Running extremely hot!!

[psycorob]

The wife and I set out on a ride this afternoon on our 2013 RSV. Beautiful day, lots of sun and a temperature around 79F. As were heading down the interstate at 75MPH I start noticing that I'm feeling more hot air around my legs than normal and at about the same time my wife asks if I've changed anything on the bike since our last ride because her left leg is a lot hotter then usual. Everything sounds fine and the tach is still at 3500rpm as normal for that speed. We've only gone about 12 miles from the house at this point so with both of us noticing a difference I pull over into a weigh station and take a cursory look at the bike. I don't see anything out of the ordinary but the engine is much hotter than I've ever felt before so I decided to head back home. Got home and turned the bike off and then turned the key back on but didn't start the bike. I was startled to hear the fan came on as I've never heard it before in the 2 years we've owned the bike. Even after an 1100 mile ride through Kentucky last month not once did I hear this fan come on when at a stop.

 

Anyone have an idea as to why my bike was running so hot after less than 25 miles? As I said it wasn't an especially hot day and I'm a little concerned about this. The oil level is fine and was actually just changed 6 weeks ago prior to our SS1K to Mobile 1 synthetic 10W40. I did notice a small bit of oil on the garage floor, maybe the size of a 50 cent piece, after it had sat for about an hour. It looks like it came out of the middle of the 3 drain lines under the bike (see pic). I've never had oil under the bike so again I'm concerned with all this.

 

Any help would be appreciated.

Edited May 22, 2016 by psycorob

[bongobobny]

OK Two separate things. First, with the possible overheating. The very first thing I would look at is the level of your surge tank, which is sort of under your seat. You need to remove the false battery cover on the right side to really see the level, but you can pop the rubber top off by pulling the seat and at least see if there is anything at all in it. On the side of the plastic tank is a minimum and a maximum line. There are rubber plugs on the engine under the fake cylinder fin covers that are known to develop a sloooow leak and sometimes you will not see any antifreeze leaking because it is so slight. If they are leaking it should be covered by your 5 year unlimited mileage warranty.

 

Next the oil seepage. The usual cause of this is overfilling the oil when doing an oil change. With the bike as level as possible (try putting a 2 x 4 under your kickstand) the oil level should NOT be above halfway up the site glass, with the bike turned off and setting for at least an hour or so to let all the oil drain into the crankcase, ideally even longer, like overnight. If you fill to over halfway, say like 3/4 or so, the excess oil will be expelled from the engine and a lot of times it goes through those vent tubes...

[psycorob]

Okay, I checked the overflow and with the bike level the coolant is 3/8" over the low indication and the oil level is exactly in the middle of the min and max lines. From your response I'm assuming that the oil discharge is not associated with the overheating?

[Flyinfool]

Pull your radiator cap and see if the radiator is actually full, A bad cap can have coolant in the overflow bottle and an empty radiator.

How old is your antifreeze?

Possibly a bad thermostat?

Is the radiator clean to allow good airflow?

Does a 2nd gen have a drain valve like the first gens?

[bongobobny]

He has a '13 Jeff, so it should not be in dire need of a coolant flush yet, but your suggestion on removing the radiator cap and looking was going to be my next suggestion. I'm just first flushing mine and it's an '09.

 

Also yes, my next suggestion of possibilities would be defective thermostat, or possibly bad radiator cap...

 

Part of me does not think the oil discharge and the overheating are directly related, but then again I HAVE been known to be wrong once or twice...

[Flyinfool]

I agree that the oil and heat are not related.

[psycorob]

Hey guys, thanks for the suggestions. Pulled the cap and it's got plenty of coolant and has yet to be changed. It's just now at the two year mark and 6000 miles. The radiator is clear with no blockage or damaged to it. Definitely at a loss here.

[cowpuc]

In addition to the excellent advice you have gotten so far Pysco,,, here are some thoughts from someone who has never owned or even ridden a 2nd Gen - all coming from experiences riding 1st Gens. Also consider these thoughts are coming from a source known to be old school in thought and not exactly easy to follow at times so take it with a couple grains of salt..

1st thing,,, was the ride you folks were experiencing abnormal with cross winds? Strange as it may sound, I have experienced cross winds/tail winds strong enough that they really messed up the air flow thru the radiator on my 1 Gens and have had the cooling fan needing to be running even at close to highway speeds - sounds corny I know but been there..

I also notice your running 10w40 oil? My 1st Gens have all really liked 20/50 for summer temps.. One of the things I always noticed was a lessening of oil venting from natural 4 stroke engine crankcase and tranny venting.. Having no idea whether or not that black tube is a vent tube (might wanna check a manual or wait and see if someone who knows what they are talking about chimes in here) I am guessing that somehow it is and, under certain conditions it would be easy to understand how oil could condensate enough on the ID of that hose to cause a small drip - especially from an engine running warmer than usual for whatever reason.. It might not be a bad idea to check your owners manual and see if it suggest upping the weight of oil for warmer temps - if nothing else you will be taking some highly skilled Yamaha engineer advice instead advice from someone who has never owned a scoot like yours .. I have also noticed that using heavier weight oil (20/50) actually makes my bikes run cooler and makes for smoother shifting and a quieter motor (their are actually people who can tell when its time for an oil change just by the "feel" of their tranny)..

