Took the Savage to the dealer, they went over the carb and now it starts and idles well, also swapped the handlebars for a wider set so I can see behind me in the mirrors.  But.. the throttle response is unpredictable, the ride is still not smooth, and there seems to be a lot of noise in the top of the engine when I get up to cruising speed.  Is this normal?  It's been 30 years since I owned a bike, but I remember them running smoother and quieter than this. Around town it's not to bad but once I hit 50 mph its disturbing.

EricTheRed wrote on 08/31/10 at 08:06:04:


I need a little more discription of what is happening.
On 1, is it surging? throttle held steady yet you feel like you are riding a hobby horse.
Or lagging?  you twist the throttle and nothing happens then whoa nellie she takes off on ya.
In either case, carb clean or add seafoam to your tank.
2. is in relation to 1 or are you complaining about suspension?
3.Ah sweet cacaphony, savage is thy name.  Noises come from several areas, speedo, headlight, various covers, etc.  Place your hand on various bits and see if the noise disapates.  Usually it's your savage trying to tell this bit is about to fall off, so don't let it go to long.

Yes Verslagen1 both surging while cruising and lagging when I give it throttle.  I ran some carb cleaner through it, can't find seafoam around here, didn't help.  It sounds like shaking a paint can full of bolts, I'm starting to worry about my cam chain.

Get to a higher speed then hit the clutch and let the rev go down while the bike still travels at high speed, does the noise go away or stay the same? If it is the speedo, the noise should remain. If it's related to internal engine, like valves, the noise should really subside. At least that's what I would think

also valve noise the "looser" end of spec adjustment theyre noisy..