Can someone post how to adjust the valves 5th gen?

I downloaded the manual but it is missing lot of info.I am a novice person but I am capable to follow instruction carefully.
It would be great if someone did it already and post with pics the steps.

thanks

 

NOT a JOB for a Novice....

No disrespect, but this is a very complex operation that must be done in an exact squence and done exactly right or disasterous engine damage will be done and is NOT a task for any amateur mechanic IMHO!!

How many miles on your bike ??

Have you ever removed overhead cams on an aluminum engine before, ever adjusted valve clearances on anything, have a set of good quality tools including accurate torque wrench and micrometer, have a well lighted secure place to work ?? If not, don't attempt it.


Just one over-tightened or under-tightened bolt or nut could damage the engine, so if valves need checking take it to a Honda dealer for adjustment.

I'm all for people avoiding dealers and working on their own bikes, but you need to be fully aware that the danger of even one screw-up in the process of valve adjustment will cost lots and lots of money to fix.


If you don't have the finances to pay a dealer, just leave it alone until you do, because it will probably be alright.

 

Actually the service manual has all the info you need. It may not all be in the same spot, as some parts of the procedure are covered in other areas, i.e., removing body parts to access the cam covers may be covered in the engine removal procedure.

If you've never been into a motorcycle engine before and have no one to give a bit of advice, then I would agree with Squirrelman and you should have the shop do it. The Honda V-4 is not an easy "learner" engine. And a torque wrench for the engine bolts is very much a necessity if you haven't done many disassembly/assembly jobs. It really isn't rocket science but it does require a bit of prior knowledge. Not a ton, but some. Good luck.

 

Like FJ12Ryder and Squirrel are saying the valve clearance job isn't' for a total newb. I'm fortunate I have a friend who's a motorcycle expert and even he was stumped a few times when helping me. The V4 engine is more complex and it's not very forgiving of mistakes.

If you really insist on doing it yourself at least get a buddy who's good with motorcycles to help.

 

Boy I called my Boston area dealers and all quoted me 8hr of work with 85hr
I know its probably most 3-4 hr of work and I am sure 4extra is for them.Still forking 750 for something that it may not be even necessary is a lot for me or anyone else.
I sometimes get jealous of people who live in Mid west or areas who still do honest work and not out there to rip off riders.
I know here in NE good reasonable shop is almost impossible to find.
I may just ride on and check it at 32k.It has now 20k but the guy whom I bought the bike didn't know if previous owner did the 16k service.
I suspect it has not been done.The bike runs smooth,shifts smooth and no ticking or anything weird sounding and I may just ride on....take a chance. $750 is lot of money...

 

Yeah you'll be ok with the bike not even hitting the 32K mark. One option you might want to consider is doing the disassembly yourself and give it a whirl yourself. If you find that it's just too difficult you could have the bike towed still disassembled to the shop. That would knock at least 3 hours off for the mechanic seeing as how they don't have to spend all that time taking it apart.

 

FWIW my '99 was fine when I checked it at 16,000 miles and only needed one shim adjusted at 30,000 miles ,and the one that was out at 30,000 miles was only out about 0.0005 inch. So if I were looking at that kind of money for a valve check I would probably let it go to 30,000 miles also.

From what I've read and experienced with shim/bucket valve adjustments they don't get noisy because the valve clearance lessens as the valves wear into the head, rather than getting noisy because of increased clearance due to lifter wear. IOW don't listen to anyone who says they're okay because they aren't getting noisy.

Time to do some networking and find yourself someone nearby with the mechanical skills to do it in exchange for willing hands and good attitude. I'd offer, but you're a ways off. :smile:

Good luck. Keep us posted as to how it shakes out.

 

dude you can do it. same as inline 4 have to loosen and check clearances like any other bike only thing is you remove 2 valve covers instead of one............follow the book you'll be fine. really you think eveyone that works in a motorcycle shop knows what they are doing?? not hardly i always find something wrong or loose when i get my bike back reguardless of how many people i have been too...

 

Deepdish says its easy, but he's never done it .......and takes his bike to a shop????????

There are SO many ways to screw the job up, and unlike most bikes there are 4 cams to remove and retime.

