Air cooled engine worries.

[Vyk]

I'm finding that I am reluctant to ride my R18 at times due to the fear of getting stuck in traffic.
Throughout my ownership of the bike so far, the bike has gotten hot enough to warn me to stop, twice.
The first time it happened was while waiting in a long line to enter a national park.
The second time it happened was when I was riding in NYC.

The other day, while returning from a 400 mile day trip, I got stuck in traffic on my Husqvarna. There was a huge delay and I was sitting in stop and go traffic for half an hour in 90F+ degree heat.
In my head I was thinking... thank goodness I didn't bring my R18 today.
I HATE the fact that this thought went through my head. I want to ride it without any worries.
I like the bike so much that I was thinking about upgrading to a TC... but oh boy that return trip messed me up.

Has any of you experienced this worry? How do you deal with it? Any tips on keeping the engine cool?
While I was waiting in line to enter that national park, I had the luxury of turning the bike off and on as the movement of the line was predictable.... and it STILL overheated.
That luxury was not afforded to me in NYC.
This has me looking at other bikes... I might be happier going back to a GS... help!

 

[VARG]

I've not yet had a temp warning, been on a few 200 mile-ish rides at 90 degrees or better on both my R18 Base and the TC, with some stop or stop and go. But it sounds like your conditions are a bit warmer with longer pauses, so makes sense i would not have.

Curious, If the bike's tuned, did it display this behavior beforehand?

I'd expect changes to oil cooler could affect this one way or the other too.

 

[Deleted member 939]

It is 100+ here every day.No issues and I'm pulling a sidecar.Next Saturday it will be 108+ then the 1-teens will be starting soon.
That makes the old saying "Fun as Hell"to take on a whole new meaning.
My R18C runs cooler than my Indian 116BBK.Now you talk about having something hot between the crotch,WOW!
Actually thinking of going to a water cooled bike.Maybe a Challenger.The EPA has aircooled motorcycles running at the same 14.7:1 and shit gas.
Electric(maybe not here as the temps really kill a battery)or Water Buffalo.
Last thing,I also need to protect my body and try to make my trips when the weather is cooler because I ride everyday.
To suggest a Tuner may solve your issue.Good Luck and be safe out there.


Oh,I did get caught is a over 2 hour slow,stop & go traffic thru Sedona.I learned to not use to much throttle as the clutch will be affected and the clutch will over heat.
The trick is to slip/feather the clutch without using the throttle.The bike has more than enough torque with the BrenTune and DNA filter.

 

[Deleted member 1344]

Do you have enough oil in your bike? Might check that.
I am not the type to just sit and idle. Turn the bike off and restart when its time. At railroad crossings I always stop the engine. I know lots of guys who just wait it out at idle. Do that on a Harley and the back cylinder will shut off. Those big cylinders need convection cooling in a big way.

 

[0hmerR18]

Hasn't been too hot in the last 3 weeks since I got my R18FE and yesterday the 600 mile service light came on and I took it to the dealer today and they did the service... got past that. I have had it in roll the whole time during the break in period and even after the service today I'm keeping it off the ROCK mode till I get around 1000 miles.

If mine were over heating I would take it to the dealership and request they fix it under warranty. I don't expect this bike to be over heating as it seems very well designed with the air cooling and the oil cooler. Something doesn't seem right with your bike over heating.

 

[Adrian R]

I'm finding that I am reluctant to ride my R18 at times due to the fear of getting stuck in traffic.
Throughout my ownership of the bike so far, the bike has gotten hot enough to warn me to stop, twice.
The first time it happened was while waiting in a long line to enter a national park.
The second time it happened was when I was riding in NYC.

The other day, while returning from a 400 mile day trip, I got stuck in traffic on my Husqvarna. There was a huge delay and I was sitting in stop and go traffic for half an hour in 90F+ degree heat.
In my head I was thinking... thank goodness I didn't bring my R18 today.
I HATE the fact that this thought went through my head. I want to ride it without any worries.
I like the bike so much that I was thinking about upgrading to a TC... but oh boy that return trip messed me up.

Has any of you experienced this worry? How do you deal with it? Any tips on keeping the engine cool?
While I was waiting in line to enter that national park, I had the luxury of turning the bike off and on as the movement of the line was predictable.... and it STILL overheated.
That luxury was not afforded to me in NYC.
This has me looking at other bikes... I might be happier going back to a GS... help!

I'm not quite sure I understand what your saying. What made you think you must stop? Did you get an engine warning, or some other symptom that made you think the bike was overheating?

 

[Vyk]

I'm not quite sure I understand what your saying. What made you think you must stop? Did you get an engine warning, or some other symptom that made you think the bike was overheating?

A light came on that was a combination of an oil and temperature light. The clutch started to slip as well. The engagement point went farther and farther away from the grip.

I've not yet had a temp warning, been on a few 200 mile-ish rides at 90 degrees or better on both my R18 Base and the TC, with some stop or stop and go. But it sounds like your conditions are a bit warmer with longer pauses, so makes sense i would not have.

Curious, If the bike's tuned, did it display this behavior beforehand?

