Suggestions needed

jlaw1017 · Mar 26, 2017

Greetings one an all.
I just got home with my Brand new old stock 2012 ST1300.
This bike has 23 miles on it. Was at a dealer for its 5 years of shelf life.
On the fuel gauge it is showing 2 bars. Gas doesn't smell bad. Dealer said it was "maintained".
Stored every year in heated storage. The bike seems to fire up an run like a brand new bike should.
I have not yet been able to get out an really ride it. I trailer her home due to Michigan weather..

Any suggestions on things I should do to this bike before I start really enjoying her?
Dealer suggested adding some sea foam. My brother the MMI grad, Honda certified. Said never dump that stuff in my bike.
Brother said change the oil an fill the tank, An ride it.

I have saved a few older bikes from storage over the years. Cleaned carbs. Changed oil, Timing belts, Yada, yada.

Just asking the knowledge here about this, In hopes I can get direction on items to check right away.

BakerBoy · Mar 26, 2017

My opinion ...

1) Put fresh fuel in it--while you've got it halfway filled, stop adding fuel momentarily and add a normal dose of fuel treatment (like Seafoam), then continue filling to the top.
2) No need to change the oil before its 600 mi service.
3) Don't start it unless you can go for a ride.
4) Ride it -- it needs ridden for hours and the engine for more than just a few minutes. It needs to have the fuel flowed more than just a startup, oil heated and cycled through the engine, etc.

Igofar · Mar 26, 2017

First thing I would do is flush the 5 year old brake fluid out of the brake and clutch systems.
I bet when you remove the cap off the master cylinders that you will find a lot of mud in there!
I would remove the old fuel, add fresh fuel and sea foam, then add a couple ounces of MMO as well.
Oh yeah, then check for rodent damage :sm1: if it has been stored in a warehouse for 5 years.

Al Gully · Mar 26, 2017

Honda did thier pre delivery check list, just jump on it and ride. How much warranty did you get. You may have some seals that leak due to no action for 5 years.
Enjoy.

jlaw1017 · Mar 26, 2017

interesting thought, I will pop the covers off an take a look. Thanks for the suggestion. I was told it was moved yearly from the show room to the heated storage, Spring/Winter. Hence it has 23 miles on it.

Igofar · Mar 26, 2017

Al Gully said:
Honda did thier pre delivery check list, just jump on it and ride. How much warranty did you get. You may have some seals that leak due to no action for 5 years.
Enjoy.

Honda pre delivery check list :rofl1:

Now I don't care what you say, that there is downright funny :crackup

Andrew Shadow · Mar 26, 2017

Agree with you there Larry but not because the list is no good. Actually the list is quite good and thorough. The problem is the dealers don't do/follow it.

Blrfl · Mar 26, 2017

jlaw1017 said:
I was told it was moved yearly from the show room to the heated storage...

The thing to do with a bike that old is ask the dealer if they have records of exactly what was done to maintain it. If not, change everything but the blinker fluid and run a few tanks with your favorite fuel system cleaner. Brake fluid has a shelf life of a couple of years, and the lines could be sludgy if left to sit that long.

Also check the date code on the tires. It's the last for digits of the DOT information on the sidewall indicating the week and year of manufacture. If it was xx11 or xx12, the tires are the same ones Honda shipped with the bike and should probably be replaced. The shelf life of tires is about five years, and the last thing you want is a failure.

--Mark

ST Gui · Mar 26, 2017

Said never dump that stuff in my bike.

What 'stuff' specifically?

The problem is the dealers don't do/follow it.

Bingo. There have been a lot of examples of that mentioned here.

If the bike starts and runs I'd ride it with that gas and put fresh petrol in. Probably add some kind of detergent product if I knew of one.

Before going very far I'd definitely have the clutch and brakes flushed and bled ASAP by someone who knows what they're doing and knows STs in particular. I had two STs— one with so much air (from the dealer floor) that it gave me trigger fingers until I realized there was a problem (I thought the brakes felt fine) and one with brakes that felt great (off the showroom floor) but were still much improved by Igofar.

What about the battery? Was it replaced with a new one? Is that a consideration? Do the tires look good? This is probably some small paranoia on my part but that's why I ask.

Igofar · Mar 26, 2017

Andrew Shadow said:
Agree with you there Larry but not because the list is no good. Actually the list is quite good and thorough. The problem is the dealers don't do/follow it.

SMSW · Mar 26, 2017

Blrfl said:
The thing to do with a bike that old is ask the dealer if they have records of exactly what was done to maintain it. If not, change everything but the blinker fluid and run a few tanks with your favorite fuel system cleaner. Brake fluid has a shelf life of a couple of years, and the lines could be sludgy if left to sit that long.

Also check the date code on the tires. It's the last for digits of the DOT information on the sidewall indicating the week and year of manufacture. If it was xx11 or xx12, the tires are the same ones Honda shipped with the bike and should probably be replaced. The shelf life of tires is about five years, and the last thing you want is a failure.

--Mark

Good point about the tires - but I would not expect a tire failure. Rather, the rubber hardens and you lose grip to the road - ride aggressively over, say a painted line, a tar snake, or a wet spot, and you might slide on down the road where a newer tire would simply chirp from a 4" slide.

As Robert said, check the battery. Even if on a Batt Tender, you will not get the same life out of a 5 year old battery that you would from a new one. And I would expect that Honda does not warrant the battery....

