ChiefGunner

Lol! Good one. Let’s just say more than I’d like to be definitely less than I would after the trip!

We’ve always tried to stay at KOA’s on our trips. We like their consistency. The wife loves our trips too. It was HER suggestion for this one! Just the other night we were watching “Diners, Drive-In’s &Dives”. SHE suggested that we do some “gastronomic” trips by bike and visit some of those places. Have a hunch after that trip or a couple of them, we’d be OVER the bike weight limit! 🤣

Looks GREAT! Let us know how they work at night through corners. Thanks!

That’s a great idea Daryl. The lights in this bike are awesome... as long as you’re going straight. I’ve noticed that cornering at night is troublesome as the light does not shine through a corner. Your idea is exactly what I was thinking to help remedy that condition. The Yamaha ones mounted under the front fairing won’t really help as they’re pointed straight. Having fork mounted to turn INTO the turn is the way to go. Please post pics when you’re done! Thanks.

Yes it was! And with the announcement in Canada of a 2020 model, and I believe imminently here in the U.S. you will probably see these “fire sale” deals stop. People who have been holding out for it to keep going lower are gonna miss the “jump on” point just like a stock market rally. I’d expect to see the overall value of this bike stabilize now that the false flag idea of a “one year wonder” has been laid to rest. Just my take.

I’ve been to Alaska a few times but never by bike. It’s absolutely STUNNING! I’ll tell you what Rob, I don’t care what state you started from... that’s still an accomplishment covering that much territory. I’m hoping to fill in most of the states in between east & west coast when we do our trip. Was 14 days but now we’re up to 17. If I don’t calm the wife down, we’ll be doing 21!

It does help, and thank you for the info. I still haven’t tried to set this up in my bike because I personally already feel a GLUT of information. Last thing I want to be doing is trying to read something on the screen while trying to drive. Although, the manual states it has “text to speech” AND “speech to text” capabilities. Have you tried using that yet? I’m curious as to how well it works. Interestingly, all of the VOICE ACTIVATED functions I’ve tried so far worked without a problem. Didn’t have to repeat myself 10 times because it didn’t understand me. Tapped the button and said “next track” and BINGO! Next song was being played. This bike is a tech junkies dream!

From what I understand, these use a coil over gas strut that is adjustable. Kinda the best of both worlds. I haven’t looked for myself yet, so I can’t say definitively.

Ron, this bike won’t have any issue going the distance. Speaking of “going the distance”, you need to hit those last 3 states in CONUS so that your map is fully filled in. I’m definitely envious of that!

Thanks Don! Never owned a Hannigan before, but I’ve definitely admired them for years. This is becoming my “DREAM” set up. I was seriously looking at a Bushtec Turbo II when this one popped up on the radar.

Lol! That’s funny Don! Bucfan11 inspired me, so they other day I made a 532 mile trip and picked up a Hannigan Europa trailer. I was really pleasantly surprised when I found out it has brakes installed on it! 👍. Getting prepped for our coast to coast trip this year.

I’ll have to do some more digging Daniel to let you know. Heated passenger grips (accessory) is upgraded. No longer just a handle wrap but integrated into the handle as it should be. It also says compatible with 2018 models, so now I have to get those.

Mike, that’s a Canadian advertisement so that price of $32.299 is in Candian dollars, not USD.

Thanks TAB, will do. I hope it’s not too long before you have some sound clips of them on the new Venture.

Sorry, didn’t mean it that way. The Service Manual also has the schematics designating every connector in the area you’re looking and shows where the wires tie in. I’m preferring to hook up to and utilize the existing Infotainment function for “rear view” camera. One of my projects in the New Year. Gonna need it for our coast to coast trip in July.

It doesn’t sound as if you’ve looked at your manual. The connection is NOT anywhere near the seat area. It’s located in the left side up near the “power head” or “control unit”. I contacted Yamaha asking for any information on format it may be using, but they refused to give me info because they stated “they are developing their OWN camera for the unit and price point is around $279. No wonder they won’t say anything since you can get a very nice HD with IR night view for less than $30.

Excellent! There are some big updates for the SVTC coming soon! ENJOY!

I have one of those bi-fold holders on the inside top of the trunk using velcro. It’s out of the way and works fine.

Sorry bucfan11, not yet. Did you see the video I posted in what it looks like installed and operational?

I would be demanding that the dealership deliver the bike in PROPER working order. All of the software updates DONE up to the current one. The NAV system registered and WORKING. This is all part of “dealer prep” that THEY CHARGE YOU FOR. I’d MAKE them do it! On another note, even if your baby sits in the garage for a while, this is a good opportunity for you to sit on it with the manual and familiarize yourself with all the functions. Get all your settings for infotainment where you want them and get your home screens setup with the info you want displayed. Then learn how to use the handlebar controls to access what you want without having to study the screen. It’ll make changing stuff while your riding much easier & safer. Theres a LOT to learn. As you’ve probably already noticed, the manual for the Infotainment System is 118 pages! Advice, read it then RE-READ it again, then go play with controls then RE-READ it again!

