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Hello All, [UPDATE: SOLD IT TO SOMEONE WHO WILL LOVE AND CHERISH IT. CIAO!] I must sell a gorgeous Lemans V11. Why, you ask... I recently purchased this beautiful bike from an older gentleman in Southern California, who worked as a career mechanic at BMW Motorrad and was downsizing his personal collection. He was the third owner, and had bought the bike from an older customer of Brown Motorsports, where he performed the maintenance. He then sold it to me this winter, (and there's even some discussion about this exact bike eslewere in this forum). The bike is truly in great shape, runs great, and was recently DYNO'ed by Mickey Cohen Motorsports in OC, where Mickey created a custom MAP for the Powercommander III unit. Mickey had sold and serviced these exact bikes in SoCal when they were sold new, and he was impressed by how clean this one was. After taking the bike on several long rides, it became appearant that my injured right hip couldn't tolderate the riding position. I then purchased and installed the footpeg lowering module. While that has helped a bit, its still not doable for me, and I'd rather this stunning bike go to someone who will love the sh*t out of it and ride it often. I have another bike that is much easier on my effed-up hip, and have to let the Guzzi go. So, and as honestly as possible... There are about ~28,000 miles on the bike, but the mileage counter recently went out (appearantly), though the tach and speedo's still work. The tank has some minor bubbling on the top -- annoying, but not noticeable unless you're looking right at it. The bike starts first try, runs well, and after getting DYNO'ed, runs really smooth (and effing strong) through the powerband. The gentleman I bought it from gave me an additional (new) seat, a ton of extra gaskets, the original airboxes, and a grip of service records, etc. He installed a GUZZITECH exhaust and K&N Pods. The tires aren't new but have plenty of life. I have the pink and just paid registration. The bike comes with all the parts and spare seat. Again, the bike is really clean and just serviced by MCM, and this is smoking deal for someone with good taste, an appetite for raw power, and a normal hip. Because of the 200kb compression size, the pictures look pretty grainy, but I assure you bike is pretty damn clean for being 20 years old. $5500 firm. Cheers, and sobs. ninefourninefouronetwofivefiveonefour.

Well, I tightened down the crank nut, cam nut, and oil pump nut. I used orange loctite on the crank nut and cam nut, and tightened them down to torque, or slightly over. I am a little heavy sometimes on torque. I used red loctite on the oil pump nut, and tightened it down to 16 ft/lbs (22 nm). That seems barely tight after the other two. Sometimes I get overly paranoid about things coming loose inside an engine, way back when I was young I wrecked a motor by not properly tightening the bolts that hold the cam to the cam sprocket. On the test ride I wondered what that ticking was. It stopped ticking before I made it back. I have spun the motor over by hand a few times and nothing seemed to hit anything else. So that is good.

Born in California Has won a few Superbike titles as well as Daytona 200

I started out with BMW motorcycles and was already comfortable with the "lateral torque twist". What really sold me on the V11 was the visceral feedback without any crazy sport bike skittishness.

What a great thread!! It is so important to recognize the visceral nature and emotional impact of the bikes. I was immediately attracted to the V7 Sport, but did not own a Guzzi until 1977, when I purchased a T-3. I rode that for a year and then traded it on a 1978 Lemans 850. That may have been the best motorcycle I have ever ridden, but sadly I crashed in 1979 and then took a wrong turn toward BMW ownership. 5 bikes and 20 years later I returned to my true love when I purchased a V11 Sport in 2000. I put 60,000 blissful miles on that bike until a women yacking on her cell phone ran a stop sign and totaled her out. I spent the next 10 years searching for a replacement and luckily last year I found her in Missouri. I am once again experiencing motorcycle bliss and I intend to ride this incredible machine into the sunset!!

It's the flip side of the flag...93!

Outstanding, Art! Thanks for the thorough update. Definitely looks like you have found your charging issue. When I bought my last stator from ElectroSport, I found they have markedly improved the heat shielding and strain relief of this known vulnerability of the Ducati Energia stator we use.

P6, not E6

Hi, Well, I guess I wont be checking stator voltage after seeing this. I'm not gonna try splice this mess out. When I replaced the pin connectors a few years ago I noticed that the insulation had become so hot at some point in time that the insulation melted into the wire strands so I don't suspect it is any better now (lol). FWIW, I didn't have any problem getting the exhaust header & cross-over off but the stator cover was a different matter. The cover was fastened with SS screws, the sidestand side were loose and came out easy, the other side was just the opposite...those screws were a b$#ch to get out (some evidence of electrolysis) but I was able to get a tap in there and clean out the threads afterward. IMHO, the ordeal up to this point could have been a whole lot worse. Now I have figure out whose $350-$400 reg/rec & stator to buy. On another note, while I have the stator cover off I might try to do something with it...the battleship gray paint on it is bubbled & crappy lookin'. Hey Docc, thanks for posting the "Posting images using Gallery", this is my first image posting here...I used your instructions. Ok, that's all I have to report. Thanks for reading & advising! Art

Vamos Marquez!

