Leaderboard

I only know one other guy -- and no gals (which may be a clue as to something) -- who owns Saabs and Jags. Naturally, none of these run. Just realized that my fruitcake friend is a serious Guzzista, too. Then, in the course of throwing these stones, I realized that I am a vintage FIAT and Studebaker aficionado. Bill

I hear ya... 2002, sooo long ago I have three other "vehicle" projects that have priority before I get to the Lemans. 1) 1980 Schwinn Suburban rehab 2) 1997 Jaguar XJR rehab, and likely sale. It's been sitting for all of the pandemic and needs fuel pumps, traction control, and some other work. 3) 2006 Saab 93 Aero Convertible, also getting ready for sale, and sitting for most of the pandemic. Needs some notable work. Once those are out of my way, I can start making lists for the Lemans. It has been sitting for many years, and although I started it occasionally, it hasn't been ridden. So there are a lot of minor and not-so-minor issues (no rear brake, no clutch, non-working neutral switch, rear shock rebuild, etc), and it of course will need a pretty thorough going-through. But September is a while away, so we'll see! As a related aside of making a list; since my neck-of-the-woods is also uber hot in the summer, I may want to pick your brain on how your modified delrin engine temperature sensor (ETS, head temperature sensor) is still holding up, and if you still are happy with it. I think your last update was in 2014, where you were reporting it was still giving you good results. I've been trying to remember all of the interesting and even controversial mods over the years, and reacquaint myself with them or even discovering new ones, and then put together a plan of action. I haven't even begun to really digest the Guzzidiag part yet... A lot to catch up on.

Uummm, no. There are definately better alternatives.

I can see it now...the lemansters.

Do you like pedal steel? It doesn’t get much better than this, He plays a Strat too.

1989 Saab 900Turbo SPG ..In the mountain twisties it was one of the Fastest and best handling and most fun to drive production cars I ever owned..a real ticket getter...

oooh, this explains the e-mail I received today: HMB-GUZZI (info@hmb-guzzi.de)To:you (Bcc) + 1 more Details Dear customer, as of next week (week 6 2023) we have to change our internet access as well as our email addresses. The shop itself will remain unchanged, the existing customer/login data will continue to apply. The new shop address: www.hmb-moto.de The new email address: info@hmb-moto.de Until Sunday 5.2.2023 everything will remain as it is, orders will be processed normally. On Monday, the internet shop will not be accessible during the implementation. As soon as the shop is available again, we will inform you. This notification will then already be sent from the new email address info@hmb-moto.de. Michael -- Mit freundlichem V2 Gruss, Michael Behrendt HMB-GUZZI Zeppelinstr. 48 91187 Röttenbach Tel: 09172-669918

Yeah, I keep trying to call out a couple inaugural V11Lemans.com members (from 2002) out of North Carolina. I'm not naming any names but their initials are: @al_roethlisberger and @Orson

How do you reckon I feel? It's cold, windy and wet here, I've got a V11 Le Mans that I have hardly ridden, and the last time I was in Australia was in 2016.

Love your 02 burgundy Sport Can’t wait to get mine out in a few weeks time when spring is here. Mines been hibernating in the garage since November

Performing the valve adjustment on my 2-valve BigBlock is something I actually look forward to. Not only is it approachable to an involved owner, physically and mechanically, it reminds me of tuning my string instruments . . . There is a certain irreplaceable "connection" , and the instrument always, then, dances with a delight and appreciation. Like a Golden Retriever let out of the truck by the lake shore. Friends for life. These feelings just never happen picking my Toyota up from a dealer service.

Thats what I figured. It seemed like an odd maintainenance requirement and adjustment with no measurements, but thought I would ask while the wheel is off. All I wanted to do is lube up all areas accessible, including universals and do a clean up.

The most common Shindengen purchased on Ducatis that I know of is the Shindengen is the FH020AA, these cost a lot less than the 847. I recall a couple of guys posted on WG that they had installed FH020AAAs into Sports, which use the same charging system as the V11 and were running without issue, but caveat emptor, personally I've no idea what it might do to alternator life. Beware of Chinese "look-a-likeys" on the Bay of Fleas and elsewhere for the FH020AAAs going for stupidly little money, I very much doubt they're Shindengen units or built to the same specs. As I recall it was @Kiwi_Roy that told me the OEM reg/recs in the bikes were the series type, which is unusual, the 847 is a series type regulator. Shunt regulators short circuit the alternator, so large current flow and can cause the alternator to get hot EDIT The Reg/Rec also gets hot, perhaps the reason the OEM Ducati Reg/Recs fail (which are shunts, at least it was on my 1098) Series open ciricuit the alternator, so no current flows and the alternator runs cool, but a high voltage can be generated in the stator windings IMHO the series type is far superior. Both the FH020AAA and 847 are 3 phase regulators, so to use them for the single phase alternators, that are in the Sports and V11, one phase is not used, effectively cutting the output rating by 1/3rd. The alternator output on the Sports and V11 are not high enough for this to be an issue, but don't take my word and double check anyway. The 847s are very spendy, but if I develop any reg/rec issues with the Sport it's definately what I intend to use Roadster Cycle sell them and also have some good info about them https://roadstercycle.com/

