Engine durability

[benVFR]

Anyone actually have a sportbike motor give out on them by 30k or so?

Just trying to convince someone I know that sportbikes do not "wear out" by 30k or so if they're ridden like we all like to ride them.

If I google I can find more examples of people talking about bike with high mileage with no problems then ones with low mileage that have required major work. (Rebuild, new pistons, rings, etc..)

I've yet to hear of anyone having a 600 or something that was tired and not running well by say 30-40k if proper maintenance was followed.

What about if you ride lots of track days? What about race bikes? Do amateur racebikes get rebuilt out of necessity or that drive to get 5hp more to maybe capture a championship?

[SSearchVT]

I'm a little shy of the 30k mark on my CBR600 (about 25k right now). I'm on my third cam chain lift and that's about it above routine maintenance. This winter I plan on plugs and valve lash - I think I'm due...

[odduc]

My FZR1000 has about 35K on it and it still runs great. It still has loads of power and shows no signs of slowing down anytime. I'll give it a good tuning over the winter and, hopefully, have a nice streetfigher in the spring.

[richw]

I think that Californians and Europeans run bikes for a 100K. Almost all of that riding is regular highway duty almost commuting at normal car speeds.

I think we recreational sport riders like us in New England abuse the crap out of them because when we ride we are looking for power and high RPMS. We are playing not transiting.

I know I read an MC article from 10 years ago where Japanese designers thought that maximum power on liter bikes would NEVER be used. That's right you would never wind the piss out of a literbike. Longevity toward max power and RPM situations was never a consideration.

I give excellent maintenance of my bikes but I also wring the piss out of them and full power runs. Note the Gixer 1K is the 1st bike where 1,2,3rd gear full RPM power runs are very rare. Just hard to find the space.

The best used bike was owned by a relative noob and it scared the piss out of him/her and therefore was hardly ever used again. Usually sold after 3 years with like 5 K.

I bet cruising at 80 MPH the bikes would go 150K and you could also turn them to sh*t in 5K. Street sport bikes I buy new because of mostly I fear bad mechanics on something that goes 170 MPH.

[Paul_E_D]

most sportbikes should go 100K with just proper maintenance. Riding on teh street (no matter how hard) simply doesn't stress these things at all.

Racing is another matter. Most club guys just race a basically stock 600 for years without problems.

However, there are many documented valve failures on 600s in the racing environment. Especially Suzukis. To avoid this, the pros bikes are freshened after most every race meet (100-200 miles). Gearboxes wear out regularly as well.

Non-factory guys simply suffer a lot more mechanical failures due to the expense of keeping these things fresh.

Doing trackday is NOT comparable to racing and shouldn't pose any real tress on the motor either, UNLESS you suck at shifting, or you are on expert race winning pace.

[Rye]

Originally posted by richw
I think that Californians and Europeans run bikes for a 100K. Almost all of that riding is regular highway duty almost commuting at normal car speeds.

Very wrong there Rich. They commute year round because they can, and that tallies the miles for this very reason. On the odd day you ride to work, are you looking for power and rpm's? I have never experienced a sportriding community quite like California's. The roads are on par with road racing courses. Pick the best road in VT or wherever around here...it can't even compare to roads in California. Trust me, those roads are ridden like they are a race course by alot of very experienced riders. Personally, I've found bikes are less abused out this way. You can regularly find nice used 3-5y/o sportbikes with under 10k on the clock. We just don't get the seat time out this way.

[tonyd]

I see alot of bikes that deteriorate due to not being used around here. Knock overs in the garage, and storing a bike in a back yard shed for 3 years take their toll.

The bikes around here I have seen with 30k+ on them it's usually the chasis that becomes the maintainence head ache, no the motor. I've owned a bandit600 I sold with 49k, one sv650 with 25k, and one sv650 with 32k and never had ANY problems with a motor.
Yes I know those bikes are not tuned the same as a 600 RepliRacer.

[RandyO]

if somebody does a search, you might find a link to a magazine test article I posted prolly a couple years ago

where they took a zx9 IIRC with about 30k miles on it, drained the coolant and ran it till it seized, at redline then after it cooled, they started it up again without coolant or oil and dist the same thing again

then they filled the fluids back up, rode it another 10k on the street before they did the article

[Tabby]

My old gixxer made it to over 50,000 before I had a leak down test that showed about 10%. The exhaust valves were a bit crispy. Many many times at the drags, and at least a few good times at the track {Bryar & NHIS}. All on OEM innards. Everything but the exahust valves were working fine. Even then, my drag strip trap speeds had dropped from a best of 123mph to 118mph. as a 750. Oil consumption was as good as when it was first broken in. The rings showed very little blowby past the first ring, and no perceptable blowby past the second. If I just ran it on the street, I don't doubt it could go to 100,000. It is very hard to fault these engines that we love to abuse.

[richw]

I miss spoke or missinterpreted

Yes Cali and Europe have great roads. Yes most Cali Canyon racers would pee all over us. I would also maintain my idea that most high mileage bikes are used in the more prosaic daily commute and errands.

[RandyO]

Originally posted by richw
I miss spoke or missinterpreted

Yes Cali and Europe have great roads. Yes most Cali Canyon racers would pee all over us. I would also maintain my idea that most high mileage bikes are used in the more prosaic daily commute and errands.

only partially correct, the guys that really put the miles on bikes not only commute on their bikes, their weekend recreation is also riding, they don't look at riding the way you do, and the "pace" is a way of life

[Wishbone]

technology is great and is why we have longer vale adjustments and tune-ups, also higher RPM and more power

but there are always cases of the unusual, i had an 02 620 monster that the piston blew up at 6178 miles on it, so go figure

btw guys its RPM never RPMS

[KB]

50k on my first Superhawk then it lost an oil ring due to oil starvation for doing long ass standup whillies on the highway.

So not normal riding no but abusing it yeah sure they go.

KB

[improvedfd]

my 2001 tl1000r engine blew at 13k miles (rod bearing)
i found a used engine with 8k on it and have since put on 8k without a problem

[reiobard]

I have a 2004 YZF 600R with 25k on the clock and i have not done any maintenance other than changing the plugs once, oil changes, one change of the chain and sprocket, and many many tires (ask KB) and she still has as much power as i need and shows no sign of wearing out at all. I will have 100k before my warranty runs out...

[Stoneman]

My RF900 had almost 45K miles on it when I left it in the woods. Original clutch, original rotors, and NEVER needed a valve adjustment. I rode the piss outta that thing in all environments; hard rain, long two-up, track days, extreme cold, extreme hot, you name it...

I used Fram oil filters the entire life of it also...

I followed the prescribed maintenance schedule in the owner's manual to a 'T'...

However, I've seen a lot of older bikes that weren't taken care of quit with less than 30K on the ticker. Particularly mid- to late-80's machines...