[ArizonaJim]

sudipta:

Assuming we are speaking of a UCE powered motorcycle, the filter that is removed from the bottom of the engine is not the filter they should replace.

It is a short tubular filter made of a fine screen and its job is to keep large pieces of fiber, metal etc from entering the pump.
To service this screen filter one only needs to wash off all of the collected debris and put it back in.

The aluminum cover that holds this filter holds a magnet inside of the screen filter to collect any steel filings that pass thru the screen.

The main oil drain plug also has a magnet on it to collect steel filings in the oil sump.
Both of these magnets need to be wiped clean before re-installing them.

The filter that must be replaced is located in the right hand engine cover. This filter is under the cover on the side of the engine, directly above the brake pedal. The cover may be held in place with two or three small bolts depending on the style of your engines cover.

Once the cover is removed, the cartridge filter is pulled out and a new cartridge which has been soaked in oil is then reinstalled.

The seals on these oil service covers are "O"-Rings and they usually do not require replacement. Only if they are torn or very old will they need replacing.

You didn't mention the mechanic replacing the oil filter in the side case but assuming that he did, everything sounds like it was done correctly.
Don't worry. Just ride and enjoy!

[Sutripta]

Originally Posted by avisidhu

Also, as weird as this may sound, most youngsters consider bikes with mirrors as not so good looking, so do away with them usually as soon as they get it home.

And if you question them, they will come up with 'rational' excuses. Like in the event of a headon crash, one is likely to impale oneself on the mirror stalk. Removing it is a safety necessity.

Regards
Sutripta

[aussigreg]

I agree that the "micky mouse ears" mirrors detract from the vintage styling of the C5 and make it look a little like a honda CT110 postmans bike at a fast glance, but legal or not you really need mirrors (and ones that work at that), if you want to survive on the road in any country.

Sutripta, if you meet any "rational" youths concerned with injuries on mirrors in accidents I speak from experience when I say, when you are flying through the air with a smashed limb from impact, followed by a couple hundred kilos of sommersalting bank debt the last thing you'd care about is a fold away mirror. Oddly I only remember one thought, Insurance!

[Sutripta]

^^^
LOL, worrying about debts and insurance when you are having a crash. Must have been really young then.

Me, I'm grey haired. When I meet these 'rational' youngsters, my attitude is that they have to learn from their own mistakes. Let them mature at their own pace.

Regards
Sutripta

[sudipta]

Arizonajim, thanks for the clarification. We did change the oil filter also.

As I got the new upswept silencer, the original one is spare with me. What would you all suggest I do with it?

The tone is surely nice but there is another type of silencer which is known as indoor and it is short and straight. My ear says that has the best beat of all the different types. What would you all say on that?

[ArizonaJim]

Thank you for the question but I'm not the guy to answer your questions about silencers on a Indian UCE powered motorcycle.

When someone installs a non-factory silencer the amount of air passing thru it changes. Usually this change increases the amount of airflow which can add power however it also can effect the fuel/air mixture ratio.
With a carburetor this can be corrected by changing the carburetor's jets and fuel metering needle. With a fuel injected motorcycle where the fuel/air ratio is controlled by the computer it is not as easily done. A "re-mapping" of the computer would be required if the computer was not designed to detect the change.

I know the Royal Enfields imported to the U.S. utilize an oxygen sensor to measure the exhaust gasses from the engine and then correct the fuel/air mixture to remain correct after changing a silencer. The computer used in the Indian Royal Enfields I've read about indicates that the oxygen sensor system is not used.

With this in mind, the best source of information to answer your question must come from other people in India who own one of the new fuel injected Royal Enfields.
They should know what works and what does not.

Have a good day.

[nasirkaka]

Went for a ride over the weekend to Kudremukh rain forest. about 1000 kms in 3 days. The roads were a mix of superb to good to bad to very very bad.
The bike performed fine without any issues / hiccups.

But, this time, the bike just refused to go beyond 120kmph, even with prolonged full throttle. Earlier have gone up to 135 kmph. Any clue as to What could be the reason for this reduced max speed?


