kmac33

For anyone needing to repair their fairing parts, here is the method preferred by a friend that has owned a motorcycle repair/body shop for 20+ years. I spent years hanging around his shop, learning how to do all types of body work, and now do these repairs regularly for friends. Use a soldering iron with a fine tip to melt cracked or broken pieces back together. The tip of the iron should be about midway through the plastic. I recommend practicing this technique on a scrap part, as it takes some practice to do right. If going to repaint the part, do this to both sides. To fill in any imperfections remaining and to help reinforce the repair, prep the area immediately adjacent to the cracks/break by removing any paint, dirt, etc. Scuff with 80 grit sandpaper. Next apply 3M Semi Rigid Plastic Repair (3M 04240) - a special gun is required to dispense it. You can order both from Amazon. Wipe it on like you would Bondo or similar body filler. This stuff sets FAST, so you have to be quick. You can also use the semi rigid plastic repair to fill in missing sections of fairing. After it sets completely, sand down any area that is going to be repainted, primer it and repaint.

I've got a set of the Tekno panniers I was about to put up for sale in the classifieds. I'll let you have em cheap - even though you only need the left side. I should also have the front turn signal - I have to double check on that, but I replaced all of mine with LED's and should be able to send you all 4. I'll send you the turn signals for free if you want the panniers. Just send me a PM and we can work out details.

I use Bosch. Have a 3330 in my V11 and a 3400(same as the 3330, except 15 mm longer - makes it easier to change) on my Griso.

Looks good!

With both of my Guzzi's (and both of my cars), I run after market exhaust systems for 3 reasons: 1. I like a louder than stock exhaust, 2.it provides a performance gain (proven via dyno), and 3.to me, most aftermarket systems just look better. The aftermarket performance gains are often augmented by cutting weight as well. On my Griso it cut close to 30 pounds getting rid of the stock "monstrosity" - that is equal to close to a 3 horsepower gain performance wise. On my Griso I'm running Todd's Guzzi Tech straight Y-pipe with shorty canister sans db-killer (this bike sounds like something Satan himself would ride, "probably" a bit too loud, but it sure is addictive to hear her roar at WOT ). On the V11, I've got ceramic coated stock headers, Mistral crossover and Mistral cans. Guzzi Moto accurately described the difference in character between the set ups (except in my case, my Griso is a fair bit louder than my V11). The caveat to ensuring a power train performance gain that I do not recall reading in any of the posts in this thread so far is fueling. I've got Power Commanders on both Guzzi's, one car's carb was re-jetted to match the exhaust and my car's ECU is sophisticated enough to adapt to the improved flow of the aftermarket system. Without adjusting fueling to suit the exhaust and intake set up of any vehicle, it is a "roll of the dice" performance wise when you deviate from stock. In this case you have already said you're not really concerned about the performance gain/lose, so if you like the way it looks, like the way it sounds and the bike feels like it runs well with it installed, enjoy have a rare, sweet looking exhaust!

I finally "solved" the transmission fluid leaking out of the clutch slave problem, and it was remarkably simple - especially considering how much "labor" went into it. To summarize again: bike was leaking transmission fluid from the clutch slave weep hole when I bought it. I took the rear end off the bike, pulled the clutch slave off, pulled out the push rod "clutch control cylinder" and replaced the o-ring. When doing this, there was 1 washer on the clutch slave side on the control cylinder. I reassembled in the exact same fashion. I did not pull out the entire push rod and all associated hardware at this time - in hindsight I should have. The leak remained. After pulling the transmission completely and being able to "play" with the push rod travel, it became very obvious that there is a very specific distance that the control cylinder moves back and forth in the push rod tunnel where the o-ring makes contact and does it's job. go just a little to far towards the clutch and it goes too far into an "open" area. It dawned on me that the PO had at some point puled out the control cylinder, washers and push rod and had not reassembled in the correct order, and that one washer on the wrong side of the control disc was allowing the disc to move "just too far" towards the clutch and that was allowing the transmission fluid past the o-ring. I reassembled the push rod, washers and control disc in the correct order, (picture for reference) put everything back together and, presto leak solved. If I had just taken things apart a bit further the first time I changed the o-ring, and had put things back together with all the washers in the correct order, I would have fixed the leak the first time. On the bright side, I can now pull the transmission quickly if I ever have to do. I also took the disassembly to get the transmission out as an opportunity to restore the Mistral, carbon fiber cans, replace the stock cross-over with a Mistral cross-over and had the header pipes ceramic coated. I also installed a Power Commander 3. So now, no leak, exhaust looks and sounds incredible and the bike is running WAY better than it ever has.

