update!!! i think i fixed it kind of

threw a cap from auto zone on the radiator it had the same 1.1 rating my new cap won't be in till tuesday and i had to ride. well took it to some single track and absolutely hammered the thing in first and second for hours without an issue. coming home hit the highway and was flying about 75 80 and the temp light came on for a few seconds! I'm confused because i was riding her hard all day and then when she hit high speeds she over heated could this be a cause of prolonged high rpms with lean fuel mixture?

"Absolutely hammered the thing for hours" - you're not being very nice to this brand new bike are you? Between that and banging the heck out of the radiator I would personally say you're going to kill this thing before its time.

I mean yes, these bikes are built for years and years of use, and some tough use sometimes at that, but if you ride it like you stole it every time you use it I think it will eventually break much more than just a radiator. It's not a race bike (which get rebuilt all the time), it's a semi capable off road machine that is more or less street capable, but my advice would be to take it a little easier on it in the future and maybe get a used pure dirt bike for when you want to "absolutely hammer" a bike out there...

I'm feeling bad for your machine, that's all...

i mean hammered as i rode her in 1st and 2nd for a few hours i wasn't riding her like i stole it but was riding decently hard. lots of single track and mud. didn't have an issue with heat all day long until headed home on the highway.

Not my place to tell you how to ride it, I just saw the word "absolutely" and thought you meant really, really hard for hours.

But I will concur with everyone else here who says

1. Your service guy is an idiot. The only way the temp light should be coming on is if you're riding in knee high mud on 100 degree day at 1mph. Mine has NEVER come on in the three years I've had it, not going fast, not going slow, never. Neither has another owner I've met out on the trail, and he rode a lot more aggressively than I do, and just got back from some trip to Canada.

2. If this issue came up after the crash, you should replace the radiator, cap, fan, and anything else that might have been damaged and call it a lesson. That way you can be assured of not having a boilover in the middle of nowhere, which will cause you to boilover.

All new components on the way will probobly do engine ice just for safe measures it gets prett hot out here and I like single track

I would just use the solution they recommend, I've heard some bad things about engine ice getting gummy.

Thanks for the advise

GusinCA wrote:

I would just use the solution they recommend, I've heard some bad things about engine ice getting gummy.

Really? I used it for about 30,000 miles in my SV650s without issue (replacing it every 10k or so). Never heard about it getting gummy. I got some for the WR but haven't put it in yet. Maybe I'll have to do some reading first...

I can't imagine stressing the engine temp more than me: New rider in 3 feet of sugar sand picking my way thru scrub pines for hours in 100 degree weather. Temp light never came on once.

Riding off road in the first couple gears your bike has a huge mechanical advantage sure your revving the crap out of it but the motor is not under a sustained load like it is when you have it pinned in 5th or 6th on the highway. Add the highway type load with a bike that runs lean stock and your gonna start creating some heat. I'm not saying this is your only problem but its part of it. Adding a tuner would help a lot!

I've had my temp lite come on twice after short top speed burst on a stock bike- I'm also 6'4 250ish (that's some load!! )