Eluder Questions

[Bikecurious]

Hello all,

 

 

I’m thinking about buying a brand new Eluder. There are a few great deals out there and I think it's time for me to move up to something a little more tour worthy. However, there are a few things that I want to know about these bikes that I can't entirely find the answer too.

 

I think first would be the heat on the left leg. This is the #1 complaint I seem to read. I haven't had a chance to ride one on a really hot day, but I want to know if you all really have a problem with it or found a way to help mitigate it? For some reviewers the heat is a crime against motorcycling, and others it nearly a footnote if mentioned at all. My current ride is water cooled, but before I had an 1200 sportster

 

The next question is about the exhaust options. I kinda like the way it sounds stock and I imagine with some miles behind her it'll sound even better. But if I want to go with T.A.B. Slip-ons do I need to get it dyno tuned? With previous bikes I had to get the “Stage-1” flash or a rejet. This would be my first bike with a radio on it so I might just want to crank the tunes and keep the exhaust note on low :-)

 

Finally, the production run was pretty limited on these, and aftermarket support seems limited. Even though it appears Yamaha itself sells the accessories I think I need. Have you all found yourself wanting something that just wasn't available? I'm looking at that windshield and I'm just not sure that's going to do it for me and I'd hate to find the 1 other option won't help me either. And do you see replacement parts for these bikes being an issue down the road?

 

Thank you all in advance for your time. I just can't stop looking at the pictures of this beast!

[sldunker]

I have over 17,000 miles on my TC and have never had a problem with the heat. I rode it in downtown Branson last year in 96 degree heat and it wasn't a problem. I don't know if it is leg placement or people riding in shorts. I never ride in shorts and my feet are usually pretty far forward. I still have the stock exhaust because I like the sound. Some may tell you that the exhaust will be cooler with aftermarket pipes because of no cat. Not sure.

When I was a kid all my stuff had loud exhaust, now I find loud exhaust gives me a headache.

Can't answer any of your other questions but someone else will come along and help.

[Bikecurious]

I have over 17,000 miles on my TC and have never had a problem with the heat. I rode it in downtown Branson last year in 96 degree heat and it wasn't a problem. I don't know if it is leg placement or people riding in shorts. I never ride in shorts and my feet are usually pretty far forward. I still have the stock exhaust because I like the sound. Some may tell you that the exhaust will be cooler with aftermarket pipes because of no cat. Not sure.

When I was a kid all my stuff had loud exhaust, now I find loud exhaust gives me a headache.

Can't answer any of your other questions but someone else will come along and help.

 

 

Thank you for your input!

[Freebird]

As for the heat, I've found that different people have different tolerances for it. I've heard some people complain about the heat from the RSV and it always kind of surprised me. I never felt that the RSV ran hot in any way. I will say that if you ever felt that there was too much heat coming from the RSV, then you will NOT like the new Star Venture or Eluder. Now I will also point out that I have never ridden an Elder. I owned a Star Venture though and can tell you that it is without a doubt a hotter running bike than the RSV. It almost has to be. 400 more ccs and air cooled as opposed to the water cooled RSV. That being said, in may opinion it is not excessive. It's a motorcycle and on a hot day you will feel some heat. Different riders seem to feel more than others. I agree that it probably has to do with your inseam length or something. I am tall and my feet are usually out on the highway pegs and the heat doesn't really bother me. When stopped, you feel it much more. I have owned RSVs, Star Ventures, Harley Road Glide and now a Harley Ultra Classic. I think that the Harleys are slightly hotter than the Star Venture; It can be uncomfortable if sitting too long with it idling but I try not to get in those situations. It can happen though.

[VentureFar]

Hello all,

 

Hi, I did a ride review on the Eluder in 2018 for Ultimatemotorycycling.com

My first interest was to find out if someone bought it as a local rider but then decided to make the run to Sturgis, would they be able to sit on it for 500 or 600 mile days. So I hopped on and did 570 in a day to report on that. Here is my write up.

