'99 SV650 track rebuild

[doc_rot]

first track day was a reasonable success other than the weather being absolutely shit. It was about 45-50 degrees most of the day with intermittent squalls coming through every 20 minutes and stiff breeze ensured I was soaked and freezing my ass off the whole day. Rain tires were awesome in the wet. I was feeling OK on the bike and everything seemed to work well however I need an even stiffer spring on the shock as i could not set sag without excessive preload. I threw a cheap quicky paint job on the tank to try out the color and it didn't even make it through a session before i wore through it - still undecided on the color. I may have a line on some used body work thats in better shape than this so i haven't bothered fixing this stuff up. raising the tail and slimming the seat have given this a bit more contemporary look in my opinion.

 

[ex119x]

I have a couple of spare tanks that will go cheap if you have any interest. I also have spare carbs and a couple of radiators.
Have I mentioned that they will go really cheap?
We are selling our house and I need to empty my garage.

 

[Luugo86]

Dude it figures after all that work your first track day is wet, cold and windy lol.. The bike looks good tho, would love to see some track video if you have any

 

[ridesolo]

I have a couple of spare tanks that will go cheap if you have any interest. I also have spare carbs and a couple of radiators.
Have I mentioned that they will go really cheap?
We are selling our house and I need to empty my garage.

AND I have a nice pair of SV650 wheels that will also go cheap.

 

[doc_rot]

I wish i would have known about the wheel before i bought a spare set last month. Im pretty set right now and dont need any parts, maybe a gastank. I think you guys are eastcoast/midewest? I'm out in Seattle. shipping probably is expensive.

 

[ridesolo]

Hear ya on the shipping, found a guy out there w/ a seat I'd like for my BMW, but the price of the ride kills the deal.

 

[ex119x]

Do you want a red tank or a black one. It will be yurs for the cost of shipping. I think the black one only has a smallish dent and the red one has a bigger dentt. They are both raceable as is.

 

[doc_rot]

I appreciate the offer but I think I’m gonna have to pass for now. I met a guy at the track that says he has a complete body work kit and tank that he will let go for super cheap. We’ll see how that pans out

 

[doc_rot]

I did another track day this weekend- a double feature Sunday/Monday. Actually had some nice weather too! What a difference from being freaked out in the rain. It was my first time in the intermediate group and it was great. I got a lot faster and more confident riding with the faster guys. By the end of Monday I was passing guys on panigales and bmw 1000RRs which felt good on this crusty SV

It’s crazy how far you can lean this bike over and not go to the tire edge. I’m chewing up my rear tire with what I believe is “hot tear” I ended up at36 psi on the rear trying to mitigate this. It improved some but with uneven wear patterns. Maybe the soft spring is allowing the bike to squat a bit and overloading the tire?

 

[doc_rot]

Waiting for parts to come in so I decided to make a new rear brake torque arm. steel OEM = 8oz. Aluminum = 4oz.

I also made a stand for taking the bike to tech, it telescopes and is adjustable. right side stand is tripping me out!

 

[doc_rot]

I attempted to do a triple feature track day Sun-Tues. Day one went OK but half way through the day the bike wouldn't turn over. The battery read 13.4v and the solenoid was clicking but nothing was happening. I assume its the starter so I decide to bump start the bike for the rest of the day, very thankful for the cardio I have been doing to prepare me for this moment. It gets harder and harder to start the bike as the day progresses. sweating and swearing ensues.

The next day the bike wont start at all. I troubleshoot a bit further and realize the Shorai battery is toast despite reading 13.4V. I figured thats it for me for the weekend. At this moment realizing my custom wiring setup is not all that smart because I can't go to walmart and slap a cheap battery in when im in a pinch there is simply not enough room in the new location. After exhausting possible solutions at the track I pack it all up and head home. While im making the 2 hour drive home I realize I have another lithium battery in a different bike. This battery is a little bigger but I make it fit with some velcro straps and zip ties - real nice.

Last day I head back to the track early. I had checked the weather at the start of the weekend and it was supposed to be sunny and warm through the week. I stupidly didn't check the weather before I left and it starts to drizzle once I return to the track. I sit in my truck for a few hours kicking myself for not bringing the rain tires that i had just purchased. The weather clears up and and I'm finally back riding.

