RichPugh

ratchethack, I hear ya loud and clear. I already raised the r's up to about 1100 at idle when warm since it was nearly stalling before under 1000. I'll set them a bit higher. It DOES quiet down a bit around 1500. Less chattering. Thanks.

Haha awesome. This bike extremely fun to ride. I have some qwirks to work out i.e., the previous owner put a rear set relocator to drop the pegs back and down which is more comfortable but the gear shift lever stayed in the same place which is a bit too high to shift under my toes... I have to dig my foot under it and shift on the top of my foot. I'd like to either find a way to get the shift lever down or just put the pegs back up. Or just deal with it LOL. I have to adjust the valves I'm sure (one side is ticking and one side is dead quiet) and my relays will be here any day to put an end to the hell I went through the first 2 days I owned the bike haha. I'd also like to clean the rear lamp assembly up and set the preload up a bit on the rear suspension. I love the attention this bike gets but knowing very little about the bike or the brand makes me crave education on it. I've jumped it head first and I love it

Tis my first GUZZI and I am completely in the dark about what is characteristic and what is just not right about the bikes and what are just their qwirks. I bought it from the 2nd owner who, when he bought it at 1700 miles, swapped out the original clutch and flywheel for a low inertia RAM clutch and lightened flywheel (as well as a K&N filter, exhaust system and a PCIII). Is it characteristic for the tranny to have such noise in neutral with the clutch out? Might it be because of the clutch setup in there? Some have told me it's not uncommon. Just asking here.

So the guy I bought the bike from says he set the valves to the "European" specs and they're characteristically louder than OEM or the World or NA spec but the left side is very loud like KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK and the right side is virtually undetectable. I cant hear the right side at ALL. Should I just check and reset them? I've read a few threads on here about typical and desireable valve tick and settings but I'm just wondering about the side to side difference.

Also a 2000 V11 Sport

After charging the battery overnight and swapping the START relay with another 5 pin relay, I raised the idle 200 rpm and all is well. It was barely idling at 8-900rpm and lumping horribly, dying intermittently. Now it's idling at 1-1100rpm and no flickering.

I'm currently running Metzeler M1's front 120/70 and rear 170/60 on the stock 4.5" rear wheel. I think I will step up to the 5.5" with a Metzeler M1 in 180/55. Who wants to swap

You hit the nail on the head. I bet the Odyssey was good so I let it charge overnight on my handy-dandy Schumacher 1.5A Battery Companion, swapped the START relay with the LIGHTS relay and VOILA!... Took her on a 150 mile excursion with no restart or headlamp/tach/brakelam/charging problems at all. I'm stoked Thanks everyone. I sincerely appreciate all the information on this site.

I see you like my technical terminology LOL. Thanks a lot. I'm charging my old Odyssey CL545 now and have since swapped with another 5 pin relay to check. Tomorrow I'm riding down to a friends house (assumingly with the headlight on, tach working, brake light working and battery charging haha) and will be metering all the connections, checking all the grounds, checking all the crimps, cleaning all the contacts on the relays and sockets, etc. I think (I HOPE) I'm squared away. We'll see.

Thanks Carl! I appreciate the reply. I'm on it!

Would an intermittent relay allow it to start one time, run for a few moments at idle, manually turn it off and NOT restart because the battery was overtaxed in such a short time, it lacked the juice to restart? I'll check all grounds/connections ASAP. If current is reduced by a failing regulator or a bad/loose connection and it causes the solenoid to not fully engage, will that create similar symptoms as a low voltage battery?? Its just odd that the bike would crank and start one minute and then clickityclickity the starter solenoid like the battery was low the next minute.

Stepping up from my 4.5/170 to a 5.5/180 and matching it with the 120/70 on the front should be without question, a no problem combination. I wouldnt go to a 190 unless I had some reason to use it and surely not a 200 unless I had a wider wheel regardless.

