Reply To: Gv125 valve clearance does it tend to shrink or grow with wear?
The 125cc works a lot harder than let’s say a 650 Hyosung , and generally i’ve not had my hyosungs require me to do valve clearances for least 15,000 miles because
– I change the oil every 1,000 miles with strictly Motul Ester grade oil (7100 or 5100 if i can’t get 7100 quick enough)
– Change filter every oil change
– I start the bike and wait 1 minute , then slowly ride out of the property then let it idle for 10 mins.
– Ride in traffic easy then 5 mins i can use it normally.
– I keep my ear out for any strange valve chatter even the cam tensioner.
– Try not to redline it past 10k revs cause it doesn’t like 11-13k revs (red zones), it will rev and go there but you can hear the engine hates it.
– Peak power is made at 10k revs so it’s not really a concern
What you can do to extend its life
– Change oil as per simon , as regular than what OEM manual suggests because the manual is optimistic when it comes to oil change intervals.
1500 miles seems to be a good limit in my opinion, though the manual could be in KM anyways
– Invest in a 250 oil cooler (get any from the GT250 or GV250, the 125cc will thank you a million.
– e5 fuel forever.
– I don’t know how you warm up your bike before riding to get her up to temp but maybe steal my way as inspiration/ideas if you will.
0.25 seems to be the sweet mark for all exhaust valves on the 125cc , so in the future you want a shim that’s a lower number.
Eg. If my exhaust is 0.30 clearance , and i have 150 shim. I would use 140-145 shims. that should bring you back in to the 0.20s that hyosung wants for the exhaust clearances.
The rear engine runs hotter than rear but as Simon says you won’t have to worry about accelerated wear if you treat her well 🙂