I am watching FP3 live, and Marc Marquez avoided another possible high side in turn 2 by the skin of the teeth....

I could not watch the FP2 live, and the RTBF has not yet posted the replay. Most likely because they want home before the end of the session. Excepted for the KTMs, all the bikes seem to be competitive.

And it isn't always because they are cheap bastards......

Shindengen SH 847 is the one I have installed. I mounted it underneath battery tray, as far back as possible, then no problem clearing the shock. Only around 15k miles, but very happy with the performance. Good luck. Cheers Tom. Good luck

Forget the aluminium it'll be a loose sloppy mess in a few thousand klms. It's also needs to have a relatively high natural friction in the threads so it has an inbuilt stays where it's been adjusted to anti vibration design. Plastic is perfect for this and as I mentioned on another board Delrin would seem to be a good choice. I'd be interested in one or 2 myself in plastic but not aluminium. There's a reason the oem is plastic. Ciao

Ohlins cruise control? Sounds a little scary...

Thanks for the suspension tips, I need reminding of taking care of some of the basics. I have to agree with your impressions of climbing a mountain with a guzzi at full boil. The first time I really experienced it, was a few years ago early in the spring on my CalVin. The snow had been melted around my house for quite a while and for the first time ever in my life, I started riding up the Opeongo Rd at Dacre,with no snow on the ground. The Opeongo Rd winds it's way up the mountain, cutting through deep isolated bush to the highest civilized point in Ontario at Foymount. The pipes echoing off the wilderness were nirvana, but I went into full panic mode 2/3s of the way up, when I couldn't hear the pipes or the glorious mechanical cacophony any longer, the bike sounded like it was dying, I thought I had a major mechanical failure, screwed, stuck deep in the wilderness; took me a long while to realize my ears had popped from the change in altitude & air pressure,lol. At the top of the mountain, the snowbanks in the shade were still at least 6-7 ft tall, the drops in temp had to be 15-20 degrees. That climb up the Opeongo Rd, with my thundering guzzis at full throttle, even with the poor, chip tar seal road surface is probably my favorite road to ride. I've ridden down the mountain a few times, but you're right, it's just not the same as the climb.

Mr. Scudder sez: +1 to all 3.

Great photo. Suspension - don't worry about playing with compression and rebound until you do the most important suspension setting - getting the springs right. You can check sag with the help of a friend. There are a few posts on this site about how to do it. You can get the sag right for you and the bike by adjusting the spring pre-load. (if you can't get sag in range with current springs, you would need different rate springs). The first time I did that on my Scura I swore it was a totally different suspension, or the roads had just been re-paved overnight. After that, play with the compression and rebound if you want to fine-tune. The small effort to learn about suspension settings will pay you back every single mile you ride. Mountains - I was once on a battlefield tour at Gettysburg (which is in the Southern part of Central Pennsylvania) with a group who were all from the Western US (mostly Washington and California). The guide explains how the Confederate army came in from the mountains. We all start looking around in different directions, and finally somebody asks "where are the mountains?" The guide points at some rolling hills... we weren't trying to be snarky, just had a different idea about the definition of mountain... like the base elevation of mountain is higher than the highest point in the whole state of PA. ...and why a Moto Guzzi? nothing beats the feel of the Guzzi engine under full load climbing a mountain. For example, this is a mountain. Feels like summer at the base, but winter at the summit. Highest point in Pennsylvania = 3,200 Feet Lowest point in Great Basin National Park (Nevada) > 6,000 feet Mountain Peaks in background > 13,000 feet.

