Sure, I know what the manual says. We all also know where that thing IS...under the gas tank, which is under acres of plastic. Which requires a LOT of work, and a lot of hands-on knowledge, to get off without breaking anything.
Idiot design for an on/off road machine.
Okay...the question is, how often. I've put it off so far; at the end of the season I'll be due for a valve adjustment. I figure about 16,000 miles at the end of the season. So, I'll let Mr. Dealer do the hard stuff - actually his mechanical staff is pretty good; I know when I get things back they're done right.
It's not like I don't want to get my hands dirty; I do oil changes all the time. But when it comes to peeling off layers of expensive plastic trim in steps...I'm not up for the program.
Now...before the season ends I'm looking at an appx. 3000 mile business/pleasure trip. Everything else is a go - tires are good; machine is running sweet. I'd rather not have the work done beforehand; partly because there's a waiting list at his service bay.
Use: Almost totally street. About 60 miles of dirt/gravel roads; NOT following anyone's dust cloud. At slower speeds - under 25, and about half of it slower than 15. After these rides, the underside of the bike and rear fender are dust-covered - but not the tank, cowling around where I guess the air box is.
So, am I chancing anything making this trip without cleaning/replacing the filter? AND...has anyone heard of a relocation kit or snorkel?
Air filter will depend on you past riding history, lot's of dirt and dust ?? Just city ?? etc. Think filter should be good for about 2 years of normal use, maybe longer. I know others will chime in on here.
As for valves, my '08 was still in specs this spring , and I'm now at 75000 miles. Most mechanics will listen to the engine and decide if valves need
adjusting.
These things have air filters?
Are you sure?
Being an urban and highway rider, mine seems to remain okay for a long time. Many thousands of miles.
And no, no snorkels.
You need a U-Boat for that.
Happy riding.
Jeeps have snorkel kits available, aftermarket - not for running underwater, which of course they can't do, given the electronics...but to get the air intake out of the dust cloud with a convoy rolling up a dirt trail.
I have seen a few innovative types use a sock, or cloth, on other bikes...forget which model now...as a pre-filter filter; so that on a trip with some trail riding the air filter is kept reasonably clean. Put the oiled cloth over the intake when starting off-road; then pull it off when back on pavement.
Would have been nice if someone had worked up something similar for the V-Strom.
I'm like you. Accessing an air filter under acres of plastic, and a big ass fuel tank is a pain. But, that is the bike we like.
So, no derision intended.
This may sound unpopular but before I would take a 3,000 mile trip I would just about strip the bike to check filters, hoses, bolts, brakes, tires and yes, the air filter. But that is just me . . .
I kinda think of air filters as usable until it don't work no mo.
I taken them out at the prescribed interval and found them to need just a good shake or a smack on the ground and a blast with the air hose to be like new again.
same with the cabin air filter in my Camry. or my lawnmower.
Old thread but some of us put a bit of window screen at the intake to keep the bugs and other little bits out of the filter.
Maybe change the filter when the bike bogs at speed or your mileage goes to crap.
Shop manual? If I had that money lying around. But since there's YouTube videos describing it...and since it's somewhat covered in the owner's manual...I don't know how much more helpful a shop manual will be.
It's the three layers of plastic and trim and getting the instrument panel out of there without breaking anything; the different-length screws and blind speed-nuts; the wiring under the tank...on and ON...
I didn't want to rebuild the thing. I just wanted THE AIR FILTER OUT.
Having done some dismantling with a Burgman...I know I'm not the most patient; and manuals aren't always written to cover every necessary trick. And the labor cost, several hours, will be nothing compared to towing a basket case out of my carport and then waiting on trim.
I swapped my 2012 650 air filter at 20,000 miles earlier this year. Some bugs and leaves and was due for sure however bike was breathing fine still. I dont think the PO did any dirt riding and im only paved roads.
There was NO need to pull the instrument cluster.
One of our members posted a guide it was easy enough.
Have fun.
I change mine every 15K miles when I have everything already taken off for a valve check, I don't try to clean it just change it.Time is money. My use is about the same as yours a little dirt/gravel but 95% street, and the air filter always looks pretty good at 15K.
Mine is an 04 and I took it apart when i first got it and did the usual good things. I also wonder how much monkey motion was involved at getting to the air box. Not bad, just make sure you ridden it far enough to not have a 40 pound tank of gad to lift off.
Last time I changed the air filter was 3 years and around 16000 miles ago, getting the fuel line off bugged me the most, I haven't ridden in dusty conditions, all street riding, think I'll leave it another while, bike is running good.
A friendly reminder, to check on the condition of the Positive Crankcase Ventilation / Crankcase Breather material in the airbox. See part #6 (1378811J00 - FILTER,BREATHER) in Suzuki DL650A V-STROM 2013 AIR CLEANER - MSP.
As many know, the little patch of foam isn't really a filter (more like a pre filter). It's there so that oil vapour will condense and run back to the engine case rather than fog up into the air box. The idea is to catch and condense oil vapour, returning it to the sump rather than letting it be drawn into the intake and burnt. No filter allows for oil vapor to burn away, without chance of oil being recycled.
The bad news is, that this breather filter material crumbles after a period. Have a look at What's that piece of foam in the airbox?
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StromTrooper
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