O2 V11

We have just hit about US$1.00 per litre for regular 91 here in Sheepsville. I thought that was bad enough but you Brits have it really bad. Has anyone seriously considered emigration? Rob

A little over 12 months have passed since I have had my V11 Sport Naked on the road. In this time I have covered 3184 miles and have found the whole experience very enjoyable. Following at least 15 years of not owning anything with 2 wheels bigger than 49cc and having found this forum, I knew it was time again to own another Moto Guzzi. Having bought a V65 new in 1985, there was never going to be anything else but another Guzzi for me. Initially riding the bike I lacked confidence not only because of the long time since riding a bike but also the additional top heavy feeling the V11 has compared to the smaller Guzzi and the '79 Bonneville I had before that. Now that I have covered a few more miles on my V11 I like the handling. I am accustomed to the seat now, I have gone 6 hours with only 1 gas stop. Regarding the bar vibes they are getting better, no extra weights here, just ride and enjoy thanks. In standard trim it does everything I expect of it. The suspension works well for me. When riding 2 up and at speeds above legal limits it will still wobble a bit round bumpy corners. For all that I could not justify a suspension upgrade. My rear tyre needs replacing now, I already have a pair of Continental Contiforce to be fitted. Let's hope they are not inclined to move about at 90 plus mph as some owners have found. I will be fitting Pirelli Diablo Strada's after these. Fuel mileage since new has averaged 39.68 UK mpg / 33.05 US mpg. I find this not to bad as I do a lot of 2 up riding in excess of 85 mph. Fitting a Power Commander after 1000 miles lifted the gas mileage by about 3 mpg. Pipes and air-cleaner are stock. The only thing I don't really like about the bike is the seating position for passengers the rear pegs are too high and need to move forward a bit as well. I have had no issues of any importance in this time, my low fuel light has never worked from day one, that's what my tripmeter is for. The engine weeps a little around the bellhousing on top of the engine under the seat release. It's not getting any worse and you probably wouldn't notice it until it was pointed out to you. My tank rubbed on the sidecovers but not any more thanks to a couple of washers. My speedo needle wobbles but if it didn't it would be broken. I still get a few false neutrals every now and then but so far nothing seriously wrong in the gearbox. My engine cases haven't peeled either yet but I guess it is still early days. Planned modifications include the exhaust, a change to the air box and making my passengers more comfortable. I might even get some lower clip on's. I really like naked bikes. I do not like to read about the negatives of Guzzi ownership as much as what I do. This excellent forum, thanks Jaap, works well for swapping tips and tricks for all manner of things relating to Guzzi ownership. It is fair for me to say if I hadn't found this forum I would probably still be without a motorcycle. In the last year I have learned a lot about my bike and hopefully shared this knowledge with other members in some way as well. Thanks everyone. Rob

It is good to see that in the end it was a simple fix for you Andy. It is interesting to compare parts prices in diffferent parts of the world. In NZ dollars your lens cost about $80, in the US the comparable part would cost less than $60 delivered while mine cost me considerably more at $135 some 12 months ago. Rob

I use a Group 7 V241. Rob

Is the one for sale owned by not_scooter_Scura!? I have a feeling he may be selling his. Rob

http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=5238&hl= Try that Steve. Rob

I sent my forks to the shop at the 1000 mile mark. At the time this was the only facet of the first service I didn't feel comfortable about tackling myself. The guy who did the job for me had 25 years experience on all types of bikes from vintage to new. I was pleased I had the job done, as it turned out one of the plunger rods had come undone and all the bits were at the bottom of the fork leg. I was in two minds as to whether the oil needed changed or not before that. I guess now, looking back I should have tackled the job myself. I had changed fork seals on the kid's old XL125 but the way I saw it then, an upside Marzocchi fork leg was a lot more sophisticated than the kid's old bike, let the experts do it as I didn't want to stuff it up. Next time I will be doing it myself. I had synthetic fork oil put in. I will be changing this it at the 12000 mile mark. Rob

