cola

Today I pushed the V11 out of the garage, checked the weather forecast and pushed it back in again. Took the oldster instead ...

Swapped the battery conditioner from the SP3 to the V11. Think the old car needs a go next. Maybe I should be less of a cheapskate and get one for each ...

Count me easily impressed too ...

HI - this all sounds very familiar. I've been dithering about this for the last year. Until last week when I bought this ... It's a 1994 carb'd 948 Tonti frame Spada SP3. I LIKE the fairing even if no-one else does. It cruised the 450 miles home, so it's a cruiser for me. I still have the v11 LeMans - sometimes faster is better

Hi scott, I'm just a short hop away from you in Glasgow. Happy to meet up over a weekend if you want to look at a V11 'up close'. I have an '02 Le Mans .... Cheers Colin

Good to see the bike being cared for. It reads as if it was a tad 'mis-owned' before. Now it is just me or do those pods look too small?

There's no gasket on my 02 V11 leMans - I've been in often enough to know but it has always sealed well using Blue Hylomar. I've always felt that the cap head screws are tempting to over torque - beware, I'd rather have a small leak than a stripped thread in the casing.

The riding's the thing! I put my '02 in for a thorough going over this winter (too many other things happening to do it myself). I put aside a reasonable chunk of cash for the inevitable 'you'll never guess what I found' phone call. BUT Shocker it was all good. All the bearings had grease in them, the rubber hoses were fine (thank Scotland's lack of extreme weather - or indeed sunshine). I put in new intake rubbers because I'd bought them just-in-case. It just goes to show that the great thing about inconsistency is that sometimes things are accidently done properly. However, no-one has mentioned the dreaded gearbox spring yet. I've done 15000 miles and I'm on my 5th one. It's an easy job to do, the part is only £4 in the UK and the bike has so much go that when you find yourself stuck in 3rd it doesn't stop you getting home so I don't worry about it. I keep a spare spring and that wards off Murphy. Enjoy!

Me too for the Odyssey - it's been spot on for a few years now.

Woo hoo! Congratulations! Just in time for ... winter in NZ

An exhaust can indeed impact the smooth running of a vehicle. It can allow introduction of air which fools the O2 sensor (not an issue for your vintage?) but it will also change the pressure waves in the exhaust impacting scavaging of burnt mixture (better at some revs, worse at others). Then there's the probability it'll just sound better. The unknowable is whether the impact in your case makes a difference ... Given it's all your own hard work and diligence I feel you should be claiming at least 10 bhp improvement in the mid-range with 'significant' reductions in emissions

I'm watching this with great interest ... my V11 LeMans has been with me for getting on 5 years and could do with a nice refresh. Bronze sounds very steam-punk (and that's a good thing ... )

I agree .... even the LeMans ... That's fightin' talk

Having had the gearbox selector spring go a few times, I also think that maybe the v11 really only needs one gear. We just have to decide - which one!

Yup! I had this problem recently on my '02 Le Mans. I spent a fair amount of time cleaning through all the contacts in the starter circuit as i was convinced it was just a voltage drop due to cold, wet Scotland. Eventually the bike failed to start. Took the starter motor off and split it - the insides were a mess and the magnets had come off the casing. I replaced it with a whole new starter but keep meaning to rebuold the old one 'just in case'

That's a lot of gearbox fixes ...

We just had the first sunny Sunday of spring (well the first one I could dedicate to riding ) here in Scotland. Average riding speed 50 mph, average fuel use 50 mpg, average smiles 50 - on a scale of 1 to 50, average scares 0, average number of Guzzi's - 1 (I was sitting on it). No pics as I was too busy riding - but here's some idea ... Sma' Glen ... only with less traffic. And my pal with the BMW - not out due to maintenance problems (rear wheel stuck half on, half off, front wheel ABS sensor worn away due to wheel replacement issues).

'Why do you ride that old tractor?' My friends ask. 'You could have a modern bike for the money'. Well I have to say that although it's slow I don't get overtaken and I don't hold anyone up. I know it's un-reliable but it's never let me down, sometimes I just need to drop by old friends for a tea and a gearbox fix. I understand the ergonomics are all wrong but I still look forward to getting on it after 200 miles. I know they're unpopular but I always get company when I stop. The loud exhausts are anti-social, but everyone seems to like the noise. They call me contrary and I couldn't agree more.

Hi! A couple of years ago (March 2009 - let's face it I could tell you the day and time if I didn't mind looking sad I lost a few nuts (from fairing and the horns) in the first 150 miles - nothing worth taking it back to the dealer about. I'm now on 9,500 miles and have only had the usual gearbox spring issue - first at 5000 miles then every 1000 miles 'til i got the new pawl arm. I changed the relays during the run in period just-in-case. Fork oil / gearbox and engine were all changed on running in. I've had no 'age related' issues at all (except for me acting like a teenager when I'm old enough to tell my own teenagers off). Hope this helps. Colin

Found this thread a great prompt to put the battery charger on. Now planning next year's travels.