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GSXR 1100 WP rattle


fastbob
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Hi I have a GSXR 1100 WP with around 40,000 miles on the clock . These bikes have never been known for their quiet engines with tinkles and rattles being quite commonplace. The other day however, when the engine was warmed up and at idle speed, I noticed an irregular chattering sound that I hadn't heard before. Then I remembered that I had turned the lights off . When I switched them back on the noise instantly stopped. Right then so it must be coming from the generator driven gear and placing it under load takes up the play. I've had the generator off and its smooth and silent when spun by hand. So its the combined starter clutch , alternator drive that's going to be making the noise. My question is has anyone encountered a similar situation on this bike and what action if any did you take? Please be aware that the starter clutch/alternator drive design seems to be unique to the WP model. The reason I ask is that I don't want to open the engine up , which is quite a lengthy job, if there is no need.

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I would... Not worry too much about it. Probably just a bit of lash in the drive.


If it was a whine or grinding I would investigate further but as you've had the bits off and spun them round...


The only thing I would check is the battery voltage. It should be drawing a good bit of charge after starting which should load up the generator.

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Thanks for the reply, I agree. I guess I was just seeking a little reassurance. I will probably remove and inspect it at some point. I bet those cush drive rubbers are degraded by now. By the way this picture is from the 750 pdf manual because for the life of me I cant find a GSXR 1100 WP 1993 manual online anywhere.http://i.imgur.com/85PRDpD.png

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I would... Not worry too much about it. Probably just a bit of lash in the drive.


If it was a whine or grinding I would investigate further but as you've had the bits off and spun them round...


The only thing I would check is the battery voltage. It should be drawing a good bit of charge after starting which should load up the generator.

Just read this again, I've only had the alternator off. The rest is housed under a casting on top of the crankcase under the carbs so its all accessible but just takes a long time to do.

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...I cant find a GSXR 1100 WP 1993 manual online anywhere.

Perhaps our good friend

might have a manual handy. :-)


The only way you'll know for sure is if you have it apart and get some feelers between the teeth but I really wouldn't be in a hurry unless it got worse (I mean genuine worse, not paranoid worse :-D).


You'd be surprised how well those rubbers last - I just had my '95 ZXR750 to bits and mine were Jim dandy.


How was the charging voltage by the way?

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Thanks for the reassurance, I think I'll leave well alone unless it gets much worse. Its more annoying than anything. It looks like a robust design unlike the later WR WS and WT models that appear to have a simplified damper that is given to sudden failure . I haven't checked alternator output yet but its on the to do list.

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  • 2 months later...

Hi, Fastbob I've got the same rattle only on tick over

and its less when the lights are on had my geny out and like yours all free and quiet. Have you had the top casing off yet to have a look for the cause.

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Hi, Fastbob I've got the same rattle only on tick over

and its less when the lights are on had my geny out and like yours all free and quiet. Have you had the top casing off yet to have a look for the cause.

 

Hi , thanks for the interest, no not yet but it's on the to do list. Can you post a pic of your bike here? You don't see many around these days so its great to hear from a fellow owner.

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Hi mines de faired as I like the wind in my face and straight bars did 6000 miles in first 6 months all winter riding just replaced cam chain plus tensioner and re shimmed the valves new clutch new tyres and all quiet apart from that little rattle but hasn't changed over 6000 miles.

6316113906021904658.thumb.jpg.69accb1ce82626dd4d69c00b94f07e1e.jpg

My 94 street fighter

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Nice,here's my slightly modified 93 just after I'd cleaned and polished it.http://i.imgur.com/NFw1NZX.jpg

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Like the colour are you running on the michelin road pilot 2 tyres I've just put a set of pilot 3 on and they feel better than the 2 and they suited the bike.

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Yep , I've changed back to PR2s from PR3s . I didn't see the point of the slashes or "sips" as I believe they are known as I don't have to ride in the rain . Just been out for a 120 mile blast around Warwickshire and Gloucestershire on mostly empty roads . The bike is going great but every time I pull up there's that bloody rattle ! Couple of questions, how frequently do you balance your carbs ? At what mileage have your valve clearances been checked and , if necessary, shimmed ? I've been putting off the latter for far too long. I did check clearances once and decided they were acceptable but I recon they do need doing soon.

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Yes your right if your not out much in the rain the 2s would be better value and you wouldn't notice any difference. I do a lot of miles in the rain lucky my misses just wants to be on the bike and i have not had the little twitches in corners with the 3s that I had with the 2s so worth the little extra cost for me.

