rocker59

...I tried something new and different this weekend. I was invited to participate in a 24-hour endurance rally here in Arkansas put on by some IBA-types. The Nero Corsa got quite a workout... Here's a report of my experience. My first competitive road rally. Exitus Acta Probat, baby!!! Part One: Any of you in this part of the country, or any of you watching the weather channel this weekend, will know how nasty the weather turned out! Well, I was bound and determined to make a decent showing in my 1st 24-hour event. I felt kind of obligated, seeing as this is my home State and I would be riding the only Moto Guzzi, my trusty Nero Corsa... This is what I did: SPANK 2009, Arkansas Edition. (George is known for putting on great rallies!) This was rally HQ: The Arlington Hotel (a historic landmark in Hot Springs, Arkansas.) Rally check-in and tech inspection was set for 5pm Friday. Hotel check-in was 3pm. I had originally planned on departing the house around 11am and making a leisurely 4-hour ride down to Hot Springs. Well, when I awoke on Friday morning and turned on the weather channel and pulled up the radar on my computer, I was shocked at the HUGE severe thunderstrom heading towards NW Arkansas from the Tulsa area. I immediately finished loading my bike and geared up. The sky was greenish, it was very humid, and I could hear thunder off to the West. Luckily, I was going be pointed southeast, so I thought I would be able to stay ahead of the storm. Quickly, I geared up and departed home about 9am. My Route to Hot Springs included highways AR-16, AR-23, AR-309, AR-10, and AR-7. Pure two-lane Arkansas bliss! Click the link to see the map. route to the rally map Rain gear was not required on the ride down to rally HQ, but there was plenty of fog on "The Pig Trail" (highway 23) and on top of Mount Magazine (highway 309). Arrival in Hot Springs was at about 12:15, too early to check in, so I stopped for a bite to eat just down the street. Central Avenue in Hot Springs. Bathhouses on the right. The Arlington straight ahead: Magnolia's is just down the street from The Arlington and served me up a nice patty melt on marbled rye bread:

It would take $8k to get me interested in selling my Nero Corsa. There were only about 50-each of the Rosso and the Nero Corsas brought to North America... They are rare even by Guzzi standards. Brake pads is not biggie. All the ITI speedos fail, and there are fixes for that. You don't know for sure if the steering damper was a problem... Minor issues for a beautiful and rare Moto Guzzi... Buy one... You will love it... I've ridden mine all over the country and have enjoyed every mile. Look in the ride reports section for my posts... You will see what I mean...

Like many of these creations, I'm guessing an 850-T3 with an ali tank from The Tank Shop. http://www.thetankshop.com/

4500 miles in two weeks. Here's the ride report: http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=8941 I always put on a fresh set of tires, in this case Metzeler Z6 Roadtec, and put in fresh fluids before the trip. I carry basic tools with me, as well as a plug kit and air pump. No spares, though...

What rpm were you turning? That will be the tell...

Yes, they do!

Cool pipes. Are they slipons? Who stocks 'em in the USA? How much $$$ ?

Does anyone actually run moly in the modern bevel boxes? I've never run it on either my Sport 1100 or my Nero Corsa.

you could always drill your upper triple clamp and add a bar clamp and standard tubular bars. real sano, and you'd have lots of choices of bar bends.

I guess your dealer hasn't replaced many speedometers. They all come with a knob that is too big. Epoxy is the way to attach the supplied knob. What do you mean, "resolved the correct way"? Where did your dealer source the correct size knob?

Sidi has been making boots for a long time. I suppose it's entirely possible for the BMW boots to be made by Sidi. The Sidi you've pictured is the "Discovery". It's considered an "off road" boot and is waterproof... They make nice stuff!

I'm running the Keihin FCR41s on my '96 carb Sport 1100. Bought 'em in a kit from SUDCO here in the USA. The kit was good. Really all I had to do was richen up the idle mixture and it runs pretty darned good. The cables weren't quite the right lengths, but they worked out. The switch to the FCRs instantly changed the bike. Better throttle response, lighter throttle pull, better fuel economy. No chokes, but I've not really missed 'em...

