I checked my valve lash Saturday. I've never had it done in 3 years! My dealer always said never to worry about it. My quad has always ran fine. So I got curious & took a look. I'm positive I had it at TDC & the motor was cold. The stock setting is .004-.006 right? I couldn't get a .002 feeler all the way between the lifter & cam. (Am I doing this right?)
So now I'm kind of confused. It doesn't seem right, yet I think why fix something that doesn't seem broke. It stills runs strong. I guess I would figure over time they would get looser, not tighter.

Can anyone advise? Sorry to sound like a fool. I think the older I get, the dumber I'm getting...

 

Now I'm confused...

When my quad was new my dealer did not check the valve clearance on the 10 hour checkup. I asked why not & they said don't worry about them, they are always OK. So for 3 years I haven't, until just last Saturday. I got curious & checked the clearance. I'm 99% sure I at it lined up right at TDC (I had no crank bolt). The tolerances seemed tight on 2 valves. I didn't want to bend my feeler gauge so I didn't push it hard under the cam. Anyway I think "well it runs so good, should I mess with it or not." So I guess by letting it go I could cost my self some money.... I call a local BMW motorcycle dealership & tell them and they say as long as it runs great & doesn't backfire or give you problems at startup just ride it as is! So now I'm like NOW WHAT!? He said one other DS owner had them check his quad because it would only start by pull starting. He said that is a sure sign of valve clearance problems, but if mine were a BMW motorcycle he'd just ride it & go. He sounded very knowledgable & only quoted me "maybe" $90-$100 do check it out if I wanted anyway. I think I might check them again & write down the numbers exactly as I get them. He said it only took him 1 day to order the shims.
Why must I analyze everything so????? I drive myself crazy!

 

When your motor heats up you will have even less clearance. Clearance is lost because valve stems stretch, valves "tulip", and from normal valves wear seat deeper into the seats.

I would definately re-shim. Shims come numbered (example 2-45, 2-50) this is 2.45 mm and 2.50 mm. Shims come every .05mm, or around .002".

1 mm is equal to .0395 inches.
0.1 mm = .00395"
0.05 mm = .002"

Hope this helps.

 

As soon as I checked 2 of them that were tight I was like oh heck I'll just put it back together & call someone. After thinking about it I might take it back down & record each valve & maybe attempt the adjustment myself if I can get ahold of the shims easily. Thanks for the help.

 

When you have it tore down to the point of checking the valves, it only takes another twenty minutes and you will have the job done, and then you won't have to worry[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img].

Justin

 

I got worried enough that I already called the dealer. They said they might have to order the shims, but that they were slow right now (before water craft season) & could look at it real soon. I kinda wanted to do it so I knew how, then again I though let them deal with it since it's kinda important. I'll let you guys know what I find out.
Thanks for the advice.

 

The only thing I find, is that I don't trust the feeler guages or human error. We're talking about thousandths of an inch here, and even though you have the approperate feeler guages, you might get an inaccurate reading. I measured my valves last wee, got my clearances, then measured my shims and ordered the approperate ones. Slapped them in today, but the ticking is still there. It runs a bit better, but the ticking worries me. I dropped .004" in the intake i believe, and .005" in the exhaust. This should have brought me within spec, and i didn't have the crank bolt or the feelers to check it when it was done. I think it might be my cam chain slapping. It seems really loose, but I made sure the chain tensioner is in and tight, But it still seems to slap. Any comments on this? Thnaks. Oh and andrew, It's not as bad as you think. I am just real uneasy about the roo for error, kinda parinoid i guess.

 

If they're not right, either learn to set them yourself, or get it done by someone that knows what they're doing. No sense in risking burnt valves for the sake of maybe a hundred bucks or so. The BMW dealer sounds like he's full of sh** to me. Get a service manual first and find out how to do it right, then order the shims you need, and take your time with it.

 

I would NOT!! take it to any dealer that told me it was OK to ride it. Yes your DS will still run with even a .01 clearence. And start too for that matter. But as metioned before if gone to long can and will burn your valve / valves. As far as the way your DS runs. I am 100% positive that it doesn't run as strong as it could / will with your valves shimmed propely. Thats right. I said 100%!!!!

 

Truthfully as far performance, I would think an undershimmed valve would open farther. Assuming it still seats tight, it would be little a tad bigger cam in a way. Obviously you'd give up performance in the name of reliability. Just a thought, maybe I'm wrong. Both dealer said they had never seen this motor burn a valve.