2012 Tenere in the Shop

[True Grip]

Your welcome Tim. I appreciate this forum too. Met some great people and made good friends. It's not just Tenere love most have and will have other bikes. I think most of us are at a point in our lives where the Tenere suits us to a T. I enjoy meeting people from other walks of life. Keeps life interesting. Plus I've had friends who complain about their neighbors and I always give the same advice "if you want a good neighbor be a good neighbor" it's always worked for us. Hope you get on the road soon!!

 

[tomatocity]

Can not find the Corbin seat (KLR). Driving me crazy.

Found the seat in my bedroom closet. Why would I put the seat in a closet. Anyway... I gave it a Lexol bath and hand polish. Looks almost new. Corbin seat built (Ride In) 2007 in Hollister CA. Had it modified twice 2008 & 2010.

Can't believe how well the engine runs on 3 year 9 month old gasoline. Remove gas tank, install radiator fan, check wiring, re-install battery, dump gas, adjust steering, install gas tank, change oil & filter, install seat, install Shinko 804/805, find gravel roads.

 

[tomatocity]

2012 Tenere in the Shop: The parts that have not arrived is a Valve and Timing Chain Guide. Paid for the new 2014-15 Clutch Basket/Bolt/Washer.

 

[tomatocity]

The Good: ALL the parts have arrived ::013::
The Delay: the Yamaha Gold Level mechanic is taking a week vacation and should return on April 6th.
The End: should receive the finished product on April 10th (?) ::014::
The Break-in: have a 3day 600+ mile ride planned for April 13th-15th or April 14th-16th.

Day 1 http://goo.gl/maps/etcLX Sacramento to Ukiah, 306 miles

Day 2 http://goo.gl/maps/AzemX Ukiah to Santa Rosa, 267 miles

Day 3 http://goo.gl/maps/N6HvW Santa Rosa to Sacramento, 123 miles

A lot of twisties, on & off throttle, elevation changes.

After this I need to get ready for a Texas trip.

... At least this is my dream.

 

[eemsreno]

Hope everything turn out good for you.
Have lots of happy miles.

 

[Checkswrecks]

The plan sounds do-able.


Speaking of do(hickeys), remember the scene from Woody Allen's movie Sleeper, when he finds the 200 year old VW in a cave and it starts right up? They shoulda used a KLR.
) ::001::

 

[greg the pole]

The Good: ALL the parts have arrived ::013::
The Delay: the Yamaha Gold Level mechanic is taking a week vacation and should return on April 6th.
The End: should receive the finished product on April 10th (?) ::014::
The Break-in: have a 3day 600+ mile ride planned for April 13th-15th or April 14th-16th.

Day 1 http://goo.gl/maps/etcLX Sacramento to Ukiah, 306 miles

Day 2 http://goo.gl/maps/AzemX Ukiah to Santa Rosa, 267 miles

Day 3 http://goo.gl/maps/N6HvW Santa Rosa to Sacramento, 123 miles

A lot of twisties, on & off throttle, elevation changes.

After this I need to get ready for a Texas trip.

... At least this is my dream.

Tim, if your out and about on the 13th, we will be on our way back to Brookings. I'll post up daily/email as we're going along

 

[tomatocity]

Hope everything turn out good for you.
Have lots of happy miles.

Thanks. Recently don't have enough time behind bars and I am chompin at the bit to ride. Been spending too much time riding vicariously through the internet.

 

[OldRider]

Before BWC sent me this information... the dealer was very concerned with the amount of carbon build up in the combustion chamber, on the valves, and on the valve seats. After receiving this information I shared it with the dealer and they knew about it and use it but apparently don't suggest the use of it to the customer.

The photo's really sold me on the idea of using Yamaha Ring Free Plus... unless we can discover how to reduce the carbon build up. What causes the carbon build up? Carbon caused by "unburnt fuel" or "burnt oil"? The last tank of gas the Tenere did use more oil than it ever had.

California 'Crap Gas' gasoline is the worse in the USA. Sinclair offers a non-Ethanol 91 octane 'Rocket Fuel' (not in California). Found the non-Ethanol Sinclair gas in Wyoming, Montana, and North East Idaho.

