engine | Moto-Abruzzo

20/04/201520/04/2015

Cam chain tensioner – part 1

Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 Rally Raid airbox Yesterday I spent a lazy morning installing a couple of sensors inside the airbox (more in another post) and with the tank propped back in place, fired the Capo up to check the fuel lines…….

…… and just for a second or so after she fired up there was a distinct rattle from the rear cylinder and frankly it didn’t sound too special as the bike warmed up. To be honest, I’d heard it before on a couple of occasions but couldn’t pin down which cylinder it was. With the tank lifted and stood in just the right position, it was obviously the Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 Rally Raid cam chain tensioner AP0236253 rear. As it was lunch time, I decided to have a look a bit later – and promptly forgot! Well I got back to it in the evening and pulled the cam chain tensioner out. Soggy as a knackered bed spring! 🙁

So it had a thorough flush out and re-charge with fresh 15/50w oil and firmed up nicely (phew!) …. it looked as though contamination had built up in/around the ball that seals the oil in, in this case letting it out just as easy. Buttoned it all back together, fired the motor into life and revelled in a quiet(ish) Capo motor – just in time for a cold beer and MotoGP on the box, bliss! As I sat watching the race I kept having a niggling thought … what if the front one is the same?

Tomorrow feels like a let’s-check-the-front-one day ……….. 😕

09/08/201426/05/2016

Oil pressure switch

Over the past few months I’ve noticed the oil pressure LED getting dimmer after the initial dashboard power-on-self-test has finished. Then a couple of weeks ago, no oil light at all. If I pulled the electrical connector off the switch and shorted it to the crankcase, the lamp worked fine, so the oil pressure switch was u/s, fubar, stuffed ……….

I bought a new one from Ultimate Parts in the UK that came in a plain zip bag, not an Aprilia one and isn’t the same as the original – requiring a 24mm socket instead of the original 21mm. As such I have a sneaking feeling this is an aftermarket part and not genuine – but sold at a genuine price! Either way, both new and old are marked as 0.3-0.6bar (4.35-8.7psi).

Swapping it out on the Rally-Raid was a simple 5 minute job – remove the aluminium sump plate, disconnect the electrical connector and use a deep 21mm socket on a short extension to clear the sump guard frame and unscrew the old unit. You’ll lose a couple of tea-spoons of oil but that’s all. Simply swap to the 24mm socket to fit the new one, reattach the connector and refit the sump plate – job done. The job’s made all the easier if you do it on the side-stand rather that the main stand as the switch is mounted on the right hand side of the engine!

24/12/201328/12/2013

Santa and his sack of Capo goodies

Ho, ho, ho ... dashboard inlay for MrB!!!!! I’ll start off by wishing you all a hearty Merry Christmas and a very happy New Year wherever you are on this wonderful globe of ours. For the Capo and I, it’s proving to be an extra special one this year, with Santa dropping off a few extra goodies for the riding-year ahead.

The dashboard has been especially good, and so merits the star prize of a new OEM quality inlay with all the new graphics in place. So as I write, the old one is on its way to Lockwood International Ltd in the UK to act as a template, meanwhile the plastic chassis has been cleaned and preped ready for the big day. Like a kid on Christmas morning, I’m all on edge – and I’ve got to wait at least three or four more weeks yet before it’s installed!!

Probably the most needed bits are for the (very) overdue service. Yes folks, I’m hanging my head in shame as I admit that the Capo’s mileage overran a tad ……. a couple of thousand tads give-or-take! Now I’m waiting for a few packages to arrive for this truly international service to take place – Hiflo HF564 oil filters and ‘O’ rings from the UK, Hotcams valve shims from the USA, Athena air filters from Germany and 15w50 engine oil from Italy. Cosmopolitan or what!

That just leaves the parcels snuggling together under the tree …… a Shoi Neotec or a pair of socks? Slippers or a slipper clutch? Hmmm ….. roll on tomorrow!! 😉

11/09/201317/09/2016

Agip Tec 4 is dead …… long live eni i-Ride

I know, I know ….. engine oil can be the most controversial of all motorbike subjects. So you’ll at least be pleased to know this post isn’t about what oil to use, rather info on changes within Italy (Agip/eni) regarding the originally specified stuff in the handbook.

It seems that the original Agip Tec 4 15w-50 as specified by Aprilia is rapidly disappearing off the shelves as it has apparently been withdrawn from production. Along the way it also seems there has been a re-shuffle/re-brand with regards to Agip and eni themselves.

The bottom line appears to be a new line of ‘i-Ride’ oils offered under the eni brand. The one listed as most compatible for the Caponord is the i-Ride PG 15w-50, PG standing for ‘Piaggio Group’ …… apparently the oils were developed and approved in combination with Piaggio. Click on each pic to open the tech sheet … and you’ll see that both oils are in fact virtually identical. So that’s it, just a bit of info just in case you’re every in Italy and need a drop of oil for your bike ……..