 

If you don't mind going a bit from home, you might want to call some dealers an hour or so west of Boston, or perhaps in NH. I got the valves cheked on my 6th Gen (which is pretty much the same amount of work as adjusting a 5th Gen) last year for $360 at Keene Motor Sports.

 

I'm almost done with my 32k valve adjustment (waiting for a new shim) and so far I've adjusted 6 valves and some of them were pretty off. I do ride the bike hard so that probably contributed to the valves getting out of spec. I read online about valve adjustment and the general consensus is that the harder you ride the bike the more valves will get out of spec.

 

I just did mine over the winter, and mine were still in spec, (7 / 10 ?) no shims needed with 46k on the engine. If you aren't comfortable doing the job yourself, imo I wouldn't bother getting it done unless you notice something changing in the engine, more ticking, running rich, hard starting, etc. This is a ROYAL pita job that it is really easy to screw up. I'm with Joey in his opinion about why they need to be adjusted, I have a friend that rides his like I ride my CBR and his 2000 needed 4 shims and the rest adjusted at 16k.

 

Missing pages in 5th gen Service manual- newbie here.

Note: my first post to this site. I just bought a Pearl yellow 2000 4 days ago.

Rubo is correct that the downloadable manual posted in the Service Manual section of this site is missing ~2 pages on Cam removal. It appears the page numbers are 8-8 and 8-9 or something close to that. It may be 4 pages missing- hard to tell as many page numbers weren't scanned in section 8. The missing part is all about removing the cams.

I just bought a 2000 VFR with 15K. It needs no shim adjustment on any Intakes, but 3 exhausts are a bit tight (most are .010 on a .012+-.001 spec) If someone has a Honda Service manual and if they could scan those few pages and email it to me or post on the site, it would help alot. My email is tcarr925 @yahoo.com however no spaces. I can turn that scan into a PDF and send it along to the site moderators to add as addenum in the manual section.

I have another question, did the 2000 VFR come with a PENSKE rear shock standard or is that a mod someone did to my bike before I bought it? Did I get a free BONUS?? The reason I bought this was it really did feel stable and planted yet compliant. Very nice ride.

And yes, this is not the easiest bike I have ever worked on. My inline 4 Suzuki and my Ninja were easier to do. (These inverted bucket lifters are the same as my old KZ650) But the principles are the same. Mostly it is just harder to get dug down to these valves. Lots of things in the way. But the VFR still is much easier than most these new cars are now a days. Yes, many cars are going from good ol hydraulic lifters back to shim and bucket lifters. And I will put up with this valve adjustment hassle to be able to spin 11K. That's FUN.

Another question: Sounds like many people have the rectifier fail. Is it so common that I should consider upgrading it (and its wiring harness )? My bike is 9 years old and looks like the R/R is a factory unit.

As for taking this in for a shop to do a valve adjustment for $360- I would like to use that $360 to buy a new helmet instead. I am looking at those flip up full face models. That looks like a neat idea. Any of you riding with one? Hate em or love em?? Anyone using the HJC IS-Max? Just so it doesn't move around at speed and the vents work. It looks good and is in my price range.
Thanks for your help guys.
TC

 

I can only say that the Penske is not stock so bonus to you! And the flip up helmets are nice but the chin area is not rated for impact! I sent mine back once I read that, I dont need the flip up coming off when I need it most.

 

I've had nothing but flip-up helmets since Shoei first came out with the Duo-Tech, then the Synchro-Tech, and then had two Schuberth's. I didn't like the feel of the Symax, it felt like it sat too far up on my head.

My wife has the Caberg and really likes it but I don't care for it as I like a bit more padding and ventilation.

FWIW the R/R on my '99 with 30,000 miles just went last fall. I put on the new VFR R/R and have the VFRness but haven't put it on yet, the VFRness that is. A good voltmeter is probably a very wise investment.

 

Here's an idea. Ride her to the Mid West and get the job done. You can visit other VFRW'ers and with your savings the trip may just end up being free. :thumbsup:

 

Chances are you won't have to adjust anything at that mileage, but it's really not that hard to check or adjust the valves. The key is patience and being methodical.

I sorta walk through checking them, complete with shortcuts to getting to the valves (vs. following the manual) in this thread:

http://vfrworld.com/forums/mechanics-garage/23608-cleaning-up-new-me-old-beast.html

...skip down to my part 2.

