Questions....Several of them :)

[clayton]

Hi all
I know some of this is covered in other posts but...
(2008 1600 Nomad with 6500 miles and Synthetic Oil.)

**1st: How HOT is TOO hot for the Nomads?
Yesterday it was about 85 and I damn near was sweating from the heat coming off the engine.
I do hear the fan kick in and the coolant level is where it needs to be.
**2nd: Not very long ago I made myself some larger lowers (yea they look nice) since then the engine noise has increased 3 fold for obvious reasons. Now I am hearing things I never heard before. At around 60 to 70 mph I hear a odd rattle when I accelerate, not so much like pinging. It is almost like something is loose. So today I am going to look over the entire front end and head light bucket to see if something has come loose in the meantime other suggestions would be great. Can or will the Reed valves cause this as well?
**3rd: As per the Reed valves, if I remove these what would I loose? What would I gain? Will I have to use a after market fuel processor?
**4th: As per pinging, the only MODS I have done to the bike is the removal of the baffles (BD's Removal), a few weeks ago I ran 3 tank fulls of Sea Foam through the system after which it was an obvious day and nite difference but since I installed the larger lowers I obviously hear more noises. So back to the point..."sometimes" I get pinging when getting on it or accelerating at high speeds.
I use 91 and above octane...is it time for a fuel processor? Is there another route I can take? Is it time to change the plugs?
I appreciate your responses since in the next few weeks I will be going over the Nomad and changing all of the fluids (except coolant and hydraulic) and checking the nuts and bolts prior to my trip to Deals Gap.
Any other pre-check advise would be great as well.
Thanks VERY much ahead of time

[cactusjack]

Originally Posted by Clayton

Hi all
I know some of this is covered in other posts but...
(2008 1600 Nomad with 6500 miles and Synthetic Oil.)

**1st: How HOT is TOO hot for the Nomads?
Yesterday it was about 85 and I damn near was sweating from the heat coming off the engine.
I do hear the fan kick in and the coolant level is where it needs to be.
**2nd: Not very long ago I made myself some larger lowers (yea they look nice) since then the engine noise has increased 3 fold for obvious reasons. Now I am hearing things I never heard before. At around 60 to 70 mph I hear a odd rattle when I accelerate, not so much like pinging. It is almost like something is loose. So today I am going to look over the entire front end and head light bucket to see if something has come loose in the meantime other suggestions would be great. Can or will the Reed valves cause this as well?
**3rd: As per the Reed valves, if I remove these what would I loose? What would I gain? Will I have to use a after market fuel processor?
**4th: As per pinging, the only MODS I have done to the bike is the removal of the baffles (BD's Removal), a few weeks ago I ran 3 tank fulls of Sea Foam through the system after which it was an obvious day and nite difference but since I installed the larger lowers I obviously hear more noises. So back to the point..."sometimes" I get pinging when getting on it or accelerating at high speeds.
I use 91 and above octane...is it time for a fuel processor? Is there another route I can take? Is it time to change the plugs?
I appreciate your responses since in the next few weeks I will be going over the Nomad and changing all of the fluids (except coolant and hydraulic) and checking the nuts and bolts prior to my trip to Deals Gap.
Any other pre-check advise would be great as well.
Thanks VERY much ahead of time

1. 85? Sheesh, I've ridden when it's 119. Assuming no mechanical issues, your liquid-cooled engine can handle any heat you can throw at it. Yes, riding at 119 is uncomfortable, no matter what you do or what you wear.

2. These engines are a tad noisy. Lowers (and larger lowers) reflect sounds you wouldn't otherwise hear. Your bike is virtually brand new and these engines are very dependable.

3. I can't say for sure.

4. My bike had a chronic pinging issue, even on 91 octane. I installed a fuel processor and was able to nearly eliminate the pinging. I run 87 or 89 octane and will still get pinging, only very occasionally. A fuel processor would richen the mixture, reducing or eliminating pinging, and your engine will run cooler. A lean running engine is a hot running engine.

You shouldn't need to replace your plugs yet. I replace mine annually, which is still overkill (2007/40,000 miles).

