al_roethlisberger

Jason, Yep, I saw the photos of your wreck, and was very sorry to see that. I'm sure it was very disappointing. But you never did elaborate on how the accident happened?? At least it appeared that you were unhurt, and considering the type of accident it appeared to be, the bike was relatively unscathed... at least it seemed so from the photos. al

Up under the tank, about 2 inches long, black. I have mine vertically lashed to the front engine mount when I removed my carbon cannister and all the associated vacuum hoses some time back. The tip-over valve orientation has been inconclusively linked to the "vapor lock" issue that often comes up. So I'm hoping that my mounting it more permanently verticle, I can at least remove that variable from the mix. al

Well after posting this question to the MGCL list, the replies seem to support a "little of both" According to the consensus, and I waited until I had about 10 replies, the "choke-thing" is simply a throttle-stop as Janus pointed out. It does nothing to change the fuel-mixture directly, nor affect air-charge, or interact any differently with the TPS or ECU. The throttle is simply held open at the appropriate setting, and the ECU goes through it's "cold start" map until the engine warms up, and then you'll probably notice your RPM jump from about 1.5k to 2-3k. The consensus also seemed that although you could conceivably use it for a "cruise control" this would require modifying the cable "ramp" to advance the throttle enough to achieve highway RPM/speeds(which Janus also pointed out), or be content with 2-4k RPM under the best circumstances(Stock, mine only goes to about 2.5k when warm on the "choke"). Some respondents did say that they occasionally use the "choke" as a temporary "cruise control" on their bikes for short runs, and it is usually in that 4k RPM max range. But most recommended or commented that for regular use, one might want to consider something like the Throttlemeister. ...which BTW, still amazes me regarding the vibe damping! Again, thanks for the suggestion Janus. I just wanted to clarify any risks before this became a recommendation, as I had my doubts. ...which are now assuaged al

BTW, a link to some photos of the Throttlemeister installed on my LeMans: Al's Yahoo Briefcase with photos of the Throttemeister installed.... UPDATE: Just took my longest ride today at freeway speeds, and these things are *fantastic* damping the vibes! I literally couldn't hardly feel any vibrations at any RPM, except just enough to know the engine was running. It was far less vibration than on my old '89 FJ1200 by comparison, and no comparison to the OEM bar-ends. I tell ya, just for the vibration damping alone, these guys are a serious "thumbs up"... and oh yeah, then there's the "cruise control" al

...I had thought about this as well, but a quick inspection shows a link between both throttle-bodies. I believe they both open equally.... the linkages at least both move in unison. al

OK... OK ......enrichment, choke... semantics to some degree. I did not definitively say that the "choke-enricher-throttle-stop-thingee" *is* a choke/enricher. However, I did say that someone should probably put some time into making *certain* that it is or is not before using it as a throttle-lock/cruise-control. Better safe than sorry, and I am not currently convinced. Keep in mind that part of a choke/enrichment "circuit" ala-cabueration is to change or "choke" the air-charge as well. So even though we don't have carbs, it is "possible" that the "enricher-thingee" may be opening the butterfly in the throttle-body at a different rate than the actual throttle for a given throttle position, but not sending standard info to the TPS to change the fuel-injection. And since this is an open EFI with no feedback via an O2 sensor, the EFI wouldn't know any difference.... and not vary/change the injection for that given throttle position. Now, this is all speculation on my part... and please keep this in mind. I don't mean to create any disagreement. However, again, I simply state "better safe than sorry" as running your engine at speed either in a too lean or rich environment will be at least detrimental to your efficiency, and at worst damage your engine. If this is simply a throttle-stop, it does seem odd that the linkage, etc, is completely separate from the throttle system. It makes one wonder, which I do. So, it probably makes little sense to continue to dispute this via text. I'll look at mine a bit, and perhaps someone else in the know can comment. As I mentioned, good suggestion Janus, but for those interested in investigating this solution... you may want to double-check the function of the "choke" just in case, as I am not sure. When I have the time and opportunity, I will try to look into it more as well al

...sorry to hear that John On a lighter note, it's so hot here right now, when we came out of the movie this afternoon(Bourne Ident = good BTW)... a Diet Pepsi can exploded in the car with us while we were wrestling over it! Big mess, but man-o-man we laughed all the way back! al

