GraeV11

Thanks for sharing. Great photos. Really wished I could have been there.

I can only find them on-line. All our electronics stores have gone bust in this neck of the woods !

Yes, new relays, starts first time, runs perfect. I am back in the game ! I received Bosch relays from Stein Dinse. I would recommend Stein Dinse, they are super efficient and have lots of nice stuff on their website. In fact it always costs me a fortune buying from them as I cant resist the bling. Have a nice gold rear brakeline protector as well now !

Great photo I have ordered a new one plus a spare. I am learning quickly !

Tried everything and the swine refuses to work. Now here is an idea; If I start the engine using one of the other good relays, can I then pull it out and swap the bad one back in - will the engine keep running or would I have killed it (or me) ?? I was going to try it last night but didn't fancy a bolt of electricity up my arm. As already mentioned, I am a little thick when it comes to electrics so be gentle in your response. 'Go ahead and try it' has got me in trouble and pain before !

Front to back: START, LIGHTS, NEUTRAL, ECU, EFI Thanks. Time for a rant. Relay from UK Guzzi dealer - £16 and "wont get here for a few weeks . . they come from Germany". Relay direct from Germany - £6 and "will be with you in 5 working days. WTF. Can I find one anywhere in the UK today ? not on your nelly. Bang goes my weekend ride. Bah ! Sometimes I wonder whether I should just have assembled my V11 entirely from spares rather than buy the bike in the first place. Feels like that is what I am gradually doing anyhow. You guys could lift my black mood if you can name a UK car that uses the same relay. I can then drop by my local breakers. Cheers

I have some excellent riding planned this weekend with the lads around the malvern hills and wales but have just hit a problem I need advice on. My bike started fine this evening but when I got it home and parked it up I tried to start it again to move it into the usual parking position, hit the starter button and zilch. Fiddled around with the usual suspects and then swapped around the first two relays in the block (from nearest the tank) and hey presto back in business again. My only chance to get to the spares shop before the weekend is tomorrow morning (UK). Question is which relay slot should I install the dud in just to get me there ? I do not really 'get' electrics beyond the basics so forgive my question. I promise to study the subject harder (any suggestions for a good primer ?). As ever the advice of you good folk is truly appreciated.

I really didn't know they were filming me last weekend ! But back in the real world . . . what year / model was that ?

Hmmmmmmmm . . . . . "105 decibel limit". Now where did I put those baffles ???

Think I could manage a trip across the river ! Perhaps a track day at Brands Hatch ?

It is funny how the adrenalin kicks in. I picked up the bike no problem in 2 seconds flat. I couldn't do that normally (not that I make a habit of dropping it you understand). At least it gives me an excuse to get those gold rocker cover protectors I was thinking about.

Thanks. I think you are right, it is probably just the residue from when the breather hose gave up. I had a long run on it this morning and it was dry when I stopped . . . a similar feeling of relief to when my child had his first dry night ! Well someone up there does not like me. Dropped it on the way home tonight. It stalled as I was turning a sharp right straight out of the carpark and I didn't manage to catch it (a moment of not concentrating after a long day at work). Damn ! Just ordered new indicator, footrest, sparkplug cap, sparkplug, brake lever, bar end weight, rocker cover protector and mirror. the scuffed can, rocker cover and headlamp will have to wait until I am a bit more flushed with cash. My thigh is very bruised. Could have been much worse I guess - someone could have seen me do it !

Thanks. I think you are right, it is probably just the residue from when the breather hose gave up. I had a long run on it this morning and it was dry when I stopped . . . a similar feeling of relief to when my child had his first dry night !

In my never-ending efforts to keep all the oil inside the engine and not in puddles on the workshop floor, I have another question for you good folk. If there is too much oil in the engine where is it going to exit ? Does it cough it all over the top of the engine or somewhere else ? I have just replaced the breather hose as it was split and made a mess - I thought I had cleared it all up but now there is a dampness on top of the engine again. Think I may have over-filled slightly on a recent oil change so that is my first angle of attack. (I have plastic tube and syringe at the ready to draw some out). The oil level is just over the top of the max on the dipstick when bike is level. Thanks.

Sorry to hear about your pooping problem. Syrup of figs works for me.

Job done. Took about three hours all in. The O rings looked fine. Thanks all. My back is killing me now ! Must get a bike lift.

Cheers Pete

How much do you guys think that riding style affects fuel consumption ? My (40 mile) commute involves lots of 'stop - start' traffic (gear changes gallore and overrun on the throttle), accelerating hard away from traffic lights and the odd 5 minute blast at warp factor 4. The old girl drinks fuel like a jumbo jet on these rides. Good fun and sets you up for the day but getting damn expensive ! Might have to save her for the weekend and buy something sensible for the commute.

Thanks for the replies, to be clear I am referring to the flange, i.e., the 'skirt' that the pan attaches to (bolts are internal) rather than the gasket on the pan itself.

Need to replace the gasket on the sump flange. Question for you kind people is; do I only need to drop the oil filter support and disconnect the two oil lines before I unbolt the flange or do more horrors lurk beneath ? and what are the bolts (I cannot make it out from the manual)? and the torque settings ? Anything I need to be wary about on re-assembly bar a sore neck ? Thank you for your time.

Ill have a pint of what you're drinking.

This is all interesting and especially for me who is studying design and preferences driven by experiences, social interaction and other influences. For me, I ride in a group of friends who all have different bikes ranging from big jap fours to vintage 2 strokes. We are all enthusiasts with varying levels of technical expertise and riding skill. We have constructive discussions and are genuinely interested in each others bikes. We do, of course, descend into piss-taking after a few beers but are firm friends and when out as a group we ride within the capabilities of the least experienced rider. We were friends before we were bikers. Do I need the same experience with other Guzzi riders ? probably not, but I do rely on you guys for you help and experience and am very grateful for it of course (not to say I wouldn't turn up at a convenient Guzzi meet, but that would be about the bikes not the people). I do ride alone most of the time and I am happy doing my own thing. I love my Guzzi and accept all its shortcomings because it, to me, looks good, sounds good, smells good (probably tastes good as well) and goes as fast and as quick as I want to these days. It also apes the LeMans Mk1 that was stuck on my bedroom wall throughout my teens. I am very happy that when we are out as a group the Guzzi usually attracts the most attention when parked up (even if it is usually from old guys with a dog on a bit of string) so nicely massages my ego. As you can probably tell I am in the middle of an essay and am finding it hard to reach some firm conclusions but I think I know where I am going with it. I hope you do not mind being studied ! One question, if you sold your Guzzi would you still come back to this forum and if so, why ?

Thanks for that. I have been away on work so will check it out at the weekend.

I consider this part of the Moto Guzzi's 'quaint character'. I eliminated mine fogging quite by accident when I installed a Givi mini fairing on the bike. Steve i must have scanned this before finishing reading it, as broken tach glass came to mind after seeing *eliminated fogging* and *accident* BTW, if i kept goldfish in mine, i couldn't keep the cat off the bike. stef I find the cat insulates the tacho and eliminates the misting problem. I can't bring myself to drill the holes, I think this will just lead to some other issue, such as a dead goldfish. Interesting that a fairing sorted the issue. I am currently trying to fit a (copy) LeMans mk1 fairing to my bike . . . now where's that club hammer ?

Move to the UK. I can't remember what the sun looks like.