[phenrichs]

I am with CJ on this.
Your noise is most likely due to the reduction in wind noise.

Temp is not an issue. I sweat my balls off in July at stop lights from the fan blowing heat on me but the engine is ok.

As for the reed valves. They are in conjunction with several other items that are supposed to manage emissions and other bs. Short answer is they restrict the potential of the engine by rerouting air flow and pressure. You can remove them and engine noise will decrease slightly (you may not notice). You can disconnect the cold idle solenoids and engine noise will decrease substantially. This usually happens when doing an intake mod. This will require you to install a fuel processor.

I dbaffled my pipes and it started pinging. I then needed a fuel proc. I did the intake mod at the same time. Plugs should go 30,000 easy. Just like your car.

[Cajunrider]

+1 on what CJ and OP said.
My belief is the fuel processor should be the first modification on a 2008 Nomad and lower. Before installing my TFI, the fan would kick on at every traffic light. After, it may kick on after idling for a couple of minutes or more in 90+ degree ambient temperature. Huge difference in operating temperature and performance.

[clayton]

Nice thanks guys.... :)

[jestephens]

I replace plugs just about every season. It makes me feel good.

[sharps45100]

Oh and you better check to see if the dragon is open. We were down there the 5th,6th and 7th of april and it was closed due to a rock slide. You might be able to start from NC side and go up but not from Tenn side. Oh and you need a fuel proccessor, you got the pings and once you put a fuel proccessor on of your choice your bike will run much cooler!

[clayton]

Thanks Sharps for the info on the Dragon. I will be contacting them shortly.

[macmac]

TFI or Cobra would be what I would do... Of course I did..TFI before Cobra was out there so far as I know, but thaqt was a long while back first time with a 01 1500.

I ride in SD at 108, and hated it.... a lot of heat comes foff the goat bladder if you ask me. I ditched that in Cal.

Reed valves don't make much noise, if any they are a plastic like material. Fer sure mine don't make a sound, since they live in a card board box in the cellar, with all their related BS tubbings and hoses.

I figure anyone with a goat bladder likes cooking while riding.... I do consider putting mine back on for WINTER.

[clayton]

I do have another curiosity....What do you guys use to take out the Spark Plug Tunnels to inspect them for damage later down the road?

[macmac]

The spark plug tool may be used for doing that and as the ft axel tool IF it does fold up.

What i would do is check the plug well for it's size and but a bolt with a head that size and 2 nuts. Then it is a simple matter of jamming the nuts on the bolt togehter, and if you have access to a welder dob the nuts in place forever, but this isn't so tight that you can't just simply jam the nuts. This make a big allen tool of any bolt and 2 nuts.

The ft axel I think is 22mm aka 7/8" and so close I did use 7/8".

Most any parts store should have a Sae to mm conversion chart, and if they don't Snap-on and Mac trucks usually do.

If you pull the tube to see, anti seize it and the spark plug before you put them back. Just on the threads.

[clayton]

Thanks Mac

[pablo]

For pinging you might want to check out the air temperature resistor mod on Gadget's web site. This is inexpensive and makes a difference. I have both a 1.5K resistor and a fuel processor. I did the fuel processor first and played with it for a while, but when I did the resistor mod the bike really "woke up" and started performing much better. However, I don't get the fuel mileage that most do; about 30 mpg. One plus, is that the bike runs cooler than it did before the resistor mod. I don't know too much about these things, but it seems that a rich setting runs cooler than a lean setting, and tends to eliminate pinging.

[redjay]

For me the best thing I did to my bike was add a TFI. It eliminated the pinging which was chronic even with high test. The TFI eliminated the stumbling between 1st and 2nd and reduced the heat of the engine to the point where the fan only comes on occasionally.
It makes the bike much more "driveable" and more fun to drive. www.customdynamics.com
had a good price on the Dobeck plug and play, not sure if they still do. Put the TFI on and a 9" air intake and it transforms the bike.

[Cajunrider]

Custom Dynamics was offering a 5% discount to KawaNOW members. Call them and ask if it still applies.