This bike has been knocked on its bum twice now, it happens, not contributing that to the knocking but may be considered. Its a very subtle knock noticeable at non optimum engine temps. After 5 minutes of riding it is not noticeable, after 2 hours of cooldown, it is again noticeable until ideal engine temps reached. I can post a audio clip of this. I threw in aftermarket oil filter and Motul oil, oil is clean and only run 91 octane. Opinions much appreciated! Cheers.
where is it coming from, at stand still, moving or both, clutch in or out, if you leave it idling for 5 mins does it go?
Yes, both at stand still and motion, clutch in or out, if I leave it idle for enough time to reach opt temp it will become not noticeable. Yes I recollect it was there prior to last oil change, I remembering thinking that an oil change could have been a cure. I purchased the bike recently, and with my first oil change I filled midway to the oil glass per manual. On my second change, I measured just over 3qts of oil on the drain, I did not witness ever a low oil pressure light, 3.6ltr is the oil/filter amount per spec. I measured because I had oil buildup on lower block, wasnt sure if that was due to just being dirty or leak. I do not suspect it is leaking/burning oil. Never was the low oil pressure light on. FYI 17,000 miles. I have not yet performed a valve clearance check as lacking time/space, but all other maintenance has been done at 12k. To add, the noise is not overly concerning as I am continuing to ride the bike, but should be addressed to prevent potential wear.
Any thoughts, I am thinking it could be the Hydraulic tensioner after doing research. The noise is at a low tempo/frequency (2-3 knocks per second) to where I do not suspect it having to do with the valves/cams knocking. Also if I am correct the tensioner has a oil port, I am suspecting maybe this is partially blocked, thus why after a while the noise is eliminated. I am speculating much, thoughts are welcomed. I was planning to check valve clearances this week, but perhaps to expedite the process I can remove, inspect and reset the tensioner. Or perhaps to check immediately, I may toss in seafoam and perform an oil change.
Difficult one to diagnose without hearing it first hand and audio is not always conclusive, however the first thing to discover is it engine speed or valve train speed IE half engine speed and go from there, as it does not change with clutch or gear you can rule out drive train, is the cam chain tensioner hydraulic or manual? if hydraulic blipping the throttle will likely reveal this if worn.
Its fairly easy to remove the cam chain tensioner cover and do a quick inspection, be aware that if you remove anything once put back and restart your engine it can make a hell of a noise until everything settles down again. heres a video on resetting the tensioner and have a look and listen to this as an option
