JackFlash

My '06 Subaru, 130k miles, had timing belt changed like I'm supposed to. Changed plugs and wires, too. Everything was running fine. Work was done about three months ago, so it's all still in warranty. Water pump and pulleys were changed while it was all apart. Tensioner also. All that came in a kit. Issue? I'm cruising at about 65 mph when I sensed I'm losing power. The speedo dropped to 60, so I gently gave it some juice. It kicked down a gear but didn't speed up. I pulled to the shoulder and before I got stopped, the engine died. I had very little steam from under the hood and absolutely NO indication of overheating. Opened the hood. A very small puddle of moisture was on the ground and steam was from water dropping onto the catalytic converter right below. Cranked the motor. Didn't sound right, like no compression. I'm thinking the NEW timing belt didn't hold up and now I have a ruined engine. So, towed to the shop that did the work. Luckily, they were fairly close. Pulled the timing cover. Everything is intact. Timing marks are lined up, perfectly. Ran a scope into the cylinders. See no damage. Compression test, 1 and 2 had 15 lbs. with 3 and 4 having ZERO. WTF? Squirted oil into the cylinders and did it again. Compression improved -- a little, on all four.. With no indication of overheating, I'm ruling out blown head gaskets, especially since the heads are well separated, being a boxer engine. One head, but not both, without some indication of overheating. Radiator was empty when we towed it to the shop, but the reservoir level was fine. Where did my compression go? It's my understanding that if the coil stopped producing spark, but the injectors continued to perform, fuel can wash oil from the piston rings and cause loss of compression. Does this sound right to you? We looked for spark at #1 plug and there was none. I'm assuming that there will be none on the other three. I'll know when they call me today or tomorrow. Another question. What is it that tells the coil to fire which cylinder? Are there sensors to report the position of the piston or cam so that the correct plug can be fired at the right time? There is one coil with all four plug wires coming from it. And.....so far, all this work is under warranty. At what point should I begin to be charged for labor/parts. They did change the plug wires, so they were in that area of possible failure. Is it possible that newer wires, with less resistance, caused failure of a aged and weak coil? Comments? Questions? Help? Advice? Offers of money? Thanks folks. .

I saw that bike somewhere else, but not on that site. Maybe it was Craigslist. Yep! Craigslist. http://columbus.craigslist.org/mcy/4586423121.html .

Make sure there are no boating laws about having alcohol on board. The water cops can get snotty about that. Also, in Ohio, it's my understanding that you can't catch. then eat the fish, on the water. The fish has to remain intact so that it can be identified, so as to prevent fishing over the limit. However, the sooner the fish goes from water to plate, the better it's going to taste. How to filet? YouTube is your friend. Tackle? I would explain the situation at my local outdoor supply house and see what they suggest. Unless one of your buddies bring some gear for you to use, it's going to be difficult to get a fish to offer itself up for your dinner. Even though you are going to be on a "party barge", just as we dress for the crash, and not the ride, dress for falling into the water while drunk. That means life vest. They are cheap and they will keep you afloat. With alcohol present, there should be a designated boat pilot that is not drinking. There will be required boat safety equipment. Fire extinguisher, anchor, horn, etc. Not having something that the law requires can get you a fine. A hat, sunscreen, and mosquito repellant will all help to make your trip more pleasant after the fact. A lite jacket for evening boating is a good idea. There's always more breeze over water than on land. It may get a little cool at night. And the boat will need lights after dark. Plus, you will need light to see to fish after dark. Stay safe. We don't want to read any sad stories about your vacation. . .

They have this, the Suzuki GSX1250FA ST/SEA and I would love to have one. But they are not selling it in the USA. http://www.totalmotorcycle.com/motorcycles/2012models/2012-Suzuki-GSX1250FAST-SEATouring.htm

I've had moments of panic braking when approaching corners a little too fast, when I was a newer rider. For me, I found that diving in and putting the juice to it is more fun than hanging on and hoping to stop in an upright position. If I'm going to crash in a corner, I'm going to do it on my terms, by trying something aggressive as opposed to skidding and praying. It's worked several times even when my front tire has hit puddles of gravel. . .

