Unhappy with my ST1100

Ron · Jul 7, 2015

My thoughts are the lack of use caused the pump to go. Some times life gets in the way of riding. I would bite the bullet and put a new one in and do the job myself or with some help from a mechanically inclined friend.

I have found I had fewer problems with my high mileage ST. I used to put 17-20K miles a year on my ST without problems. My High mileage ST (over 200K miles) had very few problems. Original alternator (40 amper), water pump, carbs never off, 5-6 year battery life and yes the original belt. Other than typical wear items (head lights, tires, oil, brake pads), I replaced a couple clutch master cylinder kits, wheel bearings, and rear shock. I also did the red wire by pass.

RobbieAG · Jul 7, 2015

The water pump is $235.49 from hbhonda.com. It should be free shipping too since it's over $100. Take your time and do it yourself and you'll save a bundle. If you run into trouble, there's plenty of help on here.

Omaha_LA · Jul 25, 2015

Against my better judgment, I took it in to the dealer after getting estimates from two other repair shops. I did this because I wanted to be able to put it back on the road quicker and I also was lacking confidence about the whole job.

I did not have them replace the front cover. It will get done with some JB weld after the riding season is over. Overall, everything is good to go but my love for this bike took a serious hit over this issue. Probably next year it will be for sale but from what I am able to ascertain, there's not much interest in these older models. Figures, everything I buy is something that loses it's desire ability.

Ride safe everyone.

Larry

broc11 · Jul 26, 2015

Took my ST out for a short local run yesterday and couldn't wait to get back to get the Vfr out, I've come to the conclusion that unless I'm heading on a long run, 2-300 miles is along run over here

then the ST is just to heavy and bus like compared to the Vfr, I'm seriously thinking of selling the ST and buying the a new Africa Twin maybe,trouble is I'll lose half the money I've invested in her and I'll probably regret selling a month later,thats if I can find a buyer.

Bush · Jul 26, 2015

Omaha_LA said:
there's not much interest in these older models.

Not true, in my estimation. The ones that are properly maintained sell quickly because they are well known for their long term reliability and rock solid performance.

dwalby · Jul 27, 2015

Omaha_LA said:
Overall, everything is good to go but my love for this bike took a serious hit over this issue. Probably next year it will be for sale but from what I am able to ascertain, there's not much interest in these older models.

I'd have to say a used ST1100 isn't really a good choice for someone who's not mechanically inclined. Its got a few potential failure areas that aren't really a big deal if you fix it yourself and only pay for the parts, but if you pay someone else to do the work it can get expensive pretty quickly and exceed the market value of the bike. When you buy used you can't tell exactly how the bike has been maintained over the last 20 years, so you have to assume the worst. I suspect that is going to limit the demand and value of a 20+ year old used bike.

SupraSabre · Jul 27, 2015

Back in October 2005, my brother called to tell me about his (new then) 2005 ST1300. He bought it to replace his 1984 V65Sabre that he loved to ride, but got tired of working on! I joined him a month later with my own 05 ST1300. (Sold my V45 Sabre & V65 Sabre)

9.5 years later, my brother has maybe 45,000 miles on his '05. I sold mine back in June 2013 to one of my sons with 174.3K on it, because I found a couple other St1300s with less miles, meaning less maintenance...I thought!

4:

I now have 3 ST1300's and use one for commuting and one for long distance. The third is sitting on my lift waiting for a waterpump. (I'll get to it this Fall!)

If you want to ride, you need to find a low mileage bike that's maybe a few years old. Once these bikes get about 50 to 60K on them, they do need a little more maintenance. But one thing too, I find the more I ride a bike, the less problems I see as the miles add up. It's when they sit they develop issues!

Good luck on whatever you decide.

The Cheese · Jul 27, 2015

Omaha_LA said:
Overall, everything is good to go but my love for this bike took a serious hit over this issue. Probably next year it will be for sale but from what I am able to ascertain, there's not much interest in these older models.

Larry

So a 22 year old part with 114,000 miles failed and you?re blaming it? Every bike needs maintenance, even new ones. If you do try to sell it you probably will not get what you have in it. That holds true for ownership of most bikes. We don't do it for the profit. We do it for the enjoyment of owning and riding. Might as well keep it, after-all, you know its previous maintenance history.