Some pics of the trip..

[aussigreg]

nasir,

1. fuel quality
2. luggage weight
3. dirty air filter
4. low tyre pressure
5. altitude
6. ambient temperature
7. humidity
8. wind resistance
9. gradient

How many K's are on the clock and how long since you held it flat?
My C5 has never been wet, has anybody got updates on how the finish stands up to it?
Love the "out there riding pictures", everybody should post pix and ride stories!

[nasirkaka]

nasir,

1. fuel quality > normal petrol available around south of india
2. luggage weight> about 18-20 kgs
3. dirty air filter> i run on K&N, least cleaned & re-oiled my self around 2 months back
4. low tyre pressure> try and maintain 22F and 32R
5. altitude> not sure, but not very much high, approx 500 to 2000 ASL
6. ambient temperature> 20 to 30 DC
7. humidity> not sure
8. wind resistance > moderate
9. gradient> more or less flat when trying the max speed.

How many K's are on the clock and how long since you held it flat?
My C5 has never been wet, has anybody got updates on how the finish stands up to it?
Love the "out there riding pictures", everybody should post pix and ride stories!

The bike is done about 20,000 + kms.

What i meant was, with similar setups like weight, temp, filter, fuel, roads etc, earlier i used to touch 130 + kmph easily on the odo. This time, the bike just refused to budge beyond 120kmph. I held it for quite sometime. lets say for about 20 kms or so. The speed dropped to 110kmph if i encountered a minor incline, but stuck to 120 on flat stretches.

My C5 is been wet most of its life. Dont have the privilege of a covered parking, hence have to park it in open, while at work. and it rains very frequently in Bangalore. Initial months, i use to take extra effort in wax polishing, and frequent cleaning, but last 5-6 months, have not been able to dedicate much time towards self cleaning the bike. get it washed at a local garage once in 3-4 weeks.
In my experience, the rain, moisture, humidity effects the finish greatly. My 4 years old machismo looks newer compared to my 1.5 yrs old C5. nuts bolts, fasteners, are very prone to rust, and so are some chrome surfaces, such as silencer. the seat foam absorbs rainwater through the stitches, and corrodes the metal seat plate. While getting my seat cover stitches, i have used a tape (internally) to counter this issue, and its been working perfectly so far. the buffed aluminium parts such as the engine covers etc react with oxygen and moisture, dulling the surface shine. Even the paint, when left under sun and rain tends to loose its sheen. Rain also affects the horn, the chain, and the disk pads.

Advisable to keep the bike clean, and wipe off the water after it gets wet.

[ruchirtnt]

I did a test drive of CL500 teal green model yesterday and felt like it was more of a pulsar than enfield, then i saw the handle bar and understood the difference, the RE has changed the handle bars for all Classics, it is better for tall riders

[bradhey]

@ Randhawa if you are reading this:
Overdrive in their latest issue have acknowledged that RE has increased the length of the swing arm on the latest Avtar of the 500 (chrome and DStorm) to compensate for the reduced trail of the front fork,.......however your own findings say there is no change to the length of the swing arm !! What is the truth ??

[aussigreg]

nasir,

I'm amazed that you can get 130+ out of a C5 with 20kg of luggage! They are factory rated at 132 in the manual, and I'd imagine that is a bike to bike average in favorable conditions. Much like the fuel mpg I'd expect inconsistency top speeds of C5s. This is where running in does make differences, as does prolonged riding style.

In the good old days we would've spent a weekend tuning carbs and fooling about with different plugs and additives to snatch a couple more km/h, and absolutely every stupid little thing has a slight effect on top speed on bikes under 800cc, even what jacket you wear.

10km/h loss under similar conditions sounds like a fueling problem or a burning problem which doesnt narrow it down much, so its a long process of elimination, and without O2 sensor it gets even longer to diagnose. Do you really want to go that fast on a C5? If I did I would be ordering all new internals from hitchcock in the UK, and a powercomander... and a nice moddest hoop pine coffin.

[Randhawa]

@Nasir- Dirty air filter/fuel quality and probably just the wet weather. I have seen in plenty of times on C5 when its more humid it does not cross 120.

