jwh20

Here is an article that has everything you always wanted to know about oil consumption: https://www.amsoil.com/techservicesbulletin/MotorOil/TSB%20MO-2004-04-03%20Oil%20Consumption.pdf

I like that! Parmesan or Romano?

If you really think the cylinder walls are trashed, pull the heads and have a good look. But I seriously doubt that there is a problem here. First of all, if they were as bad as you suspect, the engine would run like crap and you'd have metal particles everywhere. Secondly, you'd also be using a LOT more oil that 1 qt. in 2300 miles. That's probably well below the factory spec for oil consumption. I don't know what Guzzi says but most auto makers consider up to 1 qt/1000 miles to be normal for warranty purposes.

I thought about doing something similar but I wanted to take the exhaust off anyway. There was a bunch of gunk on the insides and also a lot of road debris in the groove between the muffler hanging brackets and the muffler wall. It looked like the PO had run through some asphalt that got flung up by the rear tire and deposited in there. I can see the yellow alignment marks on the driveshaft already and they are lined up. (I read somewhere that not all V11's come from MG assembled quite right.) I don't see any indication that the swing-arm has ever been out so my guess is that the bearings need some grease. I also want to flush the clutch lines as the fluid is a bit discolored. It does look to be a lot easier to get to the clutch master with the swingarm out of the way.

the weather here isfinally turning cooler, they are calling for -1 wednesday That's what happens when you live on the bottom-side of the world. The blood rushes to your head also, doesn't it? ;-) I've never been to NZ but did have the chance to fly over it on the way to Sydney. Would love to make it back down that way again. Too many things I didn't get to do in the few days I had there.

The weather here in Central Indiana is FINALLY turning warmer. They are calling for 80's on Wednesday and this may end up being the latest 80F day on record in this area. But it was pretty nice on Saturday and I had enough parts and tools to do some maintenance work on the LeMans. I started out with engine oil and filter. That went pretty smooth but I have NEVER seen a spin-on oil filter inside an oil filled compartment. Interesting! But I got the old one out and the new one installed without any issues. The hardest thing was getting oil into the opening. I have a long thin funnel but I guess I need to get one of those flexible ones as I just couldn't get enough angle on the funnel. Next I moved to the gearbox oil and I saw that the drain plus is directly above the exhaust crossover. I didn't want a big mess there so I decided to pull the mufflers and the crossover off. That made it easy. No issues there. I also changed the rear drive oil and had the special moly additive from Harpers. I didn't want to just dump it in so I mixed it with the small amount of oil left from the gearbox and shook it up really well. That made it pour in a lot better as it's really thick stuff. The read drive only took a little more oil from the 2nd quart I bought. Lastly I turned my attention to the driveshaft grease. No problem getting at the back two zerks but the front one is elusive. I saw plenty of write ups and suggestions here but I think I'm going to just pull the swingarm and do it right and lube the swingarm pivot bearings also. Right now it has no play in the U-joints and turns quietly and smoothly and I'd like to keep it that way. I thought about just doing it on Saturday since I had a lot of the stuff apart already but it was just too nice out. So I decided to get cleaned up and go for a ride... I also need to do the air and fuel filters but I'm waiting for the fuel filter to arrive. So I've not pulled the fuel tank yet. It looks pretty clean under there except for some oil weeping around the oil line that connects to the frame.

Do all the factory keys have an "i" logo on them? If so, I have both. I was wondering about whether or not the handlebars needed to be turned. I'm heading over there in a bit and will try turning the key while straightening the bars out. Both keys have no problem opening the gas tank and since (to our knowledge) he only went on one ride since his diagnosis (which appears to have been the Vstrom) I'd imagine getting the bike running is going to be pretty important, albeit I don't see him forgetting to at least circulate the gas, but either way, I was planning on scattering his ashes on rides to his favorite places using each of the bikes. Your help is greatly appreciated. I wanted to shoot his ashes out of a canon, Hunter S. Thompson style, but it appears there "may be" a lot of red tape to get that one done. My recently acquired 2002 V11 LeMans came with two keys, one which is still attached to the plastic frame both have a (i) logo on them. So I'd say you have the original keys. I'm pretty sure the tank lock is an actual lock that should be keyed the same as the ignition.

Does the key turn in any of the other locks on the bike? These should all be keyed alike from the factory so unless the ignition lock has been changed you should try it in the gas cap, the helmet lock, or the seat release lock. Also, is the steering lock engaged? On many bikes the ignition can be difficult to turn if there is pressure on the steering lock. Try turning the handlebars just a bit as you try the key. I've noted that on my V11 LeMans the key will not turn if it's not all the way down and sometimes I need to jiggle it up/down just a bit to get it to turn, but the turning effort is low. It's possible some crud or corrosion got in there especially if it's been sitting for a while. I've had good luck flushing it out with some carb cleaner that evaporates quickly and then following up with some graphite-based lock lube. Also if one of the pins is stuck, you can often free it up by gently tapping the lock with a plastic mallet.

So the trick is to hold the weight steady while unscrewing the hex-bolt? I will give that a try. I just didn't want to try to force this and possibly break something. Thanks!!