By the way, I do not find my 2007 RSV to be hot except at stop lights when the ambient temp is over 90. The Eluder made my armpits drip with sweat at 30MPH in 76 degrees. Read my review. And I thought the windshield was great but I use an 11 inch on my 2007 RSV and the wind hits me at the top of my helmet. I am 5'9.5" 190 with 30 inch inseam.

Reminding you again that I only have 570 miles on an Eluder but I LOVED IT and living in the Pacific North West now where it is cooler most of the time than Los Angeles or Death Valley, I wouldn't hesitate to buy it.

https://ultimatemotorcycling.com/2018/02/07/2018-yamaha-star-eluder-test-death-valley-bust/

[RandyT]

I’ve only had my 2018 Star Venture TC for about 2 weeks, a left over still in the crate. I’m still in the break-in period. I rode in 88 degree weather for a short ride recently and noticed substantial heat on my left lower leg and underneath my thigh. Of course I was wanting to hear the pipes so I revved it a little. When I held my hand down between my leg and the motor while riding it felt like a blast furnace. But I had already installed my TAB Performance 2.5 slip-ons without the Power Commander 5 so it might have been running a little lean. But tomorrow I’ll be installing the PC5 and changing the the break-in oil and filter and using Yamalube synthetic. I’m hoping it cools down a bit. Everyone says they cool down after break-in so we shall see.

 

I’m a fan of V-Twins. I’ve had a few and they all run hot. I had a water-cooled 2006 Kawasaki Vulcan 1600 Classic years ago and it also got hot, especially when that big radiator fan kicked in. My last Harley, a 2016 Ultra, a twin cool, was so hot with the catalyst underneath the passenger boards that my wife couldn’t ride with me until I changed out the header pipe and mufflers. Still, it was a hot bike when it was over 80 degrees ambient temperature but no where near what it was before I change the exhaust. The only air cooled bike I’ve had that heat was not an issue was a 2012 BMW R1100R. Never felt anything even on the hottest days.

 

One good thing about the Venture is that the catalytic converters are in the mufflers so it’s easy removal when you put custom mufflers on.

[Tutor]

I have the 2018 Star Venture. My first ride home was 300 miles from Vegas to California. There is definitely a lot of heat on the left side. I've put almost 4k in the last few months and already gave it the first oil change. I think after the initial service the heat seams to be a lot less. But on certain days I can feel the heat again. I live in Bakersfield, CA so the temp reaches in the high 95 to 100+ in the summer. It's not unbearable, but you definitely can feel it. There are lower air vents you can adjust that helps tremendously. Just wish there were one more lower air vent system built in to help the cool the engine more.

 

I ended up buying the tab performance zombie baffle slip ons. I love the sound and even though it's loud, I can still hear my sound system. The stock mufflers sound low and nice, but will drop off real quick on higher speed. I would highly recommend louder pipes.

 

One more thing, for the price of the Eluder, I would skip it and just buy the Star Venture. For a little more you have a lot more options in the Star Venure. (Reverse gear, adjustable windshield, heated grips, a trunk) If you decide to remove the trunk, it becomes an Eluder and you still have all the options that you would not be able to get with a real Eluder. Good luck with whatever you decide. I love my Star Venture.

[Bikecurious]

I ended up buying the tab performance zombie baffle slip ons. I love the sound and even though it's loud, I can still hear my sound system. The stock mufflers sound low and nice, but will drop off real quick on higher speed. I would highly recommend louder pipes.

 

 

Hey thanks for the reply!

 

Did you have to go get the bike Dyno tuned after the muffler install?

[grubsie]

Would it be possible to use any slipon mufflers made for a Harley touring bike like we could use on the RSV's and RSTD's by way of some kind of custom bracket?

[Freebird]

I think it would be possible but haven't tried it. I obtained a set of Vance and Hines monsters ovals that I was going to try but they are too wide to fit into the saddlebag cutouts. So I never looked any further.

[Tutor]

Hey thanks for the reply!

 

Did you have to go get the bike Dyno tuned after the muffler install?

 

I never bought the Dyno, so I'm not sure how much performance it will improve. I definitely get popping noises. I know without the Dyno, I believe I still have better performance then before.