docc

Hey! Who's bike you callin' a "tin can?"

I thought the entire VIN was pertinent in recall notices. Your "X3" is, I believe the code for "2003" and "M" is "made in Mandello. Greg sees alot of these, so maybe he can straighten us out . . .

I did a cold drain and refilled with normal G-5, made a few runs totaling under 200 miles and warm drain and refill with the G-5 80W-90. Not much pink left and the leak seems more of a seep now; definitely slowed it down. I wish I thought it would keep getting better, but I'm afraid that thinking is far too wishful. Parts order tomorrow. The diagram shows a big o-ring. Suppose that ought to be on hand as well?

Let's do this when snow is on the ground......... No luxury of waiting for snow. I need to have the Sport ready for a serious sport-tour in four weeks where I show the BMW/KTM/Triumph and Honda guys how the Guzzi can hang . . . Or, no . . . Again, these guys are like going for a little hike in the woods. With Army Rangers. I wake up in a cold sweat to ,"Your Guzzi breaks down, we're splittin' up your gear!" :ninja: Then, two weeks later, off to Barber's for the Vintage Festival. Fabulous event and I've thought of taking the (almost) old Honda.

What kind of puller?

Vuzzi, How many total kM on your V11?

Sounds like a plan. When pulling out the pinion, is it best to replace the front seal also?

Greg, I think you're right about the inner seal. It can be changed without removing the outer seal? (I don't really want to do that one again also) The leak certainly seems less with the normal G-5, but it definitely hasn't stopped.

Oh, this hurts. The NEW speedo began to wag wildly more. I discovered both the upper and lower bevel drives were loose and tightened them ( the upper is bound to the back of the speed with two slot screws). Being a rather impatient sort, I filled the cable housing with engine assembly moly lube as well. The stability of the needle was really amazing! Right up to the point where it quit while I was actually watching it at speed! NERTS! Taking it all down, I found the lower bevel drive had stripped a gear. I replaced it with one from my 10 year collection. Tomorrow I'll take it out for a throw. What is the proper grease for those gears (nylon, no)?

I had the exact same problem with mine using Redline. I changed both of the seals and it only stopped the leaking temporarily. I'm guessing your leaks first started only after being on the highway going over 70mph? Then it progressively gets worse from there. Long story short, just use regular gear oil or what the manual calls for. When I drained the redline from my box and put plain gear oil in there the leaking stopped. I'm thinking the redline is just a little too slippery for the rear drive seals. So, I drained the Redline. Twice now. I keep thinking the drizzle gets better. Did yours take a few miles a change or two to "seal?"

Hi, Motocomiot! Lot's of good advice so far (and so fast!). It would be first to consider the Relay 2 ("headlight relay"), but if the headlight and horns work, and the regulator is charging above the battery voltage , it more likely the connector from the headlamp shell across the headset and found under the tank. The stud mounts for the tach can loosen and compromise the ground path. They are quite easy to tighten and anchor with a proper epoxy. Tools may make the man, but a good multi-meter makes the V11 owner!

IMHO better tool control is precisely what Torx is about. Provided you do have a Torx tool of course, and not try using a hex drive that almost fits. None of my Torx T-20 would clear the bottom of the tank. I built a tool for it, but it was fiddly. I learned from someone here on the forum to install simple hex drive fasteners that take a normal ninety degree 3mm Allen key which makes the tightening process much less fiddly for me. Certainly, the capture, or "bite", is much reliable with the Torx. With the exception that the original fasteners for the TPS were quite shallow, as I recall. So many "mapping" issues are inter-related to "tuning" issues. One of the conundra of the FI is the way you can compensate, overcome, or otherwise cover up some shortcoming by tweaking, or cheating, or 'tuning' some other sensor, input, or the map itself. Good, though, I think; better than wire drilling jets and clipping advance springs!

Bo, Are you still using the tiny original hold down screws on the TPS (were they Torx)? It definitely helps to replace them with some more common hex drives. The little bugger still wants to drift, but tool control is improved.

Today's picture (after 260 miles from 'adjusting' the fluid level / downward). Looking closely, I'd swear both seals are leaking. What?

After my second refill with RedLine Shockproof heavy, I'm sure I overfilled the bevel drive as it would weep at the vent from time to time. I'll bet some 50ml hangs inside the drive even draining when hot. Finally, the red mud started appearing on the wheel after parking up. I changed the rear large seal, but the drip persists. Less now and not as bright red. One question is, if the inner seal is leaking does it still show up in the same place as if the large seal has failed? Or did I just install my replacement poorly?

The actual stop are bosses on top of the lower triple clamp that come to rest on a center tab on the lower front of the head tube. I cannot see that it is adjustable in any way. Indeed, the steering damper must be centered to use its full travel. Even with that, I can see that my left fork body just touches the tank in full lock left. Looks like I got me the dreaded tank spread, too.

Looks like your grey relays are Bosch. I don't recognize the black one in the FI position (5). They are labeled on their sides. Be very careful to pull them straight out and push straight back in to avoid damaging the contacts. I suppose it will be less than helpful to have two marked "FI" and two marked "headlamp" and the actual FI relay not marked. I stopped marking the relays themselves and label the tail section adjacent:

I'm not sure we've heard of any pawl spring failures before 2002 or after mid-2003 . . .

Of course, there is always this approach to speedometer repair: (With the full discussion here: "Hey, it's my garage . . . "

No markings on the relay cases?

Fold back the grip and apply penetrating oil and let soak. Any effort to twist off the holding screw has to be held against on the grip itself as the is a junction which would allow the tubular portion of the grip to rotate.

Yes, indeed, the '04 varieties are a quantum leap ahead of the '02 (and the early RedFrames) and, at this point, no more money. I'm looking forward to your comparison with the Ducati . . .

2004 V11 are among the sorted of the breed. You're gonna love this bike! (you're gonna hate this bike!) Seriously, as John Burns once wrote, they " . . . may require some owner involvement . . ." But in a good way. Not like the owner involvement , say, for a washing machine or a lawn mower. More like the involvement you might enjoy with a tango partner. + =

Here's a toast to your sphincter control (and your riding skill!) Some would have gone down with this - 150 feet is a looooonnng slide!

Every bolt I put back into the Sport I at least wire brush the threads, if not chase them with a die, and apply copper anti-seize paste. It just keeps getting better! Early oil cooler brackets were aluminium. The warranty replacements were steel and I've never heard of those breaking. What came off broken? (It could be an indication how much warranty sorting your V11 has had) . . .