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Cruiser
Posts: 153
Frisco, TX | The wife-unit and I took a nice little ride to downtown Dallas to see what was going on. We live about 35 miles north of downtown. We left around 10:30 PM on Saturday night. It was nice and cool out (if you think 87 degrees at 10:30 PM is cool) and the ride was fun. When we got downtown, we got stuck in traffic heading over to Deep Ellum and could do no more than 2 MPH for about 15 minutes until I was able to get out of it. This is one time I wish that Victory made a water cooled engine. The heat coming off the engine and into my crotch and legs was difficult to bear. Damn! When moving, the wind deflectors do a great job of moving the heat away from my legs but when in stop-and-go traffic, OMG! I fear for the plastic's safety. How could the whole bike not have melted while sitting in the middle of the street I'll never know. Anyway, this is just an observation and although a water cooled engine would be a nice touch, it certainly does not take away from my enjoyment of the bike. I just want to make sure in the future that I don't get locked into a traffic jam without an ice pack for my crotch.  |
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Tourer
Posts: 496
Scottsdale AZ | Fergy - 91 degrees at 6AM goin to Starbucks today - Later today made a short trip at 113 degrees, ya think I could feel the heat from the engine? I guess this is the payback for riding all winter at 60-70 degrees. It will be out of the Valley of the Sun this weekend to the cooler country. I suppose someone somewhere is going to brag about 80 degrees every day now! |
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Puddle Jumper
Posts: 10
Las Vegas, NV | I had the opportunity to rent a black vision tour for 24 hours from Arlen Ness in Las
Vegas this past weekend. Rode the spouse up to St. George, Utah for the night, and then off to Zion National Park and beyond. The bike handeled quite well as a I had often read on this site. The engine was powerful but did require a bit more shifting than the Wing 1800 that I previously owned. Enjoyed the twisties and sweepers, especially taking route 9 over the mountains back into Cedar City. As mentioned in the previous thread, the major drawback was engine heat. While waiting to get into Zion Park (about 20 minutes of inching up to the gate, we absolutely cooked). Going home (had to have the vision home by 4:30 pm on Saturday) ran about 80 mph from north of ST. George all the way into Vegas. The ambient temp. ranged from 104 to 107. I wore boots and blue jeans and have to confess the intense engine heat made what would of been an entirely glorious 24 hours a test of endurance for that part of the run. I know there would have been heat from the Wing at those same ambient temperatures, but must say this was far beyond anything I ever experienced in my years of desert riding on the wing. The wife found the seating comfortable but was not use to the vibration of a V-twin. I am not soured on the Victory, but will have to take into careful consideration the engine heat in this desert climate and ways (if any) to move engine heat or find some kind of adequate protection. Up in the mountains outside of Cedar City where temperatures ranged in the 70s the riding was absolutely delightful. I have enjoyed the great info and banter on this site and will continue to hang around while I await the opportunity to procure another great ride. Ride Safe! DW |
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Tourer
Posts: 495
Carrollton, TX | I have been caught in stop and go traffic on mine at 97 to 100 degrees and the heat I got off the engine was not much more than what I got on my Vulcan 1600 and it is less than what I have experienced ridding the Gold Wing GL1800 or the Harley Ultra. I rode over to Fort Worth the weekend before last with two guys ridding Harley Ultra screaming eagles with the 110 engines and they where burning up. They both took turns in stop and go traffic in Fort Worth pulling next to me close and putting their hand out to feel how much heat I was getting from the engine and I reached out to feel the heat from theirs and the Harley was noticeable hotter. They were impressed how much less heat the Vision was putting out. Fergy will tell you I can deal with the heat a lot better than the cold. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 153
