Bike seems to be overheating

[LarryInSeattle]

You could always ride up here to Lynnwood and compare mine to yours.  Motor sound.... same outside air temperature.... same motor, same lots of things to look at.

I am riding down to a 3 day campout this weekend in Hood River with the Alky Angels.  Looking for a place to go?  I am riding down with a fellow rider from Shoreline, leaving Friday morning at 9:00 am.

$20 for camping... that includes all meals for Saturday.

[greenbarn]

Thanks again for all the help.  I did manage to get the service manual PDF from a member and downloaded it – Excellent!  Anyways, I took the bike for a 30 minute ride last evening – it was quite warm out – and when I got back she wasn't overflowing at all, so maybe it's a non-issue now.  Today's supposed to be about 85 here in the Seattle area, so I'll see if (1) the fan will come on especially at red lights and (2) if the coolant ends up overflowing at all.  Now that I have baffles in the bike I'll be able to monitor noises such as fan operation and so forth.  I'll let you know how it goes.

Could it have been over-full to start with??  Had you (or someone) just added coolant???   If it's too full, then it will run out the excess via the overflow, by design.   

[Tfrank59]

Well, that might've been the issue then, or just newbie paranoia, because I was on the girl today (and it is hot) for about 2 to 3 hours, the fan ran properly, and no more coolant overflow.  Happy ending! 

[CDNRatMan]

  It could have been something so simple as an air bubble.....and it burped it out now and is good to go......

[Tfrank59]

Thanks again for all the help.  I did manage to get the service manual PDF from a member and downloaded it – Excellent!  Anyways, I took the bike for a 30 minute ride last evening – it was quite warm out – and when I got back she wasn't overflowing at all, so maybe it's a non-issue now.  Today's supposed to be about 85 here in the Seattle area, so I'll see if (1) the fan will come on especially at red lights and (2) if the coolant ends up overflowing at all.  Now that I have baffles in the bike I'll be able to monitor noises such as fan operation and so forth.  I'll let you know how it goes.

[pcarrell]

Obviously I don't have a service manual.

Lets fix that problem!

Not as handy as a paper copy, but it'll do in a pinch!  http://www.vulcandrifterriders.com/forum/index.php?topic=36096.0

[Tfrank59]

Thanks a lot – you guys are awesome!

[CDNRatMan]

  The drain is on the bottom of the crankcase on the right side.

see picture....

check your box for a pm....

[Tfrank59]

Testing the fan motor's an excellent idea. Thanks. I plan to flush and refill the coolant, but I can't figure out where to drain it from! . Obviously I don't have a service manual.  Still I'm not a total idiot when it comes to wrench turning, but I don't see a drain on the bottom of the radiator or is it maybe near where the water pump is?

[CDNRatMan]

  Thanks Troll on my list of winter maintenance. I have never heard or seen my fan on since I have owned the bike. Tfrank59 the one thing I did do was to get the bike nice and warm, then drain the coolant right out and I filled the system with a mixture of white vinegar and distilled water, ran the bike for about 10 mins, drained it again and flushed the system with some hot water. Then filled it with the correct fluid.
Like I said I never heard my fan come on so this winter I will need to check and make sure it is working......   

[Troll]

Test the fan circuit

[Tfrank59]

Coolant reservoir is full, seems like she's peeing on the ground a little bit after riding about 15 minutes, hard to tell if the fan's coming on (still too ### loud  ), any ideas what it might be?  Stuck thermostat?  BTW, I'm not seeing the hot light coming on. Maybe I'm just paranoid because it's such a new bike to me.  Bothers me that I'm seeing coolant coming out the overflow though.