cleaning up the ugly black engine paint

[fotoguzzi]

I got the bad black paint blues... its not even black anymore but whitish brown.

 

so I sprayed it with WD40 and it returns it to black... this last a few days or more so try it if you have a hot date and don't want the rat motor look.

I hope the dope who painted these engines was given detention and a fine.

[quazi-moto]

Even the top photo looks better than mine. My paint is all bubbled and blistered. I've even been accused of overheating the motor!

[savagehenry]

Hey quaz, If you have the time, check your crankcase vent/valve. See that the ball isn't stuck in its seat and stopping the exit of hot crankcase gas build up.

[dp.guzzi]

Well, now that you mention it, I have the same paint problem. Is there a way to deal with it on a more permanent basis than the WD40 idea?

[Tom M]

Well, now that you mention it, I have the same paint problem. Is there a way to deal with it on a more permanent basis than the WD40 idea?

 

Strip it and repaint it with Harley-Davidson black texture (not crinkle) engine paint. I did mine a while back and it still looks great. It really wasn't very hard to do without removing the engine from the frame.

 

There have been a few threads on this in the past. Here's one with pics: http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?...t=0#entry111316

[JackBoots]

Another temporary fix better than WD40 is the black engine paint shine stuff that S100 sells.

 

It's like an armor-all that resists the high temps of the motor. It works really well on black painted motors and lasts a good amoun of time.

[moscowphil]

Looks like all 2002 bikes had the same problem. The paint blistered on my Scura within a couple of weeks from new. Amazingly I managed to get it repainted under warranty, and so its fine now. I guess that repainting is really the only long term solution. But that gets me thinking - the original Tonti Le Mans, which must be one of the most beautiful bikes ever made, didn't have paint on its engine at all - it was bare ally. So was my old T3. This meant endless cleaning with Solvol Autosol to keep it looking beautiful, but providing you did this, it stayed beautiful for evermore. Presumably it would be possible to do the same with the modern engine block? I might try it when I get fed up with black. And think of the weight saving!

[quazi-moto]

Hey quaz, If you have the time, check your crankcase vent/valve. See that the ball isn't stuck in its seat and stopping the exit of hot crankcase gas build up.

 

Please pardon my ignorance, but where is the crankcase vent located?

[raz]

Please pardon my ignorance, but where is the crankcase vent located?

It's hidden to the point someone claimed he hasn't got one, even after looking carefully

 

It's located between the throttle bodies. A hose (like an inch OD or so) go up/forward between the cylinders to the oil condenser built into the spine frame. When that hose cracks, you will know...

 

I'm not sure there is a valve though. Is it? That would be on the engine side, right?