spybirdxx Posted May 17, 2005 Share Posted May 17, 2005 Hey guys. I need your help. Last year I was stuck in traffic for over two hours crawling along. The Bird overheated and I had some overflow from the reservoir. I subsequently had a flush done and all the sensors checked. The dealership told be all was well but it still seems to me that it runs hotter then it use to? The needle never gets into the red but it does go high and the fan works. It also takes a few hours for the frame to cool down after a ride. I can't say for sure if I remember it doing that before?? My mileage also sucks this year but then again I live in Ottawa (Canada) and it's been dam cold this year. Any chance I have a bummed thermostat? Would I have any other signs if anything major had happened? The bike runs great apart from that. Paranoid in Ottawa.... Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechnoGecko Posted May 17, 2005 Share Posted May 17, 2005 Bad thermo would cause air to get in to the system and therefore lower the boiling temperature of the water. This would result in overheating for sure, but you can usually notice if there is air in the system because after you turn the bike off you'd hear a bubbling noise like boiling water. .. of course the radiator cap is a cheap part and never hurts to replace if you're really concerned about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dion Posted May 17, 2005 Share Posted May 17, 2005 I don't know about a bad thermostat letting air into the system but they usually fail open which means coolant is constantly moving and doesn't cool as efficiently. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechnoGecko Posted May 17, 2005 Share Posted May 17, 2005 Er, sorry. I read that as radiator cap not thermo. Whoops! :oops: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dion Posted May 17, 2005 Share Posted May 17, 2005 Er, sorry. I read that as radiator cap not thermo. Whoops! Â :oops: What do you expect when you haven't had any sleep cause you've been working all night. :wink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spybirdxx Posted May 18, 2005 Author Share Posted May 18, 2005 Thanks alot. I'll have the thermostat changed and see if that helps. Can't hurt anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helvet Posted May 18, 2005 Share Posted May 18, 2005 I had the exact same problem with my bike, only worse. Mine started overflowing once, and after that a lot. We exchanged radiator cap, thermostat and a bunch of other things. Honda gave up on me after a leak test on the head-gasket. I finally found the problem myself..... Because I didn't want it to overheat this much I bypassed the fan. Now I could use a separate switch to start the fan early. When I did that in time, there was no more problem. This started me thinking, and I checked when the fan should start, and when it did start. I found out my thermometer of the fan was not working correct. The fan did start every time, but too late, causing an overheating and overflow. On the newer bikes this is easier to find, because you know the exact temperature of the cooling fluid. The 1999 model didn't have this readout, and you just had to guess the temperature. Honda sent me a new part (this was the first one they had sold in Europe...), and my problems were over (at least this one...). So check it out, compair with another XX when the fans start.... Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spybirdxx Posted May 18, 2005 Author Share Posted May 18, 2005 Thanks Helvet. I'll give that a shot too. BTW, did you notice your fuel consumption being affected? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helvet Posted May 18, 2005 Share Posted May 18, 2005 Thanks Helvet. I'll give that a shot too. BTW, did you notice your fuel consumption being affected? No I didn't, but I must say I was driving slower than normal to keep the temperature down. I don't recall a better or a worse fuel-mileage or performance.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted May 18, 2005 Share Posted May 18, 2005 Mine will hit 250f many times while in traffic so far no boil overflow. Tried water wetter and engine ice, neither did anything to help, Water wetter made it reach 250F even faster. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dion Posted May 18, 2005 Share Posted May 18, 2005 I had the exact same problem with my bike, only worse. Mine started overflowing once, and after that a lot. We exchanged radiator cap, thermostat and a bunch of other things. Honda gave up on me after a leak test on the head-gasket.I finally found the problem myself..... Because I didn't want it to overheat this much I bypassed the fan. Now I could use a separate switch to start the fan early. When I did that in time, there was no more problem. This started me thinking, and I checked when the fan should start, and when it did start. I found out my thermometer of the fan was not working correct. The fan did start every time, but too late, causing an overheating and overflow. On the newer bikes this is easier to find, because you know the exact temperature of the cooling fluid. The 1999 model didn't have this readout, and you just had to guess the temperature. Honda sent me a new part (this was the first one they had sold in Europe...), and my problems were over (at least this one...). So check it out, compair with another XX when the fans start.... Good luck! Good thought Frank. You can test the fan sending unit with a thermometer, DMM and a pan of water. Pull the SU and put it in the pan of water with the thermometer. put it on the stove and check continuity with the DMM. You can see what temperature the switch closes at. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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