The "hips" over the rear wheels on that car gave it a sexy stance.

The 2013 has adjustable suspension that the earlier models did not have. It does not have ABS in the USA. It is common to scrape pegs on this bike. The seat has a better grip now than before. In Cycle World's "Middleweight Mashup" in 2011 it was 2nd only to the Triumph Street Triple R. It's lighter than an FZ6 and most of it's peak HP is between 6500 to 9500 rpm. It has also been suggested that, "You can trickle the bike right down to idle, some 25mph (35kph) in top gear, and it will still pull away cleanly and with reasonable force..." and "the bike does start to get a bit buzzy in the upper quarter of its rev band." You might get 39 mpg if you are riding hard, but normally you can expect to fuel up when approaching 150 miles on a tank full. The warning indicator will glow at 120 miles. I could have been very interested in one of these if a fully faired Fazer8 was available in this country. .

That looks like a very tempting corner to ride through, hot. I'm glad it wasn't worse for you guys. It could have been. Maybe this can be a reminder for the rest of us to tone it down in places we are not 100% sure about. Anything can be on the road and appear before there is a chance to react. We'll see you both on the road again soon, I hope. .

The Egyptian Festival is the weekend of August 22nd. The Indian Association celebrates the Diwali (Festival of Lights) every year. The event is open to all Columbus residents and visitors. African American Heritage Festival. 2014 marks 36 years for the Annual African American Heritage Festival! Asian Festival. ...the festival has received strong support from state, city, corporate, and communities every year since its beginning in 1995. Festival Latino is the largest Hispanic/Latino event in Ohio beginning Saturday, August 9th. Ohio Scottish Games. The festival is sponsored by the Scottish-American Cultural Society of Ohio. Pride Parade and Festival. Gays and gay sympathizers. Dublin Irish Festival. Irish & friends. Sommerfest Friday, August 22nd. Oktoberfest Ohio State Fairgrounds. September 26-28. 2014 Columbus Italian Festival October 10, 11, 12. Greek Festival. Labor Day weekend. The Ohio Swiss Festival September 24-27, 2014 Columbus Jewish Film Festival November 2-16. 2014 Ohio Chinese Festival Was in February. Straight...white...and male. Everyone else has their celebrations without criticism. It seems there just may be some bias. What do you think? .

Your left and right arms may be fighting each other for control of your steering. This book will read in English no matter which country you move to. Total Control -- High Performance Street Riding Techniques by Lee Parks. http://www.amazon.com/Total-Control-Performance-Street-Techniques/dp/0760314039 Chapter 2...Steering.....page 17 Steering Technique "It is my ardent belief that when cornering, you should use only your inside arm to steer...." Read the book. It will help anyone to ride better and to understand more about the how's and why's of what a motorcycle does when we try to make it do what we want it to do. Go right to page 21 on the book preview at the link above. You can read it there without buying the book. . .

The reviews on the VFR 1200 were not great when the bike first came out. BUT.....everyone that actually owns one loves them. I've eyed them more than once. You're going to love that bike more with each ride you take. I just wish Honda would fire their designers. .

I was hoping to see some choices in graphics. My ThunderHorse needs some pizazz. .

How about clearcoat? Can that be done by powdercoat? I'm asking because I have a small scuff/scrape on my engine and wondering if I can restore that part back to "like new" condition. .

You could run it through a receiver. Anything to boost the signal before sending it to the speakers, would be good. I miss those stereo set-ups from the '70's. I never had the cash to invest in the kind of system I wanted. I still have an 8-track recorder, in case anyone needs some Foghat or BTO tapes made for their underdash 8-track player in their '75 Chevy Nova. .

