Doing a Pandemic ride around the southwest

[nhchris]

Oh man, that sucks!!!  I am so sorry for you.  Glad you are OK.

I would be calling the manufacturer of that skid plate to ask why it failed to do the one and only important thing it was designed to do!  Then I'd ask for a full refund and some help with damages to the oil pan.  A Cosmetic skid plate?

WRT insurance and roadside:  They all talk a good game until you make a claim, then the fine print.  Keep on em!!

This incident further convinces me that my FJ is not an off-paved-road machine.  I am wary of curbs and speed bumps for god's sake.

Best of luck and I'll miss vicariously riding along with you till your next trip.

[betoney]

@Clegg78 - Damn, that is terrible news.  The bike can be repaired but glad to hear that you are fine.  When you return I would be having serious conversations with the roadside assistance provider and insurance company. 👎

[Clegg78]

Yeah...  I;ve never needed roadside assistance and now that I did... it turns out its only good if you essentially break down at a tow yard.   Otherwise, tow yards dont want to work with insurance companies.   I actually heard that Progressive secured a tow operator to help me earlier in the deal, but the operator wanted $900 to do the recovery.   So Progressive told them no and left me high and dry.  

I called a few places and got picked up for $550. 

I believe I have a Budget 12' truck reserved (its been a complete shit show securing a truck), I have the cash for the tow place in hand,  and I need to run to Harbor Freight to get some loading ramps and some straps on my way to the tow yard.   then I should be good to go.  Staying another night in Rio Rancho and leaving for Denver early in the morning Saturday.

[betoney]

1 hour ago, Clegg78 said:

Yeah...  I;ve never needed roadside assistance and now that I did... it turns out its only good if you essentially break down at a tow yard.   Otherwise, tow yards dont want to work with insurance companies.   I actually heard that Progressive secured a tow operator to help me earlier in the deal, but the operator wanted $900 to do the recovery.   So Progressive told them no and left me high and dry.

You have to love paying for a service and then have them refuse to provide when you are stranded. 🤬

Hopefully the rest of the 'adventure' is incident free.

[angrygirafe]

Man, that was a fun sounding trip that turned south in a hurry. Sorry, that sucks. 

[1moreroad]

1 hour ago, betoney said:

You have to love paying for a service and then have them refuse to provide when you are stranded. 🤬

 

Unfortunately I ran into that with the AMA. Their towing service only towed cars. 

Just read an article saying all the Uhauls are all on the West Coast with everyone fleeing the fires. Prices are through the roof. 

I've only ever been able to rely on friends and family when I or a friend on a ride had a problem in spite of towing services. 

[2and3cylinders]

All I can say is wow! If that's the sw-motech skid plate I have the same one and now I'm thinking would some high-density rubber between the top of the skid plate in the sump have helped? I'm also confused, i see a paved Road in one photo and a really broken up Road in the other, which were you on?

It sounds like you really got screwed by the tow company and it doesn't sound like your insurance is going to be any good which is a double whammy.

I will I've been there and done that. Good luck getting home

 

[betoney]

9 hours ago, nhchris said:

I would be calling the manufacturer of that skid plate to ask why it failed to do the one and only important thing it was designed to do!  Then I'd ask for a full refund and some help with damages to the oil pan.  A Cosmetic skid plate?

Actually looking at the skid plate, it looks like it took a fair bit of impact from the rock.  Unlike on a dirt bike, this bike doesn't have the frame extend below the engine to rest the skid plate on and absorb an impact, it essentially 'hangs' below the engine on brackets.  A decent blow and either the brackets will collapse and deform or the bracket screws will tear out of the bottom of the case.  I have a cage-like sump guard and I fear the same fate if I have a decent impact, the cage itself seems nearly indestructible but it is only as strong as its mounting screws.

[Clegg78]

Hey guys, 

 

So yeah the road was 99.999999% smooth and paved and brand new as of 2013 (reason it isnt on all the maps, which complicated things).  there were 2 20ft sections where the dug up the road and left some dirt patches there.     No warnings on the road about the damage/work, no anything... I saw the dirt and slowed down, but had no indication of how rough it would be.  It wasn't smooth but wasn't too bad either.   That phucking rock got me. 

So about the plate -   it did fail,  because I think we all believe they will not crease like that, but if you look at the supports for it, it was always going to crush in one way or another in a hard hit... these are for very very minor protection.   I will put one on again, but... just in this instance, it didn't help.  Being made out of a strong aluminum or steel would improve its performance a long way though.  But knowing how expensive 7075 alloy can be... I doubt anyone is making them out of that.   A nice thin but strong steel plate would be very nice.     

Attached is a better pic of the damage.   you can see the rock seems to roll under the bike and damage on the way.    But then you need to look at the energy transfer path... it would all go into the actual block... that's not optimal.   I used to work on stage rally cars, and for their crash plates/skid plates, we'd put a layer of high density aluminum honeycomb between the aluminum plate and the engine or rear diff... to help bleed more energy before anything contacts the engine. 

The bike is packed up in the Uhaul, and I haul it home tomorrow.  Its still bleeding oil like a stuck pig. 

[Clegg78]

and yes, I bought, and put those ramps together today... harbor freight + ace hardware to the rescue

 

[Clegg78]

Edit:  I found the right part numbers.  Just ordered a new "oil pan" "Strainer cover", and gasket.   $150 all up shipped isnt a bad repair.  Ordering another load of oil, and a filter.

 

So... now the question... the rear tire.   Since the rear tire was SOAKED in motor oil... is there any saving it?  hit it with some simple green or non petrol degreaser?    I'll do some reading. 

 

Edited September 19, 2020 by Clegg78

[2and3cylinders]

CRC Plastic Safe Electronic Cleaner or acetone for the tire.

I mentioned high density rubber (perforated) versus aluminum honeycomb but would either block cooling air across the sump and raise engine temps significantly? Or possibly bond 1/8" thick sheet of fiberglass to the underside of the skid plate to disperse and dampen impact concentrated forces?

 

[BBB]

7 hours ago, Clegg78 said:

So... now the question... the rear tire.   Since the rear tire was SOAKED in motor oil... is there any saving it?  hit it with some simple green or non petrol degreaser?    I'll do some reading. 

 

Try and remove as much surface oil as possible with paper towel or rags. Paraffin/kerosene is probably your best solvent, if you can pour it into a cheap pump spray (as used for spraying plants) then spray the tyre and wipe off. 

There’s a thread on here from a while ago where someone else did pretty much the same as you and their tyre was fully coated. I’ll try and find it.

 

EDIT: thread on replacing oil pan

And his blog about it

An Open Letter to Yamaha – 4theriders

And reading it implies he replaced both tyres after the accident.

[nhchris]

22 hours ago, Clegg78 said:

I called a few places and got picked up for $550.

Hummm. My wife insists we have  AAA roadside coverage on our car, and she claims it also applies go any other vech in the family or in which we happen to be riding.

I wonder if my bike is covered.  I'm gonna check after reading about your insurance clusterphuck.

[betoney]

6 minutes ago, nhchris said:

Hummm. My wife insists we have  AAA roadside coverage on our car, and she claims it also applies go any other vech in the family or in which we happen to be riding.

I wonder if my bike is covered.  I'm gonna check after reading about your insurance clusterphuck.

Agreed.  I have it through my insurance coverage but now I really need to dig deeper and see what it truly covers or more importantly, DOESN'T cover. 🤷‍♀️