I'd expect changes to oil cooler could affect this one way or the other too.

The bike is tuned. Both of these occurrences happened when the bike was stock...

Oh,I did get caught is a over 2 hour slow,stop & go traffic thru Sedona.I learned to not use to much throttle as the clutch will be affected if the clutch over heats.
The trick is to slip/feather the clutch without using the throttle.The bike has more than enough torque with the BrenTune and DNA filter.

Thanks for that suggestion! I will try to be more mindful of my throttle application and see if that helps.

Do you have enough oil in your bike? Might check that.
I am not the type to just sit and idle. Turn the bike off and restart when its time. At railroad crossings I always stop the engine. I know lots of guys who just wait it out at idle. Do that on a Harley and the back cylinder will shut off. Those big cylinders need convection cooling in a big way.

The oil level is okay. I was doing this when I was riding through DC for Rolling To Remember last month. But the stop and go situation then was much shorter.
During that recent traffic jam, my buddy was on his HD and he had no issues. I know HD has that engine idle temperature management system like you said... I was thinking something like that would be nice for the R18 but I think the engine configuration being what it is will not allow for that kind of system.

Maybe I am worrying prematurely? Idk how much the tune helps with this and I'll follow @R18C 's advise and just try riding it and see what happens... I guess if it starts to overheat, I'll just have to pull off to the side. I don't want to have problems when I'm hundreds of miles away from home as those rides consists of most of my riding...

 

[bbrBlk]

I'll add that I too experienced a 'cel' and I attributed it to stop and go traffic (those in Boston, it's 93 S expressway in the tunnel).

The bike went into limp mode. And in time it error warning just cleared itself. Like the OP, I too am leery of it.

 

[Deleted member 939]

I don't like to sit and let any vehicle idle.Even my Gladiator gets turned off if I have to sit in traffic.
On a similar subject,I see folks here, in Arizona sitting in there cars or unattended idling.I'm not a tree hugger per say but I do try to conserve gas and turn off the water spigot when I'm not brushing my tooth.
btw:if the tooth brush was not invented in Arkansas it would have been called a teeth brush.

 

[pbosik]

It is 100+ here every day.No issues and I'm pulling a sidecar.Next Saturday it will be 108+ then the 1-teens will be starting soon.
That makes the old saying "Fun as Hell"to take on a whole new meaning.
My R18C runs cooler than my Indian 116BBK.Now you talk about having something hot between the crotch,WOW!
Actually thinking of going to a water cooled bike.Maybe a Challenger.The EPA has aircooled motorcycles running at the same 14.7:1 and shit gas.
Electric(maybe not here as the temps really kill a battery)or Water Buffalo.
Last thing,I also need to protect my body and try to make my trips when the weather is cooler because I ride everyday.
To suggest a Tuner may solve your issue.Good Luck and be safe out there.


Oh,I did get caught is a over 2 hour slow,stop & go traffic thru Sedona.I learned to not use to much throttle as the clutch will be affected and the clutch will over heat.
The trick is to slip/feather the clutch without using the throttle.The bike has more than enough torque with the BrenTune and DNA filter.

That issues hasn't happened to either of my R18's. But, it isn't uncommon for it to happen to other bikes, i.e., K1600's, Aprilia's, the Harley's I owned would fry my leg, sitting in traffic.

 

[adamchandler]

My 2009 GS Adventure was oil cooled. I don't have traffic where I live but I was in traffic in Montreal once and had to shut it off and move to the side of the road. It used to have an oil temp sensor that you'd see go higher and higher if you weren't moving. I was sitting in a parking lot on the R18 yesterday and trying to connect my phone and had the bike running. I started to see..not smoke just some sort of aerosol particulate coming off the heads / headers and I turned the bike off. Could be new bike cook off but I didn't have any alert or warning. I wouldn't hesitate to sit in traffic with the bike but if I was stopped fully for 15 minutes, I'd probably turn it off and let it cool down.

 

[Deleted member 939]

My 2009 GS Adventure was oil cooled. I don't have traffic where I live but I was in traffic in Montreal once and had to shut it off and move to the side of the road. It used to have an oil temp sensor that you'd see go higher and higher if you weren't moving. I was sitting in a parking lot on the R18 yesterday and trying to connect my phone and had the bike running. I started to see..not smoke just some sort of aerosol particulate coming off the heads / headers and I turned the bike off. Could be new bike cook off but I didn't have any alert or warning. I wouldn't hesitate to sit in traffic with the bike but if I was stopped fully for 15 minutes, I'd probably turn it off and let it cool down.

New bike cook off.Probablly will have it happen a few more times as the ambient temps increase.It's a new bike.
Also,these bikes are Oil Cooled with oil pressure to the heads.
Oil coolers cool the oil when moving air but oil cools the R18s heads.My Indian has a similar oil cooling as it carries 50-60 pounds of oil pressure.Not sure what the R18 carries bit it definately has oil cooled heads.

 

[nielsm]

I'm finding that I am reluctant to ride my R18 at times due to the fear of getting stuck in traffic.
Throughout my ownership of the bike so far, the bike has gotten hot enough to warn me to stop, twice.
The first time it happened was while waiting in a long line to enter a national park.
The second time it happened was when I was riding in NYC.