The way I see it is Millepercento went and stuck a Big Bore kit on a Griso. All they've done is get factory permission to market them through the existing Guzzi dealer network. Sorta like Stillen or Rousch or whoever selling hotrod Mustangs at Ford dealerships.

I'm pretty sure the upcoming 1400cc factory engine will be based on the 8v. Piaggio was saying there would be an 850, 1200, and 1400 8v family...

http://www.mphcycles.com/Accessories_New/B...sers/Risers.htm

This is not a "factory effort". Millepercento is a hotrod shop. The "Big Bore" engine has been around for quite sometime. In fact, Guaro's MGS-01 was running one at Daytona last Spring...

Don't know. Not many. US imports were reportedly about 50 for the Rosso Corsa. Same for the Nero Corsa and Coppa Italia in 2004... Nice bike you've got listed on Ebay, but overpriced about two grand... Rare, valuable, and desireable are not necessarily mutually inclusive. Good luck with it...

I'm not sure I know what the endgame is here. Do you want an LED light because you don't like bulbs? Do you just want something different from stock? Search "DUCATI MONSTER TAILLIGHT" on Ebay and you'll find LED versions of the stock taillight that the V11 shares with the Ducati...

Yeah. I think it's a traction issue. Either old tires or dirty pavement, or both.

I think he's referring to the forks going to the steering stops during a tank-slapper, ie "full lock"... From the OP: "suddenly the front wheel locked and I got a immediate left-hand tank slapper and ended on the ground. It was on a bit of a wet surface so I blamed it on this, although it felt weird. Just the front wheel broke the traction a bit fast. Anyway, repaired the broken shifter and continued riding. Not much other damage, no apparent fork problem, no weird handling afterwards. Accident no 2: Riding at some 30mph, when I saw someone at distance crossing my path, start braking, again no emergency, dry conditions, perfect surface. I got a very quick, again left-hand tank slapper and low-sided, this time with a bit more damage to the bike and myself. THis was very surprising since it should absolutely not happen"

What have I said that is BS ?

No worries... The front brakes on your V11 are a very simple dual disk Brembo setup. If the trouble is with the brakes, tracing the problem should be a no-brainer. Do you have a front stand ??? Checking the calipers and the master cylinder should take just a few minutes. I never said "use the rear brake only" at 30mph speeds. I'm not doubting that you've ridden for a long time, however, I do question your technique when you reiterate that you don't use your rear brake at slow speeds. Most of the slow-speed crashes I've witnessed over the years in stop-and-go traffic and in parking lots/gas stations have been the result of the rider NOT USING the rear brake. The Guzzi is not the Ducati. I have a Sport 1100 that I've owned for 12 years. I know the bikes well. If you're locking the front wheel at slow speeds, you're either riding on old tires, riding on dirty pavement, and using too much front brake while not using enough rear brake, or all of the above... Good luck with it. Now that the bike has been down twice, you need to check the transmission case for cracks. A very common thing on these bikes after a crash...

Not using the rear brake at speeds below 30mph is a sure way to eat pavement...

I call BS on the brakes making the bike pull to one side. If this was so, bikes with single disk front brakes would be unrideable... There MAY be a problem with one of the calipers causing the brakes to drag, heat up, lock up. That's different from causing it to pull one way or the other. There could also be a problem with the front master cylinder's adjustment. I'm with Ratchet. I would check the date code on the tires and discard them if they're more than a couple years old. I would also confirm that they're inflated to factory specs. 32 front 35 rear. This sounds like over-use of the front brake at slow speeds to me. In slow stop and go traffic, in parking lots, etc. I favor the rear brake so as to avoid these kinds of crashes...

Yes. There are a combination of factors. The BMWs have 4valve heads, modern combustion chambers, and closed loop efi. I can tell you that on a trip last year, loaded and travelling at the same highway speeds, my friend on his 2007 model XL50 1200cc Sportster returned 10mpg better than I did on my Nero Cosa. He was seeing 47mpg and I was seeing 37mpg.