ok, now that I understand what is at hand, No, don't touch it. Hypoid gears are carefully set when new and wear in together. If you change anything at all, they will have to wear in again- at best- and you run the risk of point loading them and overheating or seriously wearing them. When re-assembling a hypoid gear set that's worn in, you don't even check the pattern on the drive face; you check the pattern on the coasting face because it's more accurate as it's smaller and doesn't have 'flex' built into it from heavy loading.

Worthless opinion; Trademark protection should be invalid for commerce which *cannot be entered into by the trademark holder*. That is, Moto Guzzi obsoletes a part, they don't get to pursue protection from those who continue to provide it. This thread has reduced by half the possibility I'll buy a new V100. Or whatever their new watercooled aeroplane is called.

A warm and fuzzy feeling . Not to compare M/G with H/D .but around here you cannot sew , weld, make wooden idols , anything w/the words , colors, liken or graven images Harley Davison w/o getting a cease and desist order from The Firm ! Jehovah (of the Old Testament) didn't have this kind of attitude. And he had some people to keep in line. I guess the golden calf was o/k but when they branded the wings & M/G emblem , KABOOM ! Now , when you have to explain to most everyone you meet how to pronounce / spell it , much less what it is , you know this is not a household name. If "the parent company" charged $1.00 for every time this name was typed on a computer , they might earn $200.00/yr.

Ah, okay, the reardrive. I amended the topic title.

Mate It's anything but Summer down here at the moment... 13 degrees rain and windy which makes it worse, we've even got the fire going... Probably be 30 degrees again in a day or so though....Nuts! Instead of tiptoeing along a wet and slippery road to Noojee,I'm afraid I'm hobbling round the house with what I suspect is a touch of Gout....Arghhh! The ole man's had it since his forties and my younger brother has it too so it's not looking good, so it's off to the Quack's next week! The upside of it is that it's the left side of my left foot so would still be able to change up and down, so don't rule out another dalliance with Nooj and Nayook just yet...! Cheers Guzzler

Which are? (I like playing around with guitars, although "my instrument" is actually trumpet and flugel horn, or would be, if I ever practiced....) Well, there is this . . . (In short, Fender basses and a hundred-fifty-year-old Steiner fiddle.)

Solution: Find out what shims are in there, so that you know what the next step is when you check the clearance and establish that it needs adjusting. Then you only have to order the appropriate "next step up", and put them in when they arrive. It's not done in one hit (which I would find frustrating), but if one is well prepared and organised, there should be no down time. Which are? (I like playing around with guitars, although "my instrument" is actually trumpet and flugel horn, or would be, if I ever practiced....) Yes, I thought it would probably be as simple as that.

I expect there is, but only for official dealers. The German language forum that I am involved in got hit too. We got a lawyer involved, and made the point that the forum is not commercial, and that using a trade name for non-commercial purposes is not illegal in Germany. €2.000 later, things have gone quiet, and we are assuming we are back off the radar. Mike at HMB is, however, commercial, but has no official connection to Moto Guzzi. He chose to take the route of least resistance, and change his domain name. There is another place, run by Martin Hageman, that is specialised in the "small block" Guzzis. Good bloke, good service, and well stocked with parts. His business name is "Guzzi e piu" (Guzzi and more). I noticed today that he seems to be changing his web adresses to "gpiu.de", where it has always been "Guzziepiu.de". Maybe he has been targetted too. There is a lawyers practice that has been contracted by Piaggio to search out instances of "Guzzi" on the interweb, contact them, and issue "cease and desist" demands. They first contacted the service provider for the above-mentioned forum, and then the chief admin of the forum whose name is on the bottom line of the forum. I gather Mike at HMB was contacted by the same bunch of lawyers.

Makes me want to argue. But not with Italian New York lawyers. Breeding a new herd? First, kill all of the old bulls . . .

I would go so far as to say that my feeler gauges, even knitting needles, are analog. Swiping my card at the dealer's service desk? Definitely > digital <

The two 'special tools' are a couple of rods, probably 5mm if they follow standard Aprilia/Piaggio practice. You could probably use #5 steel knitting needles cut to size. Really, it's a non issue.

Screws are analog, shims are digital. Similar to the warmth of tubes vs. transistors.

