When I am on the freeway or going 60+ the bike is in the 175-185 range.
Today I was riding on foothill blvd going 35-40 with occasional stoplights, and the bike got up to 220, so I pulled over at a gas station for 15min until it went down to about 200, and then I drove the last mile home.

Is this normal for these bikes, or do I have something wrong? The guy I bought it from said if it gets in the 220-230 range to let it cool down. Also that it should only happen if you are taking a lot of side streets for an extended period of time.

Thanks

 

When in doubt, your course of action is always best.

While that's at the top of the high-end, it shouldn't hurt the bike.
As long as you're not blowing coolant, from the pressure-cap, you should be ok.

You might check that the fan's temp-switch (mounted on the radiator)
and/or the fan are both working properly, though. Usually you will only see those kind of temps,
idling in traffic on a really hot (+95f) day.

Coolant does break-down over time. That and/or low coolant levels can also affect the
idle temps. If it's been a while, it wouldn't hurt to do a complete flush and re-fill.
Don't forget to check/top-off the over-flow reserve tank, as well.

Another potential trouble spot is the coolant thermostat. It keeps the coolant in the engine,
till it reaches the proper temperature. Then it opens, to allow it to flow through the radiator.
If it is frozen partially open, it can cause a bottle-neck to proper flow,
reducing the systems ability to properly disipate heat.

I alway recommend getting a maual with any bike you aquire. Besides the major/minor
how-to tasks, they usually have trouble-shooting, flow-charts to assist in isolating issues.

Hope this helps, Ern

 

Your bike is running normal. 220-229 is about right for going slow, in traffic.

 

very normal

 

my bike is the same but the fan always comes on at 220

 

My fan comes on around 210 the bike will hit 220 225 when in a traffic jam or heavy stop and go traffic. But when im moving it usually stays around 175-190

 

a 1993 Nissan Pulsar thermoswitch has a slightly lower threshold for kicking the fans and is a pretty easy fit. they are available through Advance Auto Parts & Autozone (though for the life of me I can't remember the part number). the only downfall to doing this, is if you lower the threshold too much the fan will kick on under normal riding conditions.

I am also not sure if the fan running more can lead to failure...so, don't hold me reliable as I found this information provided by someone else originally.

if anyone decides to do this mod, the replacement switch will have 2 wires...hook one up where the original plugged in and run the other to ground (replace the blade with a ring to secure to the frame preferably where there is already something to secure it with). also, don't over tighten the switch.