troypennock Posted May 26, 2004 Share Posted May 26, 2004 The elevation was 120 feet, the free air temp was 92 degrees (closer to 100 at pavement level) and the terrain was flat. I was in a traffic jam, moving at about one mile per hour, for three hours and my temperature gauge indicated 251 degrees (flashing and underlined in red) four times. Each time this happened, I stopped, shut off the engine, and let the vehicle cool for thirty minutes. The history: 2001, purchased new April 25, 2004, has about 1700 miles, and has indicated 200 degrees at 70 miles per hour when the FAT is above 90 degrees. Is this normal for this model? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redbird Posted May 26, 2004 Share Posted May 26, 2004 Your traffic situation, yes. Sitting at what amounts to a dead stop, cooling-wise, will result in overheating. My '01 never runs over 185 as long as I'm moving 50mph+, regardless of "free air temp", so you may have cooling issues if you're running at 200 degrees @ 70 mph, assuming you'd been at that speed for long enough for the temp to stabilize. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveszx302 Posted May 26, 2004 Share Posted May 26, 2004 What he said, only I would add check your stat and radiator for internal cleanliness, if it was sitting for years unsold it may have had build-up on the inside of the radiator. Also, use some Redline Water Wetter in it, it helps! Mine gets to 220 idleing in the hot but never goes above 180-185 when moving above 45 mph -Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John01XX Posted May 26, 2004 Share Posted May 26, 2004 I would agree with Redbird. My 2001 always sets right at 186 when moving over 50 mph. I too had a problem with heavy traffic and when it hit 250 and started to blink I freaked out and split traffic turned down a side road and went about 3 blocks and the temp dropped to 125 and falling. After that one time, I then flushed out the antifreeze and replaced with pure Engine Ice. I helped with the traffic temps and made the temp climb alot slower but still would reach that 250 flashing point so took it to Honda and changed out the radiator cap and replaced the EngineIce with Honda antifreeze water mix per Honda spec's. It has not been back up to that 250 mark since but has gotten to 235. I am now cautious about long idle speeds and avoid them when possible. My next service I am going back to EngineIce but I have been saying that now for over a year. The problem is that the Bird never needs service ! The EngineIce did not change the 186 normal temp when riding but did cause it to slow down the upward climb in traffic. Most here will tell you that the Bird just runs naturally alittle higher temp than many bikes but I agree 250 is to high. You did the right thing by either stopping or as I did pulling out of traffic and get some air circulating to drop the temp fast. It does drop very fast when moving. I have investigated options on larger more efficient cooling fans and replacement blades but have not be able to find anything worthwhile. Lest not yet. If I find something that works well, you can bet it will be all over this forum. Get get out and ride and stay out of heavy traffic. Heavy traffic equals a Cage with A/C anyway here in Sunny South Florida ! :cool: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madrazcbr Posted May 27, 2004 Share Posted May 27, 2004 Mine is a '02 bought in '02 brand new Euro Spec. I'm from Malaysia and very near to the Equator. Even from new, my XX always run hot. I could not get Water Wetter so I replaced the OEM coolant with Engine Ice. The only thing good about the Engine Ice is that it will cool much faster compare to the OEM coolant when the engine is switch off. It tooks around 20 minutes to cool down to 185(85C) compare to the OEM 60 minutes. When I am moving at 70 mph the temperature will still be around 205(96C) - 212(100C). When it reached 212(100C) the radiator fan starts. Only when it reach back to 205(96C) the fans stops. There is one time, I were moving at 70 mph for almost 2 hours, the fan never stop. Will this cause problem with the battery and the motor fan ? Speed above 100 mph will see the temp at 201(94C). The only thing is that not always I manage to reach this speed as the road condition does not allow me to do so. By the way my country speed limit is 70 mph. In traffic jam, in 10 minutes it will shoot up to 239 (115 C). When I start moving again the temp will go down to 212(100C) and stays there. It will shoot up again the minute I stop or slow down. With this info, do I have overheating problem ? Any suggestion to improve the situation. Should I change the radiator cap as it could be only suitable for Euro whether. Do you think it will make a difference if I use Water Wetter and the Honda OEM coolant ? Can I mix it with Engine Ice ? Previously I manage to ignore this however when reading