I'll be evaluating all the grounds, relay sockets, crimp connectors, etc. I will get it started and tap on the solenoid, relays, jiggle connections, etc. I will measure the battery voltage running and note if the headlamp is on or not and compare the readings. If this is a common problem or symptom, I am sure I wasted money on a new battery. If so, I'm happy to say I'll be going BACK to my Odyssey PC545 which fits MUCH better under my seat and store the Yuasa for back up

I'm learning a lot in a very short time. Bear with me I am now familiar with the relays, their position and their basic operation but I am slowly starting to understand, with reading MANY electrical threads on here, that they barely cut it. I checked this morning and ALL of my relays are updated 5 pin relays (5 new improved relays already on order from Dan) so I swapped a few of em around to test but unfortunately, the battery still seems like it doesnt have enough 'juice' to crank over the bike. Key ON, neutral indicator is ON, headlamp was ON, held clutch in and got the fuel pump whirrrrring, pressed the START button and the headlamp dimmed and clickykykykykyky from the starter solenoid. I dont think last night, the headlamp was even coming on when the KEY was switched on. With that said and if I understand correctly, the Headlamp runs of the 5th terminal of the START relay, NOT the Lights Relay. If that Start relay was sticking after the bike was running, inhibiting the headlamp from turning on, does this also inhibit the charging from alternator to battery? Would a sticking starter solenoid cause a a charging problem or power to NOT go to the headlamp after started?

Am I correct in assuming if the starter solenoid is clicking away, that the #1 START relay would be working correctly? Would a failing relay or multiple relays cause any battery charging problem? I know the #2 LIGHTS relay sticking could cause the headlamp/taillamp problems but would it affect charging or starting? Every time it doesnt start, it's not completely dead. I turn the key on, engage the the clutch, hear the fuel pump prime up, push the start button and it sometimes gives a weak half a crank then I hear the starter solenoid click away.... clickclkclkclkclkclkclk.... If I put it on the battery charger after this, it fires up. This is a NEW battery, charged from the shop today which started the bike immediately when installed.

BYW, the bike has just over 12,000 miles and the owner stated the relays had been replaced/upgraded but after reading thru the 'Relay Failures, Why they fail and how to fix' thread, I'm thinking its most likely relay failure... but I havent found the list of symptoms attributed to relay failure so I am still searching through the forums... When the clutch lever is pressed, I DO hear the fuel pump priming and the starter solenoid is just clickykykykykykykykyky'ing away like a battery is dead. it doesnt seem to be a stand switch or neutral safety switch issue. Relays? Could it be a voltage regulator/alternator problem?

Thanks for the reply. See my NEW post/thread... new woes... ughh... http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?...c=11587&hl=

When my 2000 V11 Sport was purchased, the owner stated these problems: 1) Sometimes it starts but usually it cranks slow then clickkykykykyk... wont start. He says battery probably needs replacing and it's been through a few winters without tendering. It will start if you leave it on the slow charger for 30min or push start it (its an Odyssey PC545). 2) Headlamp sometimes doesnt work, only city lamp. He wasnt sure why. SO... I decided to push start it and run it a couple miles to charge the original battery a bit before buying a new one to see it it would charge up. Idling, the headlamp wasnt working (only the city light) so I drove it around the block and about 1/4 mile later, the headlamp randomly started working?? I was able to run it around the block a few more times, turn it off, restart it and guess what... no Headlight. So I tried revving it, riding it thru the rpm range, nothing. No headlight. So I turn it off to try to restart it and Clickykykykykyky.... no start. I bought a new Yuasa YTZ12S battery (which I wasnt aware has the terminals reversed and was thicker than the Odyssey) and fired the bike right up no problem. I rode it about 7 miles to HomeDepot to get a few neoprene washers for the seat cowl cover and after shopping for 15 minutes, it restarted no problem and I started to ride across the parking lot but I noticed... NO HEADLAMP. So I turned it off and tried to restart it thinking maybe its an key switch problem but NO LUCK... Clickykykykykyky... no start. I had to push start it again and I rode another 7 miles rowards home and noticed the fuel warning lamp came on so to the BP it was. Turned it off to refuel and after, it fired up no problem with NO HEADLAMP. I couldnt drive home from the BP with no headlmap so I had to try to restart it as I had, push starting it and surely enough, headlamp came back on. Got it home 1 mile away, shut it off and it would not restart. What is going on? LOL. Sometimes it wont start. Sometimes it restarts after its been ridden. Sometimes it wont restart at all. Sometimes it starts with no headlamp. Sometimes the headlamp comes on after riding a short distance. I've replaced the battery. Where do I look first? grounds? relays? switches? -Rich p.s., I also think the TACH wasnt working when the headlamp is out and when headlamp isnt working, the taillamp only stays a parking lamp i.e., brake levers do NOT make it brighter.