I try to drive in such a manner that if the vehicle in front of me stopped instantly, right now, I would have plenty of room to come to a stop just like I was approaching a stop sign. And with that in mind, I want the person behind me to be aware that I am slowing, and so I'll pump my brake pedal or even flip on my flashers to get their attention so that I don't get smashed in the rear if traffic is stopped on the freeway. .

Very nice. It was top of the line back in it's day. Got an amp to pump it through? .

Pardon me, but my ears were burning a few minutes ago. .

Forget everything you are hearing. The only reason he chose Cleveland is because there was talk offering to create a likeness of him right beside the "Butter Cow" at the Ohio State Fair, this year. .

I like the looks of the Katana. It has lines that smoothly form into the seductive figure of something that asks to be ridden well and offers to return the pleasure to an exponential degree. Wait, we are talking motorcycles, right? Plus, it has only 3066 miles on it. That's what caught my attention. Tell me more... .

Does anyone have an opinion on a 2002 Katana 600 with only 3000 miles on it?

First guess is bearings in the steering head. .

In some manner the plan is to label everyone in some way, so that if they ever want to declare a certain segment of society as a danger all they have to do is to round up the bunch that falls under that label. ...or if you don't vote in a politically correct/mentally responsible manner. It's coming. .

Time is not an issue. There is no rush to upgrade to a larger bike. I still enjoy the one I have while I explore other possibilities. I think the V-Strom is an excellent bike. I wish it didn't sit so high. I don't think it can be lowered enough for me. And that is the kind of info that I find useful. It's a parallel twin. Right? Good to know. I might have to stop by. .

Somehow I don't think it's in our best interest to export this oil. I think we should stock up and make it last. . .

The search is on going. It's not so much a search for a bike as it is a search for information and answers to questions, which will point me in a more defined direction to the bike I'm going to get. It has been suggested that I need two bikes, and also that possibly the bike I want doesn't exist. Both of those may be a little true. One issue with being built a little closer to the ground than many of you is that my reach is less, causing my riding posture to be more forward leaning than I would find comfortable for a lengthy ride. That's what gives a VFR, SV 650, ZZR 600, etc. a less than desirable seating position for me. The FZ's, the Ninja 650, and the Suzuki SFV 650 all have a seating positon that agrees with me. The Ninja is a parallel twin, like the GS 500, and may not have as much pizazz as what I may wish it had. I don't want only a little more umph in engine performance, I want a lot more, for the money I'm going to spend. The Suzuki's V-twin has low end torque, but will it accelerate me out of the turbulence of an eighteen wheeler from 70 mph and put me in front in five seconds? And those FZ's are nice are far as how they sit. This being the season of the street fighter, leaves us with less wind protection than what I like. Also, the FZ6's power band is in the upper revs, from what I understand. I prefer not to have to buzz around the city in third gear at a high rpm. The FZ1? Well now, maybe that's closer to what I should consider. I wouldn't have to shift near as much as I do when riding the twisties with the big boys, and at freeway speeds I could reduce my passing time to four seconds to get around that tornado inducing truck. The 2014 Ninja 1000 gets my attention. I like it a lot. The FJR and Connie 14 both appeal to me. I believe maintenance costs for the FJR would be less, plus the Connie sits way too high for me to be able to back it up easily while seated. Many of these should probably not be my second bike, but I have my wishes. I sat on a new Interceptor (VFR 800) at John Hinderer in Heath, Ohio. They have two, in case anyone is looking; a red one and a white one. I liked the white one. I wonder if Heli bars would put the grips in a friendlier position? Now, you know where my head is, currently. Bring on the corrections in my way of thinking. I look forward to it. It gives me things to think about that I didn't know to think about. No hurries for my second bike. I'm having a blast with this one, for now. I'm just trying to narrow my focus for when the desire overcomes me, and I can't resist the temptation of a bike that I can't take my eyes off of. .