Frisco, TX | Spock - 2008-06-17 11:02 PM I have been caught in stop and go traffic on mine at 97 to 100 degrees and the heat I got off the engine was not much more than what I got on my Vulcan 1600 and it is less than what I have experienced ridding the Gold Wing GL1800 or the Harley Ultra. I rode over to Fort Worth the weekend before last with two guys ridding Harley Ultra screaming eagles with the 110 engines and they where burning up. They both took turns in stop and go traffic in Fort Worth pulling next to me close and putting their hand out to feel how much heat I was getting from the engine and I reached out to feel the heat from theirs and the Harley was noticeable hotter. They were impressed how much less heat the Vision was putting out. Fergy will tell you I can deal with the heat a lot better than the cold. That is some serious B.S. I had a Vulcan 1500 and currently have a Vucan 2000 and the 1600 isn't any different. The heat off the Vision is seriously hotter. I would say the Ultra and Vision are about the same as far as heat is concerned. I put 500 miles on the Ultra in Florida once and sweat my balls off. Spock gets caught up in the joy of it all and loses some perspective. There's nothing wrong with saying some bad things about the bike. No bike is perfect. It doesn't mean I don't want the bike just because I mention some bad things about it. The bike is much hotter than any water cooled Vulcan. Period. I now want to make sure that I don't get caught in stop-and-go traffic very often. The wind deflectors do an awesome job of redirecting the heat away from my feet and legs once moving again. That's a big plus at least. |
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Tourer
Posts: 562
SC, Bluffton | Fergy - 2008-06-18 10:28 AM
currently have a Vucan 2000
Ain't it an incredible engine? They ain't sellers either, but I love the VN2000
engine. Opps, strayed from the subject.
Don't wear boots that often, and haven't been burned yet. I hope to stay out of
2 MPH traffic jams for an extended period of time.
The Vision was awesome this last Winter. Never had heated seats of grips before.
Edited by g1nomad 2008-06-18 4:56 PM
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Cruiser
Posts: 153
Frisco, TX | g1nomad - 2008-06-18 3:56 PM Fergy - 2008-06-18 10:28 AM currently have a Vucan 2000 Ain't it an incredible engine? They ain't sellers either, but I love the VN2000 engine. Opps, strayed from the subject. Don't wear boots that often, and haven't been burned yet. I hope to stay out of 2 MPH traffic jams for an extended period of time. The Vision was awesome this last Winter. Never had heated seats of grips before. The Vulcan 2000 (or Rogue as we call it) is a great bike. I'm having the motor rebuilt on it now and should have it back this week. I wish this motor was in the Vision. Oh well. Below is a pic of my Rogue and more can be found here: http://rogueownersgroup.com/fergy. The Vision is a great bike and can hardly imagine having a more confortable bike for touring and it handles like a sport bike (albeit a heavy sport bike). I know I keep harping on this, but the wind deflectors really do work well to keep the heat off the legs and feet. Of course, you must be moving for them to work. 
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Puddle Jumper
Posts: 21
D/FW Texas | Anyway, this is just an observation and although a water cooled engine would be a nice touch, it certainly does not take away from my enjoyment of the bike.
A water cooled engine won't necessarily radiate less heat to the rider. My last water cooled bike was an ST1300 and the heat coming off the engine in Texas summer stop/go traffic was brutal. The Buell 1125, Concours 14 and FRJ1300 also are examples of water cooled engines which have a reputation for being rather "toasty".
