Gmc28

Scud - i usually run 15w-40 synthetic diesel oil, though have on occasion run 5w-40 synth. Ran it in the oilhead for 80k miles too, and while it went through a little oil, it never changed over the life of the bike.... about a quart between each oil change, regardless of age. And I run it in my 6.0 diesel as well (no surprise there i assume), and ran it in my 7.3's before that, though I also would sometimes just run regular old Delo dyno in the 7.3's. The 6.0 has the higher pressure injectors and more finicky systems, so i make the caveman assumption that the newer, higher spec oil may help, but don't know. Apples to oranges compared to the goose, but the 6.0 is just now turning 300k miles, and with 5k oil change intervals, it loses approximately zero oil between changesn(less than I can see on a dip stick, and certainly less than a quart every 5k). There are those who do the extended change intervals, and successfully, running 15-20k miles between changes, and some with fleets that go even longer, with most of those guys apparently doing the oil sample thing as well to monitor oil health. (I do run a secondary bypass filter as well, but there again i just did that because it seemed like a decent idea, and wasn't expensive, but i can't vouch for how helpful it has been.)

The incense is indeed the key! Mine smells like an old garage/shop... I see these Dakar racers that change their oil every night, and install a new chain every other day, and so on. They ride hard, and take it very seriously, but wow. I think some of that may rub off on us motor heads. Then you meet guys that do the opposite, and seem to do ok as well.... I had a friend mention that he changes his moto oil about every other year, which in his case was about every 10-15k miles. Hmmm. And he's been around long enough to have a track record, which in his case has meant no real motor drama over the years that he's been riding, and he's not a young man. Started out just doing that because he was cheap, but after enough years realized it didn't seem to be an issue. And I worked with a guy in the 90's who really raised eyebrows, and I knew him just well enough to state that i don't think he was fibbing: He had some sort of chevy sedan that he bought new, and he literally never, ever changed the oil. He said he changed the filter a few times only by the time he turned over 100k miles on that chevy, and never changed the oil. Wow. And he never had engine issues that i know of, though i gotta assume he was burning some. Certainly not endorsing that, but its a good spooky bed-time story.... like about how Jim Fixx died at age 40 even though he was a fitness fanatic, or how your crazy great aunt lived to 102 smokin' and drinkin' her way through life.

Oil threads..... why do we do it? Late winter, raining outside, so why not? So i'll just lob in my pointless opinion - Back when forums were a new thing, and I had an oilhead, i got sucked into the oil topic. Did a lot of reading at that point, learned the reality of how pointless most of it was, but also how entertaining it could be for us moto heads. At that time I ferreted out the old salts on that BMW forum that seemed to speak intelligently about it, did some outside reading, and for whatever reason came to the conclusion that Rotella diesel oil did in fact at least meet the spec for my bikes, and have run nothing but diesel oil ever since. Not even the hint of a complaint in the ensuing couple decades, through all sorts of bikes and at least a couple hundred thousand miles. Maybe i'd be better off if i'd run something different (?), but highly doubt it, and if so it's on such a tiny scale that it would be pointless. My high mile used bikes that i've put lots of miles on and then sold have always run great and with little to no oil consumption. The other more reliable argument, nice and cave-man style to keep it simple, is that synthetic obviously has the better heat/breakdown qualities than dyno, so if we're air cooled, synthetic should make a difference. Does it? Don't know, but that part at least appeals on a simpler level to my brain, as we know the air coolers can see some high temps that water coolers don't necessarily ever see. The argument that a machine was designed to run with a certain grade of oil makes some sense to me, but thats balanced against the idea that in the old days engines generally didn't last as long. Engine life has improved for a variety of reasons, but I'd think that engine oil is perhaps a small part of that equation, though i would expect there's no panacea there like oil companies would have us believe. The lack or presence of zinc as a relevant factor seems an illusive thing, except speaking from my limited perspective i'd say that on the high pressure oil diesel injectors (4000psi or higher), lack of zinc in large numbers of rigs has been blamed for premature (Bosch) injector wear (expensive problem for us Bosch injector owners). But 4000psi oil actuated fuel injection is (blissfully) not part of our guzzi conversation. On top of that, the argument was used here that the price of oil makes it worth just buying the better stuff. I'd argue the opposite.... since I've never been able to see any conceivable consequence from my (good?) choice of oil (my rotella diesel oil is way cheaper than moto oil, but as a synthetic it's still a bit more expensive than some other options...), then over the course of a 100k miles on a bike a guy may have spent an extra $1500 or more on special motorcycle oil, money i'd rather spend on more interesting stuff (please enjoy filling in the blank...). Yes, 100k miles takes a while, but time marches on, we keep adding (happy) miles, and eventually we get there, one way or another... until we don't (RIP). Long live Rotella synthetic diesel oil in large containers at Wally world!

