Modern Vespa

This is not a question of should it be done.

Rather I'm curious as to what are the typical side effects of not doing so.



PS I am about to do mine today. Was jsut pondering the effects etc over my morning coffee

Google is handy. Motor go ouchy booboo.

nope

nope

handy tips for a newbie, thanks

typical side effects include, but are not limited to: lightening of the pocketbook, inconvenience of breaking down suddenly and violently at generally the least opportune time, the hassle of repair (time, mostly) the imposition of not having your bike, and withdrawal due to the inability to go out for a ride.

please consult your primary mechanical care provider for more information. preventative maintenance may not be right for you and and your machine.

nope

nope

not sure why you say this as I am doing so. It's my mechanic that's poor on this

Usual symptoms are poor running or stalling when cold, even if starting was easy - and sometimes that isn't either.

It's pretty easy to check, especially if other things are being done on the engine (tyres, belt etc).

nope

could be. Greasy is certainly an interesting character in how he writes

I wasn't singling you out. read it again without thinking that and in a more humorous tone.

if I have to explain the joke, it's not as funny.

And err on the side of the adjuster being a tiny bit loose between it and the valve rather than a tiny bit tight.

I actually do have to go adjust some valves, but I'll pop back in later with a more detailed note.

nope

nope

The silly line I grew up hearing was, "Better to hear than smell them".

If valve clearance is too tight, the valves may not close completely. They must close to transfer heat to the head. If they are too tight, you could burn a valve.

basically, y'all got it up thread.

better *slightly* loose than *slightly* tight when adjusting.

too loose, and the components can "get a running start" at each other and beat themselves to bits. too tight, and you can have wear issues on the cam, rockers and valve tips.

if they're out of spec either way you'll have poor performance and the propensity to damage something greatly increases.

just running the proper spec oil and staying on top of valve adjustments goes a long way toward longevity of these motors.

While lowering the engine i found that the coolant hose had been rubbing on the corner of the ht coil.

Fuck.

Use go and no-go gauges to hit the sweet spot. Same as an M2 Heavy Barrel.

I think you caught that just in time.

Glad you caught that by coincidence instead of via "where's that leak coming from?"

nope

I bought a very low mileage scooter not long ago and am going to check the valves at the first service this weekend. I don't expect them to be out of adjustment, but I want to experience what they are like when they are properly adjusted, to get a feel for the "feel" that everyone talks about. I figure if I check them when I know they're right, I'll know it when they are different. And hey, maybe one of them is wrong.

Plus, I'm just all fired up about this stuff because it's new. There, I said it, it's out.

What year is your Vespa?

Let's all us VA virgins have a zoom wrenching session with greasy taking the tutorial?

Depending on the VW, it wasn't bad advice. I remember that practice was to leave an extra thousandth or two on the valves for the #3 cylinder on the aircooled T1 motors, at least the ones made before VW introduced the offset oil cooler. Since fan-driven air had to push through the cooling tower to get to #3, it tended to run a bit hotter and the extra lash compensated for it.

Now, if we're talking a first-gen GTI, you wanted that lash tight if you wanted to rev the piss out of it and not sling the valve shims.

I get where Gbaby is coming from. I'm a tactile/hands-on learner. To paraphrase an Eddie Izzard sketch about fruit...
"How much squeezy? Is this good squeezy or bad squeezy?"

I need to be able to FEEL how much or little drag on a feeler gauge is "good squeezy." Same reason I almost religiously use a torque wrench... I know I have a rock climber's grip...all the times I've had to find vice grips for soft drink caps attest. I need calibration and something to tare the mental scale.

+1
Absolutely.
Ask an old VW guy to explain.
O.S.

yup. It's another fuck up by my mechanic. there's supposed to be a bracket from a bolt on the transmission cover that holds that hose but the bracket is missing.

This! Remember, kids! Tappy valves are happy valves!

Checking the clearance periodically is important, because on most engines, the clearances tend to get tighter over time and mileage. Clearance generally changes due to the valve receding into the valve seat rather than wear to the cam, valve tip, cam follower, etc.

update on this: looks like the factory didn't install the bracket.
continued in Coolant hose rubbing on HPE