altosuperhawk

Hello folks- first post. I bought my '98 Superhawk in August of '97 and currently have 28,000 trouble free miles on it. RaceTech'ed forks, Fox Twin Clicker, HeliBars, Sargent seat, FactoryPro jetting, K&N a/f, and Yosh RS-3 ti with race baffles. Steady diet of Mobil1 15-50 for the first 8 years and now using the Mobil1 5-40 'Truck& SUV'oil.Original-and still quiet- CCT's. Here's my question and it's only aimed at those who've had CCT failure at some point. I'm curious if riding style plays any part in these seemingly random failures. Have the problem bikes been stunted, used at track days, made many drag strip passes, spent much time on or near the rev limiter? In other words could a lot of high rpm use accelerate the failure rate of the CCT's? If the bike was purchased used, do you know how the previous owner rode it? Thanks for any input on this vexing issue.

jschmidt

I think its a combination. The CCT is a mechanical part so abuse would certainly play a role. But its also a maintenance part in that it needs to be replaced from time to time. Lastly, its also a hysteria part. There seems to be a fever to avoid a problem that doesn't really lead to catostrophic failure if dealt with in a timely fashion after symptoms appear.

In the end, its interesting that a company like Honda could have gotten it so wrong on CCTs and Voltage Regulators. But neither is the epidemic that you might believe if you tread the message boards.

superhawk22

The Superhawk isn't the only Honda that has had cct issues, I know of a lot of cbr's varying in cc's and years that have also had problems. As far as the abuse goes....I have been guilty of treating my Hawk with an iron fist, doing many wheelies, (no stunting though), lots of 1/4 mile runs, (too many to remember a #) and so far 10 trackdays in 14 months, (2 more comming next week). My bike has 15,600 miles and so far no cct problems, (yet), although I do a lot of things that would stress a bike I do maintain it pretty well. The countdown continues.

killer5280

I have heard of enough CCT failures that I'm quite satisfied that it's not hysteria. I went with APE CCT's and the maintenance aspect is a non-issue; it's pretty much a set it and forget it kind of deal. I have also replaced 3 rectifiers on my last 2 bikes (a VTR and a CBR F2), so that's not hysteria, either. Since I replaced the rectifier on my VTR with a Suzuki part I haven't had any problems. The part cost me $15.00 of eBay and about an hour's worth of wiring and mounting work.
I do believe that some of the VTR CCT failures are due to ham fisted riding techniques.

F1 Fan in Nascar Land

Im sure this is a stupid question so no need for ripping on me but what is a CCT?

HamsVTR

Did somebody ask for Ham? At your service!

superhawk22

I know you said not to rip you so here goes. OMG, what an idiot, where have you been, have you been hididng under a rock or something!! Sorry couldn't resist Cam Chain Tensioner.

jschmidt

Frankly, I think the hysteria aspect falls into two categories:
1. Feeling like you must replace parts that aren't broken, the implication being a 100% or near 100% failure rate.
2. Believing that the CCT will just let go catestrophically with no warning.

I'm not trying to say that these parts don't ever fail.

EngineNoO9

well... i replaced mine near 20k. I started hearing noises I didn't like and couldn't pinpoint it to being cam chain chatter but was too nervous to press my luck with it. swapping them to new oem ones just gave me peace of mind when I ride now

jschmidt

You do have to replace it when you hear the symptom. I'm guessing you got it right. Noise gone?

It sounds like a marble tapping a can. Usually you hear it after riding when you're about to turn off the engine. Early on, when you start it up later, you don't hear it. But by the end of your ride, it's back. If you haven't replaced it, it'll usually start doing it all the time before it fails completely.

I don't recommend putting it off though.

EngineNoO9

sounded kinda like that. I was too nervous to ride and $125 for new ones just made sense. do the labor yourself

F1 Fan in Nascar Land

Ya I just know how to ride the thing not everything about the motor, I dont know how to fix the **** I leave that to my friend for basic maintanance, and I have a 5 year warranty, but I would like to learn more but not from you sounds like you would kill a student if they didnt know how to sync the carbs in the first day of class or some crap.

marmaladedad

Don't let Superhawk22 rile you up.

He's just a fan of a basketball team that uses a muscle and no skill to win a championship.

Yeah yeah...Lakers suck... :P

JonnyRocket

bought mine new in 99 and put 32,000 on it before it was stolen and wrecked...
here's what i did to it...
factory pro jet kit (Ti needles)
two bros high mount C4 carbon cans (slip on)

i crashed it @80 from a wheelie gone tank-slapper..
low sided it in a gas station (cold tires and polished concrete don't mix)
ex tipped it over during one of her rages..
I tore it down, after it was recovered, it had one radiator junked from a corn stalk (tipped over in a corn field) and a cracked clutch case...
the only thing i found wrong mechanically after tearing it down was bad steering head bearings, and the connecting rod bearings had worn enough to cause a low rpm knock that went away as engine rpm went up (and oil pressure) the cylinders and head (valves) were all perfect as well as the tensioners, clutch was OE and still holding, (although this thing had a TERRIBLE judder when engaging in a hard launch from a stop), replaced the chain once.. (chain lube WORKS), and tried various tires from street and race michelins and dunlops... pilot sport street compound are AWESOME, seemed race compounds cause a high speed wobble when banked over (100+mph).. tuned flex anyone? otherwise, i'm rebulding it, and taking pics, so when she's done i'll post them

superhawk22

Sorry I was just having fun with ya but I did have a teacher like that once.....what an ***#ole!!

superhawk22

Hey now that just ain't right!! Stop whining already you know Dwayne's got ice water in his vains.:-D We still have to do something we've never done....win in Dallas, it won't be easy.

































































































Oh yeah and the Lakers and Kobe SUCK but thanks for Shaq.

marmaladedad

LoL

Hey, we're in a REBUILDING period. Thank you very much. :P

With all this recent talk of CCT this and CCT that, my bike seems to have developed a slight rattle on deceleration/off-throttle. Weird. My mechanic says it's ok, but I get the strangest feeling he's hoping for engine failure so he can make some money...