GuzziMoto

I bought a couple of kits from Cliff recently (but have not had time to build them, hopefully over the winter). He seems very on top of things and it seems that it is more of a case of the Factory trying to catch up to him. His ECU seems better then the factory units in that they are more adjustable. I have never heard negative stuff about cliff and his product.

I mounted an Acewell tach/speedo combo gauge on my Daytona. It is not perfect but it does work well. I like that it is small and compact, replacing two large gauges with one small one. It also has temp sensors and a clock. If you are in the US the best place to get one, though, is from the UK. No one in the US stocks the right version for the Guzzi and it is cheaper from the UK anyway.

I did not hear Ducati running V4's in anything other then the Desmosedeci, which while they did/do sell a couple it is not a real production Ducati. Aprilia have moved to a V4 and it sounds cool. I would be happy if Guzzi built a sideways V4 with water cooling and 4vpc. But if they rebadge an Aprilia as a Guzzi I think that would be the beginning of the end.

This is a slippery subject in the USA. But here are a couple observations.... Years ago I used Shell Fuel in my dirt bike and a friend used another brand in his (same bike). Mine would always start (kick start) and his was hard to start. I told him to try Shell, he did and with Shell fuel his would start just as easily as mine. While the base stock of gasoline in this country does not really vary from brand to brand (fungible) the additive blend can and does vary. It can vary from brand to brand, summer to winter, and area to area (sometimes those areas are very close to each other). Also, fresh fuel from a station that goes through a lot of gas is better then old fuel from a station that does not. And sometimes there is water or other contaminants in a stations fuel tank. That can cause issues. Water is even more of an issue when there is ethanol in the fuel. The issue of alcohol is often misunderstood, both in relation to percentage as well as energy in versus energy out. I do not expect to change the view of others but I do encourage people to read about it from reputable sources (i.e., not FOX). And while you can legitimately call an increase from 10% to 15% a 50% increase it is also known as a 5% increase. It comes down to point of view.

Mike Himmelsbach is a great guy (and a racer). He took great care of me when I bought a shock for the wifes V11.

There is a full range of shocks available from economy to Penske. If the shock breaks bad things happen. The stock Sachs shock is not worth the money to repair.

If your bike has an O2 sensor and adjusts fuel in any range of throttle and/or rpm based on what that O2 sensor says, then any adjustments you make to the fueling in that range would be undone by the system re-adjusting back to where the O2 sensor says it should be. And Todd is pretty good with what he does. He possibly could re-flash your ECU so it does not control to the O2 sensor and then if you get the PCV and AutoTune module you have complete custom control over the fueling. That is what I got from him for my Griso and it is great. I have a PC3 for the wifes V11 but if I could have done the PCV/AutoTune option (not available at the time) I would have. It is worth the extra $$$.

Some have an O2 sensor. Those may not get full advantage from a PCIII and would do better with a PCV and AutoTune.

I have seen it in person as well. And it was just as ugly in "3-D" as it is in "2-D". And that was the same line that Ducati was using for the 999. But it was ugly too. If it floats your boat then fine. But not only is the Diavel ugly but I am sorry that Ducati felt the need to build it. It is sad to see a top level sportbike company whore themselves out like that.

In the USA it is common practice to have a one way valve in the vent for the gas tank (possibly that fitting you mentioned) that only lets air in to replace the fuel as it is used. It does not allow vapors to escape. But it can cause pressure issues to develop and sometimes it is best to remove the valve. If the vent is through the cap then it is harder to remove the valve.

A front end from a modern Aprilia might fit slightly easier, but I found it easy and cheaper to go with a GSXR 1000 front end. They are a dime a dozen, you can get the whole front end with a wheel and brakes for $600, and anybody and everybody makes parts for them. As I said, it only requires a set of steering head bearings for a DRZ400 (I could not find a set from a bearing supply house, in fact someone else who went that way ended up buying a set that was slightly oversize and turning them down. The DRZ400 set drops right in.) and minor mods to adapt the switch and gauges. I do not have pictures yet but maybe someday when I am done with the rest of the modifications.

I have an entire front end from a GSXR 1000 on my Daytona. It gives me better forks, brakes, and a lighter wheel. All I had to do to make them fit was different steering head bearings (from a DRZ400), rig up steering stops, and adapt the ignition switch and gauges. I replaced the gauges so that was no issue and I lost the steering lock for the Park setting on the key switch. I would not let them total it. You are not to blame here so you should not let them dictate how things will go down. If they total it you might lose out on several fronts. Plus the bike does not deserve it.

