GuzziMoto

Thanks for the advice, I am looking for the square case that suits the later model V11 with the IAW15M ecu. I understand there is a scooter and some kind of a car that has this item - just don't know which. I don't know about scooters or cars, but a more then a few Ducati's used the same ECU.

You realize that sweet ride is for sale right now on flea-bay..... http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1973-MOTO-GUZZI-CUSTOM-RADICAL-CHOPPER-/321027172687?pt=US_motorcycles&hash=item4abeb5e94f#ht_500wt_879 I don't care how badly they butcher H-D's, but it always a little sad to see a perfectly good motorcycle get treated like that.

I personally do not like progressive springs and always try to get straight rate springs. It may be hard to find a set of the right dimensions but an Ohlins rep. or RaceTech would be two places to check. You may have to change the length of the preload spacers to suit the new springs as you may have to settle for some that are a little shorter or longer. Along the RaceTech line they offer a gold valve and that may work for you. And for better suspension you possibly could swap to Ohlins internals. I have heard people mention the CBR internals before but as that bike is not known as having great suspension I was never sure why they went that route. I would find a good suspension guy, I have used Stig @PPS, and see what they can do for you. If you upgrade the spring then the valving should be adjusted to match. And just to throw this out there, as I have mentioned before, you can buy a front end from a late model GSXR fairly cheaply and with little more then a bearing swap you have a modern front end including light weight wheel and brakes.

I have a 1999 V11 Sport and replaced the stock rear suspension with a reconditioned S46HR1C1S Ohlins with custom spring, bought from PFP (french representative for Ohlins). It get adjustable compression and rebound hydraulic damping as well as adjustable hydraulic sping preload (very convenient when alterning often one or two up fort short rides). I also replaced the dreadful 40mm Marzo fork with a 43mm Paioli SuperSport UPSD, bought new from the parts department of defunct Voxan factory (the Voxan Cafe-racer used that fork). Fully adjustable for compression and rebound hydraulic damping on each stem. I swap the original springs with stiffer Ohlins springs (1.05 ratio) as the Voxan was lighter that the V11S, with custom machined wheel axle and brake holding plates. These parts are far superior to the original ones, and the result is really effective and pleasant on the little and rought roads where I live (France, Périgord). That sounds cool. I swapped my Daytona over to GSXR forks, along with the brakes and wheels that go with them. Not quite as cool as your set up but very functional ( and it was cheap). What did you do for the wheel and brakes?

How did you close the one hole? I made a plug from I think it was a machine screw. It has been a while I think that is what I used. I cut it down so it was not much more then the head a a fraction of the shaft.

Thanks! That is a good start. Can you say if you lost any power from the bottom end? Thanks again No power lost, just more. The motor pulls hard from 3 grand and just keeps pulling harder. I don't usually get to ride it (it's the wife's bike) but last weekend we went for a ride and while she was riding her Lario I ended up on her V11. I had forgotten how fast it is. And while tuning any motor ain't really cheap I find that the V11 motor is an easy motor to tune and mod. Most of the basic parts are already there, bigger valves, ports, and throttle bodies. Plus there are a fair number (for a Guzzi) of parts made for the motor like high compression pistons and even bigger valves. Yet most parts from the older two valve motors should also fit. Plus, air cooled push rod motors are generally easy to work on (so you can do much of the work yourself) and finally, Guzzi got much of the motor in the ball park but did not finish it out so there is still much to be gained with relatively basic (and cheap) work like setting deck height and squish. I have, not counting the gear drive, less then $2500 (everything including exhaust) in the motor and I got over a 20% increase in power. That is cheap Hp.

My wifes V11 has had some work done on the motor (and the suspension). So far the heads have been ported, the cylinders machined to match deck heights, the heads skimmed to increase squish and compression. It has a oiled cotton air filter, slip-on mufflers, and a Power Commander. I have a set of gears for the cam drive yet to install, and would like to get one of the cross-overs in the future. So far the bike makes about fifteen more Hp then it started with. It wasn't cheap but all in all it was much cheaper then getting that kind of % power increase out of a more modern motor. It is pretty fast, but if some is good more must be better.

I am a fan of G & B. But that bike is ugly. why would someone do that to a Guzzi. I have seen people chopper a Guzzi that looked less ugly then that. Maybe it does not look so bad in person, but I doubt it.

I do not have pictures. I assume you are asking about the fork mods, as the shock was just a matter of calling Michael Himmelsbach at Penske and having them make one for her. The fork mod started as changing the fluid. While I had the fork apart I was checking out how it worked (I am like that). I put the forks back together without the springs in them and was feeling the dampening. When I adjusted the rebound dampening I could feel the change, but when I adjusted the compression dampening I only felt the change on the last inch or so of travel. So I took the forks completely apart and found that there were two large bypass ports that let the fork oil out of the cartridge when the piston moved up meaning that the oil was not forced to go through the valve stack on the piston until it was past the two bypass ports. I closed of one of the bypass ports and could instantly feel a change in the dampening. Now the forks have compression dampening the whole length of travel. There is an increase in compression dampening when the piston passes the one still open bypass port. But except for very slow fork motion at least some of the oil now always has to go through the piston and valving. The result of this is that not only do the forks not have compression dampening but when you adjust the compression adjuster you can now actually feel a change in the motion of the forks. I do not know if all the various models with Marzocchi forks have the same issue. I only know that my wifes red frame V11 had the issue. And that is how I solved it.

