81' XS400 help please

[oldbull]

I just picked up an 81' XS400 - learning bike for my wife, who's finally decided she wants to drive instead of being driven.

Got it for $350 because it needed some work and TLC, guy that had it took it to a bike shop and qoute for fixing was $450 and he decided to sell instead of fix.

It's good and straight and hasn't been down (hard at least) with a shade under 15k on it.

Told me they said problems were electrical, hoping to pick brains for those inherent problems and any other things I should take a hard look at.

Thanks,

Bull

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Bull,

Did you see the reply from Jerry in the other thread you posted to? I sell the replacement fuseblocks for our XS11's, should work for your 400, check out the tech tips here for photos.

Does it not start at all, or does it start but not charge? What type of electrical problems? The more info you can provide, the more brain pickin's we can provide!!
T.C.

[JWSanders]

I have an '81 400 myself. It is my understanding that the stator goes out after around 18-20k miles. The little guy puts out a lot of vibes, which is hard on electrical parts. I'm currently awaiting my replacement from Ebay. Think I'm going to look into having the old one rewired, for the spare I might need later. The charging system is really weak on the 400, too. Only 10 amps @5000RPM. Pitiful. Would be nice to rewire the coil fore more juice. A previous owner had rewired the fuses on mine to inline mini-ATO fuses, and did a good enough job that I'm going to keep it like it is.

Other than that, I had to replace the head due to some previous owner having run the bike without oil. Had really scarred up the cam lobes and the faces on the rocker arms. To it's credit, it was an easy job. The 400 is crazy easy to work on compared to the 1100. The carbs are nearly exactly the same on my 400 as on my 1100, so they were familiar. Parts on Ebay can be had on the cheap, too. I got the head, top cover, and camshaft on th'bay for the whopping price of $9.99. All were in great shape.

Overall, it's a great little bike. I hope to give mine to my son for either his 17th or 18th birthday. Not too far off at all.....

BTW....if you have the mini buckhorn bars on it...get rid of them. IMHO they just plain suck. Way to narrow and small to work well on such a small bike. I used a set of bars off of a 3-wheeler and they fit great. Straighter bars will definately be an improvement for a new rider.

What all is wrong with yours? I've been over mine top to bottom, so I may be able to help with any specifics.

Of course, there's always the basic stuff too...clean the carbs, clean all the electrical connectors, clean the tank, clean out the brake lines....clean, clean, clean.

[oldbull]

81 400

JW - thanks for the reply. Just got the bike 2 days ago and haven't had the time to get into it yet. This bike has been re-wired with in-line fuses as well. Missing the kick starter lever, guy couldn't find it.

He took the bike to a shop in 99' and they told him the problem was electrical and it would cost $450 to repair he figured he'd fixit himself, brought it home and it sat taking up space in his tool shed for the last 7 years.

My suspicion is the stator is a good place to start, 15k miles and the repair bill is about the range a hi end shop would want to do it.

I have designated this as being this winter's garage project. I ordered a shop service manual from Yamaha yesterday and my 16 yr old son and I will strip it completely down and clean, modify, clean, repair, clean , paint & re-assemble.

Will be a great learning project for my son and teach him not to be afraid to just get imto your crud and fix-it, that it's fun and rewarding.

His 17th b'day is in March and we will tie a bow on it for that day, with the caveat' that Mom gets to ride it to learn when he's not using it (of course by then I'll have found a "good deal" on another scoot and Mom will have her own most likely).

Thanks for the tips - I have no doubt I'll have a question or 3 this winter.

Ride Safe,

Bull
82 XJ100J
81 XS400S

[wessdogg]

xs400

Did anyone ever find a place to order your parts from for your xs400 bikes.

[oldbull]

Hey - I didn''t ask for one, but I use Bent Bike out of Seattle alot.

Bull

[wessdogg]

Thanks Oldbull, I'll give them a call!