So in checking things over on my (new to me) 02 LeMans, I find that both bar-end counterweights and their hex bolts spin freely in either direction. I can neither tighten or loosen them. It's not clear from the parts diagram what does what to hold the thing in. How do I get them out or how to I secure them? I'm afraid that they are actually loose and may drop out while riding and be lost. Thanks....

Enjoy that trip and hope you have a safe ride. I've not been to Arkansas for a ride but I hear it's great! I have plenty of work to keep me busy for several weeks at least. I need to spread out the work so that I still have time to ride. My LeMans is running great right now anyway, so currently no pressing issues. Just some longer-term maintenance needs. I've got some parts on order already.

Indeed and NO translation into English was needed!

How could I possibly refuse such an offer? Absolutely we'll setup a "date" and get together.

I believe that is just a bit more challenging. The "desmo" system is very interesting technically but looks like a nightmare to adjust. Enjoy the fun!

Thanks, on my list also. I'm waiting for a shop manual to arrive to dive into those items. PO said the bike had been serviced at a Guzzi dealer at the first scheduled valve clearance interval. But since I'm going to have to take the cylinder covers off to replace the gaskets that are leaking, I might as well check and adjust the valves while it's open. It's got to be easier than a bucket & shim system where you have to remove the camshafts!!

Thanks! Working on most of that already. The PO was up front and told me that ALL the fluids were in need of changing. But either way I'd probably do it just to be sure. He had 4 extra oil filters on hand that he threw in but I need an air filter and oil for sure. There is some oil seeping from the cylinder head covers on both sides, just enough to make the fins "dirty", so I ordered some new gaskets as well. A lot of the rubber hoses are checked and I want to replace those as well. Nothing like a split fuel line to make for an unhappy day... What check valves? Also, what is "TB's and TPS" ?? Thanks, Joe

Here's a picture of the fix for 2 of the 3 plastic hubs that hold the instrument faceplate on. The plastic was just cracked for no apparent reason. So the brass inserts were just spinning freely. For some reason the 3rd one is just fine. Must be something wrong with it!! The upper-right one looked like it exploded. I pulled the brass inserts out and put some 5 minute epoxy in there with a toothpick. Then I put the inserts back in and let it cure.

Hi Chuck! Good to meet you here as well! I have indeed noted that my LeMans makes all kinds of noises and that's a lot different from what I'm used to with Japanese bikes. Generally when something is noisy there it's a BIG problem! Just trying to sort out all the new input stimulus but loving it already!

So the translation from what's in the owners manual is: "plain old lithium grease" then? Thanks! With all those tech specs I thought it might be something special.

Frank, I'm a new LeMans owner here in Central Indiana but I really loved that article when it came out last month and you helped me make up my mind to jump on the next V11 that I saw advertised. You just don't see Moto Guzzis all that often here in Indiana so you don't see them for sale often either. A guy from Cincinnati advertised one and that's only 100 mi away. I'm loving mine already!

I did a bit of searching for a specific (US market) lube for the V11 driveshaft but didn't my. My manual has the less-than-fully-useful: "...saponifying greasers with lithium of a grade 2 consistency, 265/295 penetration with a dropping point of about 180." Oh, and of course no "additives with MOS2." Can someone suggest a specific widely available in the US product that is suitable for this application? Also, I need to change the gearbox and rear drive oil. It looks like both specify the same product, "Agip Rotra MP SAE 80W/90" and I'm guessing this is standard 80W/90 gear oil. I do see the note for the moly additive. I see that Harper's had that available. Thanks!

Well you know the story... I started taking the instrument cluster apart decided to clean the whole thing up. So first of all 2 or the 3 screws that hold the black cover on would just spin. So I took the back off and the brass inserts were just spinning. So I fixed that. The black cover had messed up paint so I decided to sand and repaint it. The bulb holder for the speedo came apart rather than come out of the speedo hole and the pieces went all over. So I crawled around the garage floor looking for the little spring. Fixed that. So while the paint was drying and the epoxy on the brass inserts was curing I took the rest of the fairing panels off and cleaned the years of crud that builds up out. Turned out to be a great day! I was having so much fun my wife came out and said "it's 8:30, are you going to eat dinner?" You know you're having fun when you forget to eat dinner!! Anyway, all those little things are taken care of. But I still need a couple of bulbs for the speedo and tach. I figure I might as well replace both while the thing is all apart. I'll see if I can match them up over at AutoZone as they have about a million little bulbs and lamps.

The illuminator bulb in my tach is burned out. Is this a standard bulb of some sort? It has some tiny numbers on it but I can't read them. The V11 parts manual just says "12v-3w".

My new-to-me '02 LeMans has the same issue. I see cooked oil residue on top of the crossover and weeping from the same area you show in the photos. I'm hoping to see how this repair goes for you before I tackle it...

stefano, Thanks! It's not a perfect specimen for sure but is really nice. It was a daily rider which is my intent as well. No point in spending the $$$ for a museum piece only to worry about a scratch or chip every time you hit a patch of gravel - like my driveway!! I know even a totally messed up wet-clutch is virtually silent so I wasn't sure what to think. It doesn't sound like anything is grinding but there is a distinct difference between in and out. But I can only hear it when I have my helmet off. Do you know a good USA source for parts? There is not a Moto Guzzi dealer in Indiana any longer. My guess is that most of the rubber parts, especially those near enough to the engine to get hot are needing replaced. It's work but I'm sure a labor of love.