My X11 arrived today

[Guest Jambobwana]

After waiting a week, my X11 arrived today from Edinburgh. The bike is a great looking machine - pretty much as described by the seller.. There are some stone chips and the black paint on the engine casing is bubbling in places - nothing too bad though.

I took it out for a quick run and was immediately impressed. It is heavy at slow speeds but not so that I am bothered by it. It has oomphs of power - even leaving a 40 zone in 5th it took off straight up to 90 in no time. Handling feels good and inspires confidence. Brakes (afer riding a 30 year old Z1000) feel amazing. I was even impressed by how little buffeting there is from the wind.

When I got the bike back after 20 minutes there was a hiss of steam coming from where the hose joins the radiator on the right hand side (by the radiator cap). The temp guage was only showing 60-70% hot. I tightened the jubilee clip but this made matters worse. I then took off the radiator surround and had a fiddle with the jubilee. I topped up with water - restarted the bike and there is still a drip of water from the same point when it got to 75% hot on the guage. I need to investigate further on this...

The alarm is probably great for detering thieves but it keeps going off - even when in service mode it beeps every 15 seconds. I can leave the key in, but then there is a drain on the battery. I better check how to turn the damn thing off when I want to.

Anyway - a big thumbs up for the X11 - can't wait to get the hose sorted and go out on it tomorrow.

[Guest fe5ta]

I`d drain and renew the coolant as a precaution and clean up the area where the hose fits to the radiator.

Mine never gets that hot unless in slow moving traffic or going through a big town on a hot/warm day, the needle normally stays at about 25% even when nailing it down an autobahn

[Guest JamesCates]

Mine did the same thign when I first got it and I tried the hoses, clamps, etc. Feared it was a blown head gasket until I changed the radiator cap. That sorted it. May have been sticking and not letting pressure out to the overflow tank. Now it's also never above 25% except in heavy, slow traffic.

[Guest standish honda]

Dont be alarmed to see the temperature gauge go into the red if you are stuck in traffic or moving slowly, this is quite normal for an X11, as long as the cooling fan operates the temp will not be an issue, once on the move again the temp will drop quickly and as the guys say it will run relatively cool on an open road. An annual rad clean with a hose pipe and soft brush (never jet wash it, that is too agressive) is beneficial as with all exposed rads it picks up dirt especially if there is no fenda extenda on the front mudguard, wash it from the engine side/exhaust headers to flush the crap back through the front.

[Guest Jambobwana]

Dont be alarmed to see the temperature gauge go into the red if you are stuck in traffic or moving slowly, this is quite normal for an X11, as long as the cooling fan operates the temp will not be an issue, once on the move again the temp will drop quickly and as the guys say it will run relatively cool on an open road. An annual rad clean with a hose pipe and soft brush (never jet wash it, that is too agressive) is beneficial as with all exposed rads it picks up dirt especially if there is no fenda extenda on the front mudguard, wash it from the engine side/exhaust headers to flush the crap back through the front.

I have just taken off the hose, cleaned it up and refitted. I topped up with water and ran the engine for 10 minutes. It was back up to hot - the fan was coming on whch kept it from overheatng. I am pleased that there were no leaks this time and no hissing. I guess the next thing to do is ride it and see if this keeps the temp normal... is this normal?

[Guest standish honda]

yes it is normal, if you leave it idling a liquid cooled engine has no way of cooling itself without forced air passing through the coolant radiator, the radiator being a heat exchanger needs the air flow through the fins to allow the exchange. If it sits on it's stand and idles the coolant and lubricating oil will heat up until the thermostat switches and brings in the cooling fan, if left idling the fan will reduce the coolant temperature until the thermostat switches the fan off again, this cycle will re occur as the coolant heats again and so on. On the road the air flow through the rad is not a problem and the fan will not run in normal condition. If you are used to an air cooled bike then there is a major difference in that the air cooled engine will not heat to the degree due to the cooling fins disipating the heat, although some Hardley Dangerous motors don't like stop start running in heavy traffic.

[Guest raeman]

Maybe thier was some air in the cooling system Jim, i had this once with my old cbr1000f after changing the coolant one year.