Wow, a near carbon copy thread from the topic listed literally right next (below) in line beneath this thread. I admit to getting lazy too, but man.... It can be said that we have some patient forum contributors! I have the knight design dropped pegs, from Oregon (my rainy homeland...), and they're great, but do leave the levers a bit out of ideal reach/ergo, as has been discussed. I live with it, because I don't use the V11 as a daily rider. If I did, I'd pull the trigger on the Motobits. And I may anyway at some point, given all the good feedback.

Or go all out and ride naked.... light weight and less wind resistance. I haven’t yet had the cans off this bike, but that was the monster weight savings on other bikes, where going after market (may or may not) improves looks, sound, and weight. I think it was a 12 lb savings on the ST4, iirc? That seems significant. After that it seems like nickel-dime changes, unless it’s rotating weight. And even for the rotating weight thing I’m just parroting what others have said (here and elsewhere), except that it does seem to be noticeable on things like mountain bikes, where small rotating weight gains can be felt by the chump trying to pedal...

all true... as einstein, budha, and clint eastwood all said, more or less, "its all relative!"

Pinged knight design, and they said they don't offer those. They're just down the highway from me.

I went with Knight Design for the new to me Griso. Like Knight and day if you pardon the pun. http://www.knightdesignllc.com Look at a lowered toe peg for the rear brake as well, the gear perl can be adjusted down. Where did you source your lowered toe peg? I've got the knight design foot pegs now, and may just stick with those, but being able to address the brake lever is part of that whole solution.

So Bill, you mean you've installed the motobits and the motratechs? Looks like you may a typo in there... To keep it simple, I think you're saying u like the "techs" over the "bits"? And JB, I have the knight design pegs. Agreed that those are a good change, and ultimately they are good enough, but the resultant lever (shift & brake) fitment is off, even with max adjustment of the stock levers. No big complaint, but some of the fun is looking for if/how to get it just right. The Knights are a good product and fit. And looks like he's a fellow Oregonian...

interesting. So sounds like there are lots of happy people with the successful peg moves. So then, I'm still working through the motratech vs motobits question, that has been hammered out by others to varying degrees of satisfaction. Will dig a little deeper on that part of the question next...

looks like i need to mod my profile... got lazy and didn't pay attention. It's an '02, and been on property since late summer. Love it. But not due to its comfort... No expectation for it to be a long range comfort machine for me. Its truly just fine to keep it as-is for how I use it, for putting to/from work, and the occasional sunny weekend spin. The other bikes are for the longer range riding. I just like to futz with the toys, and the ergos for sure are a thing I could justify messing with, if I found the right solution. And yes, I've become accustomed to the flying blue monkeys!

Not sure... Just would like to see if there's a way to keep the bike looking good but get it to where I don't need to do a concsious deep knee-bend to get my feet back on the pegs. Perhaps I'm chasing a ghost, but am searching ...

Oops... update: Founds a couple more threads that had eluded me somehow on the previous search. Clearly user error, though not sure why those threads didn't pop up on my last search. Still interested in input, but I'm finding more now and perhaps could have un-cluttered the forum by not posting this question.... cheers

I've sifted through a few threads on this topic and got a big of a feel on the topic, but does anyone have any solid opinions on the dropped footpeg setups like the MotraTechs? Thats not small price tag, and I'm not keen on changing the look of the '02 Lemans, but at just under 6'4" and in the over-50 "experience" group, the stock ergos are, well, not ideal. Do the motratech's make that much difference? And are owners happy with how they look? Are there other issues or plusses to the setup? Are there others that are better? Might be a christmas present to myself, but looking for a little more input before I cough up the expense. From the MotraTech ads, it appears that "tall"tCentauro owners would also be good folks to ask about this, as apparently the pegs end up mimicing the Centauro stock setup ergo's (?) I should add that I have the dropped pegs from the guy here in Oregon. Nice pegs, and they do make a difference, and I may just stay with these. But I can't get enough adjustment from the stock levers to make the whole setup feel as natural as stock (clunkier use of rear brake and shifter, even after adjustment within limits), and I'm also wondering about how much advantage I'd get from how the MotraTech's move the pegs forward as well. merry xmas everyone

Anyone using the mosfet regulators from places like roadstercycle? That was a common choice for some reason on my other Y2k era bikes that needed the Italian electrics addressed, in one case the Gran Canyon (though grounding was and is still the #1 issue imho). Just curious.... I'm new to the V11, and enjoying the learning here!