Omaha_LA said:
Removing and re-installing the plastic isn't difficult, just time consuming.

I can have my bike naked in an hour if I try. At a relaxed pace it would be stripped in 1.5 hours. Takes patience and repetition.

Omaha_LA said:
The coolant was changed when I replaced all the rubber under the carbs I guess back in 2012. And between 2012 and now, it hasn't had that much riding on it, only about 8,000 miles.

That's only 2.7K a year average. Letting a bike, or car for that matter, sit isn?t good. Gotta use it to keep it in good shape.

Omaha_LA said:
Wasn't sure where to post this so here I am.

The timing hole cover appears to be plastic and as I tried to remove the two bolts, one of them seems to be stripped and did not come out for me. It also appears that the plastic cover is cracked on the bottom of the bolt.

Larry

It is plastic. Along with the timing belt cover, and reduction holder covers. I wouldn?t worry about a small crack in it. Only holds water and debris out.

Hope they changed the timing belt and radiator hoses as well. Ya know, while they were in there.

I'm not trying to give you a hard time. I understand your frustration. I have done a lot more work to my 95 than most people here. Fact is one has to wrench, or pay, when they own anything mechanical. Shouldn?t blame the bike. You should expect issues. Glad you?re back on the road. In fact, I?m sure your feelings of love for it will return soon enough.

George · Jul 27, 2015

I've recently resolved to Just Shut Up And Fix It! With over 220,000 miles, my ol' STick is in pretty much constant need of repair. She is apart right now awaiting a set of replacement carbs (tho I already have two other sets sitting in the garage.

) Just did the relay bypass and the headlight ground wire mods yesterday. I can take my time 'cause lipSTick is up 'n running. (I'm gonna do both those wiring mods on her today as they are fairly easy, only requires removal of the left side panel and I have all the necessary parts on hand.

Added note: On the standard, the necessary relay and wiring for the bypass fits nicely behind the OEM fuse panel. That won't work on the ABS 'cause there's already a second fuse block back there. Gonna have to find another hiding place.

BTW, my STs never go to the shop. I've saved way more than enuff over the years (since 93) to buy all the tools, etc to DIY. Plus, I've learned a lot along the way, including patience.

Jim Van · Jul 27, 2015

Omaha_LA said:
So I took the ST into the dealership today and they pressurized the system and came back with the conclusion that the water pump was leaking.

Just how hard is it to change this thing? They quoted me a price of just over $1,000 to get it back on the road with $421 for a pump. The rest was for labor (5 hrs.), new o-ring, coolant and whatever else is necessary. And this was with all the Tupperware removed by me before they even got the bike.

Does this sound too high to anyone besides me? Frustrated but what can I do?

Any input will be appreciated.

Larry

$421 for a water pump ?? I would send the Dutchman my old pump for a total rebuild for about $125.

Omaha_LA · Jul 27, 2015

Jim Van said:
$421 for a water pump ?? I would send the Dutchman my old pump for a total rebuild for about $125.

Yeah, that's good to know but the timing is way off. Had I known this before I took it in

Omaha_LA · Jul 27, 2015

Bush said:
Not true, in my estimation. The ones that are properly maintained sell quickly because they are well known for their long term reliability and rock solid performance.

Here we must agree to disagree.

Bush · Jul 27, 2015

Waterpump - $289 from Partzilla - do it yourself -FREE

Bush · Jul 27, 2015

The dealer quote of 5 hours labour sounds very reasonable. I was once quoted, years ago, 8 hours, but that would have included plastic R & R. There is a lot of dismantling to do under the front engine cover before the pump comes out.

dwalby · Jul 27, 2015

Bush said:
The dealer quote of 5 hours labour sounds very reasonable. I was once quoted, years ago, 8 hours, but that would have included plastic R & R. There is a lot of dismantling to do under the front engine cover before the pump comes out.

for me the hardest part was re-installing the radiator, the rest was pretty easy. Those Honda hoses are a pain to re-install into tight spaces due to the amount of force required to slip them on, or maybe I just haven't learned the proper technique.

