What's that noise

I am riding the TAT. We are in Colorado right now. The bike has ran flawlessly the whole time. I have about 6,000 miles on it (2009 WRR). The noise has been getting louder for about 1,000 miles worth of riding now. It is coming from the front of the motor and is louder when I move my right leg out so def coming from that side. It sounds like a tinny, whistle or like an old phone ringing constantly. tough to describe a sound. It is directly affected by rpm. I'm not sure if it's normal or not? I have put in ear plugs to enjoy the ride and not worry about it. Could this be the timing chain tensioner like I read about in the other post. I really don't want to get stranded b.c. Utah and Nevada, some of the most remote places on the TAT, are next.

Any reccomendations on mechanics in this area or ideas of what it could be - if anything - would be greatly appreciated.

Does it occur while stopped?
Only at idle?
Goes away when you throttle up?
Only occurs when engine is warm?

Well, what was it? Don't leave us hanging. You got me hearing things now, turned out to be my master link clip jingling around a little, it was nothing but it made me nervous for a hundred miles yesterday.

wristpin wrote:

Well, what was it? Don't leave us hanging.  You got me hearing things now, turned out to be my master link clip jingling around a little, it was nothing but it made me nervous for a hundred miles yesterday.

I love this forum yet am frustrated because so many threads end this way with no follow-up or resolution. This poster described an issue that I just noticed today but have no clue as to what it is. My symptom almost sounds like an alarm sounding but my deaf ears can't track down where it's coming from. Almost like a pressure bleed sound too. No strange noises at all from cold start up but it kicks in after coming up to temp. I checked my radiator which was full but my expansion tank is empty so tomorrow I will flush it out and fill with fresh stuff. Also I have never heard my radiator fan come on so I need to look into that. It would be nice if threads like this didn't dead end as this one did so those coming along later can gain some insight.

The OP hasn't logged back on to this forum since he started this thread 3 years ago. Most of his few previous posts were centered around getting prepared for this trip.

Some people are givers, and some are takers. IMHO I think this forum offers something for both. (In my case I am both.)

wwguy wrote:

The OP hasn't logged back on to this forum since he started this thread 3 years ago.  Most of his few previous posts were centered around getting prepared for this trip.

Some people are givers, and some are takers.  IMHO I think this forum offers something for both.  (In my case I am both.)

I hear ya. Well, I flushed the old coolant which didn't look too bad. The expansion tank did have a few ounces in it and some yucky stuff in the bottom so I flushed it out and have the level set with fresh coolant. I changed the oil and filter while I was at it and cranked it up and let it idle a few minutes to come up to temp and sure enough that whistling / ringing noise kicked in again. I'm beginning to wonder if it always did that and I just didn't notice? Wish I had another WRR around here to compare it too. I'm hoping to get the bike to the dealer next week for the stater replacement so maybe they can tell me if I'm just nutz.

Could it be the fuel pump motor?

wwguy wrote:

The OP hasn't logged back on to this forum since he started this thread 3 years ago.  Most of his few previous posts were centered around getting prepared for this trip.

Some people are givers, and some are takers.  IMHO I think this forum offers something for both.  (In my case I am both.)

DreadlockJames - This post is from 2012.

DreadlockJames wrote:

Could it be the fuel pump motor?

No, it's the water pump bearing. I still haven't replaced it and it doesn't start making the noise until the engine is fully up to temp. I'm not so freaked out about it now and will get around to fixing it at some point. The fuel pump motor went out on me a while back and I replaced it and bought a spare so all is good there.