On the other hand, the current generation BMW (air/oil cooled) boxer engines radiate virtually no heat to the rider - no doubt due to the placement of the cylinder heads and the fact that both cylinders are placed fully in the air stream. I think it's safe to say that with a v-twin, it doesn't help that your crotch is essentially about 6" away from the stove. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 153
Frisco, TX | TowJam - 2008-06-22 6:50 PM A water cooled engine won't necessarily radiate less heat to the rider. My last water cooled bike was an ST1300 and the heat coming off the engine in Texas summer stop/go traffic was brutal. The Buell 1125, Concours 14 and FRJ1300 also are examples of water cooled engines which have a reputation for being rather "toasty". On the other hand, the current generation BMW (air/oil cooled) boxer engines radiate virtually no heat to the rider - no doubt due to the placement of the cylinder heads and the fact that both cylinders are placed fully in the air stream. I think it's safe to say that with a v-twin, it doesn't help that your crotch is essentially about 6" away from the stove. I won't argue with what you say since I have experience only with 3 Kawasaki Vulcans (800, 1500 FI, 2000) and my Vision. The Vulcans were all water cooled. My current Vulcan is has a 125 cubic inch motor with 110 HP and 140 ft. lbs. of torque at the rear wheel and runs significantly cooler than my Vision. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 59
| Reading all these post is the reason mine stays in the garage most of the Summer, Texas heat is not fun to deal with. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 297
VA | My last bike was the Vulcan Mean Steak 1600. I can say I never really noticed the heat at all. What is really wierd is that when riding highway speeds it gets hot on the legs. I know the lower defelctors would work, but I personally don't like the look of them, and I read some posts of guys who lost them on the highway. Now, I have been thinking of getting the higway pegs. I've noticed just getting you legs a few inches outwards makes a huge difference. I still love the Vision, and I'm sure it'll be one of the things that in twenty years I say "remember how those gas powered engines used to scorch the legs...that was real riding, not like these bikes nowadays that on water!" But, I would be curious to see how a Vision would run if it were water cooled. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 82
Northwest of you | Let face some basic facts. First, internal combustion engines produce heat. Secondly, Texas, like internal combustion engines, produces HEAT. I only lived in Texas for 7 months. There were many great things about Texas which I still miss and perhaps you can only experience while in Texas. On the other hand when someone told me Austin (which is where I was) was the most beautiful part of Texas, I left immediatly. Being used to living in the Northwest I would park on the street, go inside, shower and then walk out to my car. By the time I reached the sidewalk, I needed another shower. Heat/humidity, if you want to know what that means, go to Texas. I can understand that if you are in Texas, sitting on top of an internal combustion engine, you are going to NOTICE. On the other hand, if you happen to be in Bellingham Washington in the middle of June, with a high temperature of 70 degrees, you want to get as close to that engine (any engine) that you can. I had a motorcycle when I was in Texas, but I only rode it and only played tennis between 5 and 7 am. I soon didn't think it so outrageous that there was air conditioning in the garage of the residence I rented. Remember the Alamo....................hopefully, that battle was fought in the dead of winter, when tempertures plummeted into the low 90's. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 82
Northwest of you | Oh yea, I consider Las Vegas, all of Arizona and New Mexico as part of Texas. Winter temps in the 90's, that's desert, by anyones standards. When it's 90 and you start a gas fire..................you get heat. |
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Iron Butt
Posts: 810
| I am going to try this as a partial remedy for the stop and go traffic heat problems. Hopefully, it will help out the oil cooler and the front cylinder.
http://discountpowerparts.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=373 <img xsrc="http://discountpowerparts.com/catalog/images/16516.jpg"/> |
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Tourer
Posts: 332
Dale, Indiana | I guess I am supposed to notice the engine heat?
When the wife and I did our vacation trip it was in the mid 90's (sometime 98) during the day. She didn't say a thing about any engine heat, and the engine heat wasn't the problem. The summer Midwest heat was.
I guess I have taken in consideration that I am sitting on top of a rather large V-twin that is air cooled and don't think because it's a top on the line bike it should feel like I am in an air conditioned Caddy.
There is another thing that some forget.
It's a motorcycle not a bicycle!
Dress like a college geek with spandex and tennis shoes and the world will be different.
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Visionary
Posts: 2027
Brighton, TN | Oh boy! BUnch of Geezers running around in spandex and tennis shoes, where do I sign up to Not see this. I finally went and purchased the highway pegs. Seem to me to be on the expensive side at $200 plus, but seem to be well built.
