Your ACat only has single layered pipe, it's normal for it to glow red when it's really workin, some other models have duble layered pipes, I know Honda used to.

 

OK! This is getting REALLY confusing,, I posted this question on all the forums i could find and got so many diferent answers,, Hell i dont know what to do NOW! some say that it is normal. Some say that it's ilegal so sell a bike that has a glowing header pipe because of fire conserns! others say it too lean...... some say that its the valves, some even say that it will cause serious damage to the bike if i donrt get it to stop!.... feeew what am i to doo,,,,,, what happens this summer when its 85 out side and the pipe is red and i go in water? will the pipe crack cuae its cooled down so fast,, see now it probly dont get that hot because its below 0 here now but what happens when it gets hotter out side,,, come on guys give me a strait answer,(hehehe), by the way thanks for all your help,,, some of you really seam to know your stuff in here

 

I'm really not sure what you were expecting. Anytime you post to a forum you stand a good chance of getting contradicting answers. It is really up to you to decide which is the correct one, or most plausible one. How do you do that? Research, investigation and perhaps some critical thinking. Lets look at some of your responses a little closer.

1. "This is normal." This is plausible, you have had several people state that their bike does the same. However, can you trust the answer? Do you want to trust the answer? Perhaps there is something wrong with thier bikes also. If you don't want to except this answer, lets move on. (For the record, I think this is the correct answer but am trying to get Basstoy to do a little troubleshooting so that he can prove to himself that this is the right answer.)

2. "The bike is running too lean." This is also plausible. However, you would have other symptoms if this was the case. The number 1 way to detect a lean condition is by reading the plugs. Have you done this? If not do it. It only takes a minute and can tell you alot about the condition of your engine. If you don't know how, pull the plug and take it to a mechanic. Any one will do as this is a very basic thing. I often bounce questions off my Suzuki mechanic here in town as he is alot closer than the AC dealer. This is a good skill to learn so make the effort.

3. "The valves need adjustment." Again plausible but doubtful, if they were so far out of adjustment to be causing a glowing pipe, you would be experiencing other symptoms. They would be making a racket after the bike is warmed up, and the bike would not run well.

4. "It is illegal to sell a bike with glowing pipes". I would like someone to show me that in print. I think what the poster meant was that it is illegal for an ATV to have shooting flames or sparks coming out of the tailpipe. Plus it doesn't help you solve the problem, or find the correct answer. So lets move on.

5. Serious damage can result. I disagree. Glowing pipes in itself won't cause damage, but a lean condition will. My point is that glowing pipes might equal lean, might be normal. How do you know? Read the plugs. If the plugs show a lean condition, then fix it ASAP or you might burn a valve.

Now lets look at my post closer, and see if I can explain better why I told you what I did.

The first thing I said was read the plugs. Why? Because glowing pipes might be an indicator something is wrong.

If the plugs read rich or lean, you need to tune the engine. How do you do this? Follow the steps out of the manual.
a. Adjust the valves.
b. Set the idle speed.
c. Adjust the idle mixture screw.
d. Read the plugs again, if they are still indicating too rich or lean, then you can start playing with the jetting. My biggest pet peeve, is people who flippantly respond to change the jetting. While this may solve the problem, it can cause an over rich condition which is just as bad as being too lean. Every manual out there for most engines will tell you to perform those steps first before changing the jetting. Are there other ways of doing this? Sure, but the point is that the rest of the engine needs to be in a good state of tune before changing the jetting.

Did we cover all the possible causes of glowing pipes and a lean condition? Nope, just the most common. Other possible causes. Intake leak. Exhaust leak with a rich condition. Timing off (you can't set the timing, at least not on the 2001). The list goes on. But start with the basics, report what was done and checked and we can help you further.

This is basic engine troubleshooting and backed up by information right out of the manual. You have a choice, rely on the dealer to perform your maintenance, or learn how to do it on your own. But reading a plug is so basic and tells you so much. Do it then let us know what you find. Heck, take a picture and show us.

65fl

 

Too the basstoy, I live here in N.S. ,so if you are doing the winter driving like I am the you are really coming on to it at times,so the pipe will heat up.MY 2 cents worth,its the same as mine ,the bike runs great and I have no had any problems with it yet,,over 6000 on it.Dont worry -- be happy you made a good choice with the AC.PS this was my 5 bike and the toughest so far.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

TO 65fl
thanks for your answer,, it really helps,,, i did check the plugs (im sorry i didnt mention it) it seems to be ok but a LITTLE dry,, i mean a little but my dealer told me that the plug looked ok and that AC is lean from the factory,,,,,, i just hope this summer when its 85 out side that i wont have any probs when i hit a mud puddle or submerge the pipe in river water!

 

It seems to be normal but good luck later on down the road.

 

basstoy,

personally I don't think that no matter how well a machine is tuned, that all of the gas will be burned inside the cylinder. Simply put, under power, you will have some (not a lot) fuel igniting in the header pipe. I used to ride a Suzuki 230 Q-Sport to work. Didn't matter how cold it was (90 below windchills somedays) and the header pipe would glow bright red. My spark plug was always a brown color, never white or black.

I wouldn't worry about it.