. Connecting the two leads under that tank eliminated the need for it. I think I've been riding long enough to remember to raise the stand. I might do the same with the neutral "safety switch" too some day. Moto Pierre (alias Crusty)

Trying to get my damned tach to work, and other tuning work means running the engine with the tank off. On other bikes (with carbs) my shop tank, a Coleman fuel can with a barb fitting soldered into the side, works fine, but on the Guzzi (and other fuel injected bikes I suspect) there has to be back pressure in the fuel line for the injectors to work, hence the regulator on the right side of the tank. I put a T fitting in the fuel line from my Coleman can, and connected another line from the T to the tube that feeds the regulator from the right side injector. Pinching this second line allowed the engine to run, but occupied one hand and made me nervous about spraying gas all over the garage. I suppose an adjustable clamp would serve as a "regulator" but haven't tried it yet. Does anyone have a better idea for a tune-up tank that would work on the injected Guzzi motors? Moto Pierre

Well I'm certainly not up to Carl Allison's speed. I use his wiring diagram all the time, and I do trust PA Speedo completely, but... I have added a new ground wire from the ground post on the tach and one mounting stud to a timing cover case screw, and also experimented with a temporary ground from the tach case itself. I also checked the signal wire for continuity and, after cleaning the connector under the tank (why is it there anyhow?) the wire is good from the ECU to the connector at the tach. With the enigne running I get voltage from the signal wire (I forget the reading on my digital meter, but am checking it again next time I start the motor) The other wire (tach power??) also has voltage when the ignition is on. At the advice of Ace Mallot, a Missouri Guzzi guru, I tapped the signal wire with a temporary hot lead, and the needle jumped, showing that the tach mechanism itself is probaly working, and the grounds are good. I don't think this momentary pulse would have killed the tach, but it wasn't working anyway. Finally, just the other day, a mechanic at Ace's shop (Jackson Cycles in St Joseph MO) suggested that I might have a bad relay. He said he had tach problems on a 2000 which he cured with a relay swap. But all the other electrics work, except the headlight flasher (not the dimmer switch). So I will try to get an extra relay or two and attempt yet another diagnosis. I've web searched till my eyes were sore and found nothing that looked like the 80mm "Vaguelia" on my 2000, although there was a Ducati tach on E bay that I almost bought on spec. Most aftermarket units are too big, and virtually all only read to 8K (which would be OK, but not great) . I was also informed by the same wrench at Ace's that Guzzi's are "single fire" and most aftermarket tachs are "double fire" whatever that means. Some aftermarket units claim to be switchable to either mode, but I don't understand the difference. So, I think you can see my frustration is based on at least some viable data. Any more ideas??? Je suis tres malheureux. Moto Pierre

I have given up on my 2000 V-11 sport tach. Nothing has made it work although Palo Alto Speedo checked it and said it was OK. Has anyone found an aftermarket or replacement tach that will work and fit the 80mm hole in the instrument panel. It doesn't have to match, but it has to work. Any ideas....?

I took another look at the FJR 1300 on Pyramid's site and its fender appears to have a sharp crease along its entire arc where the Guzzi fender is a smooth curve in both planes. I e-mailed Rev's Performance in Atlanta that shows most of the Pyramid line on their site, asking them what might be the best fit for the Guzzi. I'll pass along their reply. Moto Pierre T

I just looked at the Pyramid Plastics web site, and the FJR 1300 fenda extenda looks like it might be a better fit for the V-11 Moto Pierre