2018 900GT 24,000 mile service

[Paddy01]

I’m about to have the 24,000 service on my 2018 GT and was wondering if you have had it done and what your experience was. I understand this is the first valve check, which is one reason why the cost is so high (circa £800/US$1,000/CAD$1,265). I know our friends in North America do high mileages. I still can’t get my head around one poster who had returned from a 5,000 mile trip 😧 That’s more than some do in a whole year in Europe.  I felt proud of myself when I did a recent Wales trip and covered 1,000 miles. 

What say you?

[Heli ATP]

Not a Tracer owner but here is a handy reference. Scroll down for Euro/KM's.

MX Schedule

[KrustyKush]

Since I've only got 5k miles on my 2021 GT, and have not done much of anything to it but ride it and oil the chain, I'll reply by saying that, "in general," it is a very good idea to stick to the maintenance schedule.  In the case of valve adjustment, many recommend going with the first adjustment a little early, for various reasons.  Since you're right on top of the normal interval, you're due.

I do my own valve adjustments.  I started doing my own back when the bikes usually had threaded adjusters on the rockers, and therefore were easier to do than what we have on the Tracer.  When I started riding bikes with direct actuated valves, I continued doing my own.  Main reason I do my own is that I have a problem trusting anyone to do this work properly.  I've encountered techs who will do a valve adjustment by "listening" to the motor and thereby determining whether any adjustment is necessary.  I doubt this is possible on a modern engine, and so I don't trust that a shop tech will so much as take the valve cover off.  I'd have no way of knowing.

However, it isn't a job for a person that isn't pretty comfortable with hand tools, and working in confined spaces on delicate stuff.  If you MUST find a tech to do this work, try to find the best, most reliable tech there is.  And good luck!

[Paddy01]

Many thanks for your help guys 👍

[nhchris]

Checking the valves is difficult enough on these bikes, but adjusting the valves if they are out of spec is really the problem.

To re-shim you must pull the camshafts out and manipulate the thin metal shims to return the valves to factory spec.  What could possibly go wrong? 

I did valve checks on my ST 1300 and vowed never again. And the ST valves were a lot more accessible than my FJs.

Edited May 17, 2022 by nhchris

[Ride365]

I'll have mine checked/adjusted around 18K, have a great local dealer with experienced techs that I trust.

[larolco]

When the time comes, I'll check/adjust my own. I did it a few times on my V-Strom and consider it a bonding experience. 

If 24K miles is the first inspection, I've still got 11K to go. 

[KrustyKush]

The worst bike I ever did valves on was my  97 Yam Royal Star. V4 with shim OVER bucket design. The cams stayed in and you used a “special tool” to depress the bucket while rotating the crank, then grab the shim with a tweezer. Very difficult. The special tool was all but impossible to deal with. Later, I also had a Yam Star Venture with essentially that same motor. I put over 150k miles on both bikes combined, and did a valve check/adjust every 26k. It was a lot easier to do the job every 16k on my 97 Hon CBR 1100XX which was more normal shim UNDER bucket. So much easier to just pull the cams out and work unfettered.

it is a big job no matter what, but while you’re doing it, try to imagine that boy wonder tech down at the dealer shop doing it for you. Imagine how careful he will be to set the clearances juuuust right. And how you won’t know whether he did anything at all. And maybe just as well he didn’t. 

[whisperquiet]

26 minutes ago, KrustyKush said:

The worst bike I ever did valves on was my  97 Yam Royal Star. V4 with shim OVER bucket design. The cams stayed in and you used a “special tool” to depress the bucket while rotating the crank, then grab the shim with a tweezer. Very difficult. The special tool was all but impossible to deal with. Later, I also had a Yam Star Venture with essentially that same motor. I put over 150k miles on both bikes combined, and did a valve check/adjust every 26k. It was a lot easier to do the job every 16k on my 97 Hon CBR 1100XX which was more normal shim UNDER bucket. So much easier to just pull the cams out and work unfettered.

it is a big job no matter what, but while you’re doing it, try to imagine that boy wonder tech down at the dealer shop doing it for you. Imagine how careful he will be to set the clearances juuuust right. And how you won’t know whether he did anything at all. And maybe just as well he didn’t. 

“Factory trained mechanics” is all you need to know👎

[PhotoAl]

I'm at 18,000+ miles and decided to do a valve check before setting out on a long trip in a week.  Got the bike apart, not too hard just tedious and checked the clearances.  Did it by the manual.  Valves clearances below are shat I'm finding - intakes are in spec and exhausts are WAY out.  I'm going to go back thru and re-check before I pull the cams out to change shims.

Intake:                        Exhaust

1a   0.15                      0.16

1b  0.16 to 0.17           0.20

2a  0.16                      0.15

2b  0.16                     0.18-0.19

3a  0.14                     0.16

3b  0.15                     0.17

Spec

0.11-0.20                   0.26-0.30

All I can say is WOW!!!!  Expected exhaust to be a bit tight but that seems crazy tight.  Will go back thru and double check.  I've done this on my Yamaha FZ6 and my CBR600RR (CBR was worse than the Tracer for access.

 

[Ride365]

Good to know, I will have mine done earlier as well.  

[peteinpa]

I've owned a V65 Sabre, Blackbird, and ST1300.

Sabre was screw and lock nut. Easy peasy.  Blackbird (85k miles) and ST (65k miles) never needed adjustment whole time I owned them. I checked myself every 16k miles.

This Yamaha doesn't follow Honda that way. Not sure why. Running too hot (lean), inferior metals, IDK.

I'd look at the valves no later then 16k miles.  If good no problem.  If you wait till the recommended 26.5 k miles it will be too late. You can already have burned exhaust valves.

Another thing...an engine with no clearance will be perfectly quiet.

You can't listen for a valve check.

[ItsTracerTime]

Depending on your location and what you end up doing, it could be $700+

 

Near me, valve check/adjust AND coolant flush+change was like $800 including labor. I did it myself in about 7-8 hours total and learned how to get access to the top end easily

[johnmark101]

I have a friend who is a retired motorcycle mechanic and does work out of his rather large garage.  He did the job for 350 dollars. All the exhaust valves were tight. I think one of the intake valves was out.  I no longer have the sheet where he recorded the before and after measurements. 

Inspection was performed at 20,000 miles.

[Paddy01]

My major service was performed by a non-Yamaha tech to save money. I didn’t even attempt to do it because I’m a words man and not good with my hands (ask my wife… 😉). All clearances were fine with no changes required. Interestingly, I paid in GBP what you pay in USD. My experience is that we pay through the nose in the UK and our brethren across the pond gain the benefits of a massively competitive market. 

Perhaps it’s my imagination, but the engine seems smoother since the service. It was a peach before but now it’s fantastic.