83 Xj

[Axel]

What is the difference between XJ1100 and a XJ1100J ? Is there any more designations ? I have an 83 (I think) made in 82 and some month from the headstock . I cannot find any manual or even reference that this (83) exists . Any wisdom ? Thanks , Axel

[DiverRay]

I'm NOT positive, but I believe the '83 was NOT imported to the USA. The '82 was the last year for the XS/XJ 1100 in the USA. I don't think there was much changed between the two years, so if you can find a manual for the '82, it should work.

[Jerry]

Depending on the state, some bikes were titled the year they were sold, not the model year. Some left-over '82s were sold up to '84. There is only 1 XJ, the '82, model number starts with 10M. Many people leave the "J" off the XJ1100 designation, officially all XJ1100s are XJ1100J models. Yamaha will deny producing an XJ 1100 in '83.

Do a search on "manuals" to get all the info. Basically, there are no Clymers or Haynes for the XJ. Your choices are to get a factory service manual (Owner's manual no longer available), contact list member rockjoc and buy one of his CDs with the manual on it, check ebay, or simply ask for specific information. There are some similarities but many, many differences between the XJ and the earlier XS models, just enough to get you really frustrated when you turn to an XS manual for information. The factory manual and / or Rockjoc's cd will get you the best coverage. Parts diagrams and part numbers are available through many on-line sites, including Yamaha.

[Axel]

waiting

Hey Thanks . Seems i can pick up a CD a mere 3 hours away
or send for one . Bikes still in the shop . They cant get it to run smoothly . Some o-rings in the carbs are to blame apparently. I dropped it off last Tuesday so its almost a week . I got used to having a bike again pretty quick and now i miss it . Thanks again . Axel

[trbig]

Hmmmm.... sounds like someone hot tanked them with the butterfly valves still in..... Good luck.



Tod

[Axel]

Hey . The bike had been sitting for 2+ years with the tank cocks open . It didnt want to idle but I thought it was the cracked intake manifolds . The initial cleaning and new manifolds didnt change a lot . Its a bit better but the guy working on it says he would like to see it idle properly . He was searching for o-rings last I heard and upon installation i was promised delivery .
Here's hoping . Axel

[trbig]

When you take the bowls off, there is a tiny jet that is actually inside the bowl that you took off. It's for the enrichener circuit. It's where the thin brass tube goes up in. If you don't get those jets cleaned really well, it won't idle right.

Tod

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Tod,

Sorry, but the bowl jet is for the enrichener circuit only, not for the idle once it gets warmed up and the enrichener/Choke is pushed in/off.

Axel, your XJ has the YICS intake system, and it requires a special tool to block off the ports in the head before the carbs can be properly vacuum synched. You might want to inquire at the shop to see IF they know about that aspect, otherwise, they will definitely have a hard time getting it idle properly.

Did the shop do the carb cleaning?? There are O-rings that seal the pilot SCREWs on the top of the carbs, and there are O-rings that seal the float needle valve seat! I'm suspecting they are looking for the first ones.

These carbs are a bit stubborn to get cleaned without essentially fully disassembling them to be able to get all of the passages in the pilot/idle circuit cleaned, which would affect the idle IF they didn't get them cleaned! Good Luck!
T.C.

[Axel]

Thanks T.C. The shop did the cleaning . I think it was the pilot screw o-ring as well . I believe he took some measures to re-clean the carbs after the initial cleaning didnt get the pilot circuit .
I find out tomorrow if they were successful . I may make some suggestions if they are not or it may be another shop time .

Thanks for your interest, all , Axel

[trbig]

I realized that TC, I was just assuming he hadn't got it to warm up too well since it wasn't running smoothly.

Tod

[Axel]

carbs/ idle

Hey Tod . I had the bike out for a few rides . I required a lot of choke to keep going . I had to leave the choke on in town so I wouldnt stall at lights . Out on the road I shut the choke off so when it was well warmed up it would idle roughly at a very low RPM . I didnt do any work on it myself . There was so many other things to check over ,I thought the shop would be the quickest option . Cheers , Axel

[Axel]

And how wrong I was . After a week my bike is back . Runs a little better . Idles roughly . Clutch slips and flashing red light on the dash . Diag says Fuel . Buddy said to bring it back and he'll do the fork seals as they are leaking on the front caliper . Ride it for a few days and have another go at it . I'm almost scared to take it back . I didnt get a bill yet so thats another variable .
Back when, I learned not to take my bike to a shop EVER .Is it still like that ? Axel

[trbig]

You can do as good as any shop on your carbs if you get a couple things. You will need to make or buy a YICS tool, and either buy or make a carb synchronizing tool. It will be an initial cost, but after that, they should last for years.

Your fuel light.... There is a wire about a foot long (Black and green if I remember) that comes off the bottom of your tank and plugs into a 2-wire connector. You might find the wire and follow it back and make sure it is... they may have forgotten to connect it back up.

If you still have the original air box on the bike and you decide to work on it yourself, you may want to ditch the air box in exchange for some pod style filters. Don't get the cheap ones from Partsnmore.com. The carbs on the XJ are a bit of a bugger to get off since the air boxes won't move back much at all like the XS's will. I also didn't like the way I had to bend, prod, and pull on those expensive boots. Some say the bikes run better with the original box.. but I have some proof from others that mine seems to run just fine with pods! (When it is actually running!) I can get my carbs out in just a couple minutes.

To keep the bike running properly with today's fuels, (Dirty and low grade) you will occasionally need the carbs cleaned and synch'd. Especially if it sits all winter. It will be cheaper in the long run and give you MUCH more satisfaction to get the stuff and do it yourself.

Tod

[Axel]

XJ 1100

Hey Thanks Tod . I got it warmed up today for real and WOW ,frickin scared rabbit . I went back to pay the bill and they said "no fork seals " so now I have to find some . I adjusted the clutch cable and havent been able to make it slip . Fuel warning thing fixed itself - probably the connector . I used to do my own work a long time ago so I just have to get back into it . Alex

[Jerry]

fork seals

Just a note on fork seals...there is plenty of mis-information about what size to use. Many catalogs have it wrong. You might look at this thread:

http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread...ork+seal+sizes

In brief, Yamaha used 2 sizes of seals, 36 x 48 and 37 x 49. Many catalogs, including Dennis Kirk, list the smaller size as fitting all applications, which is incorrect.

The XJ should take the larger 37 x 49 size.