al_roethlisberger

I agree.... while I love my bike, as I've noted a couple times(at least) on this forum... I am very disappointed with: - Q/A from the factory - Fit/Finish - Component Failures - Warrantee Support ...on a 21st century bike?! I know it's a 20th century design, but come one guys! Now, I went into this bike purchase with my "eyes open" after doing quite a bit of research, so I more-or-less knew what I was getting into. I'm still glad I bought my bike, but sometimes I feel like I'm getting nibbled to death by these little problems, not knowing when the next one will show up. Heck, I would have preferred one MAJOR issue, as opposed to the random little ones. ...right now, I too have developed a slow, very slow, but still noticeable(I can smell it, and see the burnt oil on top of the x-over) leak in the same region we are describing in this thread. Good grief, and I *just* had it in the shop for it's 1000 mile service a few weeks back! *thinking*... I wonder if they overfilled the oil. Since my shop is about a 45 minute ride in heavy traffic away, I don't relish having to take the bike up there again, when I just was up there a few weeks ago for it's service, then again a week later to get it re-tuned as it wouldn't even idle. And then there's the issue of waiting 3+ months, and counting, for warrantee parts.... UGH! Sorry for the rant guys .... but Aprillia and Guzzi had better pull their head out of... well, you know... or no matter how snazzy a new "Technocustom" proto-bike looks at a fashion-show or how cool the colors are on "this years model" ... the rank & file riders out there will hear the reality on the grapevine and start to look elsewhere for reliable bikes. Character and panache will only get you so far... especially when that character breaks down or gives you a headache every few 100 miles. ...and that would be a shame, as I'd like to see Guzzi succeed. I guess I'll have my leak addressed this Fall, when I do my next major "whatever" that needs the shop... unless the leak gets worse that is al

John, Thanks for the great photos... If I didn't have a faired V11.... I'd definitely look into the modified Napoleans mounted on the brake lever. That looks really slick, and with my need/requirment for my Throttlemeisters, and issues with bar-end mirrors and lane-splitting here CA... this alternative mounting location is a great option! ...and it looks really slick too Thanks again. al

John, ...nope, no real "tips" other than to take your time. The plastic and finish on the body panels of the LeMans/Sport seems quite soft, so be careful when you unbolt the panels so that they don't fall. And take care to put them somewhere out of the way so they don't get damaged. I've heard, but not confirmed, that to replace the whole fairing is about $1200USD!! I will say that upon reassembly, you'll have to figure out which parts you should bolt-up first, and this will depend on your dexterity, and flexibility... as well as the size of your hands! I found that installing one "side", then the "chin", then the other "side", then finally the "top" worked out well for me. After I bolted most of it together, I then had to re-loosen a couple things to get the gaps between the pieces fairly even. But after a few minutes, it turned out great. I did find that removing the "dash" (behind the guages) required unbolting the gauges/bracket to avoid scratching anything though. It was "possible" to get it out without doing so, but I didn't want to tear anything up or scratch the finish. OH, and I used "medium" loctite on everything So far... *knocking on wood"... everything has stayed tight! al