In honor of St. Patrick's Day, I took out the Green Goose today! Rode into Amish country, avoiding horse puckey on the road, took a mountain (well, what passes for a mountain in central PA) pass (lots of gravel and salt -- I almost walked around the 10mph hairpin switchbacks), and got back into town following a magnificent sunset. Stupidly, I didn't think to get a pic until too late, but I snapped this image after before it was lost completely: Look at that!!! Where is the "jaw on the floor" emoji? What a beautiful piece of machine art. You can walk around these V11 for hours trying to find the best angle to look at them from. And riding it is just as special. I can't make claim to being a great rider, I don't have any idea how to dial-in suspension settings, and I've haven't ridden scores of bikes for comparison purposes. What I do know is that the grin on the face sets in just after rolling out of the driveway. Literally. One moment it's a hooligan; another (around the ton) it's stirring milk tea. Pretty great combination, that. Cheers, Frey

I bought my V11 LM Rosso Corsa in spring 2003 as I was getting bored with my then motorcycle (a too perfect BMW K1200RS) and wanted something totally different. When I saw the Rosso Corsa, I immediately fell in love with its (or should I say "her"?) looks. During the following months, I test rode a number of very diffferent bikes (BMW R1100S and R; Aprilia Falco and Futura; etc). When I rode the V11, however, she immediately gave me a big smile, which lasted the entire day until I had to hand her back to the dealer and return home withe the BMW. The V11 is a truly living machine with its imperfections (aka "character") that makes every ride an emotional experience. Also, on my Guzzi, I have the impression to go fast even when I am only doing 80 Km/Hr, which is a key advantage in Belgian traffic conditions marked by speed cameras and increasingly repressive controls. Still, when midlife crisis hit, I added a Tuono V4 1100 RF to the stable, as my Nordschleife toy. Even with such tough competition, the V11 is still my favorite.

Okay FreyZI, Now we reveal their names? The V7 is Bridget: the ingenue/cheerleader, perky, fun The V11 is Betty: the serious keeper, you'd go to war with her Think what our wives therapists could do with this thread.

I have (had) all three: women, men, and neutral. The first two are BMWs and ladies: Ada (R1200R) and Brunhilde (R1100RL). Ada is nimble and quick. Brunhilda is a mother, carrying her one-wheeled cub on her right. And then third Beemer (F800GS) is a dude, Carl. I think there was a bit of a leap in finding that the F8 was male, to wit, getting past the idea of straddling and gripping a male. Out in the wilderness riding the rough stuff and getting dirty, though, I want to be with a dependable, rugged buddy, not a lady. So, Carl. Interestingly, the Italian beauty in the fleet is just "the Tenni" or "the Goose" or "the Green Goose". And the V1000 is "the Popemobile" or "the Rototiller". Both genderless. Just MACHINES. Maybe there's some grace in that: synergy between rider and machine; no need to personify. Well, with the V11 at least. The V1000 might as well be a tractor... Cheers, Frey

While in the "Romance Languages" the gender is preselected, "American English" is neutral gender. (I cannot speak for our broader English speaking brothers as we are "separated by a common language." ) Yet, as gender pertains to the animism of machines, my motorcycles are decidedly feminine. How could I know? Their beauty and allure? Their vexing way of engaging me in their ways? My inexplicable devotion and unfettered desire to be with them? Bikes aren't chick magnets. They're dude magnets. I'm pretty well stuck to mine. On the other hand, my tractors and trucks are masculine things. They have scars, and deference, and a certain willingness to serve at their expense. My ///M roadster? She confuses me. I parked her ass-end over a curb today, badly. She seemed to say, "Whatever. Just don't do it again." Is "CowGirl" a special gender?

SHE . Cheers Tom.

In my experience, motorcycles never were chick magnets; or let me rephrase this and be more specific. In Europe, I used to go to discotheques on my motorbike. I changed before getting close to the bouncers at the entrance. My friends had cars. I quickly discovered a few inconveniences; when you hook up in the club, having a conversation in a quiet place does not translate well when you are with your motorbike.... also, none of the ladies otherwise interested in knowing me better liked that I only had a motorcycle as a mean of transportation. Apparently those expensive hair styling were more important; but it is not my fault if they forget to put on warm clothing in winter, going to a club. Which was pretty good for my wallet anyway....

Motorcycles don't attract women, they screen out the unworthy ones.

Good man Scud ... in fact we may soon change your name to Spud in recognition of enthusiasm for fellow Guzzisti (noise in background from Docc ... apparently that admonification already taken, or at least aspired to) ... great collaboration on this site, always has been.

A French guy, Cameron Beaubier made pole in Moto2!!!

Maybe you remember the times when batteries were not maintenance free? You could use density to check the acid, testing each element, and adding distilled water as needed. The battery on my Ford died surreptitiously and bricked the car's ECU! obviously out of warranty. I could not even replace the battery myself, because the ECU needed to be reprogrammed. Not only did I need to purchase a new battery after less than three years, but had to also pay for the ECU programming. Did you know they have a special charge each time they "connect" to the ECU? this connect charge covers the cost of computing equipment, software maintenance, interfaces and technician. Plus the labor cost of course. It is only 20 USD for the "connect", but still....