Janus, In theory this certainly could hold the throttle open enough to work as you describe. But to address your two points, and my concerns: - Given that this is designed to be a cold-start enricher, I personally don't want to modify it too extensively to do something it wasn't designed to do. I especially would be concerned of my "ham fisting" this newly modified enricher to drive my engine to over 3k+ RPM during warm-up because I've enlarged the pulley. Perhaps this would be a minor issue, especially if care was taken to only partially engage the enricher. But I can see where I'd have to now very carefully fine-adjust it to get it into the correct RPM range for warm-up, or as a "cruise control". Keep in mind that good "throttle-locks" just barely hold the throttle right where you leave them. If one were to use this method, you'd have to completely ignore the throttle and use the enricher to get to the correct RPM, and/or try to match RPM. This could be difficult, and seems harder than just using something like the Throttlemeister or Vista-Cruise type solutions. Again, perhaps no big deal, but just a concern. - Another issue *may be* running the bike too rich/lean by relying on the enricher function instead of the primary throttle. I haven't looked into the throttle body/linkage to verify this. But before going this route, I would suggest doing some homework on how the enricher may or may not open the butterfly differently than the primary throttle. If it is different enough, you will see significant performance, mileage, and potential reliability(i.e. if is consistently run more rich("choked") than the standard throttle). Dunno, but something to research. If this concern is founded, and one ran for many hours/miles with this method, you could see unsatisfactory results over time. - I'm not sure that one could safely modify the enricher's range(without sacrificing fine control) to be able to set it at a high enough RPM/speed. 100kph(~62mph) would not be sufficient for me. Where this would be most beneficial for me would be around 60-90mph(~100-130kph), where I am cruising on a loooong boring freeway. As clarification, when using a throttle-lock/cruise-control, I don't take my hands off of the bar, except maybe to "shake out" numbness/tingles here and there for a minute. This offers the benefit of letting my throttle-hand relax and not have to "hold" the throttle. That makes a big difference in fatigue. So, bottom line 100kph would not be sufficient for me, although it may be for others. - I would also have some concerns about basic safety if using the enricher versus a "throttle-lock". If in an urgent situation, and you have to react quickly.... your muscle-memory is going to send your right hand to the throttle in a panic, not to the "choke" Anyway, I think this is certainly an interesting idea... and offers some potential. But just some things to think about. Maybe someone can do some testing/investigation, especially into the issues around the differences between the regular throttle aparatus. Depending on one's needs and the results of further investigation, this may be a good inexpensive alternative. Anyway... a little pricey true, but I shooooor do like my new Throttlemeisters al

...yep, that won't help me tool along at 70mph Thanks Janus, good idea, but I don't think it will work in practice. al

OK, well I installed the Throttlemeister "heavy" bar-ends today, and all seems well The units fit without any trouble, although they did seem tight at first fit. Although I was expecting "screw-in" ends that would take advantage of the threading inside the bar, the Throttlemeister kits for Aprilia's use a friction/O-ring and support bar/insert solution that works very well. After working it into the bar, and it's a very tight and well-machined fit, it doesn't budge. Very nice workmanship. Also, even though I had to work around my heated-grips, the installation of the friction ring was simple enough, and with standard or aftermarket grips, this also should be no problem. The real test will be during the first ride, and that will be tomorrow. But as far as I can tell, this was a 30 minute job even if you are really taking your time... and delivers great results. Oh, and BTW, I'm glad I opted for the "heavy" units. Yes, they are larger, but they look right at home on the bike, and I hope that the extra couple ounces of weight will benefit damping the vibrations. The brushed SS and red highlight stripe look like these should have come from the factory. ...and another thing. The insert for the Throttlemeister is about 1/2 as long as the stock "rod" attached to the OEM bar-ends, but the Throttlemeisters are quite a bit heavier... quite a bit. So, at the worst, they surely must damp the vibes as well, and ought to do better. I'll report later, but I have good expectations. So far, a "thumbs-up"! I'll call Throttlemeister and my dealer tomorrow to let them know that the Aprilia kit for Futuras and Falcos works fine on the V11 LeMans bars... at least as far as installation. Testing on the "cruise control" portion of the equation in the garage so far has been positive, but we'll see how well it works later in practice. al

