American

Yamaha spin on oil filter part number. ELEMENT ASSY, OIL CLEANER (5GH-13440-60-00) I understand that someone used the K&N 303 oil filter as well so you might try doing a search for that one as long as it cross references to above part number you are good to go. There seems to be multiple oil filters with the above part number but where the number 60 is it is a different number, apparently the oil filter with the number 50 also fits and works. Weird all I can find in the service manual, not the owners manual but the service manual is cartridge filter with a drawing of a spin on oil filter, no part numbers. My 600 mile service the dealer printed the above part number listed on my invoice. but they installed a (5GH-13440-50-00) on the engine. I think the above part number with the number 60 in it may be the latest release for the oil filter. When I did online searches for oil filter for the 2018 Star Venture that is the oil filter part number that came up.

I purchased the 2018 Star Venture Transcontinental and now have 1,000 miles on it, the handling is fantastic, low speed parking lot maneuvering is very stable and easy to control, this does not feel like a 963 pound bike. Cornering while riding is precise and you can make mid corner correction without upsetting the bike, it just makes the correction and your gone. Those who tried to speculate on how this bike would ride and handle are 180 degree wrong. This Star Venture handles better than both my 2013 Victory Cross Country Tour and my 2016 Harley Davidson Ultra Limited Low. As for temperature I feel no more heat from this Star Venture's 113 CI engine than I did from the Victory's 106 CI engine or the Harley's 103 CI engine and the Harley was a twin cool engine. I live in Southwest Florida so it gets hot and muggy here, I really do not see engine heat being an issue for me. I have owned a 1989 Honda GoldWing GL1500, 2013 Victory Cross Country Tour and a 2016 Harley Davidson Ultra Limited Low before this Yamaha Star Venture and of the four bikes this Star Venture is hands down the best bike of the four, the power, handling and comfort of this bike is just head and shoulders above the others.

For those worried about Yamaha and feeling you have to use Yamalube when was the last time anyone can document an oil related engine failure that was not because of someone running the engine low on oil. I can't think of any.

I think you mean API service SG or higher. As to the Mobil One V-Twin oil I think Mobil might have developed that for the Harley Davidson because it does not share its engine oil with the clutch and transmission. You can run energy conserving oils in the Harley V-Twin because of that. I prefer the group V synthetic that Redline uses for my engines.

Just for information on the Yamalube oils: 10w-40 is conventional all purpose oil. 20w-50 is conventional all purpose oil. 10w-50 semi-synthetic. 20w-50 semi-synthetic. 15w-50 full synthetic. So Yamalube comes in either semi-synthetic or conventional oil in 20w-50 so if you don't want conventional oil but want to run 20w-50 make sure you are getting the semi-synthetic version of Yamalube 20w-50. If you want to run full synthetic you only have 15w-50 as your choice in Yamalube. This is for those who only want to run Yamalube brand oil. Redline synthetic oil meets Yamaha's SG or higher requirement and it meets the JASO MA standard, so Redline is another choice if you want to run full synthetic engine oil. I have run Redline synthetic oils in all my vehicles for years, I run Redline 0w-20 in my wife's 2016 Honda Civic Touring with a Turbo Charger, I run Redline 0w-40 in my 2016 Ram 2500 with the 6.4 liter Hemi engine, I ran Redline 10w-40 in my old 2013 Victory Cross Country Tour, I ran Redline 20w-50 in my 2016 Harley Davidson Ultra Limited Low as well as Redline Primary oil and Redline Transmission oil as the Harley has three separate holes to fill.

This is right out of the 2018 Star Venture service manual: Recommended brand Yamalube SAE viscosity grades 10w-40, 10w-50, 15w-40, 20w-40 or 20w-50. Recommended engine oil grade API service SG type or higher, JASO standard MA. Of course every manufacture recommends their own brand of engine oil. Notice Engine oil also lubricates the clutch and the wrong oil types or additives could cause clutch slippage. Therefore, do not add any chemical additives or use engine oils with a grade of "CD" or higher and do not use oils labeled "Energy Conserving II". As long as you are using an oil that is SG or higher with the JASO standard MA you are good to go.

It was 89 degrees today on my ride this morning, heat was a non issue, Yamaha did a great job with heat management. One thing to remember you have 113 CI's of engine sitting between your legs you are going to feel some heat no matter if it is air/oil cooled or a liquid cooled bike. Energy produces heat, that is just a fact of life but Yamaha manages the heat very well on this bike.

That could be a wear issue as that is where your hand is going to go to close the trunk. I put a piece of 3M clear paint protector film over that area today after seeing your picture to protect the paint.

Actually Yamaha could win a court case against you on this, the kicker is Yamaha is required to provide the oil for free for the duration of the warranty period per the Magnuson-Moss warranty act. A manufacture may control what part you are allowed to use but in exchange for that while the vehicle is under warranty the manufacture has to provide said part(s) free of charge to the customer because they are denying the customer choice of aftermarket parts. I bet no one is getting free oil from Yamaha during the warranty period.