Hi John, Well, it's actually quite easy, although I'll have to do this from memory. In a nutshell, no you don't have to do any major surgery, including removing the fuel-tank, to remove the evaporative/charcoal/emissions cannister. In past V11 Sport applications, the cannisters were located under the seat, in the tool-tray area. This was a rather unfortunate location for those of us in States/Countries where this emission equipment was required. But recent V11 Sport/LeMans/Scura's have relocated what were the dual cannisters under the seat, to a single cannister located between/under the the front of the rear tire/swingarm pivot/exhaust-x-over. Looking at a newer V11 from the side, you can see the black plastic cannister mounted in it's nickle-plate frame and kooky wire-tie hold-downs with the bracket. Although this is certainly a more convenient location than under the seat, and we now have our tool-tray back.... the new location is less than attractive, and seems sorta kludgey. So.... enough with the history. How does/why does, it work? Well, you have a vent hose from the tank that goes down to the cannister. The cannister is supplied vacuum from the intake manifold/throttle-bodies. With the vacuum applied to the cannister/tank(via the vent line), gasoline vapors are reclaimed into the cannister, then sucked into the intake to be combusted, instead of vented directly to the atmosphere via your fuel-tank cap. Oh, and for the extra fuel that ends up condensing inside the cannister, there is an overflow/drain tube that drains to the pavement(make sure it doesn't drain onto your exhaust x-over.... potential fire hazard there). OK, now back to the original question... how to remove this thing. Easy, unbolt it, rip out the vacuum lines to the manifolds, cap the nipples with vacuum caps(or run a balance line between the two), and route the vent line from the tank under the bike, to vent/drain to the ground It really is that simple! Longer story.... well, the cannister's goofy "afterthought of a mouting bracket" is bolted in-line with the rubber grommet/bushing assembly that holds the OEM exhaust x-over in place. Unbolt that assembly, and remove the bracket holding the cannister. This bracket is attached to the U-shaped silver bracket holding the x-over with two bolts if I remember correctly. At this point, I just cut the vent line and vacuum lines from the cannister, so I could leave the clamps on the cannister in case I ever wanted to put it back on... don't know why I would though. Once you have the cannister physically unbolted from the exhaust x-over bracket, and cut/removed from the vacuum and vent lines... it should just come right off. You're done with that part now. Either toss it, or do as I did and put it in the "OEM LeMans Parts Bin" that I have started to amass Now, you have two choices with the vacuum line as I mentioned. You can do as I did and just pull the 3-way line out of the bike entirely, and then cap the vacuum nipples on the throttle body with rubber vacuum caps, or you can run one vacuum line between them... although I don't know why one would. It shouldn't matter either way, and my capping the nipples hasn't had any adverse effects. Finally, you are left with the vent line from the tank. Since bikes with the emissions cannisters have caps that don't vent, this line is still essential. Occassionally you will have gasoline vapor, and potentially some liquid fuel escape via this hose. So, I simply moved/rerouted the line forward a bit and lashed it to one of the oil-line fittings. It now drains/vents directly to the ground without any risk of venting/leaking onto my exhaust. That's it.... Now one final point. Other than aesthetics, this modification will/should in no way affect the performance of your bike.... good or ill. If you remove the cannister and things don't run right, you've probably got a vacuum leak and/or pinched/plugged-up your vent line. Either condition could make the engine run poorly. However, if you did everything right, you shouldn't notice anything "better" either, other than you've saved about 2 pounds of weight Well, hope that helps... al

Thanks Jeff ...and yep, I remember you and your bike well! It was great to meet you, ans see another LeMans on the road. It's actually the first "red" LeMans I've seen on the road .... OK, well in fact it's the first *ANY* LeMans I've seen on the road!! But regarding the cans, I'm still on the fence regarding the Ti versus Carbon Leo's though. My friend has the Ti can on her Honda F4, and it was parked right beside my bike today. I gave it a long look, and tried to imagine it on the bike... and it seemed a good match to the silver of the cylinders, etc. But of course, the Carbon units look good too. But hey, since I don't plan on buying them until Winter, I get plenty of time to ponder Now, if I can just get someone who has both the Carbon and someone who has the Ti cans installed to send/post some photos. Actually, Jeff, do you have any photos of your bike with the Carbon cans you can send me? Maybe I can photo-shop doctor them to get a better idea. Dunno.... And BTW, the fit/finish of the Carbon Leo's was great, as was the mounting hardware, which matters a great deal... so many aftermarket items are such kludges. I was very impressed. ...oh yeah, and they sounded good too al

To me the other major incentive to move to aftermarket pipes, would be to minimize the uneven placement of the OEM mufflers. As I'm sure all of you with bikes with the 5.5 inch rear rim have noticed, the right muffler had to be kicked out even further than before, and from the rear it is very obvious that the pipes are not evenly spaced... looking a bit odd. For some people this may not be a big deal, and in fact may "build character" ... and that's OK... But for me, being a bit anal ... it bugs the snot outta me! So, I've noticed that with some of the aftermarket units, this is minimized, and is much less noticeable. With the Leo Vince units, it was nearly unnoticeable. Of course, to be fair, I'm sure I could fashion something to fix it a bit with the stock cans as well... dunno ...anyway, sound, performance, and aesthetics are what are driving me... especially since my stockers are already turning purple BTW, I've also heard that the OEM units are quite a bit heavier than the aftermarket. Has anyone verified this? al