I'm really starting to make some progress with my technique. I don't have a lap timer but I would guess I shaved several seconds off my times this time. I got the new shock spring in and was able to set sag correctly so the bike feels more planted and firmer - this was a nice confidence boost. I'm also getting more comfortable making passes. I'm learning what the strengths and weaknesses of the bike and my skills are and that helps inform me where and when to pass. My corner speed is pretty good, I feel the most comfortable making passes on the outside of big sweeping turns, also it feels great passing people this way. I have gotten better with the brakes and have found this is a pretty good way to pass people as well.

That being said, twice over the weekend I watched people make stupid passes right in front of me and both times they crashed. One guy took out another rider at probably 80 and I barely missed hitting the rider he took out as he and his bike slid across the track. At one point I started to make a stupid pass and backed out at the last second, narrowly missing the other rider. The lesson learned from these incidents is; don't get impatient and make a reckless pass. I think what I will do in the future is if I feel like I can't make a clean pass and im getting frustrated I will roll through the hot pits to let them get ahead of me and then continue on.

I'm not sure whats up with the battery. It has been suspect from day one and I nearly returned it when I bought it. To cover my bases I checked charging at idle - 14V and 13.8V at 5k RPM which is perfect. However, when I came into the pits after a session with the new battery the voltage is reading 14.4V. Perhaps the regulator might be overcharging at sustained high RPM? Ricks Electronics make lithium specific regulators and I have one on another bike. I didn't see anyone else mention having issues with their lithium conversions here so I never considered it.

I will say Shorai made good on their warranty. I filled out their online form and within 12 hours of submitting a claim I got a notice that they are shipping a brand new battery. I suspect that the Battery I received might have been old stock as I bought it from a third party off amazon. The lot # on the bottom was the exact same as the picture they had in the claims form.

The other lesson learned form this weekend is bring all the stuff you don't think you need. If I would have had a spare battery I could have used it for trouble shooting and ultimately gotten to ride another day that I paid for. Ditto for the rain tires - even if the weather forecast initially looks good, bring the damn tires!

Overall I had a fun time. Just a comedy of errors on my part.

 

[irk miller]

I run an electric vehicle race team with my Engineering students and we are still figuring out how to pack for track days after three years. Every time we think we're covered, something happens where we wish we had a certain part or tool. I figure that's how teams end up in tractor trailer sized rigs. You eventually take the whole shop. Glad you started to get it all figured out. Sounds like fun was still had. An interesting note: I've had the same trouble with Shorai LiFePO4 batteries. I always blamed myself and my own mistakes and went back to AGM on most of my bikes.

 

[doc_rot]

Im overdue for a track report here.
The last time I was at the track I was a mechanical catastrophe. I've also learned my IQ is practically cut in half when I'm trying to troubleshoot track-side.

Day 1 went well, but day two started off poorly. First start up of the day the bike turns over once and then refuses to turn over. I tried hitting the starter button a bit but nothing. The Shorai battery gave up the ghost almost immediately as I no longer hear the solenoid clicking - what a shit product these batteries are. Luckily I had anticipated the Shorai battery crapping out and brought a spare Earthx battery. Tried to start it again and still now I could hear the solenoid clicking but it will not turn over at all. About this time I realized I smelled gas - put two and two together and realized I had hydro-locked one of the cylinders. I pulled the gas tank off and the petcock is pissing fuel - guess the vacuum diaphragm is shot. pull the airbox off and open up the carb throat - front cylinder full of gas.... Nice, guess the float got stuck. I pulled the spark plugs, turned it over a few times, shot gas everywhere, buttoned it back up and started up fine. dodged a bullet and the valves don't seem bent.

At this point I figured I was out of the woods. I rode for the first few sessions and everything seemed OK. I fiddled with the suspension and I am feeling really good on the bike.

About midday I hear spark knock - not good. Pull into the pits and realize the bike is overheating badly. The radiator is half full - I don't see any coolant anywhere but I can smell it. I top off the radiator making sure to burp it really good, At this point I assume I've blown a head gasket but I don't see any white smoke. The bike is running really well again now that it has coolant so I decide to say screw it and go out for another session. I get two laps into the session when another rider points to my bike as he passes me. I pull into the pits and the bike is now fully puking coolant and there is a small amount in the belly pan. Surprised I didn't get black flagged.