If you need to pull the cams to make an adjustment the things you need to do are this:

1. Double check all your measurements, and write down each clearance on a sheet of paper, clearly marking intake and exhaust for each cylinder. I use a grid that is basically shaped like the top of the engine with a space for each valve measurement to avoid any confusion.

2. The manual tells you where to position the cams via the timing marks, prior to pulling the cams, I don't do it their way as it leaves some tension on the valve springs at some positions. Instead I rotate the motor (using a wrench on the crank, or via the rear wheel with the bike in 6th) until all the cams are either pointed up or at least to the side. ...there is a position where this is possible. The idea is to get tension off the cams to avoid the risk of cracking the bridge during dis/reassembly.

Before you pull the cam bridge, use nail polish to mark where each cam gear aligns with the its driving gear. Just clean it off with a little brake cleaner on a rag, and paint a stripe across both gears where they meet; this way you can easily put them back exactly the way they came out.

3. Lay your parts out in the configuration they came off the bike. Lay out an old towel and put everything in the position it came out, cams, bolts, etc., so everything goes back in the same hole.

4. Before pulling the buckets, use the blue shop towels (heavy paper towels) and stuff them in every possible opening that a shim could get dropped into. You do NOT want to have to fish a shim out of your engine!!!

5. Use a good magnet to pull the buckets (the kind you can buy at any auto parts store). The shim will usually stay with the bucket, but this helps to ensure it. ...you won't scratch the bucket, it's very, very, VERY hard!

6. Only pull one bucket at a time, measure it twice, and write down the shim size in the correct grid on your paper. Now place that shim, and that bucket in the correct place on your towel; you want it to go back into the same hole!

7. once you pulled and measured every valve that was out of spec, do the math to figure out the size shim you need to put the valve back in spec, then do it again.

...or use a calculator. Here's a handy one online: Valve Shim Calculator

8. Once you have the correct shims in the correct buckets, reinstall the buckets one at a time (again, I recommend using the magnet), making sure they all go in the correct place.

9. Place the cams back into position, one at a time, making sure to align the gears using your nail-polish lines to align the teeth exactly as they came out.

10. When securing the cam bridge, follow the manual regarding the order and torque to apply to each bolt. NOTE: You don't torque any bolt to full spec the first pass, you follow their pattern torquing each to a specified amount on the first pass, then to the final torque spec on the second.

This is really, really important. If you don't follow the procedure you can crack the cam bridge, if you do this, you need a new engine, and no, I'm not exaggerating!!! This is why I take all tension off the cams vs. the way the manual calls out. Follow the order, and the torques specified, and do not over-tighten!

11. Once the cam bridge is back in place, recheck each valve, rotating the engine as needed for each (the cam lobes should be pointing away from the valve you are checking).

12. Now that you have verified that your work was done correctly, and all your valves are in spec, you should clean the reusable gasket thoroughly, as well as the mating edge of the cylinder head where the gasket will rest. You want it clean and dry (no oil at all), same with the gasket. Make sure there is nothing blocking the channels in the rubber gasket, and that it is dry and free of any oil prior to installing it.

13. Lastly, position the valve cover with the gasket in place, and tighten it down. The bolts that secure the valve cover will bottom, so just tighten to spec. and you are done.

Now, if you did it the way I did in my post, all the remains is putting the ignition coils back in place (at the rear of the air box), reattaching the oil cooler, and putting the radiators back where the belong, along with their braces.

It's really intimidating the first time you do it, and I still have my buddy help me out when I do it (because he's the expert), but it's really not that hard.

The hree places you can really screw up bad are:

1. Dropping something (a shim is the most likely culprit) into the engine.
2. Cracking the cam bridge by rushing the reassembly or not following procedure.
3. Not aligning the cam gears correctly (hard to do wrong if you use nail polish).

So get out there and do it. If you can't find the missing pages from the manual, let me know. I might have them in .pdf format I can send you.

D

 

Are the shims marked with thickness??

He doesn't even have a micrometer.

 

Yep, I wasted that money buying a micrometer. The thickness is printed in 3 digits indicating the thickness in X.XX format. For example if you have a shim with "175" printed on it that means it's 1.75 mm thick.

Side note: You can save money by going to the honda dealership and swap shims for whatever size you want. :thumbsup: