Greg Field

Nobody gets shot after they do the work and share the results. Thanks for this. It will save me some work. I never would have guessed this would do much. That's what guessing gets you, though. I would have guessed this would help more. This is sorta what I have done. Except instead of holes, I cut out a 4x4 square out of the top of the airbox. I guessing this will closely approximate taking the lid off entirely, but it's a guess. I'm not after every single horsepower—just what I can get without compromising the air filtration system and without getting that "giant sucking sound" from pods or a lidless box. Does this mean with the airbox in place, with the holes drilled in it and the intake snorkels opened up, but with the bellmouths on the throttle bodies opened up to 50mm? Exactly what I'm after. Definitely of interest and thanks! GF

Doc: Stick to a motorcycle oil designed for wet clutches. I can recommend Motul 5100 as working very well in the Aprilias with wet clutches we sell. They have quite high specific output, so if their clutches do not slip, yours will not likey slip. By the gallon, it's about $25 and is dino oil plus polyolester (the best kind) synthetic.

Dave: These're funky EYE-talian machines. Every one is mercurial and quirky in a different way. Mine's got 12,000 miles but blows no oil. If I accelerate to its ability to do so, the oil pressure plummets to zero. I do not pretend to understand it, but I won't ignore it, either. I got a Roper sloppage plate on Friday. With luck, I'll be able to install it this week, and then I'll be able to drag-race to my heart's content.

Jim: There's also adjustability built into the switch, via the screws that fasten it. Play with that a bit in listening for the snick of the switch, as Ratchet has told you.

Beautiful . . .

Buy a Harley. Stylistically, the V11 is a MESS.

I'm a mechanic in my own home shop from 4-8 a.m and a parts guy at the busiest Guzzi dealership in the US from 9-6. How could I not be cynical? You bastards oughta listen. There's only one of me . . .

Ryland: The pic is of a 2004 Ballabio. The hoses are identical to those on your bike. See the white hose clamp? It wraps around the top of the tipover valve. I added that, and routed the tipover valve hose from outside the intake horn to inside the horn. The tipover valve is a little piece that looks a lot like a PCV valve from a 1980s car. If you pull off your tank, it will all make sense. The only tricky part is the "quick-disconnects." They are tricky the first time. To get the tank off, first, pull out the back tank bolt. Then, wad up a towel into a clump and shove it under the back extension of the tank, to raise the rear of the tank. This allows better access to the male-and-female quick disconnect fuel lines (there are two) on the right side of the tank (as seated on the bike). The female connector has a ring that is moveable fore and aft. Find this ring and grasp it between thumb and forefinger of one hand. Withe the other hand, push the male disconnect firmly into the female connector, and wiggle the ring. Feel very carefully for a "release," and then pull away with the male connector. It will take practice, but you will get it. Disconnect both fuel lines, noting which connects to which. Then, disconnect the two electrical connectors that are forward of the fuel connectors. Pull up carefully on the rear of the tank with one hand while reacxhing up under the center of the tank with the other, and disconnect the tipover line (on the right side of the frame tunnel) and overflow line (on the left side of the tank tunnel). Pull back on the tank, and the tank should then come right off. Set it on something soft, as the clear coat is very delicate. Then, follow the pic to route and affix the tipover valve. No more tank suck, ever. As for the rest of the warranty stuff, I may be able to help, but we'll have to take it off-line because dealers get weird about other dealers stepping in. If need be, I'll give your dealership some tips on how best to get yourt needs met. Call me at Moto I (206 297-3822 or on my cell 206 371-9623). We open at 9:00 Pacific time.

Perfect people and perfect systems do not require safeties. This is Moto Guzzi motorcycles and Moto Guzzi motorcycle owners we're talking about here. A simple hose clamp seems a perfectly failsafe device to prevent the disaster that befell three of my friends this summer (two V11s and one Cali 1100). Wanna know what each of them said when I showed them the hose-clamp trick after selling them all-new engine bearings? "Why didn't you show me that before?" Sad thing was, I had told them about it, and they scoffed. They were mighty mechanics and experienced Guzzi home wrenches. This could never happen to them, until, of course, it did. I've now showed you all. That's FWIW. I'll make more money if you ignore my advice, so add that to the FWIW. And remember: The pink stuff in Redline SPH is just ground-up strawberries. And K&N filters filter better when dirty. Really. I'm not kidding. And that flickering oil light on your V11? It's nothing. Totally normal. Just ignore it. Really.

The lasting power of the K&N myth ("filters even better when dirty!") suggests that nothing will ever be enough to convince those who do not want to be convinced.

