I have a bad handle bar buzz.

Trucku@

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I just purchased a 2018 S10 ES. It is brand new, I have about 150 miles on it so far and I can not believe how bad the buzz in the handlebars is. Within minutes of starting a ride my finger tips on both hands are going numb. I do not hold on the grips excessively tight and I do not have this issue with my other bikes. I also think the engine noise (loud sewing machine) is a bit excessive too. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 

Trucku@

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Ok. I have owned so many bikes and I was wondering about after the break in. I am overly concerned about every thing on this bike, the engine seems overly noisey at idle and the dealer that I purchased it from were completely inept in preparing the bike properly for delivery.
 

gv550

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It will smooth out somewhat after a few thousand miles, the engine is and will always be noisy (wear ear plugs), balance the throttle bodies, add grip puppies, keep the revs up (don't lug the engine).
 
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ballisticexchris

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First thing I would do is make sure your wheels are balanced and your steering head bearings are tight. Mine were already loose at 600 mile service.
 

Trucku@

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I am not sure how well the wheels are balanced or how the steering head bearing tightness is. I bought this 2018 last week, brand new 1 mile on the odo. from a dealer and it had been sitting there for over two years. they sold me the bike and pretty much didn't to do anything to it, even though they charged me a prep fee. They had to come pick it up and take it back to the dealer to really go through it, I just don't know how much work they actually did. Tires and suspension and steering seem to feel fine. I just put the grip puppies on. I think I have been keeping my rpms a bit on the low side, but not lugging, thinking best for break in period.
 

escapefjrtist

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As others have said, get a few thousand miles on the bike, likely 7 - 9K miles. The engine will always sound close to an old diesel tractor. With time, it will get much better. I picked up a new "0" mile '18 in January. After finally being able to ride it in late February (long story, $hit dealer prep, missing parts) it now has a over 1400 miles. Just beginning to smooth out, start well and generally feel better. No where near my 40k mile '12 that I got rid of, but it'll come.

~G
 

Cycledude

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Yes the 1200 Tenere engine noises are annoying especially if your used to something much smoother, the 2012-2013 are even worse. But generally all years have been reliable.
i haven’t experienced any significant vibration issues but my 2018 is considerably smoother than the previous 2013.
One thing I have noticed is if I ride on rough roads that cause me to hold on to the grips a little tighter than normal it doesn’t take long for the tingling in my fingers to start, in my case looser fitting gloves seems to cure the issue.
 

Sierra1

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Yeah, sewing machine, would not be my descriptor. Somebody here called it "agricultural". That's much more accurate. The FJR would qualify for "sewing machine" though. . . . smooth as silk.
 

fac191

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Thank you all for the feedback. Makes me feel a bit better about the bike after the dealer was a sh!t show.
Dude i have problems with my right hand thats why i needed a bike with cruise control. I am prone to vibes. I have grip puppies they are great and a cheap place to start. As they make the grips thicker i find that much better as i don't clench my hands as much around them. As the guys say once you get a few thou on it most things get sorted out. My 15 ES had 3300 on it when i got it so i dont know what its like from new but mine was great and my arse will go before my wrist !. I wouldn't really worry about running it in. Just ride it like you would anyway you wont hurt it. Enjoy your riding.
 

Heyder

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I had an ST 2012 that I also felt this vibration and an excessive noise in the engine. My current ST 2017 does not show any vibration that bothers me and the engine noise is much less. Particularly, I noticed a difference between the two. I know that there were some minor changes between them. This is also more economical.
 

WJBertrand

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I was super impressed how smooth this engine runs down the highway at 70 MPH. Lower speeds I can feel the firing impulses, but this not the same as what I would call vibration. Maybe have the throttle body sync checked? Noise wise, this thing was quite a shock after 20 years of riding ST1100/ST1300s. I was convinced it was about to scatter parts all over the road any minute. 72K miles later - no parts lost and I’ve gotten used to how it sounds. I’ve since heard a few other Ténérés and they all sound the same.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 

EricV

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@Trucku@ - Welcome to the forum. Please take a minute to add your location to your profile. It gives context to your posts and allows others to give you better answers.

Sorry you are having issues with vibrations. There are a few things you can check to see if they help. Like others, I preferred grip buddies or puppies, but vibes was not my reason for those.

Check to see how tight the bolts are on the bottom of the handlebar risers. There is a rubber isolation feature there on your '18. If these bolts are loose, or way over tightened, it could result in more vibration at the bars. You should be able to feel some play/movement if you just push the bars around in the garage, that's ok. If they are completely solid, the dealer may have over tightened them. Normally they don't mess with that when assembling the bike, IIRC. Someone here with a FSM might be willing to look up the torque spec on those for you.

On a brand new bike, you shouldn't be too concerned with vibes right away. The tires still need to wear in a bit, (especially for tires that have been sitting for two years or more), and the various mechanical bits need to break in a bit more. I've had both Gen I and II bikes and both were smoother after ~6k miles or so. That said, you should notice some improvement over zero miles after 500 miles or so, just from natural wear and use.

The engine noise is normal. Compared to other designs, the parallel twin is a noisy engine with a very long cam chain. What bike did you come off of before buying this?
 