Congrats on your new bike! Once you get a few things ironed out, you’re gonna LOVE it! Yamaha recently sent everyone a formatted 8GB unit to use with all updates. As far as formatting goes, I think Yamaha’s site has some info on that. I have my own 8GB thumb drive that my dealership gave me at purchase. I’m not super savvy on this stuff but I think you need to keep your drive to 8 or 16GB just because it works better and I think the bigger ones are differently formatted which creates an issue. Let me ask if you’ve ordered your Service Manual for the bike? HIGHLY recommended! Both your owners manual & the service manual have detailed instructions on performing software updates. Sad to hear that the dealership didn’t do that as part of delivery prep BEFORE giving you the bike. I’m hearing way too many stories like that but it makes me appreciate my dealership ALL the more! BZ to Team Charlotte Motorsports in Charlotte, NC.

Hi Chuck, I had that happen to mine back at around 7500 miles or so. Yamaha dealership apparently fixed mine right the first time as I now have over 15k miles on it with no further issues. However I did upgrade the oil to a full synthetic with Esther since then. Running YamaLube 20w-50 but some very sound science as well as oil reports make a great case for need of ZDDP due to the use of a flat tappet/cam setup on this bike and that it is acting against 2 valve springs not one. I have an oil change coming up in less than 1k miles and will be upgrading to Redline Motorcycle Oul 10w-40. Not cheap but had great ZDDP numbers as well as being an actual Goup V oil with esther. Im surprised at your post. Just for clarification, are you saying they had to tear into your bike twice? Go through the threads here on the Venture.. I posted pics of my damaged lifter and cam. Let me know if that’s what you saw. Mine occurred in the rear cylinder.

I was the first one to own an SVTC in the Southeast region. Have over 15k mikes on here so far. Let’s take the issues one at a time. 1. HEAT- The mileage of the bike plays a big part in the initial heat you feel. I’ve noticed the heat decrease as the bike has broken in. Obviously heat is caused by friction and a newer bike WILL have more heat. NO, there are no fans to direct the heat, but it doesn’t mean something couldn’t be tailored to your desires. Remember, this is a Transcontinental Touring bike, not a “commuter”. If your planning on daily running it in heavy traffic, you’ll be fine in temps up to 80 degrees. I found above that it does get warm, but nothing that I felt personally was intolerable. I read that you didn’t have the lower vents open. They do take away heat while riding BUT they in doing so, they help take heat away so there’s not as much build up. If you search around you’ll find most ex HD & Victory V-Twin air cooled riders say this bike is not as hot. BTW, wrapping the exhaust doesn’t eliminate anything. It’s “air cooled” so you’ll just cause other areas to become hotter by not allowing the heat to dissipate. The heat DOES become less once the bike wears in and overall friction decreases. 2. EXHAUST- I personally contacted BOTH Vance&Hines and Cobra, neither of which have any plans to make aftermarket products for it “at this time”. There is an instructional video (with sound) of a guy who “drilled out” his baffles. It did give more of a raw HD sound to it, but “most” people don’t think it needs it. Additionally, all us owners here have reported the exhaust note “maturing” after a few thousand miles of “burn in”. It became slightly louder and had a deeper note to it. 3. WINDSHIELD- I was wondering if you had the windshield adjusted all the way up? J&P Cycles I believe offers a “taller/wider” windshield for the new Venture. It’s 2.5” taller and 4” wider and runs for $129.00 4. HANDLEBARS- There are a number of people who have installed 2” risers to give them what you’re looking for. Freebird is one of them. There was also no problem with the cabling to accommodate the 2” risers. I’ve also heard of some changing the handlebars completely but have had to do some modifications for the grips to be re-installed. I don’t know if the cabling for the new bars was an issue. A little bit of research and you can probably find the story of what they encountered. 5. RIDING POSITION- I understand you have a physical limitation/condition dictating your riding position. You might want to consider an “air doughnut”. It will keep the pressure off your tailbone and allow you to stretch out more. I hope that helps. If you have any questions about functions or anything else, let me know.

The top of the vents do route air back into the front of the engine. There is a angled slot the length of the vent on the inside of the vent toward the engine. The removal of the lower cowling is VERY easy as Freebird can attest to. Only requires the removal of 5 bolts, all of which are easily accessible. I also want to reiterate that the video showing a 2019 Venture is just an artists rendition and is not from Yamaha or anyone officially asscociated with Yamaha. It’s simply an artists conception, nothing more.

That’s just a 3rdP artists rendition and is NOT any official or even planned modification or design associated with Yamaha. Wishful thinking or imagination at best.