Another China to Europe thread. How to prepare old"ish" bike for this trip

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Originally Posted by modron

I bought meself that TTO spark plug thermometer but didnt have a lot of time to try it out. However I did have around 20min ride around the city and the temp got up to 160C and it wasnt a hot day.

Whats the max safe temperature for cylinder head? I did google and some say its around 250-260C

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Hi Modon
You placed the ring under the spark plug YES? then you will be reading the most hottest place of the engine.
You say your Google search said the Max safe is around 250/260 C IMO that's too hot, and around town with stopping and starting the temperature will go up quick compared to when you are on a run.
With my Yamaha I found the temperature around town to be the same as yours 160C so all looks good above this it will rise slowly to around 180C on a run and only gets hotter when you are under load i.e. low gear going uphill's start to easy of when you get near the 200C mark and IMO no more than 210C and you should be safe
Outside air temperature don't have a real great impact on the engine temperature as you would think when your engine is running near the 200c mark 40c outside air temperature will still cool the engine some and for sure when its 10c will cool a bit more but I found only by about 10c.

Found out some more in fore about the ATA for you, I am told by my Chinese friends that the ATA will be obtained at Erenhot from agent at a cost of 13.000 Rmb to be left as a bond for each bike i am sure if you can find someone in Erenhot who can speak English you should be able to find the office ok and i think there is more than one ? I asked my friends about the cost of the document fee for the ATA and I was told about 300/500 rmb
I picked up my IDP yesterday please see picture will will only show a downloaded picture from the internet on a open forum its looks fine to me and should do the trick IMO not that we have much choices in this matter living in China .

Hope your trip goes ok and have a safe ride


Attachment 18337

Since I have so little time to sort it out and no certinty if it can be done I decided to go to Mongolia next year. Will skip it for this trip. I will be leaving in about a week and will go down to Sichuan and Yunnan before heading west. Hope You can get that ATA sorted and let me know how once you did hah
As for the KIDA license, I have the same one. It does look ok and should be fine. The only problem is travel insurance. If something happens they can say that I was riding without international license therefore illegally so they can refuse to pay....


Other revelations are that my bike is running hot. 10min at cruising speed at 7000rpm (red line 10000rpm) and it hits 200C. Im not sure why tho. Air filter is clean, nothing blocks the air flow..... In the city its 160-170C

I did install that fan for low speeds but its higher speeds that I have a problem with
Anyone has any ideas why?

http://i1326.photobucket.com/albums/...psgwbeoeug.jpg

EDIT:

I just found this post on ADV rider:

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I would do both, they are both different, engine is around 350-450 while oil is around 220-270, in a stop light the engine temps go down, while oil goes up, while riding hard and fast, engine temps go up, while oil temps go down, this way i know what they are supposed to be, so if i ever see crazy high temps in regular riding conditions, ill know something is not right and i can check it out right away, instead of not knowing, keep on riding and damage or ruin the engine, good to have imo.

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Its about Yamaha XT250 which has a similar engine to YBR250. That means the normal range is 170-230 C which I think my bike falls into hah

Hi Modron
At 250c is your engine to Hot ??? the truth is I don't know, but what I can say if the engine is hot then the oil gets hot and at what point is oil temperature to hot ??? well from what I can see its about 300 F for synthetic oil but its recommended to keep it between 230-260 F so without a oil temperature gauge you just can't be sure.


So if you don't have full synthetic oil in the engine I would change it to be safe


Have you done a spark plug test yet ??? .

Take the bike for a run hold the engine at 8000 rpm and the hit the kill switch come to a halt and remove the spark plug and see if the engine is running lean or rich ?

Lean will make the engine run hotter ok

You say your bike hit 200C after 10 mins and you think the safe temperature for your bike is 220/230
well you need to take the bike for a run again and hit higher revs and see how much the temperature goes up but you will find it won't go up as fast once you hit the 200C mark.

A few more test runs mate is needed to be sure IMO

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The only problem is travel insurance. If something happens they can say that I was riding without international license therefore illegally so they can refuse to pay....

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who won't pay out ?

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Hope You can get that ATA sorted and let me know how once you did hah

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By the time I have this sorted out you will be long gone sorry

Well good luck with the ride 6 weeks till I leave lol

Was thinking about your engine temperature ??? it's the oil temperature if get to high will cause the engine to go bang ??? YES ??? so why not buy a cooking thermometer (see picture) run the engine hard on a run and check the engine oil temperature by poking the thermometer down the oil filler cap?? and check the temperature if is in line with what is recommended you should be fine.

Attachment 18338

YBRahim is not two-stroker, still.... did you check condition of the catalyst? Maybe he is cracked, clogged or something, and block free flow of the exhaust gases, which causes engine to overheat. I mean, two-strokers overheat when exhaust is clogged.

"Jackie Chan" light is still off?

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Originally Posted by prince666

who won't pay out ?

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Travel insurer can refuse to pay (say youre making a claim) if you rode your bike illegally in a country. They can say KIDA is not an IDP.