I can tell you what we have done to improve the wifes red frame V11. We replaced the rear shock with a Penske unit. Of note here is that the spring rate of the stock shock was not bad. The new shock had almost the same spring rate as the original. I don't know about later V11's but the early ones are not overly undersprung at the rear. The improvements came from better dampening. At the front is another story. The stock spring is a bit soft. But on her red frame bike the biggest issue with the forks was the almost complete lack of compression dampening. I actually had to modify the internals to get them to actually force oil through the piston and valving. As it was stock the compression side did little more then act as a hydraulic bump stop. It only forced oil through the piston and valving at the last inch or so of travel. Picking your preferred suspension guy and sending them the forks and shock is a great idea. There is serious room for improvement. Or you could go with what I did for my Daytona and upgrade the forks with a used set off a GSXR. They are pretty cheap as there are so many out there. The forks bring with them better brakes and a lighter front wheel.

The forks are made by Showa, 99.9% positive the clamps are not. To my knowledge Showa does not make the clamps. Either way the offset and tube spacing are specific to the Guzzi. The Aprilia's that use the same forks have different clamps. Probably made by a local company. They do seem massively strong, and barring a defect in the clamp I reckon it took a massive impact to brake it. That energy may have went elsewhere like into the frame as well

That would certainly scare me away from it unless it was dirt cheap. The amount of force required to do that could have bent the frame, broke engine mounts, or worse. I certainly would not buy that expect to just be able to throw a few parts at it and be done. Maybe it would be that easy, but I certainly would not count on it. They certainly seem to think it is an easy repair. I disagree. Likely they expect too much for it since it is "easily repaired". Their starting price is about the most I would pay. And that would be assuming I could afford to take the risk.

I have fit a V11 rear subframe on a '93 Daytona. Seems a Sport would be easier. It did require making brackets to adapt as the pork chops and upper mounts are different. I made some brackets that bolted to the back side of the pork chops at the 12 and 3 0'clock positions (9 & 12 on the other side) and two pieces of stainless plate attached the upper front mounts of the subframe. I do not have a Sport but it seems to me that it can't be harder then the Daytona. On the other hand, if everyone starts doing it then mine won't be as unique, so no I do not think it can be done.

That dealer is highly spoken of by others from what I have heard. I too prefer the earlier red frame bikes and think that that bike looks good from the pics. My wife has one just like that with 50+k miles. She loves hers. The proof is in the pudding, seeing it in person and riding it are the final say. If/when you go look at it a couple things to check in my experience are.... Does it still have the stock relays or have they been replaced/upgraded. What size tire is on the rear (the rear rim is only 4.5"). How is the charging system voltage. I have twice replaced the R/R on the wife's V11.

I believe carbs are better than FI because of MY real world experience. I've put over 250k miles on various Guzi's and Ducatis and I have NEVER had one with inj that was better on gas mileage than the ones I've had with carbs. I'm not trying to be smart or anything but when you get into combustion design CR etc your not listening to me I'm comparing one Guzzi to another therefore same engine design. The question is Why does the V11 get worse mileage than a similar designed older Guzzi w/carbs or a newer Breva with a differnet model injection. And you can't play the weight card because they are similar with the Breva actually being the heaviest and as far as right hand action is concerned I ride all my bikes the same and I am caomparing my results on all bikes not somebody else that rides completely different than I do. I AM listening to you. And I am trying to point out that differences in cams, compression, port, and valves, can affect the mpg. Other then the basic engine layout (and block casting) there is little in common between the V11sport and the Guzzi's of old. While you probably could put some of the V11's parts in a earlier Guzzi big block they do not share much parts from the factory. The V11 sport motor is a much more aggressive tune (by Guzzi standards) then the older motors. They do not share cams, compression ratio, valves, or much of anything else, with the older motors. All FI does is what it is told to do. It alone does not get you better or worse mpg. It does have the potential to get better mileage, but again, it depends on the guy programming it. The state of tune of the other components, the cams, etc. as mentioned along with gearing, are what determine the fuel efficiency of the motor.

The wifes V11 gets about 40 mpg or so. Not sure why you get such bad mileage. You could just let the stock ECU continue to run the ignition and disconnect the injection side of them. I would not think it would be a problem. Then you could install carbs, but why you think you can get better mileage with carbs I do not know. I would either get a Power Commander and tune the bike as best you can or better yet get on of Cliff's MyECU's and really tune the bike. But there are a few reasons for the mileage and fueling is only one of them. Other factors would include port and valve configuration as well as compression ratio and combustion chamber design. Also there is cams, valve lift and overlap.

