Inner Cowling / heat / wind pressure question...

Hi all,

While searching the forums, I notice some people recommend removing the inner cowling to improve airflow and reduce heat.

1) Does this really work?

2) Are you just removing the lower inner cowling? upper inner cowling? both? what about the outter left and right lower cowlings?

3) What does it make the bike look like? (yeah, bit of a vanity question =) )

4) does the removed cowlings, which I assume increase airflow and pressure around the engine, cause any kind of problems or excess pressure on the fairings?


Thanks!!

-Tony

ps - I'm still planning on the wrap mod at some point, but until i have time to do that, was wondering what I might be able to do as a "quick" fix...

1. IMHO, yes.

2. Just the 2 upper inner cowlings.

3. Cant tell a difference, unless you put your head on top of the fender and look in.

4. None that I can tell. But I do think you loose some structual support by removing them. So I "ventilated' mine, and will be buying a stock set for when the temps drop.

Did you notice a significant drop in temps in the left and right fairing pockets when you did this?

I did (notice the difference) and the fuel tank also got cooler to the touch. And the fairing pockets also weren't as hot.
Sonny

FLS - did you just remove the parts or did you "vent" them and reinstall?

gregj: How much were replacement parts?

To both - did you have to remove the lower to then remove the upper ones and then re-install the lower one?

-Tony

gregj said:

4. None that I can tell. But I do think you loose some structual support by removing them. So I "ventilated' mine, and will be buying a stock set for when the temps drop.

Click to expand...

Oh and one more thing - if at all possible, could you take a picture of your "venting" and post it? I'm curious exactly what you did and where on the part you did it.

Thanks!!

-Tony

Just remove the 2 inner cowls, don't have to first remove any other part. Takes 5 minutes. Hardest part is doing something with the ambient air sensor.

I zip tied it to one of the now vacant mounting holes.

Makes quite a difference in both felt temp on legs and temp in storage compartments.

Rest of fairing stays put up to 145 mph indicated.

Yes the pockets did cool down quite a bit after pulling the inner cowls.

You dont need to touch the lower cowl to remove the upper inner cowls.

I dont have any pics of them, but I know there are some already posted. I'll try and find them for you.

I dont know the cost of the new cowls, I havent bought them yet, but they shouldnt be too much.

If you look at this post , you'll see a good example of ventilating the inner cowls with a lot of holes.

I tried, but didnt like how the holes wound up not aligned very well, so where you see holes drilled, I cut out that entire section. This left cross pieces for support.

I know many are running without the cowls, and never had problems, I did last year. But I've read of a few accounts where the upper fairing was damaged due to no inner cowl support, so I decided not to take that chance, which is why I ventilated mine, and will have another set for cooler temps. I wont run without them again. But, YMMV.

I also completely removed mine, not drilled holes in them, and I also zip tied the fairings to the mounting holes to make it more stable. No problem with the temp sensor either, it was also zip tied to the mounting holes.

I think it made a big difference in keeping me and the fairing pockets cooler. Before I removed them, the heat was almost unbearable in hot weather.

I vented the inner panels so that the fairing still would have the support. I took 1" masking tape and outlined the areas that supported the fairing and used a dremmel tool to cut out the inside area made by the tape. Sorry I don't have a picture, but it is really easy to do. And no you don't have to remove the lower panels.
Sonny

I too removed the two upper inner cowls, much cooler on rider and the pockets stay much cooler.
Just remove them and ride the bike on a hot day. I put mine back in for cool Fall weather.

I took one side completely OFF and could not tell a difference.

Removed the inner Cowling. right side first then left side and the screws and buttons where they came off from.

As for HEAT. LOL I feel more heat with the standard commute... but nothing bad.. just a little bit of heat. Haven't taken a long long ride where the "Are my heels cooking!?!?!?!" type heat. I'll update on that.

Onicabbit said:

"Are my heels cooking!?!?!?!" type heat. .

Click to expand...

+1 on that! see my thread on known issues.

Tancor said:

Hi all,

excess pressure on the fairings?

Click to expand...

Personally, I would never leave ANY panel off or attach hole open. The fairing strength come with EVERY piece in place; take one piece off and it weakens the whole. The wind catching something at 100+ MPH could be catastrophic, or at the least cause cracks to develop and attach points to wallow out from the added burden.

But, many do this and hey..... if it feels good, do it!