Trucku@

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Seneca, South Carolina.
@Trucku@ - Welcome to the forum. Please take a minute to add your location to your profile. It gives context to your posts and allows others to give you better answers.

Sorry you are having issues with vibrations. There are a few things you can check to see if they help. Like others, I preferred grip buddies or puppies, but vibes was not my reason for those.

Check to see how tight the bolts are on the bottom of the handlebar risers. There is a rubber isolation feature there on your '18. If these bolts are loose, or way over tightened, it could result in more vibration at the bars. You should be able to feel some play/movement if you just push the bars around in the garage, that's ok. If they are completely solid, the dealer may have over tightened them. Normally they don't mess with that when assembling the bike, IIRC. Someone here with a FSM might be willing to look up the torque spec on those for you.

On a brand new bike, you shouldn't be too concerned with vibes right away. The tires still need to wear in a bit, (especially for tires that have been sitting for two years or more), and the various mechanical bits need to break in a bit more. I've had both Gen I and II bikes and both were smoother after ~6k miles or so. That said, you should notice some improvement over zero miles after 500 miles or so, just from natural wear and use.

The engine noise is normal. Compared to other designs, the parallel twin is a noisy engine with a very long cam chain. What bike did you come off of before buying this?
Thank you for the info. I have ridden so many bikes in my past, mostly big cruisers and those vibrations were different than this buzz I am feeling. I also own a Yamaha VMax Gen2 and that is a different vibration in the handlebars as well.
I put the grip puppies on last week and that did help a little, plus I have big hands and like the diameter a bit better. I will check the riser bolts and see where they are for tension. I currently have 725 miles on S10. I have to put some risers on and am not sure if I need the anti-vibration ones from Rox. I am not really good with this computer stuff and can not figure out where to go in my profile to put my location info. I am in South Carolina outside of Greenville.
 
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EricV

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I see you have success with the profile. :cool: On the Rox risers, you need to remember to order for the correct Gen, as they are different and the Gen I versions will not clamp correctly to support the bars on the Gen II.

Someone previously tried installing Rox Anti-Vibe risers on a Gen II and between the OEM flex and the Rox flex, it was too excessive in the amount of movement. If you consider how the lengths of risers will act as levers and the amount of force you can exert with the bars at the end of these lever points, it's quite a fulcrum! Rox does not sell Anit-Vibe risers that fit the Gen II bikes. Here is their fitment chart - LINK (scroll to the bottom for the Super Ten fitments)
 

Trucku@

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Seneca, South Carolina.
I see you have success with the profile. :cool: On the Rox risers, you need to remember to order for the correct Gen, as they are different and the Gen I versions will not clamp correctly to support the bars on the Gen II.

Someone previously tried installing Rox Anti-Vibe risers on a Gen II and between the OEM flex and the Rox flex, it was too excessive in the amount of movement. If you consider how the lengths of risers will act as levers and the amount of force you can exert with the bars at the end of these lever points, it's quite a fulcrum! Rox does not sell Anit-Vibe risers that fit the Gen II bikes. Here is their fitment chart - LINK (scroll to the bottom for the Super Ten fitments)
I was wondering about the anti-vibe on the Gen 2 bikes. I thank you for your knowledge on this. I will order the non anti-vibe risers as not to make things any worse or difficult for my ride.
 

scott123007

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Just a minor correction on what EricV said about over tightening the handlebar clamps. They cannot be overtightened per se, as they have spacers inside the rubber vibration isolators that the nut and washer bottom out against. I don't have the torque value available, but they are supposed to be "tight".
 
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ballisticexchris

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FWIW the lower handlebar nuts are 32Nm/23ft lbf. I would recommend starting at pulling the front wheel and see if it's balanced. Also check spokes to make sure they are all tight. Then move your way up checking the steering stem and bars. When I got my bike home the bars were between 1/16"-1/8" off center and were not torqued to specs. My axle was also dry coming out front and rear.

Basically get out your service manual and at a minimum remove both wheels, lube axles, and check all suspension and steering components for proper torque. While you have it apart, disassemble the calipers and lubricate the guide pins. They are a little dry from the factory.

My dealer did a pretty decent pre delivery inspection on the Super Tenere. I'm spoiled from the KTM and Beta experience of having a real PDI done. Both those bikes were setup ready to go.
 

AVGeek

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Thank you for the info. I have ridden so many bikes in my past, mostly big cruisers and those vibrations were different than this buzz I am feeling. I also own a Yamaha VMax Gen2 and that is a different vibration in the handlebars as well.
I put the grip puppies on last week and that did help a little, plus I have big hands and like the diameter a bit better. I will check the riser bolts and see where they are for tension. I currently have 725 miles on S10. I have to put some risers on and am not sure if I need the anti-vibration ones from Rox. I am not really good with this computer stuff and can not figure out where to go in my profile to put my location info. I am in South Carolina outside of Greenville.
If you need any help with the computer stuff, you can reach out to me. If you hover your mouse over my picture on this post, a box should pop up with some information including a Start Conversation button. Click on that and it will start a message with me for any help you may need.
 
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