The relay for the headlight also controls a couple other lights as I recall, like dash lights and tail light (but not brake light). It is possible that the relay is not working (not un-common) but you have not noticed that the others are out. Or you could have a bad connection or ground, a broken wire, or a corroded/dirty connection.

The main purpose of the pressure in the shock is to prevent the oil from foaming. While the pressure does add a little to the stiffness of the shock that is not its primary role. If you want a softer shock change the spring or the oil/dampening.

I have an Acewell 4454 Tach Speedo combo and one of those adapters for My Daytona. Bought it from the UK and had it shipped to the US faster and for less $$$ then if I could have found one in the US (which I could not, Renazco Racing said they had one but they sent a different model and then it was a pain to get my money back).

Not sure exactly what pressure is spec'd for that shock but in my experience 140 - 150 psi (around 10 bar I believe) is typical.

Did you mean two 12v 9ah batteries in parallel? That would make sense, but 2x9v=18v which would blow any of the electronics on the bike which were designed for a nominal 12v... I seem to recall that the Spot originally came w/ 2 batteries, one low & forward & the other under the passenger seat, & that once AGM batteries came out it was normal to just use the low&forward position w/ 1 battery doing all the chores, but maybe I have that confused w/ a different bike? I believe Ducati has done that trick (two batteries). Not sure about Guzzi, but I know my '93 Daytona only has the one battery under the seat.

I know that with my wifes V11 it would drag the kickstand on the left before touching down the exhaust pipe.

I bought three covers from Nelson Riggs about ten years ago and they have held up very well. They are all three still in service although one has sustained a couple small rips. As for gauges I am partial to Acewell. They offer an analog tach/digital speedo combo that I think is perfect for Guzzi's. But I was not able to find anyone in the USA selling it. I was able to buy one from the UK supplier at a good price with quick shipping and excellent customer service. That was after another company lied to me and said they had the gauge I was looking for in stock and ready to ship but instead took my money then had a third party drop ship the wrong gauge to me. It was then a couple weeks before I got my money back. This is the right gauge from the UK supplier. http://www.acewell.co.uk/Acewell%20Speedometers/ACE-4xxx/ACE-4454AB.htm?action=full&id=41 This is the wrong one from a US supplier. http://www.renazcoracing.com/index.cfm?carttoken=7449538032411083352&action=ViewDetails&ItemID=538942&category=10004&viewby=ordervalue&sortorder=ASC The part numbers are different but the pictures are not.

It seemed easier to me to drop the motor and trans. That gave me better access to the trans for seal replacement and only a few bolts required.

You need to talk to Buchanan's. No need to stick w/ Cali rims: they can lace you pretty much anything you want once you give them the hubs. Stay w/ sport [or sport-touring] rubber: that bike was designed around 17" wheels and futzing around w/ changing them to 18" is only going to lead to trouble... I agree with him. Once you have spoke hubs that fit you can have whatever diameter and width rims you want laced to them. I would stick with a 17x3.5" front.

I would not buy that Guzzi as a first bike. Not saying it can't be done but that is not what I would do. The chances of it being dropped and the damage it could do (both to you and the bike) would rule it out for me. I would buy a cheap 650cc or smaller beater bike to ride for a year or so before buying something like that. You could buy an old Guzzi but I would get something as new as possible for mechanical reliability reasons. I would buy a 250cc - 650cc twin to get your two wheel legs on. Something that if you drop it you can pick it back up and keep going. Then when you are comfortable with that buy a big Guzzi. Just my opinion.

I have ridden plenty of miles on plugged tires. Never had an issue. But as mentioned if you are worried about it replace it.

IS that the ""Lovely Polished Alloy Velocity Stacks"" With filters ? Are they just in excess of 50cm ? They are bare aluminum. I don't clean them much so if they were polished they are not now. They are closer to 100 - 120 cm. I will try to remember to measure them. I am in the process of trying to replace the foam filters on the stacks with K & N filters. They are long..... So there is not much room for filters. After measuring them this evening, they are 5.5" long not counting the flange that goes inside the throttle bodies. The open end where the filter goes is a fraction over 3" in diameter.

I think you may be confusing projector headlights with HID headlights. Projector headlights actually focus their light more where it is supposed to go and there is less wasted light going elsewhere like blinding oncoming drivers. So unless your projector beam headlight is miss-aimed it is not likely to blind oncoming drivers. In fact my brothers Triumph headlight is so hard to notice to oncoming traffic that he wants to add less focused headlights to "improve" visibility of himself to oncoming drivers.