He is likely not hearing spark knock but rather the upper valve train is what he is hearing, Yamaha to my understanding even designed the valve covers to provide some sound deadening to help quite down top end of the engine. Spark knock is easy to identify, it will be like a pinging sound like if you go to your silverware drawer in your kitchen and grab a hand full of silverware and dropped it back down into the drawer by sliding out of your hand the metallic sound it makes is very close to what engine ping sounds like. I can hear the upper valve train on my Star Venture and it is not engine ping. If you want to try and deaden the sound some more a full synthetic oil like Redline might help a little bit but you are likely always going to hear some sound from the upper valve train on this engine. I rather like it myself, the mechanical sound it emits is like music to me. Those eight valves all playing a symphony of mechanical engineering. Between that and the low rumble of he stock exhaust this bike makes perfect engine music. As to the fuel just put in premium, the cost difference to fill up the 6.6 gallon tank is at most two dollars if you ran the tank completely dry

Yes you will here the top end of the engine on most V-Twins. Nothing to worry about.

How does it install on the seat, do you have to drill any holes? Does it bolt to the under lying frame of the bike?

Nice review, I don't think heat is an issue as I have had a Victory Cross Country Tour and a Harley Ultra Limited Low and this bike puts out no more heat than either the Victory or the Harley did. I am comfortable with the heat of the bike and I live in Southwest Florida and it gets hot and muggy down here. Wife and I rode today and the temps got up to 88 degree and we were perfectly comfortable. Hope you enjoy many miles and years with your Star Venture as I love mine. This is the bike I have always wanted and after reading about the weak suspension on the 2018 GoldWing Tour I am glad the Honda dealers were not willing to do business and take my Harley Ultra Limited Low on trade, I think I got the better bike in the Yamaha in the end.

I read that one, that is the one I believe I got the information about tip over.

I contacted Klock Werks about their flair windshield, they said they have no plans for the 2018 Venture but they will watch how well the bike is selling and decide for 2019. I had a Knock Werks flair on my Harley and it worked great. If you guys are interested contact them and let them know that are Star Venture owners out here that are looking for products.

Who will win the gold, silver and bronze? Pretty good review I don't agree on a couple of points about the Indian being harder to control because of its fork mounted fairing. http://ridermagazine.com/2018/04/06/2018-harley-road-glide-ultra-vs-indian-roadmaster-vs-yamaha-star-venture-tc-comparo-review/#comment-1098934

Who is the manufacture for the Star Venture front and rear brake calibers? I am thinking of getting a set of speed bleeders, I had them on my Victory and it made changing the brake fluid and bleeding the breaks super easy and a one person job.

Good, I love my collection of 1911's two Les Baer's (Stainless Custom Carry, Blued Centennial with real ivory grips), two Ed Brown's (Special Forces, Blued Centennial) and a Kimber. My Colt Python is my retirement gun when I retired from FHP, I sent it back to Colt in 2010 when I retired to have them refinish it and go through it making like new again. I also have a stainless made in Italy Beretta 92FS, a Sig Sauer P226 and a Sig Sauer P229.

I doubt longevity is going to be an issue, there is a guy who rode a Victory 250,000 miles and they are air/oil cooled, there was a women who has since passed on that rode her Victory over 100,000 miles again air/oil cooled engine. Yamaha put a lot of technology into the engine to make sure it could withstand the environment, this is from the design of the new 113 engine in the Star Venture: Engine “We had a lot of discussion around engine type—liquid-cooled, oil-cooled, strictly air-cooled,” Brooks says. “But why develop a new system when we didn’t need it? Our basic air-cooled design was well proven. It doesn’t overheat, it’s extremely durable, and heat dissipation is great with the ceramic-composite liners. Liquid-cooling just adds weight and complexity.”

My last three bikes have been V-Twins, 2013 Victory Cross Country Tour, 2016 Harley Davidson Ultra Limited Low and now this 2018 Yamaha Star Venture Transcontinental and all three bikes are similar in the amount of heat you feel with none of them non ridable on hot days and down here in Southwest Florida we get some hot humid days. My liquid cooled bike was a 1989 GoldWing GL1500 and it had its own issues with heat as it would cook your left foot from the heat radiating off the rear of the left cylinder head.

I have ridden my Star Venture Transcontinental in temps as high as 92 degrees already and this bike did not cook me either. Do you feel heat, sure, but I have felt heat from every motorcycle I have ever owned including my liquid cooled GoldWing GL1500 which would cook your left foot and I mean literally cook your left foot. My Harley Rushmore TwinCool let off the same amount of heat this Star Venture does. I don't feel any difference between this Star Venture and my old Victory Cross Country Tour which was also an air/oil cooled engine. Liquid cooled bikes still get hot, and when the cooling fan turns on for the radiator some bikes you get a blast of hot air worse than an air cooled engine. I rode my Star Venture today to lunch and had no issue with engine heat.