If you don't like the alarm, get yourself down to a good auto electrician and have it removed (if you can't do it yourself that is)

I had one removed on the wife's Yaris, bloody thing kept going off at all hours and sometimes wouldn't let me start the thing, only cost me £45 to have it removed and turned back to standard.

Good luck with it.

[Guest Jambobwana]

Maybe thier was some air in the cooling system Jim, i had this once with my old cbr1000f after changing the coolant one year.

If you don't like the alarm, get yourself down to a good auto electrician and have it removed (if you can't do it yourself that is)

I had one removed on the wife's Yaris, bloody thing kept going off at all hours and sometimes wouldn't let me start the thing, only cost me £45 to have it removed and turned back to standard.

Good luck with it.

Yeah, my guess is it is either an air block, faulty thermostat or rad cap. I am going to change the fluid and check the thermostat and buy a new rad cap- we'll see where I go from there..

I always buy broken things

[fast_eddy 712]

Well, check the obvious first as mentioned. The only other possibility, after that, is that the waterpump has lost efficiency.

A quick check is to lie on the floor with a torch pointing up at the waterpump where it meets the crankcase, forward of the gearchange lever. You'll see a tiny hole on the pump body. Look for any signs of a leak, discolouration from anti-freeze stains etc.

About those bloody alarms... I had a Meta one on my old x11, kept setting itself off when it felt like it too. I removed all of the shitty wiring and resoldered all of the wiring back to standard. When I came to remove the control box from near the bikes ECU. I found an "accessory loop" tucked underneath it. Just a loop of wire with two bullet connectors, designed to be threaded through anything you wish to protect and be reconnected to complete the circuit. The bloody thing was disconnected which was no doubt what was setting the alarm off!

You may wish to check for such foolery on yours?

[Guest Jambobwana]

I seem to be getting to the bottom of the over heating issue. With the radiator hose correctly positioned and tightened there are no leaks. I have taken the bike out and it runs at 25% of temperature meter - let it stand for a while and it creeps up until the fan comes on. As soon as I move off though, the temp goes back down. I think it is now doing exactly what it should do. I am still going to change the antifreeze because it looks to me like the rad is full of water not antifreeze.

My guess is that a strap was put round the bike in transit and this pinched the hose which led to the initial hissing and waster loss..

Thanks for the help with this everyone, I am pleased there doesn't seem to be a problem.

Cheers, Jim

[Guest Jambobwana]

About those bloody alarms... I had a Meta one on my old x11, kept setting itself off when it felt like it too. I removed all of the shitty wiring and resoldered all of the wiring back to standard. When I came to remove the control box from near the bikes ECU. I found an "accessory loop" tucked underneath it. Just a loop of wire with two bullet connectors, designed to be threaded through anything you wish to protect and be reconnected to complete the circuit. The bloody thing was disconnected which was no doubt what was setting the alarm off!

You may wish to check for such foolery on yours?

I have been down the road to see Crazy Rick who runs a small business called Singles and Superbikes - he is a Datatool accredited fitter and reckons he takes off 15 alarms a year and fits one - I will be booking mine in to have the damn thing taken off..

[Guest fe5ta]

Glad the temp issue seems to be fixed now, this maybe a case of teaching tour granny to suck eggs but make sure you get a coolant designed for alloy engines and use distilled water too, oh and race coolant and normal coolant do not mix as my mate found out with a R1 he bought

[Guest JamesCates]

Glad it's worked out, Jim. I always buy broken things too but do it on purpose - I see the inner beauty and possibilities where others see damage.

[Guest godders]

Jim

Dont know if you are aware but If its a datatool 3 you can disable the movement sensor by pressing the left oval button once armed.It then only activates on electrical discharge/ignition. Obviously not a situation to leave the x out on the road but okay if in a garage or if you are fueeling.Hope that helps. regards Neil

[Guest Jambobwana]

Jim

Dont know if you are aware but If its a datatool 3 you can disable the movement sensor by pressing the left oval button once armed.It then only activates on electrical discharge/ignition. Obviously not a situation to leave the x out on the road but okay if in a garage or if you are fueeling.Hope that helps. regards Neil

Thanks Neil. I didn't know that but it works just as you say. Cheers for that!