Note- Going down any road at any speed, heat is extremely reduced just by using the pegs. I was feeling pretty warm riding on 90+ degree days. Stretching the legs out into the wind stream, actually helps bring wind in to you. Dramatic difference in temp on me. Thought about the wind deflectors. Haven't seen a set in person, but so far am happy with just the pegs. You know as big as those floorboards are they could have integrated a flip out set into those boards.
Before I thought I was getting well done Mountain Oysters by the time I got home. Now, I have medium Mountain oysters. |
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Visionary
Posts: 1484
LaPorte,Tx. | The Vision highway pegs will help with moving your legs out into the air stream, plus it adds another ride position for comfort. Also, the adjustable wings on the fairing help changes air flow past your body, try changing those. I ride all summer in the Houston area, it is hot, but I'm going to ride. My 04 Kingpin was hot and the Vision is hot if your in traffic sitting at a stop light.......I think all bikes are going to be hot in stop and go traffic. It was 102 yesterday coming back into Houston. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 153
Frisco, TX | This is a better system to keep cool: http://www.coolshirt.net/motorcycle-cool-bag.html. I use this system for racing: http://www.coolshirt.net/racing-club-system12.html. They both use the same shirts and hoses but a different pump and water cooler. Basically, it just pumps ice water through the shirt. It works great. During a race, the interior of my car will reach 130 degrees. I'm nice and comfy with my cool shirt on though. Although I started this thread complaining about the heat off the engine, I didn't mean to imply that it was unbearable. Also, it's really only bad when sitting in stop-and-go traffic. Once I get moving, there's no problem. The bike is great. Craig and I took a short little day ride on Saturday of about 650 miles and the bike performed perfectly and the wind deflectors are a must have in my opinion. Some don't like the looks of the deflectors. I care about looks but I care about comfort a little more. Personally, I think the wind deflectors look great and once you ride a vision with them on you'll quickly realize how nice they are to have on the bike. |
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Iron Butt
Posts: 600
Linwood, MI | That would be great, Fergy, if they made 'em in underwear. It's my ass that's on fire, not my man-boobs.  |
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Jacksonville Florida | Those Vulcans seem to be ealier models not regulated under current E.P.A. Regs. My headers and level 2s are being ceramic coated and should be ready for pick up on wed. We did the same thing on all of our Late Models and it did cut down on the floor board temperature. I'll update after the test ride. |
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Puddle Jumper
Posts: 9
| Heat??? Yea I guess the engine does produce heat in stop and go traffic in Las Vegas at 108. It gets too bloody hot sitting on a bicycle! My Vision does heat the legs but I don't think the crotch area is any warmer on the Vision than my Hammer or Classic Cruiser. Hell in stop and go traffic on the Cruiser you could cook skin on the metal side covers. I know there are solutions for the heat and one is to feed the engine more fuel at low RPM with a fuel controller thus, more fuel, less lean, cooler engine. But, what isn't mentioned is worse fuel economy and less power. I am waitng for the Lowers to be re-released and then see how this helps in low speed but I doubt anything short of a 10 ton portable cooler in a side car will make it comfortable in 105+ degree days and stop and crawl traffic.
Just my buck twenty five worth of comment. |
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Visionary
Posts: 1324
So Cal | Occasionally I feel extra heat on the left side near the oil cooler, nothing extreme though. Must be thermostatically controlled, dont feel it all the time. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 64
Columbia,MO | The closed loop EFI system is why the Vision is hotter. All cycles built 2007 or later is mandated by the EPA. If you let it breath more with an air box and some free flowing pipes it will help cool it down some. |
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Jacksonville Florida | Headers and crossover were not a problem coating, but when they started to abrase the L2 mufflers the chrome raised off the muffler. Now we are going to high temp the mufflers. Now the parts won't be ready until Friday. Piss poor chrome so if anyone alse planned to do this I would caution them. |
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Heat!!!