God, what next... Patent the exhaust note?? Cheers

The cheap, Chinee LED H4 I tried burnt out at 10,000 miles, not unlike the immensely hot hi-wattage H4s I tried from Sylvania. 3 1/2 years/ 15,000 miles and still very pleased with this plug&play solution: https://vintagecarleds.com/shop/bulbs-only/vcm3-bulbs-only/

Languishing, waiting for some TLC later this year to get it back on the road

Johnny knew y’know

Thanks, and while there is only one MG dealer in NC in Charlotte which is only 2+ hours away, there are a few Ducati/BMW shops within an hour that do say they have Ohlins specialists. So that may be a good option as well

Yes just 2 wires. 4 seasons with the first 847, all perfect. Just sharing experienses here. Have one ready for my hot rod V11 1999, winther enjoyment. Charging 14.73V idling, never above 15V. No worries about the 30amp fuse, just +++. Cheers Tom

Shindengen 847 is happy with Lithium or AGM, by all reports. I put one on my '74 Aermacchi 2-wire alternator and it's steady at 14.4v, even with only 140 watts.

I have a few OEM used ones, that can be had for 40£ each + shipping. I went for Shindengen 847, working great, connects directly to the battery so no strain to the electrical system. Roadstercycle in CA. Cheers Tom.

When The Kid got his first Guzzi, he called Gordon at MGcycles to get an oil temperature gauge that fit in the dipstick hole. Gordon said, " I know you are an aircraft mechanic and can see why you would want one. I'll sell you one, but you won't like what you see sometimes, and then what are you going to do about it?" "Good point, Gordon.. never mind."

Don't get me wrong. If someone wants a gauge by all means fit one. The thing is that one fitted into the sump in one of the redundant plug holes or indeed anywhere else isn't going to give an accurate assessment of what the temperature of the oil is where it's actually doing the heat removing part of its work. Where that is is at the bearing faces on the crank, big ends and camshaft and to get any meaningful info you'd either need to have the sensor in a delivery gallery or better yet, in the stream of oil exiting the bearings. In one way this actually means that an oil temperature dipstick isn't actually too bad a solution! Where it sits in the motor means that it is in the path of the constant streamer of oil pouring out from between the connecting rods as the crank spins but it's still pretty hit and miss, literally, and of course it will be dumping heat even as it travels towards the probe on the stick! If the sensor is in the wall of the sump it's reading is going to reflect little on the temperature of the oil where it is doing its job and the sump wall itself is going to act as a dirty great heat sink! Then there is the types of gauge. This 'Analog' type of gauge must use a sensor with some sort of waxstat or the like in it which then pushes on the column of fluid in the feed tube to the handlebar mounted gauge itself. In the gauge one assumes the fluid presses on some sort of membrane or mechanism that translates that linear movement into the rotational movement that moves the needle. The problem there is of course that the environment that the tube passes through will have a profound effect on the gauge's *Reading*. Running it up the back of the block and then through the valley will lead to it being hotter and therefore the medium within it expanding more than if it is routed away from engine heat. That will change the reading on the gauge rendering it inaccurate. As will different ambient temperatures that the machine is run in and the bike's velocity as that will effect air flow. By all means fit a gauge if you want. Just don't put any stock by it! With the pushrod motors in all their iterations we know that unless something is really wrong with their set-up they are massively over-cooled and it will be very difficult to get them to overheat to a dangerous degree. The early Hi-Cams? Not so much. Later Hi-Cam is so grotesquely over cooled it is actually hard to keep them hot enough in winter!

Seriously? Neither of you have modified a machine for nostalgia, or embellishment, or just to tease an onlooker? No rubber chook, bungeed on for the ride with its beak to the wind? I once re-jetted the carburettor of my Japanese engineered GB500, then modified its exhaust. I enjoy the outcome. Pretty sure I changed the stated 33 horsepower to maybe 28 and shaved about 10 mph off the top end. Oh, and gutted the fuel economy. But I love her more for it . . .

The Vintage Car Bulb is a proprietary design, but if you read the page, they are sold in sets of two. So the price is actually for two bulbs and not a single. I also found this, from Canada: https://www.ledperf.ca/led-conversion-kit-bulb-for-motoguzzi-v-11-le-mans-mini-size-p-23477.html They claim it is a plug and play replacement of the existing H4, and 4500 lumens! 5 years warranty. All these LED lights look identical, one from the other. They may be manufactured by the same Chinese company with different brand names. The one I purchased looked exactly like those shown in the various specifications, and at no time did they inform they had a separate driver that was too large to fit in the bucket. "No OBC" error; they must ignore that the V11 electrical circuit is not connected to the ECU.