Another something I would be curious about,, is the grill on your radiator stock and is there anything you have added to the front of your bike that may be robbing airflow thru the Rad? I have seen some really awesome "grill work" bling thru the years and always wondered if,, under certain conditions (possibly like strong crosswinds) if the added material that looked real nice might not necessarily be a good thing..

Also,, 1st Gens have a temp gauge - do the 2nd Gens? If they do, was the fan able to maintain a "normal" reading?

Because your riding a new bike,, this is probably far reaching but something I would check just for kicks.. I would check tire pressures and I would also check for brake drag (sticky caliper).. If you can get the scoot off the ground, spin the wheels and feel the resistance, take a rubber mallet and smack the calipers enough to loosen any drag, spin em again and notice the difference. Start with the front brake - spin the wheel and stop it with the brake - release the brake and feel amount of drag. Now smack the front brake caliper to free it back up. Now spin the front wheel again and stop it with the rear brake pedal (thinking 2nd Gens have linked brakes too - someone correct me if I am wrong PLEASE), compare feel between calipers to see if you have one sticking.. Now do the rear brake caliper..

Low air pressures, brake drag and oil to thin all create resistance and resistance can = warmer running motor...

Any of all this make sense?

[MikeWa]

Did you have an overheat indicator turn on? Did coolant bubble out of the engine? With only 6K on the bike I am not sure it was running hot. Or if the fan just came on and you were feeling the air from that.

 

Mike

 

 

T I meant T

Edited May 23, 2016 by MikeWa

[cowpuc]

Oh yea,, it is NOT abnormal for the cooling fan to come on without the motor running.. It is suppose to do that - run until the coolant temp at the sensor reaches the proper temp - then it will shut off automatically..

[bongobobny]

I'd say take it back to dealer and let him fix it under warranty...

[Dale124]

I'd say take it back to dealer and let him fix it under warranty...

That's exactly what I was thinking. I also have a '13, and if I had this issue, it would be back at the dealership faster than you could say "damn, my leg is getting hot".

Good luck.

Dale.

[XV1100SE]

Couple things (from a non-mechanic)...

- if your oil is too high (and take it you checked with the bike level. A 2x4 under the kickstand gets the bike almost straight up) not only will some drip from the vent tube but you'll get oil in your air filter boxes. Good to check them (you have to take off or loosen the lower cowling to take the boxes off)

- coolant bottle should be be checked with the bike up straight. Good to do it when you check the oil level

- 6,000 miles in 2 years? Fan shouldn't come on with only a 12 mile ride unless you idled for a long time with the choke on before riding out. And if you rode with the choke on the mixture would be different and I would think make the engine run hotter. Being in Tennessee....you should be out riding more !

 

After checking the above mentioned items, go for another ride and see if things are running hot again. If it is...I'd agree with Bob...you are within your warranty so let the dealer figure it out.

 

Comment that others could talk about....if the bike is running on three cylinders, would the bike run hotter than normal? 3 cylinders doing the work of 4 ?

[eusa1]

thermostat.

[V7Goose]

From everything you described in the OP, it is tough to tell if all is normal or not. 79 degrees is not particularly hot, but if you were riding slow through a residential neighborhood before you got home, then it would not surprise me if the fan was on. Even if it was not on when you stopped, just letting the bike sit for 5 or 10 minutes could cause the heat-soak to trigger it, but since it cannot run with the key off, you wold never have seen this before under normal conditions.

 

A little oil drip from the air plenum vent hoses (especially the left one) is totally normal, even if the engine has not been overfilled. Any long fast ride will send a lot of oil mist into the air plenums, and over time it slowly works its way down through the left vent (that is also why your left rear carb is always slimy and dirty on the outside). This problem is greatly exacerbated on older high mileage bikes and any bike that has ever been filled with oil ABOVE the max fill mark on the window. I have discussed this issue in great detail in older threads, but you will need to search for them several years back.

 

As to the heat, you may or may not have an issue with the thermostat - best to at least take it in under warranty so that you will have a record of the problem if it happens again. BUT, I can tell you that if you only felt the heat on one side, it probably was nothing more than a gentle cross wind. A light breeze at the right angle is just enough to blow all the hot air coming through the radiator out directly onto the legs on the opposite side of the bike, and it can often be enough to REALLY feel the burn. I always ride with leather chaps, which mostly blocks the heat, but when I used to ride to work every day in a suit and dress shoes, I would sometimes have one foot and ankle fry from such a cross breeze.

Goose

[circa1968]

Did you ever get a resolution on the heat issue?  I'm dealing with the same thing on an '07 and currently awaiting for a thermostat to arrive.  Hoping that is the issue as changing the coolant helped only a little.