Head down to your nearest Buell dealer. You will be surprised how cheap they are. Rob

Paul, see if this helps at all. http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?...093entry55093 Do a search as well on "balancing throttle bodies". Other suggestions could be plugs, valve clearances OK? I can't imagine it being a serious fix. Rob

F1 ECU (5A) F2 Pump, coils, injectors (10A) F3 Battery re-charger (30A) F4 Ignition key switch (10A) F5 High beams, Low beams, Horn, Start, Stop (15A) F6 Dipped Lights (5A) F7 Direction indicators (5A) F8 Solenoid valve (electric cock) (5A) As written in the owners manual, F8 looks very interesting. Rob

Alex-Corsa, PC 111's are available thru Guzzitech. http://www.guzzitech.com/PCIII-16M.html Follow the link and you're there. The litre is the same measurement all over the world. The US gallon is 3.79 litres while the Imperial gallon is 4.55 litres. To date my fuel consumption has averaged 39.84 Imp mpg, 33.19 US mpg or 7.14 litres per 100km. Nearly 3800 miles from new, stock except for a PC111 fitted at 1200 miles. The most I have put in at one time is 21.67 litres after 186 miles. Rob

"Then there's the subjective feeling that V-Twins provide. Producing one large power cycle per crank revolution, and staging those pulses at staggered intervals, not only yields a character that can be felt and heard, it punches all the right feel-good buttons." Doctor, I like your medicine... Rob

hogjockey, this link to Guzzitech might be of some help. Rob http://www.guzzitech.com/V11SWheelBrng-Tom_H.html

soloNH, I am pleased everything has turned out well for you. Some forum members have found themselves in all sorts of strife of late. You really feel for them when you read about their woes. On the other hand it is so good to read about the positives of our Guzzi's every now and then. Rob

http://www.dpguzzi.com/ Dan should be able to help. Rob

I'm in the original cheap camp. I haven't got a stand of any description. I use a trolley jack to lift the bike at the front of the sump. I then put my piece of 4"x 4" and a bigger block under the rear of the sump and lower the bike down. The 4"x 4" I have profiled to match the bottom of the sump. After this I also anchor each end of the bars to the rafters with my bike tie downs. To remove the front end I lift at the rear and put my supports at the front of the sump. All this I do myself without any help. Rob

Belfastguzzi, you asked if you need a Carbtune?, I've never seen one, if I did I wouldn't know what is was any rate. What I use to balance my throttle bodies is very basic. Thanks to IanJ for this tip. I bought 8 metres of plastic tubing, sucked some water into it, marked it's halfway point and made this mark the base of a "U" bend, added a few wraps of insulation tape here and there. Hang it over the rafters, marked the water level then put the brass fittings back into the inlet tracts which had been removed along with the rest of the pollution control gear. Push the tubing onto these and that's it. After setting valve clearances and checking the TPS setting was correct, I used the air bleed screws to get an even vacuum at idle then using my cold start lever to get a consistent throttle setting around 3000rpm I used the white knob on the throttle linkage for adjusting the balance to get another consistent vacuum. It took quite a bit of chasing to get the vacuum correct at both idle and at 3000rpm. Pretty basic but so functional. I never noticed mine being any smoother afterwards but it wouldn't hurt to check. Rob

Just curious, has anyone downsized from the 180/55 to a 170/60 on the wider 5.5 inch rim of the 2002 onwards bikes? If so what difference did it make? Rob

If I recall a thread on titanium lifters correctly, there are some issues regarding valve clearances when these are fitted. I suggest a search on the subject might possibly shed some light. Rob