this thread it makes me worry again as 201(94C) is consider high. HELP HELP Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aptyp Posted May 27, 2004 Share Posted May 27, 2004 I'm really curious to see if this will help on an water cooled engine, but the tip for overheating air cooled engines is to turn up the idle rpm. This speeds up oil circulation which should also help with the temperatures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted May 27, 2004 Share Posted May 27, 2004 In traffic jam, in 10 minutes it will shoot up to 239 (115 C). When I start moving again the temp will go down to 212(100C) and stays there. It will shoot up again the minute I stop or slow down. Mine shoots up much faster than that in traffic. But runs normal at highway speeds. I can pull in the yard temps shows 190f, open the gate get back on bike and it has reached 220 or so. I don't worry about it anymore unless it pukes over. No way would I ride in city traffic in the heat of summer if at all possible to avoid. Dunno for sure about water wetter but IMO prolly a total waste of money. Good Luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madrazcbr Posted May 27, 2004 Share Posted May 27, 2004 The air temp is around 75(24 C) - 91 (33C). That means I have a problem. How do I solve it..... Now I am really worried........ WHAT SHOULD I DO ??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madrazcbr Posted May 27, 2004 Share Posted May 27, 2004 BTW. The radiator is clean. Nothing block the air circulation. The fins is not bent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madrazcbr Posted May 27, 2004 Share Posted May 27, 2004 It happened only last week. I was using 6th gear. The overall system is fine and the fin is not clogged. I do not suffer the overheating symptoms, only annoying hot. By the way, will it be a good idea to change to OEM Honda coolant and a bit of Water Wetter. On the radiator cap, is there any different between the Euro Spec and the US spec or even the Japan Spec especially at what temp it should open, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madrazcbr Posted May 27, 2004 Share Posted May 27, 2004 Thanks Joe. Will try to get the radiator cap from Honda Singapore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeOK Posted May 27, 2004 Share Posted May 27, 2004 I think the real problem is that most vehicles don't have a digital temp guage and let you know exactly what their other engines are running. Mine runs hot in city stoplight traffic, and it's new. 240 is not all that hot anyway, my Jeep runs 215-220 on the open road. The manual says you have a problem if it gets over 250 and stays there. If I'm at a stoplight and it gets up to 240 or so I usually kill the engine until the light turns green, then I blast off and take advantage of all that cool ram air blastin into the ram air into a hot engine... Sweet... Mine does not run hot on the highway, except for one day it got up to 210-215 when I was running 65 MPH down the highway. I was concerned until I realized I had a 35 MPH tailwind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madrazcbr Posted June 7, 2004 Share Posted June 7, 2004 Hi All, Will the tarmac temp can effect the thermostat reading ? What happened is that I went for a 125 mile ride yesterday. The Bird temp range from 208 F(98 C) to 233 F(112 C) with speed ranging from 70 mph to 90 mph and sometime reached 120 mph. The temp still the same and the fan is working non stop. It was a very hot day. Suddenlly it started to rain and the atmosphere is much cooler so does the tarmac. During the rain the Bird temp range from 185 F(85 C) to 194 F(90 C) at the same speed. My questions are ? 1) Do I still have a problem, if it is true tarmac temp effect the Bird temp 2) Will it effect the battery and the fan motor as it was working non stop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVLXX Posted June 7, 2004 Share Posted June 7, 2004 Super Flush! For all those that are getting high readings, the first thing I would recomend is running some Prestone Super Flush through the system. After a couple of years, radiator fluid reactes with the metal in your motor and builds up "Scaling". I believe Prestone recomends running it for 15 minutes with the treatment, then draining, I ussually run it for an hour or so, then drain it. If that doesn't help, radiator cap. Additionally if you are running more than 60% radiator fluid, that will also give negative affects. 