I call it for the day. I don't mind riding the rattiest bike on the track but I definitely don't want to be the guy contaminating the track. Not a good look.

So my list of mechanical issues to rectify:
New battery - not playing around with Shorai anymore - ill get the same EarthX i run in my other bike so i can swap if i need to
Petcock rebuild
new float needles
New radiator cap
flush coolant sytem - replace with water wetter
inspect water pump - replace seals
check compression
new oil/filter - no water in oil currently


other than that is there anything else I should look at on the coolant system? I don't have a good way to get the bike super hot to test it other than idling in the driveway.

also the vacuum fuel pump is now highly suspect to me - any thoughts on rebuild or replacement?

 

[doc_rot]

I stuck a bore scope in the front cylinder and as suspected the head gasket is blown. This cylinder was making 225PSI - rear cylinder was 230PSI. I checked the head for flatness and its good to go. I'm just gonna slap a new gasket on there and party on for the rest of the season. I recently picked up a second engine that I will do a cheap refresh over the winter so I have a spare for next season.

been a Suzuki fanboy for a while now - I'm falling in love with the SV650 platform. cylinder head off in less than 40 minutes.

 

[ridesolo]

been a Suzuki fanboy for a while now - I'm falling in love with the SV650 platform. cylinder head off in less than 40 minutes.

Back in the day I was pretty heavily involved w/ a very large sport touring organization and when the SV650 first came out it very quickly became extremely popular w/ the more "sporty" branch of the sport touring assoc.

 

[doc_rot]

Engine is back together and everything is buttoned up. Still not sure why it blew the head gasket in the first place, but I went through every element of the cooling system and replaced pretty much everything i could. I swapped out the radiator reservoir overflow tube for a clear tube and routed it up to the tach with a loop so if it starts puking I can see it happening while I'm on the bike. I also couldn't help myself and threw a lick of wrinkle paint on the clutch cover so it wouldn't look quite so dingy - it really detracted from the bodywork.
I got it pretty hot idling and revving in the driveway but I don't think its the same without a load on the engine.
I'm gonna do a track day this week if the weather holds, hopefully its fixed.

 

[doc_rot]

I had a crash at The Ridge this weekend. Tucked the front end on the entry of turn 7 and slid to the outside, I think my tires were not up to temp and got too greedy with the front brake. I walked away completely fine, not even sore. With the spares I had I could have fixed it track-side and ridden for day two except the crash shattered my kill switch and that was the end of the weekend for me. I'm going to buy two so I have a spare one. I'm going to cobble this turd back together for my last event of the year in two weeks. Its funny that it barely looks any different after the latest crash...

I upgraded my regulator/rectifier for a lithium specific one, despite the stock one bench testing OK it seemed as if it was overcharging the battery. Without any of the running lights all that extra power has to go somewhere and it was getting the stock r/r super hot. New Rick's r/r is quite a bit bigger and intended for lithium batteries. Seems to be working well, and doesnt get nearly as hot

 

[Rider52]

Glad you were not hurt!

 

[doc_rot]

I was able to get the bike back together and did another weekend at Oregon Raceway Park in October. It is a scary and fun track, very technical, lots of blind corners and hills. To top it off, its in the middle of industrial agriculture with endless golden fields so there are almost no landmarks to sight at other than cones, its easy to get lost. It was good practice and just when you are learning the track on day one they change the direction and go the opposite on day two. Had a great time, will return.

Im building a fresh engine for the new season. I broke a spare engine down and realized it needed a bunch of stuff so I traded for a hoard of used SV engine parts. In the stash of parts there were 10 cylinder heads and only one has matching cam caps... WTF is wrong with people? Bolt the cam caps back in place when you strip an engine! they are matched to the individual head and not readily interchangable.

After I went though all of the heads I got 16 stock exhaust valves, out of that only 2 are good to use, one is questionable, and the rest have pitting or are deformed. Not a good part from Suzuki..... One interesting thing was there was one head with a port and polish and stainless valves. If i use those stainless valves I have enough to rebuild my heads. I don't like the idea of mismatching the valves but I doubt there is any practical issue for mismatched valves between cylinder heads. Maybe I'll see about finding another two stainless exhaust valves since pitting and deformation on the exhaust valve appears to be a common problem on these engines.

 

[doc_rot]

I fabricated the tools necessary to remove and install the crank bearings.