IIRC, the Honda Shop Manual says to change the radiator coolant every 2 years so it is beginning to sound like 'treat this bike like you just bought a used bike', i.e. all the fluids, battery, tires, etc.

And, I think you SHOULD replace that old blinker fluid, too.

Paul st1300 · Mar 26, 2017

I bought a new 2012 two years ago. The dealer filled the fuel tank after my 30 mile test ride on fumes . Only issues I had was with the antifreeze. Nasty, stopped up the passage for the wax idle module. The wax hardened at 4500 RPM coming off an exit of I-40 on a cold morning. I had to hit the kill switch. I had only 600 miles on the ST. Tires and regular service since. 14k on front tire, and only 8k on rear tire due to 2 drywall screws. I am at 15k trouble free miles and counting.

Andrew Shadow · Mar 26, 2017

SMSW said:
Even if on a Batt Tender, you will not get the same life out of a 5 year old battery that you would from a new one. And I would expect that Honda does not warrant the battery....

I don't know it for a fact but I believe that the Honda direction to the dealers is that the battery is only supposed to be flooded with acid at the time of sale. If the dealer flooded the battery way back in 2012 I would ask them to put a new one in. Of course it would help your argument if something could be found in writing of course but why not ask.

Blrfl · Mar 27, 2017

SMSW said:
Good point about the tires - but I would not expect a tire failure.

Tread separation can be a problem when tires get old.

And I would expect that Honda does not warrant the battery....

The battery is covered if it's the one that came with the bike and is defective as delivered; replacements get a year.

--Mark

st11ray · Mar 27, 2017

My dealer replaced my battery one week before the original warranty expired!

drbuzzard · Mar 27, 2017

congrats jlaw and I'm just down the road from you if you need someone to break that new ST pm me

Picopower · Mar 27, 2017

I've been riding my 2000 mile 03 that I had for two weeks. Put 300 miles on it. Not a hiccup, love the bike.
it had been stored in a heated garage for 13 years and riden sparingly, obviously. I was the third owner, so
The PO wasn't sure about oil change so I changed the oil. I can tell it's been changed at least once. Shell T-6. And hi flo filter. The brake and clutch fluid is clear and clean, reservoirs also. Will change rear diff fluid soon. My tank is clean to look inside. I would take your bike for a half hour ride and change the oil and filter, change brake and clutch fluid if looks dirty. Fill tank with fresh gas of course. And enjoy!

SMSW · Mar 27, 2017

Blrfl said:
Tread separation can be a problem when tires get old.

The battery is covered if it's the one that came with the bike and is defective as delivered; replacements get a year.

--Mark

Is 5 years considered old from a tread separation pov? I thought hardening of the rubber compounds and subsequent loss of traction was the primary reason tires should be changed.

Would Honda warrant a 5 year old battery and agree it was defective if it died two years after the purchase (in this 5 year old 2012 bike)?

st1300r · Mar 27, 2017

Down to 2 bars I'd fill half way put in a normal charge of seafoam and fill to the metal bar up by the tank lid. If you start it let it warm up to three bars on the temp gauge and ride it a bit to heat soak the internals.
Sitting that long brake clutch dot4 flush would be in order. There's threads here on how to properly flush the fluid.
Wouldn't bother with the oil you'll hit 600 mile change pretty quick. I'd to the final drive hypoid lube at that point as well. You might have a battle to get the oem oil filter off they put em on really tight. Oil change on the side stand tend to make less of a mess. thread here on that as well. Changing the coolant would be a good idea, with the spotty history stuck thermostats. The thinking is radiator paint over spray and other gunk might contribute to that. Lots use honda type II for cars. In any case silicate free antifreeze like the regular prestone yellow stuff. All of that is easy DIY stuff with a lot of it covered in the article section here on st-o. And welcome to the site and enjoy the new ride.

Blrfl · Mar 27, 2017

SMSW said:
Is 5 years considered old from a tread separation pov?

The figures I've always heard is that car tires shouldn't be any more than six years old and motorcycle tires shouldn't be older than five. Cars tend to have a lot of surplus traction, which may be why tread separation comes up more often.

I thought hardening of the rubber compounds and subsequent loss of traction was the primary reason tires should be changed.

It's one reason and may well be how most people get into trouble if they run on old tires. Just because it's the most-frequent thing doesn't reduce the chance of tread separation. In fact, the laws of probability say that if there are two things that can go wrong (loss of traction, tread-separation) independently and cause an outcome you don't want (wreck), the probability of that outcome is the sum of the probabilities of both. To put that another way, if the probability of wreck-inducing traction loss is 0.35 and the probability of wreck-inducing tread separation is 0.15, the probability of a wreck is 0.5. (Numbers are made up.) I figure that a few hundred dollars for new tires vs. the risk of an injury is money well spent.

--Mark

Suggestions needed

jlaw1017

BakerBoy

It's all small stuff.

Igofar

Al Gully

jlaw1017

Igofar

Andrew Shadow

Blrfl

Natural Rider Enhancement

ST Gui

240Robert

Igofar

SMSW

Paul st1300

Andrew Shadow

Blrfl

Natural Rider Enhancement

st11ray

2006 ST1300

drbuzzard

Picopower

SMSW

st1300r

Blrfl

Natural Rider Enhancement