• There has been a recent cluster of spammers accessing BARFer accounts and posting spam. To safeguard your account, please consider changing your password. It would be even better to take the additional step of enabling 2 Factor Authentication (2FA) on your BARF account. Read more here.

Addressing an overheating issue

Moto Beck

Moto Beck

The Longest Title Allowed
Joined
Aug 7, 2016
Location
East Bay
Moto(s)
‘20 BMW S1000R
BARF perks
AMA #3692965
Last weekend I went down to Monterey, I noticed my bike was running a bit hot but everyone says Aprilia's tend to do that. I started to notice the temp gauge hit 220-225-230-235 - yikes - had to pull over and turn the bike off. Fans are engaging - getting late in the day and now there was traffic through most of the route back. I was pretty anxious.

Managed to split my way through traffic - got to the top of 92 in half moon bay - turned the bike off and coasted in neutral down the bike side to the bridge and i was home free from there. A few times i thought i was done for as the temp rose and i had no path of getting around people. It was not a fun ride home.

Doing some research online - I was thinking there might be some air in my system given the fans are kicking on but the bike isn't cooling down. The bike was moved here from NJ a few months ago and i was wondering if the changes in temp/altitude may have potentially gotten air past the shit clamps that aprilia uses on their coolant hoses.

Used YouTube to figure out how to flush a coolant system as i never did that before. I have to say it was as easy as changing your oil- you just have to be careful of not releasing the radiator gasket cap all the way or the coolant flies out of there pretty quickly - quasi lesson learned haha.

Filled up the first flush with distilled water only - let it run with the cap off - burping the system to get the air out, once the level was filled, i capped it and let the bike idle - 205,210,213 fans kick on - 215 the temp hovered and then dropped. Hell yes.

The distilled water was tinted orange from the former coolant color so i decided to flush the system one more time with distilled water before filling with engine ice.

Repeated the process a third time and tested the bike - all is well. I called a local dealer just to see how much i saved by doing the coolant flush myself (they quoted me $150) - engine ice cost me $20 plus 2 gallons of distilled water $5 - a whopping $25 total.

I'll take it! Took a spin on redwood just to make sure the bike is running fine and the temp was great the whole time. Pumped I learned yet another small maintenance victory and can finally enjoy a fully functioning bike again.

Bonus - i didn't over torque the coolant drain bolt :)

Little clip from redwood
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLEPRmlI_MU
 
I would mix Water Wetter with a standard prediluted coolant approved for your bike. currently the cooling system has NO lubricant for its waterpump.
 
Many additives aren't worth the paper the label is printed on.

Distilled water is good for the flush but running it afterward isn't, maybe your info got misconstrued.

Best bet is just running the coolant approved for your bike. The radiator cools the fluid and all the fancy alternatives is just marketing for money IMHO.

Good maintenance on your part.:thumbup
 
Hey, it has the magic elixir
Uses propylene glycol, which has been proven to eliminate water pump gasket and seal failures; it has also shown in high load, high stress conditions to reduce operating temperatures more than standard coolants
 
dravnx said:
Hey, it has the magic elixir
Uses propylene glycol, which has been proven to eliminate water pump gasket and seal failures; it has also shown in high load, high stress conditions to reduce operating temperatures more than standard coolants
Click to expand...

http://www.evanscoolant.com/products/

"Evans waterless coolants prevent over-boiling by raising the boiling point of antifreeze from around 226°F for water-based antifreeze to 375°F—far about the operating temperature of an engine."
 
raising the boiling point doesn't mean shit if it has half the heat capacity of water, though.

Never mind. I clicked through that website for five minutes and found this: "Water contains oxygen, which causes corrosion"

Anyone who will tell you that with a straight face should not be trusted. They're either dishonest or stupid.
 
With proper antifreeze and a good radiator cap, I wouldn't start to worry until about 260 degrees.

Maybe it's a good thing that my KTM only has about six bars instead of numbers. I get annoyed with it when the fans have to turn on. :laughing Nowhere near being too hot yet.
 
zixaq said:
raising the boiling point doesn't mean shit if it has half the heat capacity of water, though.

Never mind. I clicked through that website for five minutes and found this: "Water contains oxygen, which causes corrosion"

Anyone who will tell you that with a straight face should not be trusted. They're either dishonest or stupid.
Click to expand...

No. That person is not stupid, they're educated. Dissolved Oxygen and carbon dioxide in water are the main causes of corrosion in boilers. All of the heat transfer surfaces in your engine are more subject to corrosive affects of the dissolved gasses in the coolant water than any other areas. Distilled water contains NO OXYGEN, therefore is much less corrosive than fresh tap water. The mineral scavenging effect of distilled water is negligible in a 50/50 cooling system.
 
Is corrosion really an issue when using distilled water and an antifreeze specified for aluminum engines or are we arguing chem lab stuff?
 
save that money

Good job,:thumbup should of contacted me id of rolled redwood.

Thinking of hitting up mines and having lunch at the junction on Monday.:teeth
 
Whammy said:
Good job,:thumbup should of contacted me id of rolled redwood.

Thinking of hitting up mines and having lunch at the junction on Monday.:teeth
Click to expand...

Pm me your number if you want to ride. I'm traveling this week but back next week. Would like to get some riding out in Livermore too
 
Did you switch out the thermostat?

If it sticks, the coolant won't get cooled. Either by staying in the engine because the thermostat stays closed, or by running through the radiator too fast to effectively cool it.

I've experienced both situations in different vehicles.

It's easy to overlook, and maybe not something everybody thinks about.
 
dravnx said:
Is corrosion really an issue when using distilled water and an antifreeze specified for aluminum engines or are we arguing chem lab stuff?
Click to expand...

Not at all. Sorry that was a bit of a thread jack. His coolant was probably old enough that it had become ineffective. Flushing it with distilled water is no better than flushing it with tap water, but starting over with a fresh 50/50 mix or a manufacturer's recommended fill is what addressed the problem.
 
Problem with the APE is also the cut on for the fans is pretty high, 22X if I recall correctly.
 
afm199 said:
Problem with the APE is also the cut on for the fans is pretty high, 22X if I recall correctly.
Click to expand...

It's 213F which is pretty damn high if you ask me. I had my previous FZ09 flashed to come on at 205F but not worth flashing this each just for that.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top