Graham: I clean and oil my K&Ns on the Eldo at about 4,000-mile intervals. They were ridden through the same roads as Billy Bob. The K&Ns appear to have stopped a very small fraction of the dirt the paper filter stopped. In fact, the K&Ns still looked pretty clean, whereas the paper filter looked loaded with dirt. I'm going to construct a custom airbox so I can run a paper filter on the Eldo.

Bill: The cable is super-easy to install if you thread on the trans end before trying to route the cble under the throttle bodies. "swing" the bend outward, thread on the collar, route the cable, install the speedo end, and then fully tighten the trans end.

I always pull off the sump and remove/examine everything in there. You need not worry (being a "Guzzichrondriac") when safeties are in place.

I cut a 4-x4-inch hole in just the top of the box lid, leaving snorkels in place. This let's in plenty of air but prevents most of the intake roar you get by removing the lid entirely. I'll do a dyno test shortly of this set-up vs. BMC, just 'cause I'm curious, not because I plan on running a BMC.

I was going over some old pix, looking for the pix of how to mount the tipover valve when I ran across the photos below, taken the day after we got back from the Deep Forest ride around Mt. St. Helens, taking a few dirt roads. This filter was brand-new the week before we left. It shows how in less than 500 miles there's a pile of dirt in the valley of each pleat that it prevented from entering my engine. Look at the rocks and clumps it caught. Truly amazing amount of stuff, especially considering that I was in the lead for much of the dirt run and second in line for all the rest, and so wasn't getting the worst of the dirt plume. Here's the results of the white-glove test around the inside of the airbox. Spotless. No grit you could see or feel. My Eldo was on the same run, ridden by someone else, at the back of the pack, eating the worst of the dust. It has individual K&Ns. There are no dirt mounds or chunks in the valleys of the pleats on the K&Ns. In fact, the K&Ns look very clean, totally ready for use. Where did all the dirt go? I bet it's in my engine, or was until I changed the oil and filter. Your K&N-equipped bike may put out more horsepower by a small fraction than my paper-filtered bike now, but 10,000 miles down the road, will it? I bet not.

It's foolish to remove the tipover valve when it is so easy to ensure its proper operation. Here's how: Route the hose to the inside of the right airbox horn and ziptie it in place so it is held vertically, as shown below: There, now; wasn't that easy? Now your bike won't puke gas all over if it tips over. This could save your bike or your life.

There is little need to add moly to engine oil if you use car oil, 'cause many of them are chock full of moly already—Mobil 1, for example—as means to increase fuel economy. If you use a motorcycle oil designed for use with wet clutches, it will not likely have moly in it. David: We add 10-20cc of Power Punch to gear oil, depending on capacity of the rear drive. That's plenty, especially if using a GL-5 gear oil, most of which already have moly in them. I recently polished off a bottle that was 5 years or more old. For most people, it's a long-term supply, if not lifetime.

A purolator filter is risky. My V11 engine, on cold oil, puts out 75 psi. My car, on cold oil, puts out 50 psi. The purolator is a car filter and may not failsafe stand up to the pressure. Tightent the filter per usual, and then safety it in place with a hose clamp. See the pic below: Yes, I will be mocked here, as on Wildguzzi, for suggesting this simple and foolproof safety, but I have seen two V11s this summer on which the filters backed off, and it weren't pretty.

Shoot, if all you want is moly to add to regular gear oil, Power Punch is the best value. It's about $10 from MI for a lifetime supply.

ITI instrument, right? If so, sometimes they are fixable. Also, it should be replaced under warranty, but they're on backorder. I am awaiting one for my Billy Bob (same problem). I fixed mine once, but can't this time 'casue I had to glue on the reset knob and now can't get it off to get the instrument out, so I'll just wait until the new one arrives. Take it off the bike and lay it face down. Look on the back of the rim for four or more pins. Push on each with a small punch, and the rim and glass will pop off. Then take the screws off the back, and the pointer and face off the front, and you have free access to the innards. Look at it to see what's wrong. Stripped teeth are not faxable, but most other ills are. Good luck!

We'll have more in stock at Moto Intl. in about 10 days. I am told they will not fit a LeMans without some cutting to the lower fairing near the oil-cooler mounts.

I had them re-valved to be reduce harshness. Not sure exactly what they did, but the damping's pretty good. What's BOTM? Battle of the ??

So, who's paying me the small fortune? I'll send along my Paypal ID.

Thanks, boys. The brakes are great. No "zing" sound when I apply them.

I neglected to ask that question.