Sorry to hear about this...something is definitely off for the temperature to actually be rising while you are riding. I can't imagine the problem, but I am interested to hear what it may be. How is your coolant, is it still full?

 

full of coolant ...no air pockets ...fans running..sounds like thermostate...

 

i topped it off this morning since it kept dumping after every ride. how can you tell if your cap is bad. where is the thermostat located and whats a typical time frame to swap it out. im watching a full radiator and fan system on ebay right know do you think i should get it?

 

before you go buyihng parts, you need to identify the problem, im with r1phil on this. Sounds like the thermostat is probably stuck closed. much cheaper than radiator and fan. Plus you know the fan is not bad if it kicks on, but ya need to figure what temp the fan is kicking on. Good luck. keep us informed

 

check the rad cap and make sure it holds pressure, do u see coolant boiling in the res. tank??? lastly can you smell exhaust gasses in res. tank??

 

the fans kick on at 219 and never seem to get the temp back down. any yes after every ride i have coolant boiling in the res.

thanks for the help so far.

 

most definitely check the thermostat.

take it out and drop it into a boiling pot of water. if you can see it opening and closing then it's good. if it just stays shut, then there's your problem

 

good tip there.

 

Take the stat out and see if it still runs hot, should have trouble getting up to temp without it

 

To everybody that says "most definately the thermostat" when a person complains about overheating... modern thermostats are designed to fail open. That means the engine will not come up to temperature in the event of a thermostat failure. While it is still possible for a thermostat to fail closed, this is very rare.

For the case described, check to make sure both fans are working. Make sure the radiator is full and there are no air pockets. Just because you've got water in the expanasion tank doesn't mean the radiator is full. How is your idle? Fast idles make extra heat. Replace the radiator cap. The system needs to maintain 1.1 bar to prevent boiling. A weak radiator cap will allow coolant ot boil which reduces its ability to remove heat. Radiator caps are cheap. You're not consuming any coolant are you?

I've survived many 80-90 degree days on my 05 without exceeding 223F.

 

To everybody that says "most definately the thermostat" when a person complains about overheating... modern thermostats are designed to fail open. That means the engine will not come up to temperature in the event of a thermostat failure. While it is still possible for a thermostat to fail closed, this is very rare.

For the case described, check to make sure both fans are working. Make sure the radiator is full and there are no air pockets. Just because you've got water in the expanasion tank doesn't mean the radiator is full. How is your idle? Fast idles make extra heat. Replace the radiator cap. The system needs to maintain 1.1 bar to prevent boiling. A weak radiator cap will allow coolant ot boil which reduces its ability to remove heat. Radiator caps are cheap. You're not consuming any coolant are you?

I've survived many 80-90 degree days on my 05 without exceeding 223F.

+1 your right about open failure:bow

 

as much as id like to agree with 87cr250r i cant. im not sure if they are designed to fail open or closed but i do know that often people notice a bad thermostat when the are having overheating problems. most often the thermostat fails to open which causes the overheating

the symptoms he describes definitely points towards either a bad thermostat or a faulty radiator cap

those are a good place to start and as said before make sure that you have the coolant topped off with no air pockets

recap
radiator cap may not be holding pressure
thermostat may have failed

those are where you should start

 

I'm with the majority here.

With the temp's riding while you're cruising it simply has to be the thermostat.

I would do a full flush, re-fill and burp/bleed ASAP and replace the cap just to be sure, both items are cheap and A LOT cheaper than a re-build.

The fan's sound like they are working but doesn't matter how good they are... these bikes aren't designed to be sitting stationary to long. They are only there "on the assist". So if the thermostat is stuck closed exactly what you're experiencing is going to happen.

Keep us posted, and don't pick up you're girl again till it's fixed!!! :hammer::hammer:

 

any updates on OH problems? ...just checking ... got a 05..thanks ...Phil

 

Everybody is a professional...

I had this problem... After replacing my thermostat and spending several hours on it... from people telling me it was my thermostat. It ended up being my radiator cap was the problem.. Five dollars and five min.

 

Never hurts to replace both at the same time.

I'm anal about replacing everything in the surrounding area of something that went bad. I hate the "don't fix it if it ain't broke" theory. Fixing it when it is "broke" in the middle of nowhere isn't very fun.

 

How do you bleed the air out of the system, just like a car where you run it with the cap off?? When I do this it seems like when the thermostat opens I have cylinder pressure coming out and the coolant will spray a foot or two in the air. I am also having a problem running a little hot compared to how it use to run and how my brothers R1 runs. Tonight he was at 160-170 and I was at 190-200 both riding the same, I am almost thinking it is the cap as I am losing a little water in the system.