Chris definitely knows his stuff and knows how to make any bike, and not just Guzzi's fast! He has done some really powerful, impressive race motor builds for some friends of mine. He's been building race motors and wrenching since the early 80's for some pretty "decent" riders (like Mike Harth, Deano Swims and Geoff May). I would love to have him duplicate his Scura build on my V11 - just hearing his bike run will send chills up your spine! But I think the wife would divorce me if I spent what it would take to duplicate his power plant. Once I actually have the money to have him transform mine, I'll do a thread documenting the build.

turo, I have an 07 Griso 4 valve that I absolutely love. Definitely a different animal than my V11. For me, the difference in the 2 diverges from Bill's description though. I find the Griso a more comfortable, and dare I say, refined ride. Ergonomically, the Griso is near perfection for me and my build. I have after market bars that are narrower and less back swept than stock, but still much wider and upright than the V11. For whatever reason, narrow clip ons just do not agree with me like they used to (even though I'm only 48) on rides longer than an hour or two. I can still tolerate clip ons - just barely. I also find the handling of the Griso to be much more "intuitive". The Griso is "easy" to ride fast - I think it and the bike does it. Transitions are just so smooth and predictable. The V11 has to be "muscled" a bit more. I will say that I have not spent enough time dialing in and fine tuning the suspension on the V11, but that is because it isn't as easy to dial in. It took me less than 2 hours to dial in the Griso suspension to feel "perfect" for me. The V11 is taking a lot more trial and error. My only "complaint" from a handling standpoint with the Griso is a lack of ground clearance on the left side. I have ground off a fair amount of the side stand. Oh well, I'll replace it when too much of it is gone. I will agree with Bill on his description of the power delivery. Even though my Griso is a "lowly 4 valve", (though massaged with air box, exhaust and fueling mods), the throttle response is more "robust" and "visceral" than the V11. To sum up the comparison, I love riding them both!

Chris Birkle (Hippie) at Racing Sport Services (located right across the street from the entrance to Road Atlanta) does all of their Guzzi motor builds. SO I can guarantee that not only do the Moto Studio Guzzi's look great, they will definitely scoot! Chris' personal bike is a V11 Scura that is of course "built". I'm currently saving up to have him transform the motor on my V11.

There are a lot of bikes on my "Bike Bucket List", that I hope to eventually own. When talking "dream bike"...couldn't even get one if I won a massive lottery level dream...there is only one "Holy Grail" for me: The reverance Guy Martin displays for the Britten in this vid sums up just how special John Britten's creation was/is: www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rjJQUnq5Js I would give up a vital organ to take one out for a few laps!

Thanks for the suggestion Tom. The vent was one of the first potential causes checked off the list. The PO was keeping the trans over filled - I had hoped that, or the vent was the cause, but didn't get that lucky

The K bike was (and is) a great bike. Reliability issues never came up for me. Most of the issues on the K1200's were solved by the 08 MY. The bike was a great long distance sport tourer, and with 165 hp on tap - a rocket, but for me it just didn't "stir my soul" like the Griso (or the V11) does. There is just something about the look, feel, and sound of a Guzzi that "does it for me".

From a couple of conversations, including a Guzzi knowledgable mechanic (that just has not ever had to open up a V11 6 speed), if the input shaft seal was the issue, I would be getting enough transfluid into the clutch that 1.fluid would be coming out of the bellhousing weep hole and 2. the clutch would almost definitely be slipping due to that fluid. Looks like I'm just going to have to tear the bike down to find out for sure.

I absolutely love my G11. To me it is about the perfect "do everything" bike. It was really good straight out of the box, but with some modding, you can turn it into a truely great bike. Mine is now far from stock, and every mod has been well worth the effort and expense to create a bike that puts a smile on my face every time I ride it. The latest addition of Motorcyclist has a feature this month on the Griso being a "Best Used Bike to Buy" that provides a good overall summary of the bike. You can probably find it on line if you don't get the magazine. The bike is great to ride in town as a commuter, due to it's very useful torque band, comfortable ergonomics, and good gas mileage. It makes a good touring bike by adding a fly screen or quarter fairing (the small screen makes a huge difference), tank bag, the rear rack and a set of side cases - again good ergonomics (taller folks may need lowering pegs), a comfortable seat, etc. But more importantly to me, when set up right - suspension settings dialed in for weight and tire pressures correct, the bike is a beast in the twisties. At speed, the bike feels 125 pounds lighter than it actually is. A couple pics of mine "at speed" from a couple of years ago: My Griso used to share the garage with an 08 BMW K1200S. I ended up selling the K bike, because at least 80% of the time, I picked the Griso to ride. I would recommend a Griso to anyone. I acutaully have a growing list of riding buddies that have made it clear they want to buy mine from me if I ever decide to sell it - which I don't ever see happening.