The other day, while returning from a 400 mile day trip, I got stuck in traffic on my Husqvarna. There was a huge delay and I was sitting in stop and go traffic for half an hour in 90F+ degree heat.
In my head I was thinking... thank goodness I didn't bring my R18 today.
I HATE the fact that this thought went through my head. I want to ride it without any worries.
I like the bike so much that I was thinking about upgrading to a TC... but oh boy that return trip messed me up.

Has any of you experienced this worry? How do you deal with it? Any tips on keeping the engine cool?
While I was waiting in line to enter that national park, I had the luxury of turning the bike off and on as the movement of the line was predictable.... and it STILL overheated.
That luxury was not afforded to me in NYC.
This has me looking at other bikes... I might be happier going back to a GS... help!

I’ve had my GSA show very hot coming over the Holland tunnel into NYC with completely stopped traffic. Air cooled and stopped traffic aren’t ideal. I would just stop the motor until I needed to move again.

I have 3 air cooled bikes, so I’m used to this. It wouldn’t stop me from riding the bikes. But, I would make a distinction between the bike notifying you it is running hot vs over heated. I’ve never had a bike get so hot it shut down on its own. This really only happens stopped in traffic when there is no airflow and it is very hot. Not fun to sit in traffic in that temperature anyway. Can always pull over and take a break to let the traffic dissipate and the engine cool down. I’ve never had the engine get too hot even in very warm temperatures as long as I’m moving. Even my S1000R which is water cooled gets really hot in traffic and it all rises right onto you, but once you start moving the radiator cools down.

The other option, which is what I usually do is ride at different times. I usually ride early AM on weekends so I don’t have any traffic. If I’m traveling, I’ll start my day early and time when I come into busier areas to avoid rush hours. It’s a more enjoyable ride in general and no worries about air cooled engines either.

 

[Luis]

Never happened to me, but remember: air cooled bike is a “winter sport”

 

[Gerard]

I never experienced overheating on my R18 since sept 2020.
Température can reach 38 / 40* Celsius here.
But nobody worry if you ride up the line in Europe...

 

[Deleted member 939]

Worries???

Here is a story for ya:
After I retired I worked for Indian Motorcycle for a couple of years.Anyway,we had a customer at the Arkansas dealership that started his bike and let it idle in his garage every week during the winter.
One day he started the bike and forgot about it.Yeah,like 4-5 hours.The bike got so hot it melted zip ties and some other parts under the gas tank.If I remember correctly,it either ran out of gas or the plastic gas line connector melted.
Crazy huh?
The bike was completely gone over.No issues found.It ran perfectly after the melted parts replaced.And no, it never smoked or used oil.
The Nikasil coating is harder than a whores heart and disipate heat really well.
BMW has been running these for years as well as almost all Japanese bikes.

Not to be a jerk here as I am just trying to share my expierence.That being said,I have never overheated a air cooled motorcycle in a span from 1962-now.I know if I am unable to have air movement I bump the kill switch or just turn the bike off if not moving.
I live in Arizona.I learned real quick to take care of myself and my motorcycle.With the heat here, we drink plenty of water.Plus we don't really sweat as the dry air sucks the water out real fast.
Remember if it is hot for the bike, it is also dangerous for you.
Last word on my rant.We used to get off road bikers, DOA at the hospital where I worked and retired from.Folks would come here to ride their bikes in the desert and not have expierence with the climate.If you visit here,remember this.Just drinking water sometimes does not replenish electrolytes needed in the Az 110+temps.Folks get dehydrated,confused while riding and then peal off there clothes to get cool because their brain is basicially cooking.Which leads to DRT(dead right there).

Be safe,use sun screen and water yourself.If possible try not to ride the hottest part of the day.
Now get off this topic,turn off the computer and have some fun out there.

 

[Adrian R]

I do need to add that the R18 is *also* oil cooled.

 

[moleculo]

I had the temp warning come on with my R18 with only a couple miles on the motor while on an hour-plus ride in stop and go L.A. traffic in 90+ degree weather. When I got home, I found a massive leaf stuck to the rear of the oil cooler, which I'm sure didn't help things. I'm keeping a close eye on this to see if it becomes a recurring issue.

 

[itnetpro]

That issues hasn't happened to either of my R18's. But, it isn't uncommon for it to happen to other bikes, i.e., K1600's, Aprilia's, the Harley's I owned would fry my leg, sitting in traffic.

Yea my Harley Street Glide and Ultra Limited use to burn my right thigh when sitting idle in traffic. I use to HATE that. I lost lots of weight so my thighs not as big anymore so maybe less a problem now. Seems my R18B manages heat fine. I barely feel it while idling. I don't get stuck in traffic for extended amounts of time but do ride in 90+ degree weather with no issue here near Philly..

 

[moleculo]

A couple of days ago I went for an hour ride in 79 degree, direct sun weather in the Los Angeles area. No freeways, only surface streets, which means plenty of traffic and stop lights. At the end of my ride as I was pulling into my driveway, the High Temp warning came on.