OldCowboy
10-01-2013, 03:27 PM
The steps described below have solved my RT heat issues. YMMV.
When I bought my 2013 RT-S, the first thing I did was ryde directly from Pit Bull to Misty Mountain Sheepskin Co. and have them fit a sheepskin to my :f_spider:. Since that time, I've had no problems with a hot seat, hot chestnuts, or fried thighs. This is not to say that the tupperware is not hot. It may be. Heck, it probably is. But the sheepskin is such a good insulator, I'm not feeling it.
For about the first three weeks, I didn't think I had a right foot heat problem. Then I realized two things: 1) When my feet were on the floorboards, I had to really pay attention to feel any heat as most of the hot air from the radiator was directed out into the slipstream. 2) When my feet were on the Lamonster highway pegs, my right foot got a bad hot foot. I guess I should mention I always ride with long pants and insulated motorcycle boots. So, I'm thinking the only thing keeping my ryde from being perfect was my hot right foot when it was on the highway pegs.
So, I bought a SpyderPops upper block off plate. When you install one of these, you effectively lose about 35 sq in of radiator vent (5" x 7"). SpyderPops recommends you drill three 2" holes in the radiator molding and drill two 2" holes cut out a "U" shaped area in the right hand deflector panel. A two inch hole has an area of 3.14" (pi r squared). The three 2" holes in the radiator molding would thus provide only about 9.5 sq in of ventilation. To me, that seemed like a poor substitute for the 35 sq in of vent I was about to block off.
My initial solution was to cut a 4" x 6" hole in the rear of the radiator molding. This would provide 24 sq in of vent, which was over twice what SpyderPops recommended. The result can be seen in this photo.
76954
This was a very successful modification in that I was able to run the upper block off plate with no increase in coolant temp and my right foot was no longer fried when I used the highway pegs. Unfortunately, I was also getting a strong gas smell when I shut off the engine. As I considered this further, I realized I was blowing a lot of hot air in the direction of the gas tank and with the intact deflector panel, there probably wasn't much ambient air getting up into that area.
Then BRP published their recall and I realized I might also be introducing more heat on the master cylinder and vapor canister with the radiator hot air blowing straight back. So, I cut a piece of aluminum sheet to cover the original hole and cut a 4" x 6" hole in the bottom of the radiator molding. The problem with this modification is with the deflector panel in place, there is only about a 1" gap between the bottom of the radiator molding and the deflector panel. So, I decided to entirely remove the RH deflector panel. In SpyderPops discussion of this issue, he seemed to indicate that the biggest concern with removing the deflector panel was securing the vapor vent hose. I found a place on the underbody to secure the vent hose with a zip tie. All of this can be seen in this photo, along with the new hole.
76955
With the ventilation hole in the bottom of the radiator molding and the deflector panel removed, the hot air from the radiator should be directed into the ambient air stream rushing under the :f_spider: to be cooled and carried off to the rear with little or no interaction with the underbody components. Apparently, this is what happens since I no longer have that strong gas smell when I stop the engine.
There is only one problem with removing the deflector panel. There is a plug type wiring connector at the front of the area protected by the deflector panel which can potentially be soaked by road spray from the front wheel. So I fabricated an aluminum shield of approximate dimensions 6" x 12" to replace the front part of the deflector panel. I attached it to the underbody with industrial velcro on one end and a couple of zip ties through drilled holes on the other. The velcro was attached to the center frame member and the other end to two underbody components.
76956
With these modifications, I have no heat issues.
When I bought my 2013 RT-S, the first thing I did was ryde directly from Pit Bull to Misty Mountain Sheepskin Co. and have them fit a sheepskin to my :f_spider:. Since that time, I've had no problems with a hot seat, hot chestnuts, or fried thighs. This is not to say that the tupperware is not hot. It may be. Heck, it probably is. But the sheepskin is such a good insulator, I'm not feeling it.
For about the first three weeks, I didn't think I had a right foot heat problem. Then I realized two things: 1) When my feet were on the floorboards, I had to really pay attention to feel any heat as most of the hot air from the radiator was directed out into the slipstream. 2) When my feet were on the Lamonster highway pegs, my right foot got a bad hot foot. I guess I should mention I always ride with long pants and insulated motorcycle boots. So, I'm thinking the only thing keeping my ryde from being perfect was my hot right foot when it was on the highway pegs.
So, I bought a SpyderPops upper block off plate. When you install one of these, you effectively lose about 35 sq in of radiator vent (5" x 7"). SpyderPops recommends you drill three 2" holes in the radiator molding and drill two 2" holes cut out a "U" shaped area in the right hand deflector panel. A two inch hole has an area of 3.14" (pi r squared). The three 2" holes in the radiator molding would thus provide only about 9.5 sq in of ventilation. To me, that seemed like a poor substitute for the 35 sq in of vent I was about to block off.
My initial solution was to cut a 4" x 6" hole in the rear of the radiator molding. This would provide 24 sq in of vent, which was over twice what SpyderPops recommended. The result can be seen in this photo.
76954
This was a very successful modification in that I was able to run the upper block off plate with no increase in coolant temp and my right foot was no longer fried when I used the highway pegs. Unfortunately, I was also getting a strong gas smell when I shut off the engine. As I considered this further, I realized I was blowing a lot of hot air in the direction of the gas tank and with the intact deflector panel, there probably wasn't much ambient air getting up into that area.
Then BRP published their recall and I realized I might also be introducing more heat on the master cylinder and vapor canister with the radiator hot air blowing straight back. So, I cut a piece of aluminum sheet to cover the original hole and cut a 4" x 6" hole in the bottom of the radiator molding. The problem with this modification is with the deflector panel in place, there is only about a 1" gap between the bottom of the radiator molding and the deflector panel. So, I decided to entirely remove the RH deflector panel. In SpyderPops discussion of this issue, he seemed to indicate that the biggest concern with removing the deflector panel was securing the vapor vent hose. I found a place on the underbody to secure the vent hose with a zip tie. All of this can be seen in this photo, along with the new hole.
76955
With the ventilation hole in the bottom of the radiator molding and the deflector panel removed, the hot air from the radiator should be directed into the ambient air stream rushing under the :f_spider: to be cooled and carried off to the rear with little or no interaction with the underbody components. Apparently, this is what happens since I no longer have that strong gas smell when I stop the engine.
There is only one problem with removing the deflector panel. There is a plug type wiring connector at the front of the area protected by the deflector panel which can potentially be soaked by road spray from the front wheel. So I fabricated an aluminum shield of approximate dimensions 6" x 12" to replace the front part of the deflector panel. I attached it to the underbody with industrial velcro on one end and a couple of zip ties through drilled holes on the other. The velcro was attached to the center frame member and the other end to two underbody components.
76956
With these modifications, I have no heat issues.