Well, took my first longish highway trip this last weekend to Yosemite, as well as around other various mountain passes and deserts in Northern California.... about 1000 miles. So, as soon as my trip took me out of the traffic of the cities, my mileage rapidly climbed beyond the 35-37MPG I am getting around town. After completing the trip, I found that I averaged a little greater than 43MPG!! On a couple cases I even got 48 and 49 per tank! Wow So, while Ivan's point about highway versus city traffic is fairly obvious, I was honestly fairly shocked this evening when I sat down and did the math, as I hadn't been keeping track of the actual MPG over the trip... just filling up every 100 or so miles when it was convenient. So.... I guess I can get my 'magic' 40 without a problem on a trip after all! ....heck, maybe it'll even get better once the engine is broken-in al And no, I still haven't done my run-dry test...

So, what do you think of the fit/finish of the hugger then? The photos look pretty good How do you think it compares with the quality/finish of say, the carbon instrument panel? I find that the finish and depth of the clear-coat/resin on the instrument panel on the Scura/LeMans is very very good, and quite classy.... but often, many aftermarket carbon items seem to skimp on this, and the finish rapidly deteriorates in the Sun, etc... how does the hugger compare in this respect? The reason I ask such a particular question is that I would like the hugger to more-or-less match the stock/OEM carbon items like the instrument panel.... Anyway, thanks so much for the photos, and I'll be very interested to hear your detailed review and thoughts on the hugger! al

Well, now I can officially join the "vapor lock" club... and as if I weren't convinced before(I was)... I am 100% convinced now that this is totally a heat-related issue with the fuel-line/pump after riding in very hot conditions and not quite giving the bike enough time to fully radiate the heat away.... causing the heat to "soak" into the pump/line as the heads radiate. Scenario: This weekend, we took a ride up to Yosemite, and up at Glacier Point(~4000ft elevation) after climbing the mountains in ~100F degree weather, we stopped for about 20 minutes to take-in the view. Upon returning to my bike, I tried to start it, and although it fired off at first, it stumbled badly then quit, and I could hear the fuel-pump whirring a bit too much with the engine eventually dying. Keeping in mind that I tried this several times over the next 10 minutes, and that the bike had been running extremely well all day, and it was hot as "heck" outside.... I figured this must be the "vapor lock" issue. So, since I knew it was cooler down the road in the trees, and if I could get some air flowing over the engine it would cool down more quickly, I just sent the rest of the group ahead and then coasted down the mountain for about 100 yards, and VROOM... it started right up! But what's also interesting is that the following day we rode in some slightly warmer weather, stopped nowhere near shade (were in the desert), left the bike to sit an even shorter time, but I never encountered this problem again?? I can only guess that a combination of heat and altitude/low-atsmospheric-pressure conspired to make this happen, and it was pretty mild as the bike "almost" ran.... just not quite. So maybe my efforts to move the lines further away from the heads, etc... have helped, but extreme conditions make it slightly vulnerable. Anyway, so, it's not something I'm too terribly worried about as it never happened again, and isn't anything permanently disabling, but I might entertain making a heat-sheild for the pump this Winter when I work on a few other projects. ...oh, and completely as an aside, after putting on 1000+ miles in two days, I've really grown to appreciate that "pad" on top of the LeMans tank al

...one thing TO consider about aftermarket pipes and whether or not to keep/preserve the OEM units... Believe it or not, if you ever want to do some "track days" and take courses, some tracks do not allow aftermarket or modified cans(over 80-90db). Case in point, Laguna Seca here in CA, which has 2 days of the year that allow "race cans"...that's it. So, if your dream track or perfect instructional course happens to be one of these types of tracks, you'll need to be able to return your exhausts to stock to ride the track. It depends on the track and other factors of course, and it's not a big enough deal to dictate your decision, but just something to be aware of... al

Jim, Is this the carbon hugger from MG? I'd love to see several photos of it installed, as the photos on-line leave much to be desired. ...am particularly interested hear about the fit/finish of the unit compared to the admittedly heavy/beefy, but durable, OEM hugger. al

