Proud new owner!

[IdahoXJ11]

I guess I'm the new guy!

I just bought an XJ1100 with 23,000 miles. It's in great shape and has been taken good care of. The owner before me put new metzler tires, brakes front and back and had a new leather seat put on it as well as a new 4-1 exhaust. He put a total of 300 miles on it before selling it to me.

I've noticed that it needs a little choke even when warmed up is that normal? (I've had a KLR 650 recently that had the same issue.)

When crusing at higher speeds, are there any sweetspots to look for? Ive found 4th gear between 4500 and 5000 rpm hold a 55 commute spead that is smooth as silk.

In addition to the saddle bags I'd like to add a rack and sissy bar for a touring bag. Has anyone moved the License plate down to below the rear fender reflector?


IdahoXJ11

[TopCatGr58]

Hey there IDAHO,

Welcome to the world of Xsiveness!

Okay, with 4-1 pipes, your bike might be running a bit lean, hence the need to keep the choke=fuel enrichener lever partly engaged, but you should not do that!! Did the PO ever rejet it?

How do the intake manifolds look? They can be cracked on the outside and still good on the inside, but you'll want to check for vacuum leaks, again can cause to be lean! What do your spark plugs look like? Insulators Bleach white?? Also, you may just need to adjust the idle set screw to keep it idling when warm!?

The sweet spot is essentially anywhere from 3500 to redline!

The 4-1 pipes may have reduced the low end low rpm grunt/torque, but will wind up nicely in the upper rpms, they love to run, dont' be afraid to rev it!

As for bags and racks, no aftermarket stuff still available, just watch Ebay, or you may want to customize your own! The grab rail has the vinyl insert that can bolt out so you can fabricate a back rest that will bolt into the existing supports!

[Targetman]

HI Idaho, How about some pics of your new bike?
Low mileage, new stuff all over it, nice find!
Did you get a good Price?
Welcome..

[IdahoXJ11]

Thanks for the responses!

I'll get some pictures of the bike up ASAP.

I'll take some of your advice into consideration Topcat. After the initial start up I let it run about a minute shut off the choke and away I go. It's really in the start up that it doesnt want to fire off after that it's a smooth torquey ride. I was a little hesitant to move up passed 5000rpm, with it being an older bike and having spent all my money on the bike ($1,500 with Saddle Bags, Windshield, Leathers and a box of cleaning stuff) I didn't want my dream to end in a cloud of black smoke on the side of the road. But! I've discoverd that there is a whole new bike above 5000! It's a great ride!

The intake manifolds are slightly cracked on both sides. Are they hard to come by?

Another lesson learned. I ordered a factory manual off of Ebay and it called for 3.7qts of oil. So I went ahead and dumped in 3.7. but it took me way over the ful line. I used a trukey baster to bring it down to around 3.4 maybe 3.5qts and it is sitting just below the full line.

IdahoXJ11

[mason79]

nothin like a little lube

I used a trukey baster to bring it down to around 3.4 maybe 3.5qts and it is sitting just below the full line.

if the turkey starts to slip out of the oven during thanksgiving, you'll know why...

[underdog57]

I'm new too . Happy for you !! Should be a blast !!!

I'm getting the bugs out of mine as it was bought semi "dead"
Keep us posted on what you find ...
I have four 2 ones and it still has the original jets .

See ya
Bob

[Upright]

Congrats on the new bike and welcome to the forum!

[trbig]

Hello and welcome to the forum. Always glad to see another XJ join! I just hope you didn't plan on naming your bike Godzilla!... lol.

The intake manifolds are slightly cracked on both sides. Are they hard to come by?

These are easy to come by.... but hard to choke down the Ben Franklin it takes to get them!! I have seen them in the $80+ range at times. Like TC talked about... get some carb cleaner and with the bike running, spray around the boots and see if the RPM's change. This would indicate a leaky boot. There are some people that have had some luck with using black RTV around cracked boots if that's an option for you.

As for the running with partial choke and the Prev. Owner (PO) only having 300 miles on the bike, it's likely thatthis bike has sat for some time recently. A good carb cleaning may not be a bad idea. That way you could also see what size jets there are in there. It sounds a little intimidating, but the hardest part is actually getting the darn things in and out if you still have the stock airbox. Just read up on it in here.... they really are pretty simple.
Anyway... once again, welcome!!

Tod

[trbig]

On a side note, I grew up in Washington... had some friends that went to school in Spokane... when we went to visit, we would make a quick trip to Coeur d' Alene to buy beer because you only had to be 19 in Idaho at the time!
Congrats on your find!

Tod

[IdahoXJ11]

Tod,

thanks for the advice!

I don't have to run the bike with the choke open all the time it's only in the morning pr when the bike has been sitting for a couple of hours. What surprised me is even on a hot day if the bike sits in the parking lot for too long I have to choke it to get it started and then less than a minute later it's running fine. I'll follow your advice and try to isolate the problem..

If you were crossing state line to buy beer when Idaho was still 19 yrs your showing your age It's been a few years since I heard one of those stories!

Thanks again

Andy

[trbig]

If you were crossing state line to buy beer when Idaho was still 19 yrs your showing your age

Ummm.... *Cough. Yeah... I am heading to my 20 year reunion next month over in Tacoma, Wa area..... *Sigh

Tod

[79XS11F]

WELCOME to the club of owners of THE BEST MOTORCYCLE EVER BUILT

YAMAHA ... WHEN YOU KNOW HOW THEIR BUILT

Rob

[Luxury]

Originally posted by IdahoXJ11


I don't have to run the bike with the choke open all the time it's only in the morning pr when the bike has been sitting for a couple of hours. What surprised me is even on a hot day if the bike sits in the parking lot for too long I have to choke it to get it started and then less than a minute later it's running fine. I'll follow your advice and try to isolate the problem..

That sounds like perfectly normal behavior (regarding the choke usage). I have to choke my 79F for a couple minutes to keep it running at start-up, even when the temp is in the 90's - after that it purrs like a rabid kitten.

[MikeFromMT]

Hey Idaho, welcome to the asylum, I think I saw your bike in Post Falls a couple months ago, by a car lot near Beaudry motorsports.
Maybe the PO was looking to trade, or was it you?

[MAXIMAN]

Originally posted by trbig
Hello and welcome to the forum. Always glad to see another XJ join! I just hope you didn't plan on naming your bike Godzilla!... lol.

Tod

K M A TOD!

Hey TC...I'll see this J.A. in a couple weeks...want me slap him once fer ya?

Idahoxj11 - The idle jets on the Maxims were XSeptionally lean. Yamaha did this for emmisions. You can adjust the idle jets richer and it pretty much stop this behavior.