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General Category >> Rubber Side Down! >> I'm curious too!
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Message started by Jay on 05/26/08 at 07:09:19

Title: I'm curious too!
Post by Jay on 05/26/08 at 07:09:19

Re: I am curious too.
Reply #21 - Today at 07:04:10 Savage_Rob wrote on 05/16/06 at 06:04:14:
You can certainly adjust the low (pilot) and mid-range (needle/white spacer) without rejetting. Not rejetting will simply cap your high end.

Back on 05/14/06 Brewbrother posed some questions about carb mods. Essentially, he was looking to reduce engine operating temps in order to protect his engine. Savage Rob gave the above response. There were others, all very informative, but that one really struck a cord. I'm not interseted in improving performance. I like the performance I'm getting. I do; however, want to protect and extend the life of the engine.

So how did all that turn out? What did Brewbrother eventually do; and should I do the same? I want this bike to last, and heat kills engines. I've got an '08 S40. I'm sittin just shy of 1,000 miles, and I love this bike just the way it is. It's got plenty of get up and go for me, it only occasionaly needs half choke to get it started first thing in the morning (and that only for about a minute or less), great acceleration, the fastest I've ever been on it was a BRIEF period of 85mph, with throttle to spare. It will, on RARE occasion, when the engine is cold and the humidity high, give a faint backfire when I roll off the throttle. It does a slight pufffft on shut down that can't be heard if you're not standing very close to the bike. It does have a VERY slight lag in the 45 - 50mph range, and I've noticed just a hint of faint gold on the pipe at the heatshield.

Now all that said, if I DO need to perform some mods to save the engine from premature death, which ones do I perform? Bear in mind, I'm not interested in breaking the ton, I don't need more top end speed, I don't want it to sound louder (I like the sound: and if I ever take the badging off the bike, I'm going to replace it with
Tecumseh or Briggs&Stratton :)) so I won't be replacing the exhaust. I change oil frequently (it's had four oil and filter changes since purchase), and I plan on converting to synthetic after 2000 miles. I may even put in a magnetic oil plug, but I digress.

Full disclosure, I am not a tinkerer (sorry Lancer). I will wrench, but I prefer to ride. However, if it will save the life of my ride, I will get the toolbox out. So group, what mods do I have/need to make in order to preserve my beloved ride from the heat?

Seriously, if the heat is a problem I want to fix it. Most of the tech advice in here is for wringing more performance out of the Savage. I just want to protect it. Please advise.
Thanks,
Jay

Title: Re: I'm curious too!
Post by rigidchop on 05/26/08 at 08:32:26

thats it, being proactive instead of reactive is the key to long bike lives.

Title: Re: I'm curious too!
Post by serowbot on 05/26/08 at 08:48:02

Just a hint of gold is absolutley nothing to worry about. You don't need to do anything.
Keep in mind Guzzy's and Beemers are famous for bluing pipes, and equally famous for longevity. In their case and ours, the discoloration is more a product of pipe design than bad running. You have to judge these things based on the bike you ride. Some bikes have much thicker pipe walls, double or triple walls, and often times when you see pipes they are not actual pipes but chrome heat shields that run the full length of the real pipe (look closely at a 650 v-star sometime).
BTW, mine is blue black for nearly a foot and I'm not worried at all. It's jetted just fine, but I ride her pretty hard sometimes and I also ride through extreme weather and elevation changes (that will blue the cr*p out of pipes!).
So don't worry, be happy!

Title: Re: I'm curious too!
Post by Crotchrocket on 05/26/08 at 12:05:08

Quit sweating the details and ride the thing.

Title: Re: I'm curious too!
Post by vtail on 05/26/08 at 13:06:05

At least raise the needle ( personally I'd remove the spacer all together since this was just a kneejerk fix to stay within EPA) and rejet the main to 150. You could also put in a K&N slip-in filter.Then adjust the idle (after removing the plug of course) Your bike will thank you for it cause these small mods will cool the exhaust valve. You can put synthetic in it now. ;)

Title: Re: I'm curious too!
Post by barry68v10 on 05/26/08 at 13:07:38

Jay, most air cooled bikes have a reputation for turning regular petrol into sludge, our Savage included.

Full synthetic is probably the best way to prevent this. If you don't have any adverse signs of running lean, don't sweat further prevention.

I run Amsoil 10-40 and an external mount oil cooler. I've also taken out the white spacer. I've been stuck in Interstate gridlock on 90+ degree days for hours with no problems. (That's the air cooled engine's nemesis.)

The oil cooler might be overkill, but I notice a torrent of heat rolling off it in the summer. Not sure the white spacer mod helped with heat, but throttle response improved markedly.

Richer mixtures will always cause an engine to run cooler (doesn't apply to gaseous fuels like propane and nat. gas), that's an old circle-track racer's trick, but you just throw $ away if you over-do it, AND sacrifice performance.

Title: Re: I'm curious too!
Post by verslagen1 on 05/26/08 at 13:45:31

747764646F202E602726160 wrote:

I've been stuck in Interstate gridlock on 90+ degree days for hours with no problems. (That's the air cooled engine's nemesis.)

I think that if I couldn't split lanes and I where caught in grid lock, I'd be looking for a pickup truck, give the guy a wink and a wave, grap hold of the bed to get a tow and shut down.

Title: Re: I'm curious too!
Post by thumperclone on 05/26/08 at 15:59:45

richer is better...

Title: Re: I'm curious too!
Post by demin on 05/26/08 at 16:36:43

I would like to be richer,and a little leaner.Oh,wait we're talking carbs. :-[ ;D

Title: Re: I'm curious too!
Post by Jay on 05/26/08 at 20:05:08

Thanks for the response guys. The only reason I even considered the carb mod was if it was going to significantly help cool the engine. Vtail, thanks for the tip on the synthetic. I'll go ahead and make the switch next oil change.
As for the rest, I seem to be getting a mixed message. Some say don't worry, just ride; others recommend spacer and a rejet. I'm not much of a wrencher, though with my Clymer's and this forum, I think I could "git 'er dun". I don't want to go into it though if all it will get me is more performance. I'm satisfied with what I've got; but if I need to cure a engine life threatening lean condition, then I guess (shudder) I'll open up the carb :-X.
Thanks again for all the help. I really appreciate it.
Ride safe,
Jay