Shims and Cam chain mines just at 30000 miles and as these are a high tuned engine they need regular servicing to keep them running at their best

And I would only use Suzuki parts for the chain and replace the tensioner at the same time plus all the top end gaskets including the plug seals. Valves I've just set mine to mid limit had one tight on the inlet and all the exhausts were at top limit and now is smoother at the lower revs. Carbs fully stripped and rebuilt mine 6000 miles ago last September and balance mine every 3000 miles but that's just me but I would say once a year for yourself and check your plug running colour. Had my first ride yesterday in 2 weeks as I've just had a carpal tunnel operation on my left hand had the right done 8 weeks ago so I'm looking forward to uninterrupted rides now.

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Thanks for such a detailed reply. I'm going to take the advice to re set all valve clearances when the bike comes off the road this winter. As for the cam chain I just don't have the facilities. I'm assuming that by genuine you mean fitting an endless chain which involves engine removal and a total strip down to the point of crank shaft removal. I've built a GSXR 1100 L model engine years ago but I'm just not feeling up for it again. So I'll have to leave the chain for now. Similarly, I'll probably not be replacing the tensioner mainly because I can't see what could wear out on it. It's just a ratchet and a plunger after all. It's perhaps worth mentioning that I have owned this bike for 38,000 miles and it only had 4000 on it when I got it. I've never thrashed it ( much ) and its had a good quality oil and filter change every year . Thanks once again , much appreciated.

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Hi Bob no problem just a point with the cam chain you just split the chain as you would a rear chain join the new to old and pull through the engine and re join no need to strip the engine and the tensioner starts to jam up with age due to constant movement as it's and auto not manual unit and 40000 is time for a change no mater how it's been ridden. This is just my preference and normal service life of parts for these models and I'm an engineer so I always stick the the service guidelines for peace of mind and trouble free riding,

as you've said there isn't many of these 11's left mine's an old mates bike who past away so had to buy it off the family and I'll keep it on the road till I can't ride any more so I've gotta start to stock pile parts now while you can still get them. I owned the first GSX 11 the ex and mono shocked the frame with a modified sling shot rear end and regret selling it.

20160926_122639.thumb.jpg.3e9fa598cadc0e18e83aca144d1c1d33.jpg

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When you say just split and re join a genuine cam chain I'm not sure what you mean . Are you suggesting that Suzuki will supply a rivet link or a special link with non hardened pins that can be flanged with a chain riveting tool. I don't think they do because this not a recommended procedure. I've fitted a few aftermarket cam chains and some of them were supplied with rivet links but I've never been comfortable doing this. Anyway, here's my GSX 1100 that I had 20 years ago. Clearly we share excellent taste in motorcycles.http://i.imgur.com/TBHbLAo.png

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Hi nice bike and good taste lol. The chain I've split and only slide one half off the link even though they are case hardened links they can be re fitted and re swage have done this on hundreds off these chains on production machinery and bikes and plenty of main dealers do this as well with no issues but it's what you feel comfortable with at the end of the day.

Went out to Paignton bike night with a few mates yesterday nice coast run up and back and with all the work done the rattle is quieter so there is a good side to doing the shimms.

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Cheers for clearing that up . I reckon if I do replace the cam chain I'll probably use a DID or RK one with a soft link. That way if I'm not happy I can get another link and have another go. It's not something I want to be worrying about at 150 mph. I'm definitely going to do the shims this winter. Once this is done and the carbs are properly balanced I wouldn't be surprised if the rattles go away due to the engine running at a more constant speed. How clearly are the shims marked by the way? Do you think I should invest in a micrometer just incase?

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Some shims are marked - some aren't!


A set of vernier or micrometers are handy for checking them either way as they're not always exactly the thickness they should be. :-)

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Yep as Mr Fro said you should use a vernier or micrometer to check the sizes and I've had shims ground in the past to get me to mid limit so always check the size with a micrometer myself. Check the cam lobs for wear is a worth while task when you in that far and DID and RK chains are built to spec so will do just fine at top end speeds. You'll never get rid of that rattle but it's a lot less when the engines running in balance and like mine until it sound different than normal enjoy ridding it and look more into it then you never know someone may let us know the part that's giving us grief by then. 8-)

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Just an afterthought, when I first got my bike there was another rattle or more of a buzz type noise that only occurred when riding slowly or stopped with the engine at idle.It took me ages to find it . As I recall I spent a lot of time hitting various parts of the bike with a rubber mallet until I eventually tracked it down. It was the radiator fan motor of all things. To cure it I remember taking it apart and bending one of the shim washers slightly so that it acted like a spring. This stopped the shaft moving backwards and forwards and completely cured the rattle / buzz . Probably irrelevant but you never know.

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Funny you say that my fan rattled when I first got it and like you hit it until I found it and plastic shimed the motor to solve it after gentle prying it apart and re drilling and tapping the motor casing to put it back together. Must be a common fault with these fans units.

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