If Premium gasoline needs higher compression rates to burn clean... do we need Premuim gasoline with a 11 to 1 compression ratio?

Proactive Tips for Using Ethanol-Enhanced Fuels http://www.yamaha-motor.com/outboard/Ethanol_Fuel_Flyer.pdf

I did a bunch of research on this "ring Free" stuff and it was 100% positive, so I bit the bullet and bought a quart. I wanted a way to carry it pre-measured when on a trip as I intend to use it every fill up and I found these very high quality 1/2 oz. glass bottle on Amazon for $9/Doz. It adds maybe 75 cents to a fill up, so If it does what they claim, it is well worth it.

 

[tomatocity]

Good idea OldRider. Gonna stop at the Dollar Store to check and see if they have have something like this.

 

[Hungry Tiger]

Old Rider: Didn't research Ring Free. Took it on faith somewhat. Did the shock treatment routine as I probably had carbon buildup from bring too easy on the engine for 64,000 miles. 2oz of the concentrate from the 12oz bottle for each gal of gas. Easy math: 12oz bottle per tank. For 1200 cc engine, instructions say 24 gallons or 4 tankfuls. What a difference now (on straight gas) in mid-range power (seldom run above 6K rpm). They have 3.2oz bottles for maintenance that are good for 5 gals of gas. Do that every 4th tank or so???

 

[tomatocity]

Dale, there is another thought of why there is excessive carbon buildup. The 2014-15 models have a different Piston and Rings. Why did Yamaha replace these parts? I am guessing it was because of excessive carbon buildup. What other reason could it be?

The good thing is (for me) I am getting the new piston and rings.

The bad is there a thousands of 2012-13 Super Tenere's with the old style piston and rings.

I would like to see pictures of intake valves when the 2014-15 Super Tenere's get valve adjustments. If they don't show excessive carbon buildup then we will know why Yamaha replaced the piston and rings.

 

[Big Blu]

Will the replaced pistons and rings be the new and improved design?
If so.....
...
..
I'd say Ymaha was taking very good care of you. ::008::

Paul

 

[greg the pole]

I'm bringing the ring free with me on the next trip.
you need a cap full for every 5L (5mm for 5L). If you run your tank pretty much dry (240 miles of hwy riding) you wilil need 4 cap fulls.

I've gone through only two tanks, will see what it does

 

[EricV]

Dale, there is another thought of why there is excessive carbon buildup. The 2014-15 models have a different Piston and Rings. Why did Yamaha replace these parts? I am guessing it was because of excessive carbon buildup. What other reason could it be?

The good thing is (for me) I am getting the new piston and rings.

I would be very surprised if you got the '14 pistons and rings. The superseded piston/ring p/n for the '12 is 2BS-W1163-00-00. Note that this is the same p/n under piston or rings and you get a piston with rings when you order it, as has been noted in the past. FWIW, I got the current '12 p/n for my pistons and rings, not the '14 parts, when they rebuilt my motor after the CCT failure.

The '14 p/n for the piston alone is: 2BS-11631-00-00 and for the piston ring set is: 2BS-11603-00-00. Note the different part numbers and when you look them up you will see different prices, (the '12 lists piston and rings, but both numbers and prices are the same).

Actually there are other reasons for a re-design of the piston and rings. IIRC, the new rings are thinner, which means less resistance and mass. The pistons may simply be different to accept the thinner rings. This is a very old trick to improve mpg, among other things. Back in the '80's Nisson had a Sentra that got 50 mpg. One of the tricks was minimalist rings.

 

[shrekonwheels]

It is my understanding that carbon buildup is usually do to poor fuel and bad air fuel mixture.

I would be curious to see those who have had this issue if they are those who have adjusted the mapping on their bikes, jumper mod, etc.

 

[Hungry Tiger]

Shrek.... : I have to fess up. CJM been in use and running rich for a looong time. Ring Free once in a while and it'll all be good.