..sounds like a similar gasket story as mine I was fairly fortunate enough that my dealer had the gasket in-stock, and took care of it in one day for me. ....even came to my house with a trailer to pick it up But yes, very disappointing... and potentially dangerous. I'll keep an eye out for the photos when you get a chance. Thanks again! al

....I use loc-tite on everything, even back when I had my FJ. I just pick and choose which "flavor". Medium blue works well for me so far, just enough grab to keep fasteners from walking away, but not too sticky to keep me from extracting them I just reassembled my fairing the other day, and applied just a tad of loc-tite to every acorn-nut... but of course not the nylon lock-nuts! With all this shakin' going on, you just can't be careful. I've lost too many bolts in the middle of nowhere ..and if loc-tite is nowhere to be found, clear nailpolish is a great stop-gap. Just use it judiciously! al

...wow, anything else? Yep, sorry to hear that so far you seem to have had *all* the various issues we've seen, but on one bike. So hey, no "vapor-lock" yet? But regarding the oil-light, I think everyone else's answers are spot-on. I've had mine come on very briefly on one particularly aggressive acceleration/deceleration, but never again or since. I can only assume it's due to the abrupt change in oil-pressure. BTW, AFAIK, the oil sensor is for pressure, not volume in the sump. Someone can correct me on that if incorrect. As long as this isn't a regular problem, I wouldn't let it bother you. Especially during break-in, you should consume some oil, and certainly more oil than later once the rings are bedded. Also, not that it's any better, I bought the temperature-dipstick at MG Cycle: ...about halfway down the page. It's not really any better as far as legibility, but I think it's useful and more durable and aesthetically pleasing than the plastic unit. I marked min/max lines on the stainless shaft with permanent marker. Seems to have held up so far al

...darn, I was going to say "hey, it's probably that black flat piece behind the gauges" ...seriously. That's where mine was when I found my one squeak. The right fairing(sitting on the bike) was installed incorrectly under the subframe, and in combination, this somehow made that panel behind the guages squeak. But I've pretty much had my fairing complete off, and checked all my nuts/bolts for thread-lock and over-tightening after the factory cracked my fairing by being ham-fisted with the wrench Sorry to say, but it could be anywhere. I'd check the headlight as it does move, and perhaps the rubber gasket isn't seated well against the fairing?? You'll probably just have to get a friend to bounce the bike and get down there with your ear ....every bike is different. It took me about a month to track down one particularly annoying rattle on my FJ, right at, and only at... 4k RPM. al

...maybe, but my conversations with Will Creedon on the Guzzi Forum seem to be less encouraging. He's done some mathematics, and based on other experience he's had in aeronautics, he's not convinced it would make much difference... except maybe in the cool-air area. For more info, check out the thread at: http://guzzi.com.au/forum/guzzi/ I'm still keeping it "turning" in the back of my mind, but it's on the back-burner for now. And since I plan to keep my oil-cooler, I can't take advantage of the scenario you describe... but for those that install the deep oil-sump, it may be a different story. al

......unacceptable.... purely. Almost without exception, just about every owner of a new LeMans(and other V11 varieties) on this list has had some significant issue like this.... bolts falling out(big ones, like engine mounts!), gasket failures(mine, timing cover... big mess, could have caused a wreck), other oil-system failures(Jaap, leaking fittings), yours... and the thread I just responded to regarding "shadowing".... come on MG... do you read these lists? I love my bike, but if this keeps up, we should start a petition via this forum detailing all of these issues and forward it to multiple executives at MG and Aprilia to let them know how disatisfied we are with the Quality Control/Assurance at the factory. It's not that we don't like the bikes, or their potential... but for the price we've paid, and the relative low-tech of the machinery, it's a shame that we can't be confident that they bikes can carry us several thousand reasonable miles without a major and potentially dangerous failure. Guzzi needs to get this under control before there is serious deterioration in customer confidence, and Aprilia's investment is a losing proposition. ...most disappointing. I'm really sorry to hear this Hank. al

