felix42o

24,000 miles on mine, and no major issues here, either. As it's been said before on the forum, a lot of people have very few problems with the V11. On the forums, however, trouble spots tend to get magnified to where it might seem the bikes are unreliable. I think you might find that with alot of model-specific forums. Like Orson said, dealer setup and preventative maintenance are key. With any Guzzi, you have to keep on top of certain things more than with some of the Japanese brands but as you said, they sure are good looking! But then, I might be a bit partial to the brand.

A dealer here in Virginia said maybe October was what he heard, but then it's still not listed on the US Guzzi website, so I'd sure like to see one in the flesh as well.

Sounds like you've covered all the basics...as far as the "strength" of the spark, as far as I understand it, 'fat and blue' doesn't neccessarily equal a stronger spark. From what I have gathered on this, modern high energy ignitions produce a visually smaller, weaker looking spark that is actually at a much higher voltage. I guess the point is that if you're getting spark, you're probably fine on that part of the 'big three'. This is, of course, open for correction if incorrect...

Big fan of my Garmin Zumo as well, though I only have the cheaper 200 model. I haven't had problem one with it, and the interface is really user friendly.

I would love to say that it should be obvious, but I have seen it done so, yes- I'm being sarcastic. It should go without saying that any new connections should be soldered (enviro spliced at a minimum) and wrapped in heat shrink, but sound advice for the uninitiated just the same.

Nah, just twisted the ends and wrapped the whole thing in scotch tape.

The filters themselves just clamp to the throttle bodies. The only thing I ran into was dealing with the air temp sensor attached to the air box. I'd read (and originally assumed) that this could be tucked up just anywhere, but it seemed to cause a fair amount of trouble for my bike when exposed to the open air around the motor once warm. (i.e. spitting, coughing, etc.) So the only modification I made was to mount the temp sensor into the back of the right pod, where the bulb got cooler, shaded air. This required lengthening the leads about 8" to reach the pod neatly. Otherwise it was bolt-on. As for the results, I did this in part for asthetics due to a damaged side cover, and it definitley looks the part. Recieved many compliments. Performance seems a little cleaner, with a nice pull at the end, but with all the back and forth on pods vs. stock who knows; not real interested in the numbers. Feels faster, even if a lot of that is added honk from the intake.

Is the stock airbox still in place or did you install pod filters? I had a similar problem after changing to K&N pods, in that the air temp sensor that was protected and fed cooler air via the airbox was now getting hotter air right off the motor. Once I moved it away from the engine's direct heat, all was well again. You can also test this sensor with hot water and a voltmeter set up to check resistance. Good luck and don't get frustrated!

I had avoided the mesh for the lack of protection and I was fine out in Nevada, but after two weeks here in Virginia the humidity finally got to me. Definitely prefer the dry desert summers... Anyway, got a Frank Thomas job that has enough padding/armour to (hopefully) make a difference. My logic is to restrict it's use to in-town only, hoping the lower speeds will offset the flimsy build. Better than a long-sleeveed Harley tee I guess...

I haven't done any research on this yet, but has anyone looked into replacing our tach with one from another bike using the same ECU and just replacing the face plate? Don't know if it's even possible, but the thought crossed my mind on the ride in. Could be an option...any thoughts?

I went through something similar with mine. Turned out the rotor was out of round/off center/whatever and was contacting the stator. Messed everything up, to put it simply. I would take a close look at that and make sure there is no way those two pieces are coming in contact w/ each other. Went through two regulators before finding this problem.

The Buell option is a cheap way to go that looks close to OEM. Looks a little funny at first, but in three days I got over it, and the extra length makes all the difference. As always.

If nothing else it's a very clean look. I like it. I would think that 2 carbs would be better than one for tuning's sake, however.

Agreed. Count me in as well.

Coco Celeste.

This isn't entirely b.s. I used to utilize a space near the exhaust ducts of the H-53 helicopter for cooking burritos on long flights. Worked great!

Agree with all the above. The V11 won't be nearly as Honda smooth as the VFR, but it only takes about 5 miles to figure out how nice of a thing that is. A good riding buddy of mine has a '98 VFR, and after swapping rides for a few miles about six months ago he bugs me about it all the time and is searching for a twin now! Welcome to the forum.

I did this on one side of mine last winter. Harley sells the paint for about $12/can. I chipped off as much of the flaking stuff as possible w/ a flat plastic putty knife and feathered down the rest to get rid of any edges. If you prep the surface properly and follow the temperature recommendations on the can it works pretty well. It's not exactly the same finish, but looks better than it did. I did hear somewhere that Harley also sells a 'Texture' paint (vice 'wrinkle') that might match better.

Try exposing the terminals on the battery cables where they clamp to the cables themselves. Mine were clean at the battery, but corroded all to hell under the shrink wrap. Good luck!

Anyone here going? I'm flying down tomorrow...test rides available I guess, but the website said nothing about Guzzi being there Supposed to be a small vintage bike show as well, so how bad could it be?

I had the exact same thing happen, though I wasn't lucky enough to find either piece. Darn near $200 in parts later, and I learned my lesson. I removed that bolt, forgetting that it need not be removed for a tire change. I then got distracted/hurried during re-assembly and forgot to torque it down. Can't win them all. Glad your's wasn't worse!

This is one of the greatest how-to's I think I have ever read. Kevin Cameron would be proud. Good timing, as well- my tach just crapped out last week. You might be on to something, here!

Very sorry to hear about this. At least you didn't get too banged up out of the deal. The parts will be out there. Once it's fixed, rest easier- the stress and worry of the 'perfect brand new bike' will now be behind you, and you can really start to enjoy that thing!

HWY 49, Outside of Sierraville.

Sounds good. It'll be nice not having to cross 70 miles of desert to get to good riding roads/weather for a change. Again, glad to hear everyone is okay down there.