 

I Think <~~~~ (note) The "water pump" in the motorcycle is "in a way" nonfunctional without pressure.. Meaning. Imagine the fins of fan in your house. yes it pushes air but it would also allow air or water to get behind it meaning that it could never make any positive pressure. Now imagine a fan installed in a hollow pipe (like a turbo) the fins fit to the sides and it forces the air or liquid to go one way and creates a positive pressure.. With that said without pressure or an enclosed system in the radiator the water pump wont work.

I kinda confused myself there :dundun: Best or only way to bleed the air out is to just run it.. Fill it up as much as you can put the cap on and run it till it gets hot or you know for sure the thermostat is open.. Let it cool and remove the cap... if there was an air bubble the coolant level should drop allowing to you to add more...

Other then that R1's just suck... I've done everything I've put header wrap on my headers and tried different coolants... The thing that helped the most was an oil change believe it or not.. Amsoil Syn... Gave up on the other guys..

 

put it on the dyno and see if it's running stupid lean!

 

did you ever figure out what it was causing the overheating. i am having the same problems. ive been to two motorcycle classes and everytime i end up sidelined for a little bit to let my bike cool. on the freeway ill run around 200-210. once i stop it goes up like normal but my fans wont keep it around 220-225. it will instead be around 235-241. is there anything i should do. everything mentioned above is almost identical to my same problems.

 

check coolant level, and t-stat
directly from service manual

CHECKING THE THERMOSTAT
1. Check:

thermostat
Does not open at 71
85C (160
185F)

Replace.
a. Suspend the thermostat in a container filled
with water.
b. Slowly heat the water.
c. Place a thermometer in the water.
d. While stirring the water, observe the thermostat
and thermometer’s indicated temperature.
1 Thermometer
2 Water
3 Thermostat
4 Container
A Fully closed
B Fully open
If the accuracy of the thermostat is in doubt, replace
it. A faulty thermostat could cause serious
overheating or overcooling.

also check

OVERHEATING
ENGINE
Clogged coolant passages

Cylinder head(s) and piston(s)

Heavy carbon buildup
Engine oil

Incorrect oil level

Incorrect oil viscosity

Inferior oil quality
COOLING SYSTEM
Coolant

Low coolant level
Radiator

Damaged or leaking radiator

Faulty radiator cap

Bent or damaged radiator fin
Water pump

Damaged or faulty water pump

Thermostat

Thermostat stays closed

Oil cooler

Clogged or damaged oil cooler

Hose(s) and pipe(s)

Damaged hose

Improperly connected hose

Damaged pipe

Improperly connected pipe

 

i have the same problem with my 05 but it still cools down once im out of traffic, then heats up again when traffic slows me again. Im going to try a new cap and see if it can burp.

 

What temps are you hitting?

 

Didnt read the whole thread ..but at no circumstance should you be stilll riding your with the temperature above 240....pull over and call someone unless you like doing motor work...no what I mean..the longer and hotter you ride ...means the damage is also getting worse...and more expensive....

 

Id take the thermostat out alltogether.Top coolant up, let rad cap off overnite and top it up another bit following day.

 

cooling fan outage

i know that my bike runs hot too like 220+ its not too bad 280+ is where you really want to get worried...

i just discovered that one of my cooling fans isn't working, but i hear the other turn on so i always just assumed it was both until i heard the buzz, but the left side wasnt working, maybe yours might have the same problem?
i didnt read the whole so i dont know if anyone said that... hope this helps!

 

My recommendation would be to pay attention to your coolant levels and see if your bike is weeping coolant out of the bottom of the oil pan.

My bike did this at the beginning of the year. The seals inside the oil/water pump had failed and my bike would slowly leak coolant (hard to tell at first until it started leaking a lot).

I lived with the problem until one day my bike hit 211ºF after I'd only ridden it a quarter mile after starting it.

I'm cheap/broke, so I decided to do the fix myself. (Did it wrong the first two times, lol).

After the pump was fixed, the seal on the thermostat went. Splitting it open and applying RTV silicone to the halves fixed that. No more leaks

 

Damn R1 issues i just want to ride it!!!! OVERHEATING PROBLEM

Has anyone figured this out i am having the same exact problem it seems like i ride and it pushes coolant into the resevoir then when i stop it pisses out, by the third time this happens it is really low in the radiator on coolant and overheats, what i have done so far is 2 new thermostats, new water pump, engine ice, and it has been vaccuum bled, the fans are turning on. and i also have 2 new rad caps, i even got a higher pressure cap, this didn't help at all.

 

Has anyone figured this out i am having the same exact problem it seems like i ride and it pushes coolant into the resevoir then when i stop it pisses out, by the third time this happens it is really low in the radiator on coolant and overheats, what i have done so far is 2 new thermostats, new water pump, engine ice, and it has been vaccuum bled, the fans are turning on. and i also have 2 new rad caps, i even got a higher pressure cap, this didn't help at all. Im all out of ideas i have had shops tear into it and have about 2300 dollars in shop bills so far not all related to the overheating