 

[tomatocity]

Shrek... I have been running with the CJM but I plan to disconnect it when I get my Tenere back. Want to see if the jerky throttle returns.

 

[tomatocity]

I would be very surprised if you got the '14 pistons and rings. The superseded piston/ring p/n for the '12 is 2BS-W1163-00-00. Note that this is the same p/n under piston or rings and you get a piston with rings when you order it, as has been noted in the past. FWIW, I got the current '12 p/n for my pistons and rings, not the '14 parts, when they rebuilt my motor after the CCT failure.

The '14 p/n for the piston alone is: 2BS-11631-00-00 and for the piston ring set is: 2BS-11603-00-00. Note the different part numbers and when you look them up you will see different prices, (the '12 lists piston and rings, but both numbers and prices are the same).

Actually there are other reasons for a re-design of the piston and rings. IIRC, the new rings are thinner, which means less resistance and mass. The pistons may simply be different to accept the thinner rings. This is a very old trick to improve mpg, among other things. Back in the '80's Nisson had a Sentra that got 50 mpg. One of the tricks was minimalist rings.

Thanks for the information Eric. Guess I am less optimistic about the reason for the piston and rings improvement. I don't see Yamaha spending money to make the Tenere sell better. I do see them fixing a problem to save face and avoid a recall / TSB. Either way I will have (even if I have to pay for them) a newer piston and rings when the engine is assembled. I will know more tomorrow.

Ps - my 2005 KLR685 is back together and running. Problem is it won't be registered until 4/10/2015. I did ride it around the neighborhood this evening. Sits more comfortable and the transmission feels better. Clutch is stiff. The brakes suck... in comparison.

Pss- the last car I owned that got 50 mpg was a 1969 Honda Ns 360 (450) two cylinder, dual carburetor, air cooled. Usually 53 mpg. Owned it in Japan. Bought in Kagoshima eventually driven to Tachikawa/Yokota.

 

[Checkswrecks]

It is my understanding that carbon buildup is usually do to poor fuel and bad air fuel mixture.

I would be curious to see those who have had this issue if they are those who have adjusted the mapping on their bikes, jumper mod, etc.

Deposits are from incomplete or inefficient combustion and combustion is least efficient at low rpm. That's the book answer. As a kid growing up on Atwood Lake in Ohio, my Dad made extra money fixing boat engines and that's where I got my start. I scraped a lot of pistons and heads for the guys who would come in with ski boats and just talk about idling to fish. Later as an A&P mechanic, I'd see the same in airplanes when comparing the same model engine when used mostly at cruise power versus trainers which did lots of idling.


Now, fuel injectors deliver fuel to the inlet sides of the inlet valves and the heat of the valve is used to atomize the fuel. The valves are hotter and flow is faster when at higher rpm which is one reason the inlet sides of the valves get so loaded with deposits, and it's worse at low rpm usage. An occasional high rpm run is not enough to blow this stuff out.


Personally, I'm a commuter and get good MPG which means lots of low rpm riding, so I've been a SeaFoam user for years. Never looked into the difference between it and the Yamaha version. I know there is a difference between SeaFoam and Techron, both of which are good and available at any most car parts store. I've seen the Yamaha Ring Free at West Marine for boat engines.


At the start or end of the season, SeaFoam is used as a soak then shock treatment before changing the oil and spark plugs, and it's always amazing how much crap is blown out the exhaust. It can also be used in the gas for ongoing use at 1-2 oz per gallon. The major oil companies do use additive packages in gasoline we buy at the pump, but data I've seen is that their dosage is a low. You would need to be religious about staying with a brand known to pump with one cleaning package, such as staying with Chevron where their gas has Techron. I don't know about Chevron, Yamaha, or other brands but SeaFoam makes a point to say that at some point (don't remember their number) less than 1 oz/gal, there is no benefit.





For those who have a place called The Container Store nearby, I saw little brown bottles in the one near us. Personally, I fill on the way to work and that night at home will add the SeaFoam to the tank. The 1-2 oz/gal is such a wide range, you don't need to be too accurate. I don't bother adding it when filling away from home.