Geez, I'm still lucky to get 36MPG, and ~130miles when the low-fuel light comes on *grumble* But then again, I am still only at about 1100miles, sooooo I had the 1000mile service done a few weeks back, and maybe some things are tight, but the idle is now a bit low, and it "coughs" every so often when hot at about 3kRPM, and stumbles from a stop now. So I'm riding up to Moto Italia tomorrow where they've offered to put it on the computer and readjust everything again for free for me on the spot. I think the tune is just a bit off after the valve adj, etc. But I'll probably get the x-over, exhausts, and maybe a PC later this year... so much of this will probably get addressed then. But for now, I want to avoid any major changes for a while and let the bike sort itself out mostly stock first.... then I can really notice any changes once aftermarket parts are applied. Plus I don't want any more "downtime" than necessarly while in prime riding weather Hopefully though, as I get another 1 or 2k miles on the bike, mileage will improve. That seems to be everyone's theory, but I am still quite shocked with some folks' high 30's and 40+ MPG figures from the start... It's so strange that there is such a variation from bike to bike, even stock. al

Yeah, I have pretty much set my heart on the Leo Vince mufflers as well, but am on the fence regarding the Ti or CF ones. This is purely an aesthetic issue at this point, although I "guess" the CF ones would be a tad more susceptable to damage from passengers, etc... I think that even though there is a lot of black on the LeMans, including the original cans, either the Ti or CF units would look great. But am unsure. Anyone have any photos of both the CF and Ti exhausts installed on a LeMans? I especially would like to see what the "silver" Ti cans look like on a LeMans, as I can already sorta guess the CF's by looking at my own bike with the stock black LaFranconi's thx al

In a similar vein... I'm thinking about getting my heads ported by Rich Maund(Cooked Goose sponsor) this winter, and now am wondering if dual-plugging the heads will make any difference... I don't currently have any issues with pinging, but I'll have to ask him his thoughts. I've read a bit about it, and there are certainly different schools. Anyone have any experience with the benefits or otherwise with dual-plugging the heads on a V11 or similar? I guess I'd have to track down new coils too... I wonder if there are any ECU dependencies as well...hrmm al

I think this is the common "Vapor Lock" issue reported on many 2000 V11 Sports, and some later models in hot climates. There have been several causes attributed, but most folks have found that the fuel supply line on the 2000s rests too close to the left head(sometimes touching), and after a long ride, then sitting, the fuel boils in the line making the pump ineffectual until the bike/head cools down. The fix?? ...let the bike stand for 15-30 minutes to cool..... or a precautionary tactic.... move/mount/shield the fuel-line away from the head. The 2000+ bikes have the line covered in a metal braid, and installed a couple inches away. I moved my lines further away on my 2002, both on the fuel supply and FI return line, and so far(knock on wood) no "Vapor Lock". The other big known issues with the 2000 models are certainly replacing the relays. One final suspect on pre-2003 V11 Sport/LeMans is the fuel pump that is located above the left head. This is also exposed to some significant heat, although it is several inches away. Several folks have mentioned and thought about making a heat-sheild for it, but no one has yet confirmed that this problem is actually caused by overheating the pump/fuel, where some people have seem benefits from moving/shielding their fuel supply line. Certainly a well-made aluminum sheid for the pump "wouldn't hurt" though The 2003's will have an in-tank pump, so this should be a non-issue for them. ...as an aside, I wonder how much fuel capacity will be lost with the in-tank pump on the 2003's... hrmm... I think Guzzi would really do the LeMans a favor if they could squeeze another useable gallon out of the tank. al P.S. ...oh, and as another "aside" since I'm thinking about fuel. I wonder why (and if it would be hard) Guzzi didn't include some sort of "balance tube" for the tank so we wouldn't waste fuel or have to "wiggle" the bike to get to fuel stuck on the right side of the frame/tank over to the left where the petcock/tap is. Seems silly. I wonder how hard it would be to pierce the tank and make one yourself... that is reliable and durable that is... esp given that the tank it plastic. Dunno if it would even be worth doing. P.P.S. .......ok, and one more "aside". I still haven't done my "run dry" test yet.... I know, I know... been talking about for months But, anyone have any reliable data yet on how much fuel is left(Gallons/Liters) after our low-fuel light comes on? I think we all agree that ~130 miles is where it lights, but as far as I know, none of us know for sure how much fuel is actually available after that. Again, I'll be testing it personally at some point, but I just keep forgetting! My mileage has gotten a bit better, and is in the 36-37MPG range now instead of pegged at 35. I guess the engine is loosening up I still want 40 though!

