Traffic and hot weather?

Now that I have my XJ running the way it should(thanks to the wonderful help from the members here) I have been using my XJ instead of the car for the daily 33 mile round trip to work and back. Most of the ride is 40 to 45 speed limit with traffic lights every mile or so. I am sitting at a light for no more a couple minutes at a time.I am running Castrol 20/50 in it and have had no problems with overheating and loss of power with temps at 84 degrees on the way home. Some of my water cooled 2 wheel buddies claim I am going to tear up my motor. What do you guys think? How hot is too hot for my XJ to commute with?

 

It doesn't get that hot.

 

I've ridden my XJ in stop and go traffic on 95 degree days (just today, as a matter of fact) without any issues. You may have problems if you were riding in a parade on a hot day, otherwise there is nothing to worry about.

Your "water cooled 2 wheel buddies" are just jealous of the cool bike you have.

 

LOL

 

Although I have only had my XJ < 2 months I have regularly ridden in stop and go at >90 degrees with no issues - Thats life in NC this time of year...

 

I'm right next to Bill in Apex NC . I ride my XJ/XS 1100 to work and back about 30 miles round trip. I have never had any overheating issues , even when the temp reaches 100. I have cut the motor if I am stuck in traffic waiting for road construction when it is that hot, just in case.

 

Same here, lots of stop-and-go in 100F and above. It gets warm, but I've never had any overheat issues. I do kill the engine at railroad crossings though, if I know I'll be sitting there a while.

 

As long as you remember, your bike is an Air Head.
Make good decisions and problems will be avoided.
Sometimes killing the engine is a smart move, other times it is overkill to do that.

 

It might run even hotter under a load while riding.

 

I'll guarantee mine does. I can let it idle all day long and it doesn't get as hot as it gets on a 1 mile freeway run.

 

I've read my posts about the dangers of running an air cooled bike standing still, this is my take on the subject.

I seriously doubt that our air cooled bikes were NOT designed to withstand idling for prolonged periods without airflow. I'm not taking hours on end, or setting on the center stand with the throttle wide open, but idling for several minutes at a time WILL NOT harm the bike. I know for a fact that many manufactures run a test on their air cooled bikes where they run them in the peak of summer and then park them in enclosed areas for up to an hour at a time. If they overheat or break down, it's back to the drawing board.

 

I have thought about adding a small fan to blow over the fins. Like to see someone else's design first though.

 

Well, so much for the water cooled two wheelers opinions.
Thanks for all the input-I will continue my daily commutes with no worries.

 

+2

 

If you are paranoid about overheating the Engine you can do a little fine tuning to ease your mind.

A Rich Mixture dialed-in will cause less heat to be generated by the Combustion Stroke than a Leaned-out Mixture.

All you need to do is Tweak the Pilot Mixture Screws to provide just a little bit more of the supplemental Richness to the Engine.
The Power Stroke will have a bit more Fuel, take longer to burn, contain less air and be a cooler firing Mixture than a Leaned-out Mix with more air making the Mix more explosive and hotter.

Easily done.
You only have to move the Screw about the width of a Dime or less.

 

Last summer it was 100+ all summer long. My 550 had no problem at all handling long traffic laden trips.

The engine does get hot but not enough to harm any thing.

Come to think of it, the hottest its been was 12 passes back to back at the drag strip.

Again No Problems
I wouldnt be worried

 

Rick-
I am not really paraniod about it, just curious.
My mixtures were lean when I got the bike(pure white insulators) but they have been tweaked to run a little richer. Now the plugs are tan all the way around the insulators and tan on the electrodes. The bike runs extremely well with good idle, smooth transition off idle , strong performance through the power band and good engine braking qualities. Once again, thanks for the knowledge and patience shown by the members of this forum.