I have an ongoing problem with my Yamaha MT-03 getting extremely hot in traffic and I wondered if anyone else here had the same issues with big singles?
The dealer couldn’t find anything wrong with my bike and I am in the process of taking it up with Yamaha customer services to see if there is anything that can be done but in the meantime I am absolutely roasting in this hot weather and would be interested to know if anyone else has experienced the same problem.
Apparently there was a recall on some MT-03’s for a problem with the left exhaust baffle but I have checked the chassis numbers involved and I don’t think mine was one of them. Having said that it is the left side of the bike that gets so incredibly hot so perhaps there is something wrong there?
Basically the heat is fine on the open road but after 5 minutes in traffic it very suddenly gets properly HOT, like someones turned the gas up on the hob- if you see what I mean. The heat seems to be partly emating from the LHS exhaust downpipes but mainly the LHS can- right under my left buttock. The other day it felt like a blowtorch was being aimed at my thigh- not nice!
Whilst I love the bike as you can imagine this is spoiling my enjoyment somewhat at the moment. Any other hot singles out there? :D:cool:
it’s just the way that the underseat pipes are routed (i used the MT03 demo for about 1000/1500 mile when at george whites) you’ll be glad in winter, but summer won’t be too great (unless you filter A LOT)
Who’s your yamaha dealer - the owners of the bikes affected by the recall get letter’s sent out to them by yamaha, so unless your the second owner and havn’t sent the “change of owner” slip (located in your service book) back to them your bike is not affected!
Yes I am the first owner and I think you’re the one who kindly let me know about the recall when I posted something similar before. Bit depressing if it really is supposed to be that hot. As you say, when filtering it soon cools down a bit but at the lights we’re talking seriously sweaty bettys. I wonder if after-market cans might help- maybe the Mivv GPs or the other Italian ones (can’t remember the name!)?
Getting off the heat problem a bit maybe but yes the Akrapovics do look nice and sound pretty good but the Mivvs sound even better to me http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fcdgnwO0bOgDoesn’t solve the heat problem though:cool:
OMG Change bike? Nooo! took long enough to settle on this one! Think I’ll wait for the customer services comeback then, if no luck get some asbestos underpants!
here’s a diff approach I had sim heat problem with the r1 underseat pipes got aftermarket system and got the y piece ceramic coated on the inside as well as the out side helps the air escape quicker having got a very smooth finish so they don’t heat up anywhere as the standard one
Well the bike finally sucumbed to the heat yesterday. Cutting out, oil oozing out around the filler and around the pipe over the gearbox. Idle went right down to 900 and of course it cut out every time I wound off the throttle or came to a stop.:crying:
So took it into Infinity Clapham this morning and they have done some stuff to it (idle up to 1400 & throttle adjusted, pipe siliconed etc.) and I got it back this afternoon. Unfortunately on my ride back from there to work it cut out again and the idle started dropping off again to 1000 as soon as it started to get hot. :unsure:
On the positive side Noel, the new general manager at Infinity Clapham came and introduced himself to me this morning and did say to talk to him if it gave me any more problems- seems like a decent bloke. Looks like I’m going to have to take it back to them again… tho first I think I’ll try to adjust the idle when the bikes hot to see if that makes any difference
There is definitely something wrong with either the head, fueling or exhausts on the Yamaha MTO3.
I’ve had the similar lumps in two bikes, an MZ street moto (stolen, damn it) and the current Aprilia Pegaso trail (not yet stolen) and both pipes on both bikes have run at much the same temperature. The twin can set up on the Aprilia is a fair comparison to the MT03 arrangement (though not as pretty) and there aint no heat problem…er…yet.
Bugger the frame numbers, if there was a batch problem, why is yours giving the same symptoms?
Insist that the supplying dealer carries out the same re call mods to your bike.
