hot running, summertime running

[rpeve]

Ok Outside air temperature was around 106. El Paso running, been on the bike about 8 hours, anything over 85 caused the bike to get pretty hot. Not quite into the red, but close enough I had to lower my speed. Got so hot also had a weird flashing lights on the abs.
Went away when I turned off the ignition. Dern thing got pretty hot, scared me.

Anyone else pushed the thing much when its hot outside, I mean HOT. Not used to these temperatures from the northern nevada area..

[ihbond]

my wife and I in the summer of 2001 took a trip from washington state out to Yellowstone then up to saskatchewan, CANADA. Anyhow they were having record breaking heart temperature of over 105 degrees. We rode in this with full gear (we are aliens, I am sure of it) and the scoot was redline'd then went back down some. It handled those hot roads better then we did.
Oh yea Marsee coolant vest are great if you remember to bring a tupperwear full of water to cool them down with.

[Daman858]

Redline make a product called "Water Wetter" that they claim lowers coolant temperatures about 30 degrees. I have always had good results from redline products. http://www.redlineoil.com/products_coolant.asp
Might be worth a try in those high heat areas.

[rpeve]

Ya i've seen the product by redline and ice by the other vendor, scared to use it and mess the BMW up.

[grifscoots]

The hottest my bike has ever gotten, strangely enough, is in thin altitude. I say strangely enough, as we live in Tejas, and I've 116 on the BC before.

Running at high R's in a mountain environment, thin air, tweesty situation caused me enough concern that I went back into Denver thinking somethang was wrong. Had them blow out the radiators and put her on the Moditec. All came back normal, except the bill, which was over a 100 bones.

[Dean_BMW]

I have ridden my K1200LT at above 100 degrees many times, and never noticed any problem at all. I think you probably have a mechanical issue of some sort. If the radiators are clean (no bugs or debris) I would take it to a dealer and get it checked out.

It is normal for the temperature gauge to get all the way to the top top of the normal temperature range (but not in the red) when you are moving slow in traffic. The fans will come on just before it gets to the red area of the gauge and they will stay on until the temperature on the gauge is back to mid-range. Once you start moving at highway speeds, the gauge should stay at the middle mark on the normal area of the scale.

[rpeve]

well maybe its because I used the prestone extended life everyone on here suggested. Can't believe that over 95 degrees the temperature starts to cause problems.
Think its something as simple as I need to go back to the blue? Dealer in OKC said just ride it, and it does fine in temps below 95. Once over that I have to keep it under 80. If I'm pushing it it heats up on me. Don't think I have seen this before when I was in this heat.

[Zotter]

Too many bugs in the radiators?

Got those bug shields on the rads?

[bmwusmc]

Just finished riding through the southwest(Gallup,NM to Kingman,AZ to Laughlin,NV to Las Vegas,NV) in temps from 98 to 111 at speeds of 75 to 85 mph with not problems..temp gauge indicated about a 1/8 inch above the center mark at cruise..jumped to 3/4 scale when stopped at stoplights..
But she just purred right on through to home with no ill effects..

[Lonewuff]

Ridden my 05 and my 06 at over 105, ridin two up and fully loaded, at 85 mph, and never saw the temp gage go over the midway point. In fact the only time either of them ever climbed was stopped at a long traffic light in 100+ temps, but even then only got to about the 3/4 mark. Never seen either of them get near the red.

[BillyOmaha]

Ya i've seen the product by redline and ice by the other vendor, scared to use it and mess the BMW up.If it's that hot and you don't think the cooling system is keeping up, you can run straight water for a couple of days which will dramatically increase cooling efficiency. Of course only run it for a short period of time when the temps are scorching.

.

[BMWrdr]

This year it has been hot here in Austin, and the bike is handling the temperature real well. The temperature gauge starts to red line during stop and go traffic, but it hasn't actually reached the red zone yet! Good luck in south Texas!

[dukey33]

Last month, I was in Denver. Coming back to Houston, the temps were 104 in central Texas. I saw 107 when I hit the west side of town.

The temp gage ran higher when I was running lower gears in the mountains (ambient temps were 60s) than when I was coming down Hwy 6 and on BW-8. The exception was when I got caught in stop-n-go traffic on the beltway and the temp gage popped up to around 3/4. That's the highest it got.

Something might be going on with your cooling system. Maybe a flush and fill will help get the heat out.

[LAF]

Not to be smart but you did check the level?

Not sure if a bad radiator cap would induce or contribute to this?

Did you verify fan operation?

Not sure on the coolant choice but I would think not, but who knows? I just go to the BMW car dealer.

If not I would suspect a thermostat or a temp sensor. Neither of which I have had the pleasure to meet, or look up yet.

[deanwoolsey]

If your radiators have bugs in them go get a soft brass or stainless brush from Ace Hardware and carefully de-bug it using horizontal strokes. Blow it out with an air hose, then use a squirt bottle to hose it down and blow it out again. When you are done you should be able to see daylight through the radiators looking back through the fans.

[mowoc]

Curious, I had similar questions about the heat.

I just went from Denver to LV and back. The temps in Vegas were up around 114. I ran in 95 + degree temps for most of the run. I noticed the 05 ran about three to four bars above the top of the ] thingy in the display. If the temps came down (to around 85 degrees) it went down to below the ]. I checked today and the radiators appear clear.

I think the behavior above is normal - the bikes do not cool well in stop and go traffic nor do they cool well going up hill at higher RPM's. I also think that the bikes could vary based on any number of things so that some bikes run marginally cooler than others, but in general they should all stay within spec.

What you describe does not sound normal. While had my bike run hotter than normal in 95+ temps, it has never caused me concern as it was only marginally warmer than when running at lower temps. I had no ill effects indicated by the warning lights nor did I have any other outward indications that something was wrong. I would start with the simple things - check coolant and examine radiators. I would also check the engine oil level - low oil can increase engine temps.

[motorhead]

Yup ... betcha bugs clogging too much area.

Once you clean em out, have a pair of window screens in thin frames made as Radiator covers.
Most bugs bounce off, those that don't scrub off the screen quite easy.

Have run across rural Nevada on Hwy 50 from Utah to Carson city in 112+ temps pulling a trailer without issue ! .... Other than personal fatigue from that STUPID act :rolleyes:

[scubajgp]

I live in Las Vegas. Often the temp gauge bumps the red. BMW service says to worry only if the overtemp warning lite comes on. I clean the radiators often, fans run as expected, still gets hot under slow speed and 100+ temps. :bmw: