[ebonho]

I used a proper bi-xenon HID (hi and lo both HID - a motor and a movable shield move the beam back and front) on my LB500 for close to three years over thousands of highway kilometers without any issue. Then one day (actually night) one of the multi-pin sockets (under my seat) gave way and the light died on me in the middle of nowhere. Limped on to the next town with the lights of my tiger eyes, the left side indicators, and a MagLite taped to my handle. That is the day I decided to shift the lighting back to halogen.

HIDs are good - if used as auxiliary lighting alone. But too risky to use as your primary light source if you do a lot of touring, especially at night, and in remote places. The downside is that HIDs are brilliant and thoroughly spoil you. Going back to halogens you feel like you have am 18th century oil wick lamp instead of a headlight. But at least the oil wick can be replaced by the side of the road if it goes off.

[ArizonaJim]

The voltage meter which I installed on my 2011 USA model G5 indicates that the alternator on the 500 cc bike is rather limited in its power output.

At a 55 watt power drain from the high beam headlight and tail light with the motorcycle running at 80 kmph the system is at 12 volts.
At a 45 watt power drain with the headlight at low beam the system voltage is 14 volts.

At a 70 watt power drain with the engine idling the system voltage is 11 volts which indicates the alternator is insufficient to provide enough power and the battery is carrying some of the load.

The system voltage must be over 12 volts before the battery will be charged.

In my opinion anyone considering installing a 90 watt headlight bulb should also buy themselves a battery and a battery charger so they will have a nice fresh battery to replace the one that went dead while the motorcycle was being ridden.

[si1ver0ne]

Originally Posted by ruchirtnt

many congrats for the CL500, may you have many miles to go
which color you opted for

Originally Posted by zaks

Great news si1verone, how long was your wait. And since the prices have now gone up what was your onroad price? Please dont forget to post the pics.

@ruchirtnt - Thanks, its the Classic Maroon.

@zaks - Thanks, I booked it in June'11 and mine was available by Nov'11 end, but had to go onsite for a project so delayed it until Feb'12 and finally took delivery on 21st Mar'12. The price had gone up by about 5-6k since my booking, making the on-road about INR 165000 (incl hypothecation fees and bike waxing I suppose!). The prices have further gone up by about 4-5k the Budget 2012 coz of additional sales / service tax, which I believe is further expected to go up post the Karnataka State Budget is what I overheard at the dealership. Yet to do a photo-shoot, will be posting the ownership thread with pics next week.

[si1ver0ne]

Originally Posted by J.Ravi

...a pair of embossed smart registration number plates. The details are here.

Thanks Ravi Sir, went to Eshan Enterprises and got my number plates in about 10mins. The dealer asked INR 800 for the same set of IND plates for which these ppl just charged me INR 450.

All you ppl out there in Bangalore, for IND / Embossed Smart Registration plates, please take sometime out and visit Eshan Enterprises (off Old Airport Road) and get them done in person within 10mins and save atleast 50-60% of the charges.

Thanks to J.Ravi sir for his earlier posts mentioning about the same.

[adises]

Originally Posted by ArizonaJim

The system voltage must be over 12 volts before the battery will be charged.

In my opinion anyone considering installing a 90 watt headlight bulb should also buy themselves a battery and a battery charger so they will have a nice fresh battery to replace the one that went dead while the motorcycle was being ridden.

This could explain why my battery keeps discharging. Based on the previous replies I got on this thread the consensus was that as long as I ride more in the day the battery should charge enough to run the 90/100watt at night.

However I believe I haven't been riding at a speed that would charge my battery optimally, city traffic wouldn't let me even if I wanted to.

Guess it's time to switch back to a 55/60Watt bulb. Has anyone here tried the Philips Bluevision Ultra ?

I found that the RHS part of rear rim of my son's Royal Enfield Classic 500 black was sticky with black soot thanks to its proximity to the exhaust and chain. Today, I cleaned both the rims and spokes with a piece of cotton cloth dipped in windshield cleaning fluid of my FIAT Linea. Voila! It's gone without any trace! I also removed a sticker on the handlebar, but it left a trail of gum mark behind it. I also noticed gum marks on the front and rear side indicators. I removed all the gum marks using the Com-Cut paste that I got with Com-Paint. Now, the black bull is shining without any blemishes.

[reswaran]

I recently upgraded to fully synthetic oil, Motul 300v Factory Line 15w50, after running 9k kms on manufacturer spec 15w50. For the first couple of days, I was kicking myself for shelling out nearly 3k for 3 litres of fully synth oil. But over the last week, I must say that the engine sounds smoother than before. The engine/tappet noise is now noticeable mellow, and the gear shifts seem smoother.

Definitely recommended.

[GreaseMonk]

Originally Posted by reswaran

I recently upgraded to fully synthetic oil, Motul 300v Factory Line 15w50, after running 9k kms on manufacturer spec 15w50. For the first couple of days, I was kicking myself for shelling out nearly 3k for 3 litres of fully synth oil. But over the last week, I must say that the engine sounds smoother than before. The engine/tappet noise is now noticeable mellow, and the gear shifts seem smoother.

Definitely recommended.

In addition to this, the oil and engine seem to be in much better shape at the manufacturer-recommended 6k oil change interval. With the stock oil, my engine felt it was on its last leg when I took it in for an oil change.

[Puneet.S]

Please for love of God, never ever let any darn mechanic run the engine dry trying to drain oil. You will screw up the big end and hydraulic tappets.

How i wish i had read this a couple of days earlier! Gave my CL500 for regular service (at 3000kms) at ASCO Motors (RE Service center at Delhi). While draining oil the mechanic started engine for around 10-15 seconds (with all drain nuts and oil fliter removed) to drain out 'residual' oil.

After the service was completed, I observed a metallic whine from the motorcycle (clearly audible at low rpms, even when stationary). When pointed it to the mechanic he commented that its something to do with decomp and nothing to be worried about and that i can keep running the motorcycle till it ampilfies... But, it is not the tic-tic sound that is associated with decomp, its clearly a metallic whine.

Now, I am fearing the worst, could that sound have developed due to engine being run without oil? Doest it require immediate expert intervention?

[nasirkaka]

While draining oil the mechanic started engine for around 10-15 seconds (with all drain nuts and oil fliter removed) to drain out 'residual' oil.

Dont think the C5 engine is so fragile to get affected in 10-15 seconds. Moreover, while draining, one can never get rid of all the oil. There is always some left in the sump and stuck on the surface of internal components. Dont see much reason to panic. Apart from the loud tik tik of the auto decom at cold stage, even when the bike is hot and run for hours, the autodecomp could result in a fine metallic whine. if you totally want to get rid of that metallic whine, you can remove the auto decomp system entirely and still run the bike without any immediate issues, but not advisable.

[Puneet.S]

Originally Posted by nasirkaka

Dont think the C5 engine is so fragile to get affected in 10-15 seconds. Moreover, while draining, one can never get rid of all the oil. There is always some left in the sump and stuck on the surface of internal components. Dont see much reason to panic. Apart from the loud tik tik of the auto decom at cold stage, even when the bike is hot and run for hours, the autodecomp could result in a fine metallic whine. if you totally want to get rid of that metallic whine, you can remove the auto decomp system entirely and still run the bike without any immediate issues, but not advisable.

Dear Nasir, its such a relief to read this. I guess you have understood exactly what i was referring to. Even though the mechanic also told me not to worry about the sound, i couldn't trust him due to what he did during oil change. Being a newbie with enfields, my mind went into panic mode. Was planning to visit a reputed mechanic 40kms away from my place to get the bull checked, but i guess i can relax now - thanks to your advice. I am also following the CL500 thread on BCMT and have learnt a lot from you all.

[iron.head]

Originally Posted by Puneet.S

Dear Nasir, its such a relief to read this. I guess you have understood exactly what i was referring to. Even though the mechanic also told me not to worry about the sound, i couldn't trust him due to what he did during oil change.

@Puneet-Is the whining noise from the lhs engine cover? @Nasir-This noise might be from the auto chain tensioner? My bike started producing a whining noise and it was due to the auto chain tensioner.

[Puneet.S]

Originally Posted by iron.head

@Puneet-Is the whining noise from the lhs engine cover? @Nasir-This noise might be from the auto chain tensioner? My bike started producing a whining noise and it was due to the auto chain tensioner.

Hmm, it seems to be coming from right side, will check again in the morning and update.

[adrian]

Hi, with the hydraulic lash adjusters in the uces, there is a risk of oil draining completely out and air entering the system. So better play it safe and request our well wishers (RE service) not to start the bike while the oil is being drained.
Regards Adrian

[Puneet.S]

Originally Posted by adrian

Hi, with the hydraulic lash adjusters in the uces, there is a risk of oil draining completely out and air entering the system. So better play it safe and request our well wishers (RE service) not to start the bike while the oil is being drained.
Regards Adrian

I really hope this hasn't happened in my case.