50/50 is optimal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVLXX Posted June 7, 2004 Share Posted June 7, 2004 My questions are ?1) Do I still have a problem, if it is true tarmac temp effect the Bird temp 2) Will it effect the battery and the fan motor as it was working non stop. And to answer... Yes and Yes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiDNiTXX Posted June 8, 2004 Share Posted June 8, 2004 Do you really think it will affect the battery since it was running non-stop at ~4k rpm? I would think the power draw would be very sustainable at that rpm/speed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pacman Posted June 8, 2004 Share Posted June 8, 2004 with a temperature of 26c, at speed of 110-140 km/hre, 82-83c on the bike. When stopping/at slow speed, will reach 100c and fan would kick in but as long as I'm moving, it would be around 94c. once on the Hwy at speed above 80 km/hre, temp goes down to 81-83c. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madrazcbr Posted July 12, 2004 Share Posted July 12, 2004 I have found out that the temp problem is due to not enough coolant in the radiator. After adding the coolant in the radiator, my temp problem has gone. The temp reading is almost the same as Pacman reading. Anybody knows how the coolant in the radiator can reduce by itself. I have checked that there is no leakage whatsoever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete in PA Posted July 12, 2004 Share Posted July 12, 2004 How can you tell if your fan IS running at 70 MPH????? Can't hear it, can't feel it since air is already rushing through. :???: From my GM training I know the fan will shut off at a certain road speed (don't remember exactly, been awhile) since it will just impede the air coming in. Don't know if the XX does this. If my fan is on at a stop and I take off, as soon as I'm moving I can't tell if it's still on or not. We've covered this before but the digital temp. readout probably gets more owners worried than a gauge. My gauge doesn't go up more then half way, even sitting in traffic with the fan on. Is it running at the same temps as the FI birds just not READING that high? With the switch to FI the oil cooler got moved to a less ideal location, maybe that is the problem. You guys with the 99's if you're sitting in traffic where is the gauge? more then half way? What I'm trying to figure out is the FI the problem with hot running or the digital gauge the problem. :???: :???: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrdxx Posted July 12, 2004 Share Posted July 12, 2004 My '99 with the analog gauge generally runs at the bottom third of the gauge in all ambient temperature conditions experienced here in FL, unless I'm stopped in traffic. Then it runs at the upper third of the gauge, and the fan kicks in and the temperature stabilizes, and when I start moving again and flow some air through the radiator, the temperature comes right back down again. As long as the fan is able to manage the excess heat when stopped in traffic, I don't worry about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete in PA Posted July 12, 2004 Share Posted July 12, 2004 Hmmmm........... Makes me wonder if all you guys with the digital readout should install an inline resistor from the sending unit to make it read lower. A cooling system isn't overheated till the coolant boils and flows out the reservoir. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MileHi Posted July 12, 2004 Share Posted July 12, 2004 My '99 with the analog gauge generally runs at the bottom third of the gauge in all ambient temperature conditions experienced here in FL, unless I'm stopped in traffic. Then it runs at the upper third of the gauge, and the fan kicks in and the temperature stabilizes, and when I start moving again and flow some air through the radiator, the temperature comes right back down again. As long as the fan is able to manage the excess heat when stopped in traffic, I don't worry about it. Same here in Colorado... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tvking Posted July 12, 2004 Share Posted July 12, 2004 Has anyone considered a fan temp switch that would come on at a lower temp? The fan would have less "catching up" to do. Just a thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rider99XX Posted July 12, 2004 Share Posted July 12, 2004 My 99s' temp needle stays in the bottom 1/3 of the guage. Sitting in traffic it will climb to the upper 1/3 but NEVER has it boiled over, even fighting my way through the traffic at Talladega Superspeedway before a race. The fan ran most of the time but would occasionally shut off even though the needle stayed in the upper 1/3 of the gauge. Some friends of mine with Busas :shock: (I know I know, friends don't let their friends ride Busas) installed a manual override switch to their fans so they can turn it on BEFORE the get stuck in traffic. They say it seems to help to catch it before it gets too hot. But then again, they are riding Busa so what do they know :twisted: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted July 13, 2004 Share Posted July 13, 2004 IMO wouldn't matter is the fan is running 24/7 if you stop a lot in traffic the temp will climb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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