Riders of NT beware!

[sanibelkiteflyer]

I'm Robert Doss, and this is my story. Bought an NT Oct. 2010. Rode it 2260 miles, engine is junk. Scarred cyl walls, pistons galled, and cases leaking. American Honda is to blame, due to "bad casting" of cyl head. Been broken down for 35 days, rebuiling motor with new parts. Look for oil leaks, lowered compression, etc. Signs of a falied engine. Only 2260 miles, and Honda won't replace the bike. Dealer shipped bike OUT OF STATE, due to fact they had no qualified person to fix the bike. LEMON, anybody?:mad1:

 

[RedLdr1]

Robert,

Welcome to the forum. It sounds like you have had more than your share of issues with your NT. Any motorcycle manufacture can make a defective product and Honda is no different unfortunately. There was another person who had problems with his engine cases sealing correctly, which caused oil leaks, but not nearly the issues you list. While I wouldn't be happy with my bike being shipped out for repairs at least the dealership admitted they couldn't handle the repair and sent it to someone better qualified. What are the last four digits of your serial number? I'm curious if it is a low number as the other bike had a low number and I am number 090 myself...

 

[Chucksklrst]

What was the milage that you noticed the oil leaks? What were the symtoms that first lead you to belive somthing was wrong? By the way, Welcome to the forum.

 

[sanibelkiteflyer]

serial # 0819 is a silver NT no ABS..small metal chips from rear cyl head went through the engine, creating the damage. Saw the damage myself at the shop, after they had pulled the motor apart.
Not to give you the willies, but a heads up on potetial problems.

 

[sanibelkiteflyer]

noticed the leak at about 700 miles, right after the dealer 600 mile service.

 

[Chucksklrst]

serial # 0819 is a silver NT no ABS..small metal chips from rear cyl head went through the engine, creating the damage. Saw the damage myself at the shop, after they had pulled the motor apart.
Not to give you the willies, but a heads up on potetial problems.

My # is 854

 

[Chucksklrst]

Wonder if something got into the intake when the dealer removed the throttle body to do the valve check. Easily done if not careful. Very hard to prove. A fellow over on the ST forum had the same thing happen when he rebuilt the carbs on a single cylinder dirt bike. Something got into the intake and bent a valve.

 

[sanibelkiteflyer]

Just behooves one to question the QC people in the engine plant on that given day of production. I'd suspect that several of of these engines got out with potential casting issues, just not evident yet.
Honda is making good on the motor, all new internals and cases, so the warranty end is good to go.
But while it was running, no noises, knocking, etc. to indicate there was a problem at all...just a weep of oil at the case seams..only after the tech pulled it down was the damage discovered.

 

[Phil Tarman]

Back in the day, when Kawasaki built motorcycles in Lincoln, NE, a bunch of us from the Concours Owners Group got a tour of the factory. We were surprised that bikes weren't built in any particular sequence. Dirt bikes and ATVs were built in no particular sequence on one line and cruisers and Concours were built in no particular sequence on an adjacent line. With just-in-time production methods, parts for the next bike being built would be delivered to the line as the one before it was coming through. Everything was bar-coded and recorded so that the computer knew which part had gone into which bike.

There wouldn't be any need to separate colors of ABS/non-ABS bikes on the production line.

 

[sanibelkiteflyer]

I know of a few owners out there with case sealing problems. Through searching the Net, it appears to be an issue with a random few of these bikes. Maybe I got lucky enough to get that one motor that was just doomed from the start.

 

[DirtFlier]

[We were surprised that bikes weren't built in any particular sequence. Dirt bikes and ATVs were built in no particular sequence on one line and cruisers and Concours were built in no particular sequence on an adjacent line...]

Doing the exact same thing all-day long is not good for most humanoid so alternating models with the line in process helps to reduce carpel tunnel problems. Besides that, it's sometimes done when one model requires too many bulky parts at work stations versus another with very light demands for space.

 

[vzshadow]

The question that immediately comes to mind is this. They have been building these bikes and riding them in Europe for years. How common is this problem there? Any insight from our European members?

 

[Phil Tarman]

They have been building these bikes and riding them in Europe for years.

Still are, for that matter. The 2011s will be built in Italy rather than Spain. It will be interesting to see if there's any difference in quality.

I've been reading the UK Forum for almost a year now and don't remember anything like this.

 

[Igo]

The NT has a reliability reputation second to none. That is one of the reasons I bought it. I don't buy anything that doesn't have this reputation.

 

[GrahamG]

Never heard of this in the UK & there are probably thousands of Deauvilles over here,I havn't read about this on the UK forum plus all the Sport bike riders over here would love to give the Deauville a good kicking so this must be very rare.

 

[vacanefan]

I am sorry you had a bad experience with the NT. With the signs of this beginning right after your 600 mile service, I would tend to agree with others that the contamination likely occurred during your service. With this bike being proven as the most reliable in Europe over the years, I am not overly concerned with one or two isolated incidents. I hope your bike returns as good as new and you are able to enjoy the quality that Honda and the NT700 are known for.

Good luck,
Jeff

 

[Hopalong Honda]

James here from Houston...

I have also been noticing a small amount of oil that forms along the line where the engine cases are joined, about 6 in. down from the top exhaust pipe. It has never left a drop on my garage floor, so it is all in all a very minor problem. I have changed the oil several times in the past, and noticed that the level was over the full line on the stick, but I just figured since I put in the recommended 3 qts. as listed in the manual, that it was normal to read high. Never the less, I did pump out enough oil to bring it close to the top line. Someone in our motorcycle group suggested that it could have been caused by the engine "burping" oil out of a vent tube, rather than it being a blown seal or anything like that. Could that be possible? I have had no service done on mine by the dealer, just my own oil and filter changes. Any thoughts?

James

 

[Igo]

I would freak if I saw oil at the base of a cylinder on a new bike. It wouldn't be tolerated for a minute.

 

[oldyaler]

I would freak if I saw oil at the base of a cylinder on a new bike. It wouldn't be tolerated for a minute.

Back in the early to mid 70s most Hondas had an oily mist around the cylinder base. I had a CB360t that did the same thing. Years later I discovered that Honda's torque specs were off. "Enlightened" Honda mechanics knew to torque the cylinder bolts 25% more than spec..That stopped the misting. I doubt that's what's happening in this situation due to better quality now but it kinda makes you think hmmmm.

 

[Igo]

Yeah, I rode those bikes too but in the era of CNC, lasers and PLCs I don't want to see oil anyplace its not supposed to be. LOL. It's amazing how far auto mechanics have come since the 70s.