<fitted right in, no modification needed. Cheers Tom.

Yes, on my Rosso Corsa and Nero Corsa. Cheers Tom.

Learning to know your bike is rewarding So easy to remove the fairing, and there she is. Vintage car H4 led version fits perfect, with a H4 halogen light pattern. 4 more on order. Cheers Tom.

The VintageCar LED is still going strong, 2 3/4 years and almost 12,000 miles/20.000 km, it has outlasted the poorly made Chinese unit and all of the hi-wattage (and hot!) Sylvania Silver Stars I used to use. Highly "conspicuous" and excellent beam patterns, both Lo- and Hi- (in the early V11 Sport steel bucket Bosch). I opened the bucket today to change out the 4 watt City Light and everything looks great. No signs of excessive heat.

TLM responded to my email that they are no longer making the V11 rear hugger, and are out of stock [emoji22] Let me know if anyone wants to part with theirs!

An old Chinese curse is "May you live in interesting times." I've done that in the 60s, now doing it again.

Altering the holder for the Engine Temperature Sensor has been the topic of much trial, error, and debate. After almost eight years and over 55,000 miles, I decided to swap to the brass sensor holder (GU 30163301) and packed the housing with copper paste. Not that I needed to change it, but it was all the rage at the time and my Guzzichondria got the best me. I wasn't sure it ran any better, in fact I thought it got a bit worse, but went on to chase down a series of other, mostly electrical, issues. I rode the Sport two years, around 14,000 miles, before switching back to the original plastic/composite/Bakelite holder with no packing paste. Right away, I felt she ran a bit better. Not a lot, but a bit. So, taking the path less traveled, with the help of TFMKasRH (The Former Member Known as RatchetHack), I removed my thermister from its crimped housing using a Dremel with cut-off wheel (I figured I could JB Weld it back if needed since new sensors are 105 USD), fabricated a Delrin holder using a 22mm length of copper stud and 5mm air gap with stainless steel set screws. I have only ridden it five or six times with a total of maybe 250 miles. But, here are my observations so far: 1) Low angle throttle transitions are much smoother. Rolling into a corner, I've become accustomed to some unsettling sputtering and burble which caused a little hesitation as the throttle was rolled on for the exit. This transition is notably smoother making for much smoother and reliable cornering transitions. 2) Idle and low throttle angles, especially at low (under 3000-3500) rpm are more stable. The motor has never liked to plod along under 3000 rpm (I know it's a bad idea for other reasons) always bucking and sputtering especially right at an indicated 2800 (my tach is 300 rpm high BTW). This sputter is entirely gone. 3) There is much improved high temperature sensitivity at traffic lights and parking lot maneuvers. It has been quite hot here and the first test ride was some spirited riding into town then sitting in traffic and navigating a parking lot at 96 degrees Fahrenheit (35˚C). There was nary a hiccup or sputter or stumble. With nearly 72,000 miles and ten years riding this bike, this is unprecedented. 4) My fuel economy is unchanged. TFMKasRH noted a 10% improvement which I thought would be great. Alas, so far, not so for me. Summertime I get 35.5 - 37.5 mpgUS (sure 40-41 at steady throttle with no cogging and hair shirt corner exits, but who wants to ride like that?); wintertime (under, say 60ºF) 32.5-34.5 mpgUS with the lower figures closer to my 40˚F/ 4,4˚C riding limit. I am really enjoying the smoother, more stable character. On a zero to ten scale (zero= not running, ten= running phenomenally), my Sport is usually an 8-9; 10 on a cool crisp morning at 5000+ rpm, and 6-7 in hot traffic. (Well, there was that once or twice it was a zero!) Right now, she's giving me a solid 9-10 even with the heat. With this much seat time for comparison, I'm looking forward to getting some time and miles for a more complete impression. Hey, maybe I'll end up with those other 3 or 4 mpg! EDIT: August 21, 2014 - with almost 20,000 miles on this "modification", I can say it has performed flawlessly. I was concerned the thermistor would just burn up, but no. The wiring connector did come undone once, and the holder loosened one time. My fuel economy never improved, but the harsh running in hot conditions never returned.

The Sport developed unstable idle issues yesterday. It reminded me of how it acted before the Low Mass Sensor Modification. Today, I discovered the connector had come unplugged. And also that the sensor holder was loose where it screws into the head. Tightened the holder back down, re-attached the connector and back to goodness! While working up the modification, I had made the catches for the connector less prominent (more angled than squared off) to help getting the connector on and off. I'm thinking I took off too much material and when the holder loosened in the head, the vibration wiggled the connector off. Hey, I know: "I messed with it!" But after three years, and coping with some very high ambient temperatures, the sensor does still work better. If it's connected.