Hey, kinda new to bikes and their mechanics, and just got my F4i and have a few questions.
Recently did an oil change,
1) Spilled some of the old oil on the header and was wondering after starting it and letting it idle for a few minutes smoke should be coming off the header?
2) After a few weeks, should it still be smelling like something's burning?
3) Should the exhaust be spitting out a little smoke and dripping water upon first start up of the day?
4) Running temperature of 170-180, and idling temperature of 225 is normal?
Bike is a 2002 F4i with 5400 miles.
Sorry for the noob questions and didn't really know what to search for, but if someone could help me this would take a lotta stress away from me while riding, thanks guys.

 

1. - I spilled some as well - I drove it around a bit (5-10 miles) and didn't notice any smoke - Though I wiped off as much as I could...
2. - Burning smells would NOT be normal - can you isolate it - Any plastic, etc. on the headers?
3. - Exhaust may smoke a little on a cold startup on a cold day, but should reduce with warm temps and as the engine warms up - water could be a byproduct of combustion... - keep an eye on your coolant/oil levels. - I haven't seen anyone ever complain of Head Gasket, etc problems with this engine, and especially at that low miles I'd guess it would be normal.
4. - Temps sound normal - 225 is around when the fan should be kicking on - listen for it - if it does, and the temp doesn't spike much over that all sounds good as well.

Sounds nice otherwise - what color? - Where did you acquire it? - First bike?

 

Color is Silver/Red from a middle aged man who fell off the stairs and broke his hand, or so he says lol...well he had a scar to prove it i guess, but the bike has never been dropped not even a scratch. I was really aiming for a White/Red but settled with this and have yet to be disappointed . And yup my first bike, after the MSF class of course.
As for the problems, i forgot to mention the coolant reserve bottle/tank was empty after i did the oil change as well, never noticed it til after i started it up with no coolant and started seeing smoke emitting from the front of the bike. This is where all my suspicion that something was wrong came from. But thought through it and figured it could also just be the oil that leaked onto the header, but right after i started seeing the smoke I shut it off and refilled the coolant. And after the added coolant i still saw a little smoke so i was wondering if it was something internal or just the header..this was a few weeks ago and up til now i keep smelling a kinda burning smell not necessarily plastics but more like something within the engine or maybe radiator?

 

I've spilled oil and it smokes and smells... just depends on where you spill it... same for my friends gixxer. Basically if anything gets really hot and you spill oil, it will smoke and smell till the entire oil boils off. Mine comes mostly from the pipes out of the engine esp due to changing the oil filter. Look for the source of the smoke... should be your pipes or exactly where there's a spill. if you let it sit for a week, the oil wont evaporate so it will still smoke till it boils off.
exhaust smoke should disappear in like half a minute. but try to note the color of the exhaust.

 

I'd check for a leak around the radiator - any fluid on the ground - I know it's tough, but you may need to see if there's coolant in the radiator even... - Filling the reservoir doesn't tell you if there's fluid in the rest of the system.- Get it filled - warm it up - check for leaks...

Was it smoke (oil ish) or steam (Water/coolant ish) - Did it have a sweet smell to it? - Check around the water pump- you may need to remove the side fairings to get a good look. - If you have a good dealer, maybe they can do a quick look at it and see if they know of any common places for leaks (water pump, etc.)

Sounds like a good deal otherwise - Silver/Red is a nice combo, I almost picked that up, then jumped on this flashy (for hopefully slightly better visibility) yellow.

Enjoy!

 

It's really hard to tell where exactly the smoke is coming from, i can just make it out coming from the radiator but not quite sure. The smoke thing i guess was just condensation, but it's weird how i never noticed it before...and as far as i know there's no leaks. I just took it for a ride and it did smell kinda sweet. Yellow/Black was my second choice but couldn't find one in good condition :P. Thanks for the help/responses guys.

 

Bump, this is my attempt to best describe the smell. Smells somewhat sweet, as mycvil mentioned. But nothing irregular going on with the temperature. It's either I'm paranoid and nothing's wrong or something that I have no clue about is not right. On a regular ride do you guys notice any particular smell besides gas fumes?

 

I would check the oil glass and make sure your oil looks clean. If it looks really milky (it will be real thick and start turning whiteish, its very noticeable) and if it is milky then you have antifreeze leaking into your oil. If not, then you should be alright. Head gaskets and warped heads are VERY rare on these bikes. I don't think I have ever heard of it happening to anybody with an f4i, specially with miles as low as yours. The smell does sound like you are smelling antifreeze but it might not be.If there is antifreeze going through ur exhaust thenim pretty sure it would most likely have to be in the oil. correct me if im wrong guys, hope this helps