@Bradhey- It's all BS, these automotive magazines should be read only for entertainment purposes. Companies prep the bikes more then an average straight of the line bike before handing them over to these people. In fact the bikes are fitted with 535cc piston and they are not told about it to get a better review.

[nasirkaka]

nasir,

I'm amazed that you can get 130+ out of a C5 with 20kg of luggage! They are factory rated at 132 in the manual, and I'd imagine that is a bike to bike average in favorable conditions. Much like the fuel mpg I'd expect inconsistency top speeds of C5s. This is where running in does make differences, as does prolonged riding style.

In the good old days we would've spent a weekend tuning carbs and fooling about with different plugs and additives to snatch a couple more km/h, and absolutely every stupid little thing has a slight effect on top speed on bikes under 800cc, even what jacket you wear.

10km/h loss under similar conditions sounds like a fueling problem or a burning problem which doesnt narrow it down much, so its a long process of elimination, and without O2 sensor it gets even longer to diagnose. Do you really want to go that fast on a C5? If I did I would be ordering all new internals from hitchcock in the UK, and a powercomander... and a nice moddest hoop pine coffin.

A lot of C5 riders have been reporting achieving speeds in excess of 140 kmph, without any performance mods. This is as per the speedometer, which may vary a bit from true speed.

Even if they may not accept, a lot of new generation C5 buyers do buy it for the 27 odd bhp of power and good torque figures, and somewhere deep down, expect it to score very high on acceleration and top speed. I may be one of them. The truth is that C5 is one among the fastest bikes produced in India, but maybe not fast enough. There is not much choice here in the price range of C5. Other imported (CKD/CBU) bikes are priced very high, thanks to the customs duty.

C5 is also one of the most expensive indian bikes, and the only one with 500cc of displacement. hence exceptions are generally high. When a 350UCE can touch 120kmph, a 500 UCE with injector, ecu etc should be able to hit at least 150kmph in stock. C5 is almost 9 bhp higher then C3.5, 15 odd nm of extra torque, and the weight difference is only 2 kgs. considering the same engine, chassis, etc, i feel a difference of 10 kmph at top between the two is not justified. C5 should have or could have been faster in stock.

Not that i am crazy about high speeds, found a good stretch of road, hence tried testing how fast can it go. Concern here was that it did not even reach the factory specified 130 mark. On similar rides earlier, had touched 130, so was wondering why only 120 this time.

Anyways, personally, i feel beyond 100-110, excessive vibrations creep in, making the ride very nervous. Also, majority of roads in India are not too safe beyond 100kmph on a bike, considering people's road sense, not to mention the loose cattle.

@Nasir- Dirty air filter/fuel quality and probably just the wet weather. I have seen in plenty of times on C5 when its more humid it does not cross 120.

Possibly. Was raining most of the time. Shall check and clean the filter, if required. Also, last time i touched 130, i was running to Xtra premium, and this time it was normal petrol from a small town en-route. Also, last time it was free flow bent pipe, with goldie, and this time it was OEM bent pipe with catcon and OEM bazooka.

OPPS! i think i said it all

In fact the bikes are fitted with 535cc piston and they are not told about it to get a better review.

Such big cheaters!!! (wish i could lay my hands on one of those )

[aussigreg]

Nasir,

Yep I think you did say it all, pipe, weather etc. Here's a thought, when I had a 250 and I wanted to do silly youthful things like -go fast, I used CRC or some cheap water dipersant in my foam air filter instead of thicker filter oil and cleaned it weekly. The difference was in acceleration not top speed and I reckonned it to be greater than the difference between the original paper element and the foam with heavy oil.

Come to think of it I did this in my old sportster too and noticed the same difference. You have to clean it weekly though or it will dry out too much but the CRC seemed to keep foreign airborne dust and smoke out fine. The Sportster was sold with 130000km on the clock and the motor was as strong as it was with 10000km.

Ps if you wash your filter in petrol or kerosine etc. DON'T USE IT FOR A HALF HOUR AT LEAST.