Adding to this post, my own experiences are that you don't get condensation and gunk in your rocker boxes, sump or anywhere for that matter if your rides are of a decent duration regardless of ambient temperature. In this case all between 5 and 15 degC / 40 and 60degF. My internals were clean at the 1000 mile mark. And have remained so since then. My oil consumption has been 600ml in 2600 miles. I just added 600ml to take the oil level up to where it was after I measured 3.5 litres in at the 1000 mile service I did myself. As I have posted before I don't get too excited about checking the oil as per the handbook. I just check the stick when the bike is cold and on the sidestand. My reference point is the level at which the measured 3.5 litres filled the sump to. This is about 10ml above the high mark. When I did use the handbook procedures as a check, the level was right on the high mark. Interestingly this oil consumption of 600ml is about the same as it was for the first 1000 miles. I changed to Castrol Activ 4T, a mineral oil at 1000 miles and will continue to use this until about the 10,000 mile mark. When I go for a ride all I take is my wallet and a cellphone. My PC resides where the tool bag used to be. I'm still waiting for my gearbox spring to break, my electrics to give me trouble, expect my cases to blister tomorrow or the next day. If something's going to break it will. I don't see this as something to worry about day and night. When it does it's in the SH!T happens category. Get out there and enjoy, wring it's neck, that's what your V11's made for. My rear tyre should just last until 5000 miles if I'm lucky. Before fitting my PC my gas mileage was around 37 UK mpg. then went up to over 40, now it's dropped back to below 40. I ride my bike the way it should be ridden, for pleasure only, briskly, always 5k rpm and over. Now mostly two up, with either my wife or one of the kids as a pillion. I find the suspension OK, but in all fairness our road surfaces are not the best. When, or should I say if something does go amiss you will hear about it. Collectively we need to accentuate the positives of Guzzi ownership more than what we do. I only bought my bike because it is a Moto Guzzi, I wouldn't own anything else. For me it's Guzzi or walk... Rob

Thanks for the reply Carl. There is something amiss with the sender. Since posting my enquiry I have fuelled up and been for an 80 mile ride. Having at least half a tank left the sender should show no resistance (open), but it reads zero ohms. When I put the tank back on the first time I tucked the connector from the harness out of harms way under the tank. I thought if it doesn't work why connect it back up! Next time I have the tank off I'll attempt to illuminate the bulb the way you suggested. Thanks for that. Another query, when I went to your rehosted schematic page I couldn't see the link to the V11 wiring diagram, is it just a case of my not wearing my glasses again? Rob

My low fuel light has never worked from day one. When using a multi meter what if any reading should I get at the two pin connector under the tank when disconnected? or must this connector be joined to the main wiring loom to get any reading? The wires leading into this connector are grey and black and they come from the low fuel level sensor, l/h side of the tank. At the moment I have done 160 miles on the tank so the fuel light would be glowing if it was operative. Failing this, any other pointers as to what I should check, other than the obvious. To take the instrument panel apart and check the bulb and connections? Rob

big J. I'd guess your a bit peeved. Spending all that hard earned and not getting the results expected. I would have thought there was a map that was suitable for your mods. What map was supplied with the PC?. Did you sync your throttle bodies at both idle and at about 3000rpm? It took me quite a while to get mine right. After setting my TPS I used the airbleed screws to get a consistent vacuum at idle, then the adjuster on the throttle linkage to get the same result at about 3000rpm. What are your valve clearances? If they are too tight this can cause problems. It can only get better after a re-map on the dyno. Good luck. Rob

Mike, when my bike was new my fast idle even after I swapped the springs around was barely 2000rpm. I tried adjusting the cable to increase the pull but it was not successful. I cut a piece of rubber hose and put it over the whatsit that contacted the cam. This took my fast idle up to about 2500rpm. Since adjusting my TPS setting and throttle body sync when I fitted my PC my fast idle now sits around 3500rpm. You can see what I did in the attached pic. Rob

Richard, when I removed my rear wheel I took it off in one piece with the bevel box. I dropped the brake caliper (6mm allen key) which made it easier to remove the wheel assembly. I left the torque arm on the bike, undoing it at the bevel box. The hex key for the axle is 14mm, it should be all in your toolkit. I hope this is of some help. Rob