How to remove the fairing from a Yamaha Virago

[toker4two0]

Hey everyone... I've 'inherited' a 1982 Yamaha Virago 920cc, which has sat for the past 5 years... with the battery hooked up and gas in it's tank (shudder) - I know, I know, I could just kill my dad for that..

Anyways... Apparently this bike (920cc w/ the added extras) wasn't sold in the U.S.? I couldn't find any pictures of it online so I've attached some picts of it for you to see. I also can't really find any info online, and I searched these forums and didn't come up with any applicable results. The bike was imported in 1985 according to the paperwork. But it's year is a 1982.
[/img]http://www.flickr.com/photos/toker4twoz ... 18515/[img]
[/img]http://www.flickr.com/photos/toker4twoz ... 18516/[img]
[/img]http://www.flickr.com/photos/toker4twoz ... 18517/[img]


Here's what I want to do, I want to remove all the crap on it and give it a traditional cruiser look. At first glance this didn't appear to difficult.. the luggage and seat back in the rear just come right off as well as the bracket for them. My problem is the front fairing.

As you can see the bike's turn signals and front headlight are built into the fairing. There is also a little plastic box in front of the handlebars/forks with cables galore going in/out of it. The tach/speedometer/gas/battery gauges are all electronic, and they amazingly work. The unit which houses all the gauges only seems to have one cable going into the lower left part of it's housing.

My question becomes.. other than undoing all of the bolts that holds that heavy humongous thing on the front... how do I actually remove it? And will the cables which go to the headlight, turn signals, and gauges be interchangeable with a nice round headlight I can buy, and some normal chrome dial gauges? Or is this going to be a major rewiring deal. My guess is that Yamaha probably made a generic harnass that every variation of that bike uses, and you can just plug the different components into.. but who knows.

I'm not a mechanic, but I do work on my old VW Bus and Porsche 914, so I feel fairly confident in handling simple tasks. Is this something I need to take it to a shop for? I'm loathe to just start unplugging things before I know what I'm getting into... so any info would be appreciated, especially since I've never worked on a motorcycle before....

And one last catch-all question.. since it sat for so long, here's what I'm planning to do to get it up and running. Oil change (15/40 Castrol ok?) and rear differential - or whatever that thing is called - change (GL5 80/90 weight o.k.?).. plugs, clean the carb (any tips on how to do that?), replace fuel filter, and replace any wires/hoses that are deteriorated. Also bleed the front disc brake and run new fluid in there. What else do I need to be looking at? When it was stored it was in perfect running condition, it just wasn't stored properly

Thanks in advance for any information and help you may have for me..

[toker4two0]

come on guys....... no ideas at all? Is there anymore info that I can provide?

[sidecarguy]

i dont think thats the original fairing

it looks like a seca turbo fairing to me!

but then i dunno maybe the virago had it?

[Sev]

i dont think thats the original fairing

it looks like a seca turbo fairing to me!

but then i dunno maybe the virago had it?

Two keys to the left of the right hand shift button there is a little key marked with the following symbols: ">" ".". The "." button is used to indicate the end or halt of a complete thought, and it typically followed by 2 spaces.

[sidecarguy]

>> << ??

is that a complete thought??

[storysunfolding]

You should be able to find a new headlight and turn signals that work for you. You can always find gauges that work. You should have no problem doing this if you've worked on cars. As far as the carbs, search the site to find lots of ways to clean them. You can fully dissemble them and dip all the metal (metal only) parts in berrymans carb cleaner overnight to get the best results. Or you can spray the whole thing down with carb cleaner making sure to get into every litle nook, cranny and hole- but there's no gaurantee you'll get everything out that way.

I would call yamaha and find out what oil they recommend, since you never know what your bike is supposed to take without your manual or a haynes repair manual.

After five years the battery should probably be replaced. Look at your tires for flat spots or cracking in the rubber. look at the rubber all over the bike, if anything is cracked or coming apart replace it (manifold boots, hoses, etc). You'll want to flush your brake system and make sure that the brakes work alright. You'll want to flush teh cooling system if you have one- didn't look. replace all fluids obviously... I'm sure there are a few things I'm missing

First, I'd get a new battery, clean the carbs, replace the plugs and see if you can start teh damned thing before doing anything else.

[dr_bar]

Looks almost like the fairing on this '82 Maxim...


http://totalmotorcycle.com/BBS/album_sh ... ic_id=1788