Hot Muffler???

[Evan]

I am seriously considering buying a 2nd VR. This one is an 86 model that needs a bit of work, but has low mileage. One issue is the left side muffler. The owner told me that there is a problem which he suggested could be caused by a restriction such as a mouse nest. When I looked at the bike, the muffler was noticeably blue from overheating. Any thoughts on likely causes and related fixes?

[mbrood]

With the collector, there should be equal distribution of exhaust to each pipe. I would feel at the right pipe to see if it's blocked (causing all exhaust out the left). Blueing of the muffler is a definite indication of problems. I would FIRST pull the plugs and see what they tell you about the individual cylinders! If possible, I always run a cylinder compression check to tell me what's the "baseline".