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Honda Trail 125 Forum

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How hot is too hot?

m in sc

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Joined
Feb 2, 2021
Messages
2,435
Location
Rockhill, SC
I on the other hand run 80-85% ethanol, aka e85 in this bike. Dropped my temps by 20-30*f , but then again I use this bike as a daily, so I don't let the same fuel sit longer than a week.
failed to mention the standalone ecm you are running though. :ROFLMAO:
 

Thepen

Member
Joined
Jun 23, 2022
Messages
53
Location
Sarasota, FL
-30% in mpg, so +30% fuel. I obviously have the aracer standalone ecu + the wideband O2 sensor to compensate the fuelling, if not for that I'd be probably running 20+ afr lol, I doubt that the stock ecu can adjust for e85. Not only that but the stock injector cannot do +30% fuel. I'm actually almost maxing out the pcx150 injector on the 143 yuminashi +e85 setup. I've seen the injector duty cycle @ 90%. I love e85 though, burns very cleanly. Also, oil stays the same fresh oil color forever, probably because of burning only that small amount of hydrocarbons that's in the e85 and the fact that when you burn ethanol the byproducts are CO2+ H2O. I'm assuming that's probably one of the reasons it also has good engine cooling effects as compared to regular unleaded. That and the +30% fuel consumption drop the engine temps quite nicely.

failed to mention the standalone ecm you are running though. :ROFLMAO:
indeed! Lol
 

STUBBORN

Active member
Joined
Apr 21, 2021
Messages
219
I'm a retired mechanical engineer, I've built everything from minibikes to racecars, but that doesn't mean I know anything. Seems to me the short thermocouple on that little guage will get fresh oil splash almost continuously when the motor is running, the temperature at that point is a good measure of whats going on in the crankcase. It will always give you the most optimsticly cool estimate for the oil temp in general. And remember, def F is simply deg C divided by 5, then multiply by 9, then add 32. While riding my bikes I keep an eye on the oil temp guage, I have a hotrod, it has a VDO oil temp guage. The temp of the trail's oil is just about the same as the temp of the hotrod motor... around 105 deg f typically, depends on your climate and atmosphere
Added temp gauge black (outside temp is 98 F)
oil temp guage.JPG
 

Cpd419

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Joined
Jul 16, 2022
Messages
538
Location
Kentucky
I use 10% ethanol pump gas in everything that’s not sitting long no problem. During the winter I try to treat it or run straight gas. I’m going to run straight gas in the ct since it’s so fuel efficient. May not make a difference but I’m doing it.
 

m in sc

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Joined
Feb 2, 2021
Messages
2,435
Location
Rockhill, SC
i can let a 55 year old bike with a 20mm mikuni sit 6 mos on pump gas and it fires right up every time. when you introduce air to fuel it does weird things non ethanol fuel: varnish. modern fuels: fuzzies (green residue). so, dont drain the tank or carb and you will be fine when they sit. Have 2 garages full of proof. ;)
 

MisterB

Active member
Joined
Apr 8, 2022
Messages
168
Location
Monroe County, Ill
I’ve seen these discussions for years, people talking about vehicles just ruined from fuel. With so many vehicles on the roads it seems that we would have a Jiffy Carb or In&Out Injectors on every corner.
The point about lousy ground tanks holds water.

Saw something in the transmission whine thread about some parts perhaps being less robust than they used to be (I think), i guess we will find out in time if any other components have been reduced or replaced with cheaper versions. Hopefully none that will be affected by heat, but time will tell. If they are, I’m sure it will be posted here!

My Opmid was red lighting on oil for 5 or 6 hours today. I had bumped it up a bit from stock setting. I’m gonna go up another 50 degrees and hopefully that will shut it off. The Trail ran great in 90+ temps running around a state park with another forum member today. I’m bad about leaving it running when stopping for a few minutes but it never slowed down or gave any indication it was unhappy. (I’m a heavy rider) ((By heavy I mean overweight))
 

dmonkey

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Jul 4, 2021
Messages
2,136
Location
🇺🇸
Higher ethanol content than 10% (E10) is not approved for motorcycles or small engines with the EPA and manufacturers both confirming it can cause damage to them in stock form. E10 won't hurt your modern fuel injected bike that's hoses and o-rings that are made with materials suitable for exposure to ethanol, it just has a shorter shelf life than ethanol-free and provides less fuel economy.

Cool to hear someone's got a bike tuned for E85 though.
 

m in sc

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Joined
Feb 2, 2021
Messages
2,435
Location
Rockhill, SC
it pollutes more, so yeah, of course they don't recommend it. lol.... we do all sorts of things that 'isnt recommended'. you could put in a (much higher) higher flow injector & modify the O2 signal and get away with it, but personally i dont see the point overall. I tend to tune for whatever is readily available and not have to seek out a 'special' fuel. Friend of mine built a turbo aircooled beetle that ran on alcohol (drag car). it was stupid quick but was VERY thirsty. also ran 22 lbs of boost. :oops:

exposed to atmosphere e10 will begin to deteriorate in 3 mos, but not go bad instantly. sealed 'shelf' life is well over 2 yrs. want it to last longer? put 1 oz of tcw-3 2 stroke oil in 2 gallons of fuel. that wont effect anything in even an fi system.
 
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AZ7000'

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 28, 2021
Messages
957
Pure gas is an app I have used, lists non ethanol gas, since I might not start a bike for 6 Mos I just get it out of the pump. That works for me, not saying it needs to be done.
 

McRuss

Member
Joined
May 10, 2021
Messages
32
I was going to join in here with some water vs air stories but I think they've all been covered! I've had more air than water bikes but they are what they are, nuff said. I do love my Vespa 300ie Super, liquid cooled, fuel injected hot rod though!
 

Jamie

Member
Joined
Oct 6, 2022
Messages
24
I have raced an air-cooled Porsche (1966 912) for many years and have never had a problem over heating even at 100F and max revs for minutes at a time. Air-cooled engines are the best IMO.
I was going to ask how long I could run this bike at wide open throttle but now I feel fine just doing so for miles....good thread. 'Ride it like you stole it' :ROFLMAO:
 
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