Also, I believe that Ian was compiling a list of known issues. It's somewhere in the threads in this forum, and may make a good checklist of things to be aware of when considering before purchase, or addressing after. But I'd definitely recommend a test-ride if possible as well... a good long one if the dealer doesn't mind. The Triple is a different ride than the Guzzi... not better, not worse, just different al

Ha... mine was even more of a pain that that. Even if you held the end, my whole assembly inside still turned and wouldn't come out! I had to turn, pull, turn, pull... then when enough of the "nut" under the plastic end showed, I could get a wrench in there to grab it. Royal PITA But with my Throttlemeisters one now, no problemo al

Yep, also check out The Tankslapper ...same stuff. They have ready-made pieces for the V11 Sport/LeMans or full sheets you can customize, which is what I did The Tankslapper al

...hrmm, she must have been reading over your shoulder eh Jaap? al

Those do look nice, and certainly for more "light weight" luggage needs. Would be great for a day-trip or similar. I'm still waiting for my Tekno's though. I just got off the phone with the dealer, and they still haven't received that "big order" they've been told by Guzzi should be here any day now.... been saying that for a couple weeks *grumble* Well, I'll give them until Tues or Wed, then I'm getting them direct from Tekno. They've offered me a good price to compensate for my inconvenience, although by the time I factor in relatively quick shipping, the price is about the same Neat bags though. Can you provide a URL to who sells them, which model, and the cost? thx! al

...yeah... yeah.... yeah.... *laugh* My dealer has been telling me that "the big order" was everything from "on the water" to "should be here any day"... for about a month. I don't think it's his fault though. I think this is just what Guzzi keeps telling him every time he inquires. I am certain that I am not the only customer waiting for parts, so he bugs them frequently. ...but, good news if true. I'm still waiting on my bags since May. al

Reflectors and lenses for LED applications are quite different than for incandescent bulbs. As mentioned, LED don't have much off-axis visibility, so a reflector and lens has to be designed to accomodate that. In every case where I have replaced incandescent bulbs with LEDs, the result was that the LEDs were a bit brighter/redder sometimes "on-axis", but they were *always* less bright and visible from the side. Unless you make some modifications to the lens and reflector of a light fixture designed for incandescents, you will have this issue with the current crop of LED replacements. Another side effect to be aware of is when one replaces all the indicator lights with LEDS, they often will no longer flash at the appropriate speed. Generally because of the much lower impedence of the LEDs, the flasher will flash much more quickly... quite annoyingly actually(although fully electronic units like the Signalminder are unaffected). For a lot more info on this, there are several long discussions on the FZ-1(Fazer1000) Owners Assoc forum on EZBoard. There is a fella there that did a lot of research into which flashers will replace the OEM units, and support LEDs. He also has spent about a year with various prototypes to build an enclosure, reflector, and lens that will make the LED replacements have the same off-axis visibility as the OEM units. Interesting reading, that illustrates that a true LED replacement is no trivial or inexpensive task. I just stick with the bulbs... as LEDs do "burn out" all the time. It's just not the same cause. al

It's the vapor-recovery charcoal cannister. Hey, just be grateful that Aprilia/Guzzi relocated it from under the seat(in the tool tray on 2000 V11s) to the new space above the exhaust cross-over But, yep... that was on my bike for almost exactly 48 hours I have removed them from just about any bike I've ever had, but honestly for me it was just to simplify all the morass of hoses and tangle. Just more places for vacuum leaks. But, removing the cannister doesn't do anything for performance in any way, except maybe saving a couple pounds/kilos. Once you remove the cannister, you can either do what I did, just cap off the vacuum nipples on the intakes, or just run a "balance" hose between them. No difference either way. I did think it was pretty ugly hanging under there though... so that's a benefit in my eyes! al

... great idea Jaap! I was also thinking of a FAQ section as well to host topics such as aftermarket products, common problems, etc. So when someone logs on for the first time, they don't have to ask "..what aftermarket exhausts are available for the LeMans?" And instead, they can just look for the "Aftermarket Exhaust FAQ" thread. I suppose we could either have another forum for FAQs, or just have those threads in here?? Either way is fine. Just a thought. al BTW, I've been spending waaaay too many hours playing "Neverwinter Nights"... hence the volume of my posts have suffered lately *laugh*

Yep, they're basically TLM's American counterpart. TLM has a link to them from their main site for North America al