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[ST] cooling fan and clutch cable; a long, sometimes philosphical, whinge



Last week I went to pick up my 2800 km ST from my dealer. The minor
scratches to the side and belly fairing caused by dropping it at 1 mph are
all fixed nicely- thank gawd for stuffed-silly soft panniers. (Is it
impossible to spot the repair job? see below). While the bike was in I asked
them to look at the cooling fan which insisted on coming on when the bike
was cold, that nagging harsh flat spot that so many of us experience between
3000-3400 rpm and a 'sticky' clutch lever.

They couldn't find anything wrong with the fan. Couldn't even get it to go
on when cold. Said 'it might be something to do with the computer software'
(because, according to them, the fan is now controlled by the computer?), so
they upgraded it from version 10.x to 11.0. This is one of those proverbial
problems that don't happen when you take it to the dealer because yesterday
morning the fan went on at a 8oC start-up with witnesses! The only way to
get the fan to stop is to turn off the ignition and restart the bike at
least twice. This is not an end of the world problem, but along with the
intermittent whining from the fuel return valve (and my whining!), it makes
my bike sounds like a tractor when it fires up. This *seems* to be a new
problem on this list?

Nagging flat harsh spot at 3000 rpm? 'New computer tune should fix it'. Does
it hell. Still the same. I'm starting to think I might go the 18t front
sprocket/3%/CF can solution recently posted. If I keep the bike long enough
that is!

It seems to me that these computer thingies are a two edged sword. On the
one side, they allow precise diagnostics and tuning, but on the other side
they can be used as a catch-all excuse for not laying a grubby finger on a
bike?

Sticky clutch?. I spotted oil oozing out the barrel, despite the fact
that when I asked the mechanic over the telephone about lubricating cables
on the ST (after reading some posts here), he told me that it was 'not
necessary because all the cables had self-lubricating silicone-lined
cables'. So, after inspecting the paint job on the fairings I rig up for the
100 km journey home, jump on, pull the clutch in to start the bike and hey
presto, the clutch cable snaps at the nipple head right in front of everyone
at the dealer! 10 mins later I finally leave a  lot of red-faced mechanics,
dealer and a cableless showroom ST behind me. Am I lucky or unlucky?

Half way home I'm wondering why I've got a wet arse on a bone dry day and
discover that the radiator has been so overfilled (remember the efforts to
fix the fan above?) its pissing boiling hot water all over the under-seat
storage box (owners manual looked like a soggy cucumber sandwich!), and out
on to the seat and side cowling!

Spotting the respray? Can any lister tell me if on their standard 2001 ST it
has insulating foam on the inside of the right hand side belly fairing. I
have a foam lining on the left side, but not on the right side now and I
can't remember if there was some before.

My answer to all this frustration is -unfortunately- the same as for many
things in life. You'd really like to not have to faff around with your new
computer because MS+Dell know what they are doing right? You'd really like
to trust your financial advisor to give the best possible objective advise
right? You'd really like to let the Triumph dealer service/tune your *new*
ST because they are professionals, you don't know what you're doing, that's
why
you bought a new bike anyway and you've got more important things to do-
like earn some money to pay for the bike. Wrong!  Hence, I've signed up on a
basic motorcycle mechanics course so at least I know when I'm getting
bullshitted even if I still can't fix it!  The only good news is that
amongst 12 assorted bikes at the first night of the mechanics course, most
attention and admiration was focussed on my BRG ST :) But is it a case of
'all that glitters is not gold'? The bike and Triumph dealers have got until
11,000 km (i.e. another 7000 km and just after first major service) to
convince me, otherwise I'm off to the (bike)land of the rising sun.

Barry (evidently not quite in love enough with his bike that he's prepared
to forgive and forget)
MMI BRG ST 3K km
Brisbane
Australia





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