...........ahhh, "shadowing".... yessss, "shadowing"..... Now see, that upsets me. My timing-cover "shadowed" for a couple weeks before "exploding" in a torrent of oil I do NOT consider it normal or acceptable for any of the bolts to be "finger loose/tight" and oil to weep. The engine design may be old, but technology, especially gasket and oil technology ,have come a long way over the last decades. Come on Guzzi, do you think we are idiots?? MG needs to get their act together here, and hopefully Aprilia can help in that regard. First let's get the parts situation, at least here in the USA, sorted out... then get to reliability and serviceability issues like this. It's not rocket science to keep oil in a relatively low-tech engine like this one. geez..... al ....whose LeMans "shadows" in the aforementioned places as well

...no, this isn't normal. Did this just start? My LeMans has "missed" 4 or 5 times since I've owned it, but it was a quick lone-event... and I've never had a prolonged stumble or pinging. I also use "premium" fuel. I don't know the solution, but I'd have your map checked as well as the stadard tune-up stuff. If your shop can't find anything, try someone else. Also, we saw that one fella apparently had a bad computer that was making diagnosing his similar problems very difficult. You could check into that as well. BTW, I actually got 36 1/2MPG the other day.. whoo hoo.. ah hem al

Two topics: First, an interesting twist on the rear-brake noise this weekend.... while riding down to Hollister, I heard the infamous rear-brake "groan" while actually travelling *forward*! ... at a very slow crawling-in-traffic pace. At first I thought it was coming from the front rotors, and it was cyclic... so I thought "did I warp them?". Then I recognized the "groan", tapped the rear brake... and it was gone So I guess it's just an issue of "setting the pads" once they get cock-eyed. I had just used the brakes heavily a few moments before, so who knows.... it never happened again, and didn't affect braking. Just an odd noise. Second, you didn't miss much at the "Rally". It wasn't much of a "Rally"... what is one anyway these days except somewhere to buy stuff it seems?? There were a TON of Harley's of course, must have been several hundred on Friday, and I think we counted 8 non-Harley bikes But most were pretty cookie-cutter, and the real stand-outs were full-on customs that I wouldn't even call Harley's anyway... but very nice work none-the-less. I tell ya though, I never saw soooo many people wearing skimpy leather and bikinis ... that.... well..... shouldn't. ...yuck. ...very loud bunch too. I don't know how they ride those bikes with pipes that loud. Anyway, we walked around for a couple hours, saw all the stereotypical product booths such as obligatory leather thongs and claw-kick-stands... then headed out to ride across to the coast, and back over Highway 9. BTW, saw two bikes, a late 90's R1 and some bigger Ninja, being hauled up the mountain-side by wreckers. Totalled.... but I got the impression that no one was seriously hurt, just the bikes going down the hill. al

On a technical note, I've heard various pseudo-science over the years about how it's bad on the electronics, etc... to shut the engine down one way versus the other. I've never bought into any of these wives-tales, but perhaps there's a kernal of truth loosely based on some old bike waaaay bike that had some peculiarity?? Who knows... If anyone knows where this myth came from, I'd love to hear it's history al

Neat I'm sure that Fernando and John will be really interested to see how that kit looks and is priced then. We'll keep an eye out! Keep us posted. al

....ah, so you were up at Alices today eh? I was up there at about 8:30pm last Sunday night... but haven't been there yet with the LeMans when there was any crowd to speak of. I was the only bike, except for an old K75 or something. Today we just hung around the house, and then we climbed up on the roof to watch the fireworks here in San Jose. Since I basically live downtown, it's a good show Tomorrow should be a good ride to Hollister though. Should be interesting. Regarding that "other pinky"... and general long-distance comfort, check these out: http://www.ldcomfort.com/ I bought a pair of the regular cotton and special "dryline" ones to give them both a try. They are both extremely comfortable, and either seems good enough for me in regard to dryness, etc. They are certainly better than standard undergarments. My butt used to go numb in places on my long 10+ hour days, but these seem much better without as many seams, etc. Anyway just something to check out. ...and yep, I'll let you know how the Throttlemeisters turn out. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they'll fit. I ordered the "heavy" units, so that is going to be the best "vibe-cancellation" that I can get with them. So we'll see how well that works out too. I'll keep you posted! al

....ah hem, I think the Dutch term for "pinky" is a bit different than the American one al

... bicycle shorts on his *pinky*?! I would recommend gel-gloves perhaps al

...there may be some LeMans manuals around, I dunno.... but I only received a V11 Sport manual back in May when I got mine. al