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Originally Posted by prince666

By the time I have this sorted out you will be long gone sorry

Well good luck with the ride 6 weeks till I leave lol

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Let me know anyway, Ill need it next year hah

p.s. I did think about that thermometer too. I will run fuel system cleaner first. Maybe there is something clogged and bike is running lean.

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Originally Posted by Zorge

YBRahim is not two-stroker, still.... did you check condition of the catalyst? Maybe he is cracked, clogged or something, and block free flow of the exhaust gases, which causes engine to overheat. I mean, two-strokers overheat when exhaust is clogged.

"Jackie Chan" light is still off?

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Have not checked but will do tomorrow morning, hope its that and I wont have to look for somebody who can tune my FI.

Jeckie chan light? :eek2:

What is a IDP ? it JUST a translation of your Chinese driving license and is not a legal document and must be used alongside your DL.

So for the life of me I can't see how having a IDP makes you more legal ? or not having one makes you illegal.?

The fact of the matter is you are fully legal with your C1E to ride a motorbike and all you have to prove in a country that don't understand Chinese DL that you are covered to ride a bike hence the IDP.

link,,,,,,https://www.gov.uk/driving-abroad


Driving abroad

You need your Great Britain or Northern Ireland driving licence to drive abroad. You might also need an International Driving Permit in some non-EU countries.

If you’re hiring a car, the hire company may ask for a check code so they can view your driving record.
Driving in Europe

You can use your Great Britain (GB) or Northern Ireland driving licence in all EU or European Economic Area (EEA) countries, and Switzerland.

For rules in other European countries check with a motoring organisation like the AA or the RAC.
Driving outside the EU/EEA

You may need an International Driving Permit to drive outside the EU/EEA.

Check first with the AA.
Getting an International Driving Permit

You can get an International Driving Permit directly from the AA, the RAC or the Post Office.

International Driving Permits cost £5.50 and you must:

be a GB or Northern Ireland resident
have passed your driving test
be 18 or over

Advice on driving in specific countries

The AA and the RAC have advice on driving in specific countries, including information on compulsory equipment.
Moving abroad

If you move abroad, check with the driving licence authorities there to find out how to get a local driving licence.


The term used is YOU MAY NEED ? NOT YOU MUST HAVE ?

You need to read what the AA (UK) says about IDP with each county

link....http://www.theaa.com/motoring_advice...y-country.html



Adults over the age of 18 with a valid UK driving license can also apply for an International Driving Permit (IDP). Some countries outside of the EU might require that motorists have this is an internationally recognised license. It is valid for 12 months and should be used in conjunction with your driving license, not in place of it.

link....http://www.mirror.co.uk/money/person...u-need-1874519

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Originally Posted by modron

Jeckie chan light? :eek2:

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Yea. That is slang word - it means "Check Engine". :icon10:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by prince666

What is a IDP ? it JUST a translation of your Chinese driving license and is not a legal document and must be used alongside your DL.

So for the life of me I can't see how having a IDP makes you more legal ? or not having one makes you illegal.?

The fact of the matter is you are fully legal with your C1E to ride a motorbike and all you have to prove in a country that don't understand Chinese DL that you are covered to ride a bike hence the IDP.

link,,,,,,https://www.gov.uk/driving-abroad


Driving abroad

You need your Great Britain or Northern Ireland driving licence to drive abroad. You might also need an International Driving Permit in some non-EU countries.

If you’re hiring a car, the hire company may ask for a check code so they can view your driving record.
Driving in Europe

You can use your Great Britain (GB) or Northern Ireland driving licence in all EU or European Economic Area (EEA) countries, and Switzerland.

For rules in other European countries check with a motoring organisation like the AA or the RAC.
Driving outside the EU/EEA

You may need an International Driving Permit to drive outside the EU/EEA.

Check first with the AA.
Getting an International Driving Permit

You can get an International Driving Permit directly from the AA, the RAC or the Post Office.

International Driving Permits cost £5.50 and you must:

be a GB or Northern Ireland resident
have passed your driving test
be 18 or over

Advice on driving in specific countries

The AA and the RAC have advice on driving in specific countries, including information on compulsory equipment.
Moving abroad

If you move abroad, check with the driving licence authorities there to find out how to get a local driving licence.


The term used is YOU MAY NEED ? NOT YOU MUST HAVE ?

You need to read what the AA (UK) says about IDP with each county

link....http://www.theaa.com/motoring_advice...y-country.html



Adults over the age of 18 with a valid UK driving license can also apply for an International Driving Permit (IDP). Some countries outside of the EU might require that motorists have this is an internationally recognised license. It is valid for 12 months and should be used in conjunction with your driving license, not in place of it.

link....http://www.mirror.co.uk/money/person...u-need-1874519

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I understand and agree but there is not one insurance company which will be happy to give you money. They will inspect everything 3 times before paying out.
Anyway, Im not saying they will not, simply that there might be a problem.

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Originally Posted by Zorge

Yea. That is slang word - it means "Check Engine". :icon10:

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Only seen that light on once when my lean angle sensor was faulty. Replaced the sucker and no lights flashing :)

hi modron sent you a pm but I cant see if it went ?