If the vent line between the fitting on the top of the frame and the air box is missing then it would not create a positive pressure in your crank cases but it would create an air leak allowing unfiltered air into your air box. It would also let dirt into your crank cases and contaminate your oil. If the line is missing and both ends are capped off (or just the fitting on the frame is capped off) then it would create positive pressure in your crank cases and could/would cause an oil leak. So please clarify, what do you mean by "missing". You may want to post this in your original thread. If the vent line from the back of the motor to the underside of the frame behind the steering head is missing or not on securely then that will cause an external oil leak that can appear to be coming from the rear main seal and it can get oil on your clutch.

If it was on a Japanese bike I would suggest that the designer was taking advantage of various acoustic principles to achieve better noise cancellation and flow. But on a Guzzi I suspect the designer thought it looked cool as mentioned. The size is a question of muffling capability, but the dual outputs......looks.

Todd over at GuzziTech sells RossoPuro. He would be someone in the US. http://forum.guzzitech.com/store/product/cid-115.html

My Griso, an '07 2 valver, has the right side exhaust from Todd as pictured above. It looks perfect. From everything I have heard about the 8 valve motor it is not well designed in the cam timing aspect and does not respond to a free breathing exhaust like other motors do. What ever exhaust you go with I would suggest that you employ a restrictor/db killer of some sort. Todd offers one for his exhausts I believe, most others offer one as well. But the only right side exhaust I know of is Todd's. I don't know why they would not be more common as it suits the bike well. Also, you may need to adjust fueling to make it work well enough. But that depends on the exhaust, the bike, and your standards for how well a bike should run. Guzzi's are notoriously different, bike to bike. What works well on one bike may not work well on another. Some of that is down to the standards of the person, but I believe some of that is the bike as I have ridden multiple Griso's and they have all been different. Mine had a pinging issue from the start which required some fuel adjustments (read $$$) to resolve, others did not have the issue. I never understand the windshield thing, though. Unless you are looking for the little Guzzi fly screen I can't help you there. Mine has the little Guzzi fly screen that keeps bugs off the instrument cluster, that is all it needs. I can ride the bike that way as fast as it will go. No issues. Oh well......

If the oil is dripping from the front of the gearbox/back of the engine it could be at least three different issues. I would try to determine if you are leaking gear oil or engine oil as that would narrow down the issue. First is the oil breather, which is near the top of the gearbox engine connection. If the rubber hose is cracked or not securely clamped to the metal fitting at the back of the motor it can leak. That leak often runs down between the gearbox and motor and comes out the vent hole in the clutch housing at the front of the gearbox. Second leak source would be the output seal at the back of the motor where the engine output shaft comes out of the block. There is a seal there and it could leak. Third source could be the gearbox input shaft seal. If that leaks the oil would have the smell of gear oil (usually rotten eggs). There are other potential leaks near there, but those are the most likely three in my opinion to result in a drip at the junction between the engine and gearbox. It is a dry clutch and there should not be any oil there. Fixing it depends on the source of the oil. The breather issue is easy to do with the motor and gearbox in place. The other two usually result in either the motor, gearbox, or both, being pulled. It is not that hard to do, but first you need to figure out what type of oil is leaking (when I had a similar leak I replaced the gearbox oil with Royal Purple gear oil which is purple, or you could add some dye, or go by smell). Then try to find the source. Cleaning the area well then applying a coating of baby powder, which will make it easier to trace the source of the oil.

I do not remember what they charged. I had Art replace all the bearings and seals while he was in there and that probably added to the cost. But while I don't recall the total amount I did not seem to think it was too much. I also had him upgrade the bearings but if you are doing a six speed box I don't think they have the same plastic bearing cage. If it does I would replace them with steel cage versions.

Art @ Europa Macchina rebuilt my gearbox. He did a great job, it shifts very well. I had him replace some of the internals with parts from a later box to end up with a hybrid box. Art seems like a good mechanic, not only did he have no issues with the hybrid swap he had suggestions of his own on how to make it better. I don't know where you are but they are in central Pa.

Since the one we have has had zero problems, all I can say is what I have heard. And that was that the valve heads can break off the valve stems. This has been blamed on Guzzi using the same valve springs they used for two valve heads on the smaller 4 valve heads. Is that true? I do not know. But it is what I have heard. As I said, ours has not had any problems yet, although if that is true then when you do have a problem it will be fairly serious and require a good bit of money and time to repair. I have thought about doing the valve spring swap as a preventative measure but the other factor seems to be people who rev'd the motor out a lot and ours so far lives a relaxed street bike life. It does get rev'd out but not on a regular basis and it certainly does not live there.

I don't know. But the wife has a 4 valve head Lario that has not blown up yet (about 10k miles on it). Plus the bad rep seems to be from using springs that are too stiff and if you are worried it should be fairly easy to replace them with softer springs.