Kawasaki Concours Forum

The C-14, aka Kawasaki Concours-14, the new one :) => The Bike - C14/GTR 1400 => Topic started by: roland on December 03, 2012, 06:55:26 PM

Title: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: roland on December 03, 2012, 06:55:26 PM
In North Carolina's infinite wisdom, sometimes when they "repave" secondary roads they just put down tar and spread rock over the  tar.... Well just to let you know some way two small rocks about the size of a pencil eraser found their way into my right side fan. I was running the bike in the shop at idle and the fans didnt come on at the usual temp, and the temp kept climbing. I shut the bike down and took a long wooden dowel and tried to move the fan. It moved but was really tight. I kept messing with it and then heard two clicks under the bike and the fan freed right up..... looking under the bike I found the two rocks, That must have been a lucky shot to make it thru all the other crap and end up in the fan. Anyway replaced the 15a fan fuse and all is good. Just wanted to let you guys know.
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: maxtog on December 03, 2012, 07:12:29 PM
Scary stuff- sounds like you were lucky you didn't have a punctured radiator or at least a destroyed fan!
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: Pokey on December 03, 2012, 07:17:08 PM
Radiator guard was the 2nd thing I bought for my bike.
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: DenverC-14 on December 03, 2012, 07:34:25 PM
Radiator guard was the 2nd thing I bought for my bike.
We (in CO) too have the same Tar/gravel b.s. as well, and I've been hit many a time by small rocks. The rad guard was a necessity because after only a couple thousand miles my radiator looked like it had been hit by a claymore.
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: stevewfl on December 03, 2012, 08:33:05 PM
65,000 miles, KiPass has been my radiator guard.

I heard rocks hitting not only in Colorado but while off-roading in the desert too (Moab/Valley of Fire/Phoenix)
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: pistole on December 03, 2012, 09:27:09 PM
- seen this before , and it can happen whether or not you have a rad guard.

.
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: jamiemac on December 03, 2012, 09:44:40 PM
Radiator guard was the 2nd thing I bought for my bike.
Not seeing how a radiator guard would have prevented this.
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: VirginiaJim on December 04, 2012, 04:09:26 AM
+1.  Very little chance of a rock/pebble coming through the rad that could jam one of the fans without holing the rad.  I'm wondering, Roland, do you have a fender extender?
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: Pokey on December 04, 2012, 10:06:21 AM
Not seeing how a radiator guard would have prevented this.


True, just protects it better from everything else.  ;)
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: jamiemac on December 04, 2012, 11:00:01 AM
Not seeing how a radiator guard would have prevented this.
Reading this in print, it comes across kinda snotty. Sorry bout that. Not My intention.
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: Conrad on December 04, 2012, 11:26:46 AM
Not seeing how a radiator guard would have prevented this.

Reading this in print, it comes across kinda snotty. Sorry bout that. Not My intention.

You're right though. The rocks couldn't have come through the radiator, rather from the side.
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: jamiemac on December 04, 2012, 11:34:45 AM
I wonder if it's possible for debris to fling up and over the radiator, and drop into the fan from behind? If that is the case, a fender extender has some preventive merit.
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: VirginiaJim on December 04, 2012, 12:17:14 PM
I would think more from under but I'm thinking the same thing about the extender.
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: BMahar on December 04, 2012, 01:08:49 PM
  I had the same thing happen to my 2007 Bandit. I do have a fender extender on but the bike isn't full faired so the small rock got lodged between the fan and radiator.
 I didn't think this would happen to a fully faired bike.
 Certainly good information.
 Thank you Roland.
 Brent
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: roland on December 04, 2012, 07:58:02 PM
No fender extender or rad. guard.... Nothing went thru the rad. It had to have hit and bounced off the header pipe and went up to get into the fan. DAMIFINO but I guess kpass protected me from anything really bad happening.  ;D
Just wanted to let you guys know how weird the world can be.
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: stevewfl on December 04, 2012, 08:23:04 PM
No fender extender or rad. guard.... Nothing went thru the rad. It had to have hit and bounced off the header pipe and went up to get into the fan. DAMIFINO but I guess kpass protected me from anything really bad happening.  ;D
Just wanted to let you guys know how weird the world can be.

(http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j180/stevewfl/bigthumb.gif)
Title: Re: rocks jammed cooling fan
Post by: VirginiaJim on December 05, 2012, 04:10:56 AM
The front wheel can kick up all kinds of debris.  I'm beginning to think the fender extender is more of a protective device than the rad protector.