hot ride question

[grumpyone]

I had a question pop into my mind since most of our long distance and miles have been on water buffalos like the gold wing or the k1200lt . We have been told repeatedly that you need a fan on the R80 to idol and work on it over 7 min.
We have several times been stuck like on the Strip in Las Vegas on 120 degree days for what seemed like forever.
We have never been in this situation on and Airhead. What does a guy do when you are in long term hot weather idol ??? :ear :ear I would not think starting and killing the engine would be anything to consider so ??? I know people should not go south in the summer but sometimes we just cant resist :blush
Thanks and Thanks for all the other help
All have a great day
Jim and Esther

[20774]

You should avoid these situations as best you can. It is an air-cooled bike and needs air flowing in order to dissipate the heat. I have a very low threshold for this kind of thing. If I feel I'm going to idle in extreme heat for more than 2-3 minutes, I begin to think of alternatives.

Granted, riding the Interstates or back roads on a long trip, you have no clue as to what might be happening up ahead. But if you have alternatives, you should consider them. If it's a construction situation with a one-way road, seems like it would be reasonable to shut the bike down while paying attention to the flagman.

I encounted a freeway shutdown situation on a recent touring trip through Florida...had not clue it was coming up. There started out being long periods of no movement and only just creeping along at others. This was not going to work for me... The road was somewhat flat with gentle rises. I first decided to push my bike to top of one rise and coast down to the valley. After pushing for a couple of hundred yards (I was beating the traffic!) I decided that wasn't going to work, given how far I had to go (several more miles). I ended up driving along the right shoulder at <5mph until I could get into more steady flow. I got a couple of horns honked at me...I think they might have been jealous?? If a cop were to pull me over, I'd try to explain the situation and take the ticket if necessary. I was not about to melt my engine down in that situation.

[grumpyone]

Thanks Kurt;
I kinda figured that way. We never worried a lot about the water bikes but knew airheads were a different story. I mainly have the bike for the mountains and open backroads anyway. I have enough miles on the long trips for me and cities. I guess if wife wants to go to vegas she will have to let me buy another K75 to take her on. (been wanting one) Like those little bikes too.
Only heat over problem I ever had was on a faulty 2003 goldwing where we were in the moutains near home in colorado and hit road construction. We were at about 8000 ft and going 5 to 15 for quite a while or stopped and it was 74 degrees out and the stinking bike over heated. The dealer told me it was in my head and rather than argue and buy another goldwing I just sold it and bought a k1200 for touring. Problem solved. Seems the honda people put a fan on the machine that blew into the radiator from the rear rather than suck and came on at 15mph so basicly if you went 15 or less your hot air was stuck on the water :doh O well just wanted some advise on the airhead. We have ridden a couple but never in hot weather in the south.
You should have that experience well figured out :laugh
Know where Paducah is?
Take care and thanks much.
Jim and Esther

[lkchris]

The engine generates hardly any heat at idle (that's how you spell it) because it's burning hardly any fuel.

Don't be confused with water cooled engines where the slower water circulation at idle can contribute to rising temperatures.

Nevertheless, why not just shut the motor off ... if for nothing else to avoid all the heat getting to the driver.

Of course, anyone worried about engine heat is using synthetic motor oil.

[sumran]

I ride in Florida every day, as do many of my fellow airheads. I have not had a problem, nor have I heard of anyone cooking their motor from this situation.
Just because I haven't heard of it doesn't mean it hasn't happened. But I am around many airheads that ride in Florida. We don't get to 120 here. I will add that to my list of reasons to avoid Las Vegas. :p

I try to avoid being stuck because it is boring and hot for the rider. I might shut it down to avoid heat and wasting gas if it is a long term deal.

[CH2Ous]

Its been incredibly hot here in the northeast the past several days, record breaking I'm sure, and its intolerable to not be moving on the pavement in the urban areas. My car reports 125* in the shade. I've been on my bike through most of it and the temp indicator reports one more bar than usual at a standstill. In traffic jams and around the numerous construction projects, which is a daily way of life in NYC and it's suburbs, I shut the bike off due to me overheating. My honey is still a youngster so I'm not running synth yet. This makes me worry about the accelerated breakdown of the oil so I justify the extra strain on the battery/starter and honks from rude motorists for the extra second to resume with the fear of burnt oil circulating my bearings and cylinder linings fouling the smooth polished surfaces like sand in a in a crotch wound :uhoh

[RJM2096]

Do oil heads suffer the same fate in stalled traffic as an airhead? :confused:

[kgadley01]

as soon as your engine is broke in, I highley recomend synthetic oil... yes its more expensive, but well worth the extra cost. I run AmsOil in all my bikes, and Mobil 1 in my truck and wifes van. you will see a difference in operating tempature. it will also give you peace of mind when you get stuck in traffic.

[kgadley01]

Do oil heads suffer the same fate in stalled traffic as an airhead? :confused:

Oilheads generaly run cooler than Airheads under the same conditions. I got stuck in heavy standstill traffic a while back. I was at a dead stop for aprox 12 minutes. the temp gauge on my 99 RT only moved up one bar from normal. I was impressed. I use AmsOil 20-50 Motorcycle synthetic...

[soldemall]

The engine generates hardly any heat at idle (that's how you spell it) because it's burning hardly any fuel.

Correct, and remember also that even at 100F, the air is still much cooler than the engine. Heat transfer occurs even without airflow.

[vanzen]

I have heard time and time again about idling the engine for prolonged periods of time.

the BMW Repair Manual I use has this statement in the carb chapter:

"WARNING: do not allow the engine to idle with the motorcycle at a standstill for more than 10 minutes"

I use a large fan in the shop that I blast at the bike when tuning carbs and such ...

When stuck in bumper to bumper (as in a construction zone, etc) –
I will shut the engine down, and move the bike as necessary "Flintstone style"...
and have also run the bike all day across the Plains in 100ºF heat (allowing a 'cool down' at fill-ups) without apparent problems.

using Golden Spectro semi-synth 20-50.

[grumpyone]

Ok Ok ; We have established that I cant spell great :type And that the oil we use Amsoil is good for hot climate riding.
Can I ask are the oil coolers an addition worth the money on the engine???
As well as the bigger oil pan???

Thanks Much to all;
Jim and Esther

[CH2Ous]

as soon as your engine is broke in, I highley recomend synthetic oil... yes its more expensive, but well worth the extra cost. I run AmsOil in all my bikes, and Mobil 1 in my truck and wifes van. you will see a difference in operating tempature. it will also give you peace of mind when you get stuck in traffic.

I can't wait for the day that I can screw a fresh new filter up onto the flange and fill the boxer with clean clear synth. I am obsessed about it to be honest. :blush I wish I could do it sooner than 12k. I have to fight the urge to do it sooner. I've been getting 47mpg at just over 3k miles so I think its gonna be alright. I run Mobil 1 in my GLI & Silverado.

[boxermaf]

If it is really hot and it looks like I'm going to be sitting still for more than
a minute or so, I will shut off my airhead to help avoid heat buildup (and with the price of gasoline, it makes sense. I have been known to duck walk my airhead in the "move 10 feet, stop for 30 seconds, move 10 feet..." mode when the temps are at or approaching the triple digits.

[kgadley01]

Ok Ok ; We have established that I cant spell great :type And that the oil we use Amsoil is good for hot climate riding.
Can I ask are the oil coolers an addition worth the money on the engine???
As well as the bigger oil pan???

Thanks Much to all;
Jim and Esther

yes!!!!!! worth every cent!!!!!