Heat and smell from 2013 V7

[cmgies]

I was riding to the Oregon Vintage Motorcycles picnic and some guy pulled up to me on his motorcycle and said he could feel heat and smell something hot coming off of my V7. I was almost there so I went on and after I parked I look and smelled around and couldn't figure out what it could be.

Thoughts?

[Kev m]

How the F would someone on another motorcycle feel the heat from yours? Especially if you weren't feeling it?!?

Sounds like a moron.

[guzzisteve]

Some jealous guy wish he could have bought one! Was he on a BMW?

[Bulldog9]

I'm with Kev... $10 says he is on another forum right now telling the stories of how he loves to pull up on other riders (of course NOT from his brand) and say that

[elrealistico]

Was it an olive oil and garlic and basil smell? Were you frying some meatballs on the cylinder heads whilst riding?

[Tkelly]

If you couldn’t smell anything,probably nothing burning.

[cmgies]

Thanks for all of your replies. I think I will take a look in the air box for any oil.

[Cam3512]

Make sure your clutch cable isn’t melting on a cylinder.  Pretty common on the early ‘13-‘14’s. 

[Caffeineo]

Well ya know Oregon has legalized recreational marijuana. May have something to do with the other riders perception. ;)

[Kiwi_Roy]

My 2017 V7III Special caught on fire once. While trying to start it the bike backfired blowing the intake rubbers apart.
When it finally started the mixture was so far out of whack the Catalytic converters overheated and the insulation under the heat shields caught fire.
But for a passing motorist handing me a bottle of water I might have lost the bike.I took the remaining insulation out.

Check your intake rubbers are intact.

[Kev m]

some guy pulled up to me on his motorcycle and said he could feel heat and smell something hot coming off of my V7.

<snip>

after I parked I look and smelled around and couldn't figure out what it could be.

I'm just requoting for posterity's sake, but if the OP was accurate on the quote "smell something hot"?!?

And the OP, we're assuming is not a moron, stopped and couldn't smell, feel, find anything out of sort, why are we still taking the first moron seriously?

Op, if you honestly didn't feel anything out of the ordinary, didn't see something out of wack like tarnished mufflers, didn't smell anything weird, etc ... Forgetaboudit.

If you're not sure, take a look for some of what was mentioned, though a bike that old, if say the clutch cable was not routed properly should have failed a long time ago.

I guess if he's burning oil someone could smell it, but I'd hope a vintage guy would recognize the signs and smell and be more specific.

[Bulldog9]

I'm just requoting for posterity's sake, but if the OP was accurate on the quote "smell something hot"?!?

And the OP, we're assuming is not a moron, stopped and couldn't smell, feel, find anything out of sort, why are we still taking the first moron seriously?

Op, if you honestly didn't feel anything out of the ordinary, didn't see something out of wack like tarnished mufflers, didn't smell anything weird, etc ... Forgetaboudit.

If you're not sure, take a look for some of what was mentioned, though a bike that old, if say the clutch cable was not routed properly should have failed a long time ago.

I guess if he's burning oil someone could smell it, but I'd hope a vintage guy would recognize the signs and smell and be more specific.

Cmon Brooklyn........... . It's Fuhgetabowdit...... .......    Agree on the rest though. lol

[cmgies]

I inspected the routing of the clutch cable and, sure enough, it was wedged into right side cylinder fins. When I reached in as best I could with my hand and pulled it out, the rubber piece that someone mentioned had been Guzzi's "fix" for this issue is melted and I can see some metal in the cable. I will be replacing it and hopefully routing it a bit better than it has been. I hope that this will also make the clutch "softer" to pull in.

[Kev m]

I inspected the routing of the clutch cable and, sure enough, it was wedged into right side cylinder fins. When I reached in as best I could with my hand and pulled it out, the rubber piece that someone mentioned had been Guzzi's "fix" for this issue is melted and I can see some metal in the cable. I will be replacing it and hopefully routing it a bit better than it has been. I hope that this will also make the clutch "softer" to pull in.

So.... How come you didn't smell it?

Never mind

There's a hook assembly under the tank, run a wire tie to it to hold the replacement cable off the head.

Bob's your Uncle ...

[Cam3512]

Make sure your clutch cable isn’t melting on a cylinder.  Pretty common on the early ‘13-‘14’s.

Trying to insulate a cable from a hot cylinder with a bigger piece of thick rubber.  Brilliant.  Even the plug wires lay precariously close to the heat. 

[Dirk_S]

Trying to insulate a cable from a hot cylinder with a bigger piece of thick rubber.  Brilliant.  Even the plug wires lay precariously close to the heat.

Yeah, but they’re also insulated from the cylinder by a big piece of rubber. So they should be fine as well.

[chuck peterson]

I’m inclined to rename Moron #1 and give him a big thank you for pulling up and saying something, despite the possibility of being ridiculed…

I’ve had an experience where a rider (friend traveling behind me didn’t say a word as my oil line to a head split and sprayed 3 qts of dinosaur onto the motor

post the sacrifice to the gods of speed,!burnt main bearings and billowing clouds of blue smoke, he said…

“Yeah you’ve been blowing blue stuff since that last stop sign about 10 miles ago . . .”

Gee…..

Thanks…

It was a very long limp on the side of the road to a U-Haul dealer, as we were north of civilization in Maine. Any rpms above 3k sounded….deadly. Amazing really that it restarted and moved

My other better friend swapped bikes so I wouldn’t hear it and he kept it below 20 on the shoulder

You’re lucky!

[Huzo]

I just re posted an old Paul Brooking post…
This story is reminiscent.

[Kev m]

My biggest takeaway is a reminder not to ASSume anyone who rides a motorcycle has even the slightest bit of mechanical knowledge.

[bmc5733946]

Many people are not acquainted with the dry kind of sorta extra lean smell that can come from a bike with well adjusted fuel system and catalytic converters. It does have the smell of being hot etc. It is a hard thing to describe I guess. My Breva 750 has it. A buddy once asked me if it was ok. I ride with a guy that has a newer Yamaha, his doesn't have the smell I'm speaking of.

Brian

[tazio]

Most riders I've met have little clue how to properly maintain their motorcycles, but, we motorcyclists come from all walks of life, backgrounds, and passions, mechanical aptitude isn't a prerequisite for owning a bike
It CAN make it less expensive to operate and safer by far.
The OP did the right thing by not jumping to conclusions and investigating a fellow riders observations.
We're all in this together.

[Moparnut72]

Back when I started riding we had to know how to fix things. Cell phones were something only Dick Tracy had, motorcycle shops weren't as common as they are today and the bikes were far less reliable. I remember the time a buddy's Triumph blew a spark plug out of the head. We were a long way from home. We fixed it on the roadside well enough to get home to do a proper repair.
kk