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Has the cooling improved on the 8th gens?


saison

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Hi guys, first post :)

I have a 2012 VFR 800 with about 24K Kms on it. It's been a great bike and I love the thing. However I've always had an issue with the bike running hot. I live in Australia where temperatures are generally high, and riding anywhere in traffic causes the temps to rise and the fans kick in.

Coming home from a multi day trip yesterday the radiator fan has started acting up, failing to come on when the temps hit 104c and the bike rapidly rises to 120c~ and I have to pull over and let it cool down. This is the second time the fan has died on me over the last few years.

 

Has moving the radiator from the side to the front on the newer models resolved any of the heat issues the VFR's are known for? I'm trying to decide whether I should go through with paying to have the fan fixed again (along with the 24k major service) or maybe trade in for an 8th gen.

 

Thanks

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I never had a problem with my 2007 Gen-6 VFR in Australian temperatures. That included slow-speed commuter travel in summer at anywhere from 32 - 44 degrees C. The fans kicked in at 108, and on hotter days stayed running most of the time, but they did what they were supposed to and the bike never boiled. So straight away I'm thinking that maybe something failed on your bike?

In the two years that I've been riding the 2014 Gen-8, I've never noticed the bike's temperature climb alarmingly, but I can't think of any days where I was riding for prolonged periods in 40+ either.

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Are your fans now broken and dont work at all? I had a similar problem on my 2015 when riding in heavy sydney traffic. Saw 122 and temperature warning came on. Stopped let it cool checked everything and rode home. Have had no further problems and had it checked at service but they found nothing. Seemed to me the fan decided not to come on that one time. See my post on this incident.

so the answer to your question is it's not much better, often see 105 in traffic and am feeling the heat when in traffic and am watching out for a reoccurrence.

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In 2015 the fans failed completely, this week they are behaving very strangely,  coming on at 110 and turning off at 104, or not coming on at all.

Anyways the bike always runs hot.. Riding for any length of time in the city and the temps hit 104 and the fans are on.

I was hoping to hear from people who have ridden both 6th and 8th gen bikes and hear if the 8th gen relies less heavily on the fan, as the radiator at the front gets more natural air flow?

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Never gets that hot over here to be a problem.   However being in direct airflow will allow it to run cooler. Only time I've had fan come on is in standing traffic. 

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It may heat up a little quicker in traffic than some other bikes I've seen with huge sportbike radiators, but it the fan has never had a problem keeping temps below 221*F. When the temps climb above 90*F or so, even at highway speeds, if there's traffic in front of me, it doesn't really get back below 190*F. I don't think it's abnormal for it to heat up quickly with no airflow.

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Compared to the 5th and 6th gens. the 8th gen. does seem to run a little cooler and recovers from higher temps. in traffic.  That said, none of these three generations have cooling problems in my experience.  

The fans prevent problems.  When the fan is inoperable, of course there might be problems.  

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I'll say this having just bought my bike yesterday the fram gets warm/hot from the heat , never felt that on a bike before, but never owned a fully covered bike before. I watched the fan kick on at 220 and never got above 221 as I was stuck in traffic.

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VFR's do run hot in traffic and Oz summer temps surely cause the fans to work hard but I don't see any other issue than the fans failing to come on.

 

While high, the temps mentioned are within the expected range and, unless there is a problem with the quantity / quality of the coolant or a leak, should not be cause for alarm, IMO.

 

At any rate, I would not pull to the side unless the temp gauge starts flashing red.

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23 hours ago, Bent said:

That said, none of these three generations have cooling problems in my experience.  

The fans prevent problems.  When the fan is inoperable, of course there might be problems.

 

This !

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I've had 5th, 6th and now 8th gen VFRs and the only overheat problem I've ever had was on the 5th when the fan fuse had blown. Otherwise all three have only ever got hot in stop-start traffic, and when that happens (104-106 degrees) the fan cuts in and brings the temp back down again to the point where the fan stops until it gets hot enough to cut in again. I guess that's how it's supposed to work.

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My 8th gen has been fine on hot days in Florida - although due to the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic on either side of us it never gets crazy hot here like it does in places like Arizona or Australia - temps here tend to top out at about 98 F.   On super hot days in traffic jams I have noticed the frame gets hot and the fan kicks in to keep it cool but I never felt like it was in any danger of blowing up.

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On 5/1/2017 at 9:58 PM, Pjcliffo said:

Are your fans now broken and dont work at all? I had a similar problem on my 2015 when riding in heavy sydney traffic. Saw 122 and temperature warning came on. Stopped let it cool checked everything and rode home. Have had no further problems and had it checked at service but they found nothing. Seemed to me the fan decided not to come on that one time. See my post on this incident.

so the answer to your question is it's not much better, often see 105 in traffic and am feeling the heat when in traffic and am watching out for a reoccurrence.

Pretty sure there is just one fan on the lower radiator. The thermostat seems to be a 180F as that is were it runs when moving and fan kicks on at 220F , If I had access like I do with my cars programming I would have fans on sooner, like 200F , seems to me a 40F swing is a bit much.

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