'85 VF700F Makes Weird whining noise when it's cold

Discussion in '1st & 2nd Generation 1983-1989' started by kweezy, Apr 6, 2012.

  1. kweezy

    kweezy New Member

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    I Have an 85 VF700f and it runs great with only one problem. I've been known to ride my bike to work when its cold (in the 30's), and when it's this cold, the bike makes a whining noise when driven at 35-40+ Mph. It varies in pitch and volume with speed only. The noise doesn't change at all with engine RPM, It doesn't matter what gear I'm in, and clutch position makes no difference on the sound. It's not coming from the exhaust. Also it has nothing to do with whether the brakes are in use or not. The noise starts when I speed up above 35-40 mph and goes away as I slow down below 30 mph. I let the bike warm up for a good 5+ min always before riding in weather this cold. The bike does not make these noises in warmer weather (40's and up.) Does anyone know the source of this problem and how to stop it? Thanks in advance.
     
  2. FoothillRyder

    FoothillRyder New Member

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    Now that's a strange one. Sorry I can't offer anything useful; but I'll be watching this thread to see what happens with this issue. My first thought is that it's related to the drive chain.
     
  3. GreyVF750F

    GreyVF750F Member

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    Counter shaft bearing making noise. ?
     
  4. kweezy

    kweezy New Member

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    Wouldn't it make noise other times than when it's cold?
     
  5. GreyVF750F

    GreyVF750F Member

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    Very possible once it gets warmed up the loose tolerance tightens up. Mine started doing that above 50 mph. But I can pull the clutch in and it goes away because the pressure is off it. It may be another bearing in the trans and not your counter shaft seeing you said it doesn't matter with clutch engaged or not. I know it's difficult to put you ear by the trans at speed, I've tried.:ear:
     
  6. rc24rc51

    rc24rc51 New Member

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    That's her way of telling you to take the f'n car. I'll bet the temp needle doesn't come off the stop after 5 min of warm up when it's in the 30's.
     
  7. Poligrafovich

    Poligrafovich New Member

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    I had something similar that turned out to be the speedometer cable. It first cropped up last fall when the weather got cold. There was a whirring noise related to bike speed that would abruptly stop as the speed dropped below a certain point. Lubricating the cable didn't help, but it went away when I replaced the whole thing. Or maybe it just went away because it's getting warmer...
     
  8. rainman6

    rainman6 New Member

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    I've had a simiar problem - but in a car. A wiring buzing noise at a certain speed untill the car warmed up. It turned out it was the choke cable. When the choke was on the cable moved and was vibrating up against something.
     
  9. kweezy

    kweezy New Member

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    It's not the speedometer cable because I just replaced that. And as far as taking the car when its that cold, with my car I have to park a 15min walk away from the building, and with the bike i get to park literally 10 steps from the door, as well as looking like a badass (or mental case?) but anyways, a couple of you mentioned transmission problems, worn out bearings etc... Time to start to think about swapping motors for the 750 in a parts bike I have? A motor swap looks easier than disassembling the transmission, and the extra motor runs. This bike is in almost mint shape, and I love the way it looks and rides, so I really don't want to replace it.
     
  10. rc24rc51

    rc24rc51 New Member

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    what type of motor oil are you using?
     
  11. Poligrafovich

    Poligrafovich New Member

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    Have you tried pulling in the clutch and killing the engine at 40mph? If the sound persists this would narrow the possibilities down considerably. A wheel bearing maybe?
     
  12. kweezy

    kweezy New Member

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    I'll try that on my way to work tomorrow.
     
  13. kweezy

    kweezy New Member

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    Ok so I tried pulling in the clutch at 40 mph and shutting off the engine. It had no effect on the noise at all.
     
  14. GreyVF750F

    GreyVF750F Member

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    Only thing moving would be the wheels. Check your wheel bearings. Hows your chain and front sprocket? Those would be moving to when clutch is disengaged.
     
  15. kweezy

    kweezy New Member

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    Ok. Awesome. thanks for the help.
     
  16. Tosto

    Tosto New Member

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    I have the same problem and I'm almost certain I know what it is: it's related to the speedometer drive, cable, or speedo input to the gauges. I have the exact same problem with my 85 VF700F; I noticed the loud whirring noise with the same symptoms - doesn't change when you pull in the clutch, shift, brake, accelerate. It ONLY goes away when you drop below ~30 mph - then it cuts out abruptly and the speedometer needle jumps quickly up and down when the noise cuts out. I've replaced my front wheel bearings in an effort to solve it, to no effect. I think it might be the speedo drive box on the axle (repack it with grease?) or the input to the speedo behind the dash.

    I hope that helps! Let me know what you find.
     
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