First off, this is my first Guzzi. When I bought it, it cranked for a sec then clickykykykykyky... nothing. The seller explained the battery had seen a few seasons without winter care and is probably in need of replacing but, if left on the slow charger or jump started or push started, it will work. We push started it to get it running that evening. At this point, the battery (currently an Odyssey PC545), if left on a slow charger, will start the bike but while idling around 1000rpm, the charging light will flicker. I do NOT want to continue to ride the bike with the dead or weak battery as I dont want to tax my charging system so I decided to get a replacement ASAP. Initially, I chose another PC545 or PC545MJ but ended up getting a YUASA YTZ12S as the tech bulletin suggested as an OEM replacement. Also it was available locally and quickly... I'll worry about another battery choice next time Do the V11's charging "battery" lights flicker at low idle characteristically? I will be putting the new battery in tonight (it was slow charged @ 3amps for 2 hours before I bought it). I read several threads and have learned a lot but figured I'd ask anyway.

Right on... Thanks! My buddy Steve is in Alexandria down on Rt.1. He's got an R1 and has been asking me to get another bike for a long time so we can ride. I grew up (from 12 to 26 years old) in Alexandria, VA on Edsall Road. Went to Hammond Middle and T.C. Williams High. I'll surely visit NoVa more now that I have a bike to ride with Steve. I'll PM you sometime!

The attraction is similar and it seems the camaraderie is also very similar. I dont know ANY local Guzzi riders but I'm sure the Ducati guys will welcome me in with open arms LOL. It seems like a lot of the owners on these forums are die hard, life long MG owners to the fullest extent. I'm new. Simple as that. I dont have a long history with the bikes or brand. I dont have any tie in the past as to why I had to have one. I just stumbled across the bike a few years ago and almost fell in love. I came from a few typical japanese sport bikes under my belt and desired something different with a sense of charm, class, style, individuality, etc. I'm glad already... regardless of the guys who will point their nose up at me for running a wider rear wheel/tire and making it far less comfortable with my sport clip-ons Thanks to everyone for your welcome.

Hahaha... that pic is priceless! FWIW, The bike I own has very low aftermarker clip-ons, putting me into a very forward, very sporting riding stance. Perhaps a 180 or 190 rear tire on a 5.5" wide rear wheel would not affect the handling as much with my bikes riding position? Perhaps still LOL...

dk, I think we probably see eye to eye on a lot of things LOL. The airbox/pod filter point is a wonderful argument. I know a million VW guys that argue that a VR6 engine in a Mk2 chassis Golf handles terribly but they still run their over oiled, heat absorbed cone filters because it looks and sounds cool. The bike I just bought has all the 'balls' I could ever want in a bike... it should have a rear tire to represent it Thats not too much to ask for it is? I resent anyone remotely attempting to compare me to a member of OCC so I hope that asnt anyones intention. While I love choppers and what they represent to the american culture, I happen to prefer an Italian sports cafe bike with class and character. God forbid me wanting a wider rear wheel and tire haha. I'm surely interested in a simple swap 4.5 for 5.5 wheel if anyone wants to downsize in the off season! (My off season is late November thru early March.

No way... am I? At 32?? Haha... Thanks for the welcome!

Beautiful, The later MG 5.5/180 setup is probably the only option worth entertaining. I appreciate all the replies