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How do I know if it's TOO hot?

  • Thread starter Thread starter fyarl666
  • Start date Start date
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fyarl666

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Have an 81 400 L, and as far as the engine is concerned, it runs great. But as it's getting hotter outside, I was wondering if it's ever too hot to ride?

Is there such a thing as a bike overheating?

As long as it has oil, is cruising at 40-80kph enough air flow to keep the engine from melting down?

And what about the dummy light on the gauge cluster for the oil pressure? Does that have anything to do with oil temperature? I'm not exactly sure what that light does.

I don't have an owners manual, just a service manual, and it's mostly just schematics.

Any info is appreciated!
 
Bikes can certainly overheat.

It's unlikely to happen while you're cruising. But if it's a hot day and you're stopped (say at lights or something) you may wish to consider shutting the engine off. Also, if you're working on a stationary bike with the engine running (eg synching carbs) a fan would be a good idea.

The light on the gauge cluster will illuminate if your oil pressure drops to an unsafe level ie the engine is not being lubricated adequately. If that light comes on, it's best to stop and investigate.

I don't know if it's possible to fit a temp gauge to a twin - others here may know more.
 
fyarl666 said:
Have an 81 400 L, and as far as the engine is concerned, it runs great. But as it's getting hotter outside, I was wondering if it's ever too hot to ride?

Is there such a thing as a bike overheating?

As long as it has oil, is cruising at 40-80kph enough air flow to keep the engine from melting down?

And what about the dummy light on the gauge cluster for the oil pressure? Does that have anything to do with oil temperature? I'm not exactly sure what that light does.

I don't have an owners manual, just a service manual, and it's mostly just schematics.

Any info is appreciated!
Click to expand...

I don't think heat is gonna be a problem for you up there. Here where I live, it can be. I've ridden in 100+F heat alot. I just make sure I use a very very good oil and if the bike engine seems to be getting toasty, and I can only recall only once it doing that, find some shade and sit for a couple of hours. Remember once you shut off the engine the engine temp will spike because of no air going through the fins. Gonna take some time to cool down. JUST DON"T SPRAY WATER ON IT! I read somewhere for the engine to start properly cooling you need to be running at least 35mph. Don't remember what they said about the ambient air temp was though.

The oil light is just oil pressure.
 
I rode my GS650 G in Phoenix- 120 on most rides to and from work.
I used 20-50 weight oil , changed every 1K miles and endured traffic but not once was the bike overheating ever a problem.
Now the heat hitting your legs- wow- it's best with pants!!!!
 
Badooka said:
Now the heat hitting your legs- wow- it's best with pants!!!!
Click to expand...

Yeah I think that's the thing that worries me the most, I can feel how hot the bike is when I'm stopped at a light, or wherever.

That and it's always got a hot oily smell to it. Not burning oil, but like a hot oil, hot metal smell. I'm assuming that's normal, cuz it's not farting out blue exhaust.
 
These engines are pretty robust by design. Unless you're in a traffic jam or similar mess that has the engine running for extended periods of time with zero to minimal air flow, you don't have much to worry about. I've said before that air-cooled bikes wouldn't have sold very well if they couldn't take idling for awhile at a stop without self-destructing.

I took two MSF courses (the second as a refresher) and their entire fleet of bikes was air-cooled engines, mostly Suzukis. Those bikes spend all summer idling and puttering around a hot parking lot all day long with nary a complaint.

For setting the idle speed, my GS850 service manual advises warming up the engine by running it at 2000 rpm for 10 minutes in 86-degree weather.
 
Ride and smile, you have one of the most reliable engines ever made, it will be fine. Imperial California is hotter than Saskatoon ever thought of being, I never had any trouble there or anywhere else in the desert. As long s it's tuned right and you don't run it while stopped for a long time it will be OK.
 
fyarl666 said:
Yeah I think that's the thing that worries me the most, I can feel how hot the bike is when I'm stopped at a light, or wherever.

That and it's always got a hot oily smell to it. Not burning oil, but like a hot oil, hot metal smell. I'm assuming that's normal, cuz it's not farting out blue exhaust.
Click to expand...

That's not stink- that's Suzuki perfume!
 
fyarl666 said:
Have an 81 400 L, and as far as the engine is concerned, it runs great. But as it's getting hotter outside, I was wondering if it's ever too hot to ride?

Is there such a thing as a bike overheating?
Click to expand...
Of course there is - ignore fools who tell you different. Any heat-producing maching can overheat.

fyarl666 said:
As long as it has oil, is cruising at 40-80kph enough air flow to keep the engine from melting down?
Click to expand...
Normally, yes. Air-cooled engines (provided the designers had a clue) are usually equipped with enough finning to cope with the heat of the expected conditions. It's not a guarantee though, and an oil temp gauge will be a useful addition.
 
At an extreme temp your oil may thin so much you would probably get a drop in oil pressure, thus an oil pressure light.. my 2 cents
 
fyarl666 said:
And what about the dummy light on the gauge cluster for the oil pressure? Does that have anything to do with oil temperature?
Click to expand...

No. It's only for oil pressure, which I'm certain the true wrenchers (I'm not one) will agree is more important than temperature.

Loss of oil pressure, turn the bike off immediately.
 
stop-'n-go traffic is hard on ALL motors. There are plenty of stationary air-cooled generators out there in the world but these are not intended to idle and GO ,idle and GO..... I'm a believer in keeping the oil moving and not idling too low. Plus, these bikes are notorious for burning stators which ((merely my opinion) is at least partly a result of the poor cooling of them...

If the engine is smoking, it's Too hot...ie: if the surface somewhere is burning oil..
 
My 1000S has an oil temp gauge. Interestingly, the highest oil temp occurs when on the freeway; bike was running at 300F when cruising at 80 mph on a 85F day. When slowing down the temp drops quickly. Would have thought that running through town, with less airflow, would log higher temps than the freeway, but no.
 
Nessism said:
My 1000S has an oil temp gauge. Interestingly, the highest oil temp occurs when on the freeway; bike was running at 300F when cruising at 80 mph on a 85F day. When slowing down the temp drops quickly. Would have thought that running through town, with less airflow, would log higher temps than the freeway, but no.
Click to expand...

My temp gauge has 160, 210 and 320 markings, but no "red zone" - I think it should have one. She seems to take forever to even get to 160, but after a while of highway cruising, gets too close to the top marking for my comfort.

That's why today she gets an 1150 cooler installed. I'm very interested to see the effect it has.
 
The OP has a 400 twin , not an 1150. If it's tuned anywhere near correctly it won't have a problem.
 
The 16 valve engines don't have enough cooling fins and air flow passages in the head. They can get hot.
The eight valve engines, not so much. No problems at all unless they are way out of tune or someone uses light weight sewing machine oil (or no oil) or rides around with two inches of mud packed into the cooling fins, or maybe pin the thottle forever in deep sand or mud where you can't get up to speed for any airflow..

It's just not a problem on a well tuned machine ridden normally, even in much hotter places than Saskatoon?

There are thousands of air cooled bikes zipping around Delhi India with no troubles.

If you don't know, it's hot as Hell there. Same in the middle east.

Same in our desert Southwest. Same in Africa, Brazil, or anywhere else.

These bikes were designed to keep a safe temperature, even when there is mud in the fins, even when they are ridden in sand or mud, even when someone sit in traffic in South America for a long time. More than enough cooling fins unless you really try to cook it up.
 
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