I had the same problem on my aprilia pegaso and did some research. Aprilia and Yamaha both use the same 660 cc single for those bikes - bit of geek here, the motor is made by an italian company called Minarelli that was bought by Yamaha.
I had an 06 pegaso strada with that motor (great bike!)
But the EFI was never sorted and its well documented that they stall and can be pretty lumpy/snatchy off the line - same for the prilla and the yam. You can get a power commander chip for the ecu and this apparently solves alot of the problems - for about £200.
The 2008 Yamaha tenere uses the same motor but with an updated map that has apparently solved the problem.
Mine got to 6 or 7 out of 10 on the temp gauge sometimes.
Good luck with it. I love the torque on that motor.
Bit of history. Minarelli once made some very interesting bikes, but being an Italian family run business, ended up being a components supplier. In this case, 650 lumps. I think there may have been a couple of changes of ownership in there somewhere.
(Not as odd Moto Morini’s story, but forget that.)
There is a huge fuelling problem with the Aprilia Pegaso 650 at 3,200 to 4,000 RPM. Piaggio (Aprilia importers) deny this.
The ECU map is wrong, probably just to pass EC drive-by noise tests, but why should I be expected to pay out for a Power Commander to fix the riding problems this causes?
Why is lessismore be having his problems when the manufacturers know of it and know the fix?
I don’t think the problem I’m getting is fuelling but I am ready to be corrected (as usual). I don’t find the MT-03 particularly snatchy. I actually test rode the Aprilia Pegaso and the one I tried did seem to have a bit of a flat spot but I haven’t found this with my MT-03. Yes its a bit ‘lumpy’ at some revs as you’d expect a single to be but it just feels like an engine characteristic to me and I don’t mind it- in fact I quite like it.
The problem I’m having is that it’s just started cutting out on trailing or closed throttle when the engines hot. It seems to be reaching a certain (hot) temperature when I get stuck in town -centre traffic and then various things start to happen and the longer I’m not moving or riding slowly they get progressively worse: The idle speed gets noticeably slower, the revs ‘die’ as you come off the throttle (down to 900 and then cuts out), there’s not the usual engine braking in evidence, the clutch feel softens up and feels slightly ‘fluid’, it’s more inclined to find false neutrals, and as happened the other day it dramatically releases super-thinned oil out of some of the hoses and from around the oil filler cap. BTW I tried increasing the idle a touch yesterday and went out for a quick spin- open countryside, no traffic, no hold ups and it was just fine- no sign of things getting too hot even when I was gunning it. The only thing I noticed was that having raised the idle to 1500 when I set off it was up to 1700+ when I got home. I guess tomorrow I’ll find out if increasing the idle speed has done any good- it’s when I get into London traffic that the cutting out and other problems really start. I’m giving it this week and if I still have problems I’ll have to go back to the dealer AGAIN…
O.K., it’s not fuelling. (Unlike the Pegaso. By the way that’s a bl**dy chasm, not a flat spot.)
It’s not likely to be the head. (There’s a lot of those in use on a whole variety of bikes out there.)
That just leaves the exhausts. (That’s the only major variation between the MT 03 and the Aprilia/MZ Kawasaki/etc.)
Got any details (idea) of what the aftermarket re call modification is?
I’d be surprised (on the info. so far) if it didn’t involve the exhaust system, notably close the the engine.
But then, I’ve just remembered the fact thet we’re talking fuel injection here. Ignoring the central processor, there are a whole load of sensors sending back information. So, a whole batch of potential new gremlins.
Find out what the re call mods are. It might give a better picture.
Just before I traded it, my pegaso started cutting out at the worst moment - very similar to what you described.
When I was just approaching traffic lights on the brakes (1st selected, clutch in for the last 5 metres before stopping), if the light changed and I was still moving it would stall unless I gave it about 3krpm before dropping the clutch.
Much more than should be necessary for a big single. Drove me nuts, rolling along at super-low speed with my thumb over the starter button…:crazy:
