Have CR500 installed in Honda Pilot, need water temp help

[stix]

Hey MX riders. I have a CR500 top end grafted to my FL400 bottom end, this engine is in my 1989 Honda Pilot. I was using the Pilots cooling system but my water temps were running over 240 when making long pulls at the dunes, so I mounted a small radiator in series with my Pilots radiator. Now my water temps will not climb over 180 in hard dune riding, thats good however when tooling around the dunes (half throttle) CHT stays right around 150 to 165, is this too low? I know we need a certain amount of heat to swell the cylinder. Any help would be appreciated... I SHOULD CLEAR UP THAT IM AM READING THE COOLANT TEMPS AND NOT THE CHT

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[Nodge]

More pics please!

[Kuma]

Hey Hey, welcome over, I have no idea what my bike runs at, it typically self adjusts the coolant level once filled, no over flow bottle but without a thermostat inline I would think cruising on flat ground is deffinatly going to be cooler than pulling a sand dune, if it all seems good I'd just keep it as is, but I'm sure if I'm wrong someone will correct me.

[AlisoBob]

More pics please!

X2

[stix]

Hers a few pics, glad to see yall interested. Ive been lurking for quite a while now and learned a lot here. Pics have captions for some description.

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Little Sahara Oklahoma



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]Corrected CR 6.87:1, Ported, rev pipe,165lbs static compression



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All controls are from the steering wheel



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Comet 102c drive clutch with Thunder shift kit. You can see lots o spooge from pipe but jetting is now dialed in



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Bling and homage to the T800 Terminator



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ATV Racing Long Travel kit front and rear, chromoly cage,beard suspension seat, skid plate,bump steer kit



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Bump Steer

[gregrobo]

cool project wish they sold these in australia

[stix]

cool project wish they sold these in australia

We have our Pilot/Odyssey forum like you guys. Theres a few aussies with them, They did have to have them shipped.

[Nodge]

I always wanted an odyssey as a kid, that is a thing of my pre-teenage dreams right there!

[Tharrell]

Can you manually cut the fans off/on?

[hoofarted]

That FL400 (500) is nice! You have a lot done to it! Navi too? Wish I had that in my FL250 days - funny what Nodge said...as I had my Ody when I was 12-14ish. I imagine a pretty big difference with the 500 jug. What was involved in the conversion? And last but not least, does it wheelie from a stand-still?


oh - as for your question, I never really kept track of the temps - as long as coolant wasn't spilling out I was happy. But then again, you're running your motor completely different - CVT and all.

[stix]

Can you manually cut the fans off/on?

I dont have a switch for the fan. Its wired into the Pilots thermostat. I think the fan comes on at about 175ish

[stix]

That FL400 (500) is nice! You have a lot done to it! Navi too? Wish I had that in my FL250 days - funny what Nodge said...as I had my Ody when I was 12-14ish. I imagine a pretty big difference with the 500 jug. What was involved in the conversion? And last but not least, does it wheelie from a stand-still?


oh - as for your question, I never really kept track of the temps - as long as coolant wasn't spilling out I was happy. But then again, you're running your motor completely different - CVT and all.

The conversion was done by ATV Racing in Arizona. They have lots of aftermarket parts and mods for the Pilot. I dont remember exactly what was done to the bottom but I know it has the CR500 rod, the jug to bottom studs had to be relocated slightly, i think, the starter had to be slightly modified so the intake manifold didnt rub and the clutch and left side of the jug had to me milled a bit fot the clutch to fit since the jug is so wide, the stock CDI was modified for higher RPM, although it seems most of the power is around 6500 to 7K. The FL350 fully suspended version of the odyssey came out in 85, unfortunately I was only 18 and couldnt affor high price tag. I guess Im getting all the toys I wanted as a kid now?!? This "FL500" Pilot is a torquey mother. As far as wheelies go, from a dead stop she will spin both wheels and leave a couple skid marks on concrete, haha. If I had some tires with more bite I bet it would raise those front wheels. I have had this machine for about two years and have been working out the bugs, just about got it where I want but need to finish tuning tha clutch and this low CHT temp if thats an issue.

[2strokeforever]

i think it should be fine, cant see it being any different than idling a bike down the road in 5th
but i bet it would run a lot more consistant if you put a thermostat in it that bypassed your extra rad until it got hot

it also makes a difference how hot the coolant is right after the rads as its coming into the engine

[OUTKAST INC.]

i am a firm believer that lower water temp is better , think about a jetski they never run much over lake water temp , maybe a 100 degrees , all of our snowmobile motors since 1993 we run if at all possible max 130 , iron bore or nikasil , my af only goes to about 150 if I'm on slow tight single track , I got rid of head gasket and oringed the head ,ported pc ppe and higher compression.

[stix]

i think it should be fine, cant see it being any different than idling a bike down the road in 5th
but i bet it would run a lot more consistant if you put a thermostat in it that bypassed your extra rad until it got hot

it also makes a difference how hot the coolant is right after the rads as its coming into the engine

I mounted the extra radiator when the water temps were running over 220. The head on that engine was possibly part of the overheating problem so I replaced it with a cool head. I havent run the engine without the extra radiator since the head swap. I like the idea of the thermostat so I installed a bypass valve to bypass the extra radiator for now, if it still gets hot Ill utilize a thermostat housing I bought from a KTM. Thanks for the idea!!

[stix]

i think it should be fine, cant see it being any different than idling a bike down the road in 5th
but i bet it would run a lot more consistant if you put a thermostat in it that bypassed your extra rad until it got hot

it also makes a difference how hot the coolant is right after the rads as its coming into the engine

I thought I would give an update. I installed a bypass valve for the extra radiator first to see if adjusting the amount of coolant flow through the extra radiator would accomplish some consistent water temps. I wanted to do tthis before I installed a thermostat. I was able to keep a constant 170ish water temps by opening up the valve slightly to let some flow through the extra radiator, after doing some research on "coolant" cooled two cycle engines I found that anything below 160 was really not good for the engine and is actually doing damage, Im assuming jet skis engines are designed for cooler cooling water. Ill be getting my 179F thermostat and Ill be using a thermostat housing from a KTM 250. Ill post pics and results as soon as I get the modification complete. Thanks 2strokeForever for the excellent idea!

[keysey]

That is a sweet machine. Just out of curiosity, does the electric starter have any issues firing up the 500?

[stix]

That is a sweet machine. Just out of curiosity, does the electric starter have any issues firing up the 500?

It seems to turn over at the same speed as my stock Pilot.