Omaha_LA · Jul 27, 2015

The Cheese said:
So a 22 year old part with 114,000 miles failed and you?re blaming it? Every bike needs maintenance, even new ones. If you do try to sell it you probably will not get what you have in it. That holds true for ownership of most bikes. We don't do it for the profit. We do it for the enjoyment of owning and riding. Might as well keep it, after-all, you know its previous maintenance history.

I can have my bike naked in an hour if I try. At a relaxed pace it would be stripped in 1.5 hours. Takes patience and repetition.

That's only 2.7K a year average. Letting a bike, or car for that matter, sit isn?t good. Gotta use it to keep it in good shape.

It is plastic. Along with the timing belt cover, and reduction holder covers. I wouldn?t worry about a small crack in it. Only holds water and debris out.

Hope they changed the timing belt and radiator hoses as well. Ya know, while they were in there.

I'm not trying to give you a hard time. I understand your frustration. I have done a lot more work to my 95 than most people here. Fact is one has to wrench, or pay, when they own anything mechanical. Shouldn?t blame the bike. You should expect issues. Glad you?re back on the road. In fact, I?m sure your feelings of love for it will return soon enough.

Geez, thanks for the ball busting. That 2700 mi/year avg. was due to some of life's things that just get in the way of riding. Most years I average around 8000 which isn't too bad considering I live in an area with limited riding season(short) compared to most of you guys in the sun belt.

It's all back together now and just needs a good cleaning to be ready for a trip.

All of my complaining about this bike is due to the fact that I have been around the older model Suzukis for most of my riding and they are such a breeze to work on. I currently have a 79 GS1000 that I would have been riding had it not been in the middle of a little restoration project. If it was road ready, I probably would have dived into the Honda issues but I didn't have anything to ride so I wanted it up and running asap.

My cheap side just hates the fact that when you have to have something done, it is going to cost you an arm and a leg.

DeanR · Jul 28, 2015

dwalby said:
for me the hardest part was re-installing the radiator, the rest was pretty easy. Those Honda hoses are a pain to re-install into tight spaces due to the amount of force required to slip them on, or maybe I just haven't learned the proper technique.

Me too Doug, when I did the belt. And darn if I don't have to go back in there shortly to do the water pump, which seemed fine at the time.

LibertyDeath76 · Jul 28, 2015

DeanR said:
Me too Doug, when I did the belt. And darn if I don't have to go back in there shortly to do the water pump, which seemed fine at the time.

Rule of thumb for me is, if it has seals or bearings and I am doing any work that puts it in easy reach, it gets replaced. Learned that when I was young, my time is my own and I refuse to spend it treading ground I just walked because I did not use foresight to see what else could go wrong while I am in doing work. I HATE DOING WORK TWICE!:cus:

dwalby · Jul 28, 2015

LibertyDeath76 said:
Rule of thumb for me is, if it has seals or bearings and I am doing any work that puts it in easy reach, it gets replaced. Learned that when I was young, my time is my own and I refuse to spend it treading ground I just walked because I did not use foresight to see what else could go wrong while I am in doing work. I HATE DOING WORK TWICE!:cus:

In my case I looked at an array of 17 year old parts in front of me, that I was looking at for the first time since buying the bike new, and asked myself how could I not change all of them while I was in there.

The argument can be made for saving money by not changing everything, because they are expensive parts, but given their age its just a matter of time before they need replacing. Better to save yourself the trouble of going back in there multiple times (unless you really like doing it) or having one of the parts fail while on a trip. IIRC Dean's water pump was kind enough to start leaking a few weeks before he went out to Colorado.

DeanR · Jul 28, 2015

dwalby said:
IIRC Dean's water pump was kind enough to start leaking a few weeks before he went out to Colorado.

That's one reason why I finally put the other bike back together. Now I can deal with (procrastinate) the water pump (and alternator)
at my leisure, as the 99 is runnin' great.

Unhappy with my ST1100

Ron

RobbieAG

Robert

Omaha_LA

broc11

Bush

dwalby

SupraSabre

48 Years of SoCal Lane Splitting/Commuting-Retired

The Cheese

George

Jim Van

Omaha_LA

Omaha_LA

Bush

Bush

dwalby

Omaha_LA

DeanR

LibertyDeath76

dwalby

DeanR