I have some great news, I just read a review on the 2018 Star Venture and in the review it was revealed one of the riders dropped a Star Venture in a parking lot and the bike only falls about 45 degrees with no damage. That is the first information I have read about tip over and the results. I have read where many were concerned about no tip over bars on the rear but the bags are bolted on with four bolts and they have a plastic piece that protects the bag in the event of a tip over while the front does have a nicely hidden crash bar. Here is the the review: http://www.motorcycle.com/manufacturer/yamaha/2018-yamaha-star-venture-first-ride.html

Here is the state of California driver hand book about helmets: [h=1]Motorcycle Handbook Preparing to Ride[/h][h=2]Wear the Right Gear[/h]When you ride, you have a far better chance of avoiding serious injury when you wearing protective gear and apparel. By law, you must wear: A U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) compliant motorcycle safety helmet. It is highly suggested you wear: Face and/or eye protection. Protective apparel, such as a leather or long sleeve jacket with reflective material, long heavy pants, over the ankle closed-toe boots, and full-fingered leather gloves. More information on wearing the right gear and protective apparel is covered in the following pages. [h=3]Helmet Use[/h]All riders and passengers are required per CVC §27803 to wear a U.S. DOT compliant motorcycle safety helmet when riding a motorcycle, motor-driven cycle, or motorized bicycle. The motorcycle safety helmet must be certified by the manufacturer stating the helmet complies with U.S. DOT Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 218. Head injuries account for the majority of serious and fatal motorcyclist injuries and, with few exceptions, head injuries are reduced by properly wearing a motorcycle safety helmet. Here are some facts to consider: Most collisions happen on short trips (less than five miles long). Most riders are riding slower than 30 mph when a collision occurs. At these speeds, a U.S. DOT compliant motorcycle safety helmet can cut both the number and the severity of head injuries by 50 percent. A non-U.S. DOT compliant helmet generally has very thin liners and protective padding. These types of helmets lack the strength, size, and ability to protect the rider during a collision. A non-U.S. DOT compliant helmet may look like U.S. DOT compliant helmets and may be sold alongside U.S. DOT compliant helmets. Make sure the U.S. DOT certification is on the helmet you wish to purchase. Non-U.S. DOT compliant helmets may be referred to as novelty helmets, rain bonnets, lids, loophole lids, beanies, or brain buckets. A U. S. DOT compliant helmet may be decorated by the owner with stick-on items such as decals, Mohawks, Viking horns, etc. and will not affect the safety properties of the helmet. In a collision, regardless of speed, if you are wearing a U.S. DOT compliant motorcycle safety helmet you are three times more likely to survive a head injury than if you are not wearing a U.S. DOT compliant motorcycle safety helmet. [h=3]Helmet Selection[/h]There are three types of helmets to consider: A half shell, three quarters or full-face helmet. The full-face helmet with a lock-in visor, offers the best coverage and protection to the back sides of your head. Whichever style you choose, you get the most protection by making sure the helmet: Meets U.S. DOT safety standards and has the manufactuer-applied DOT lettering on the back of the helmet. NOTE: The DOT lettering should not be a stick-on label or easily removed. Fits snugly, all the way around. Has no obvious defects such as cracks, loose padding or frayed straps. Is securely fastened on your head when you ride. Otherwise, if you are involved in a collision, it may come off your head before it gets a chance to protect you. Face, Eye, and Ear ProtectionA plastic shatter-resistant face shield can help protect your whole face in a collision. Face shields, when lowered and locked-in, offer protection from wind, dust, dirt, rain, insects, pebbles, and other debris. Face shields, when lowered and locked-in, protect your face. Goggles only protect your eyes. A windshield is not a substitute for a face shield or goggles. Most windshields will not protect your eyes from wind, nor will eyeglasses or sunglasses. Glasses will not keep your eyes from watering, and they might blow off when you turn your head. To be effective, eye or face shield protection must: Be free of scratches. Be resistant to punctures. Give a clear view to either side. Fasten securely, so it does not blow off or up. Permit air to pass through, to reduce fogging. Permit enough room for eyeglasses or sunglasses, if needed. NOTE: Tinted eye protection or tinted face shields should not be worn at night or when little light is available. To protect against the elements of nature, such as wind, which can cause hearing loss, you may want to use ear protection. The CVC §27400 states a person may not wear a headset covering, earplugs, or earphones in both ears, unless the protectors (earplugs or molds) are specifically designed to reduce harmful (injurious) noise levels. The headset coverings, earplugs, or earphones must not inhibit the wearer's ability to hear a siren or horn from an emergency vehicle or another motor vehicle.

That is total BS about California not allowing white helmets, that was a rogue police officer who abused his authority. I am a retired police officer from the state of Florida by the way. If white helmets were against the law in California then all the sites that sell helmets would have to provide a disclaimer that a white helmet is illegal in California and I have yet to see any site provide such a disclaimer. Being a half helmet does not matter as long as it is DOT certified. You got hosed by a rogue police officer. Here is the helmet law in California and no where in it does it say anything about the color or type of helmet other than the helmet must meet DOT certification. STATUTE: California Vehicle Code, Division 12, Chapter 5, Article 7, Section 27803. "(a) A driver and any passenger shall wear a safety helmet meeting requirements established pursuant to Section 27802 when riding on a motorcycle, motor-driven cycle, or motorized bicycle. "(b) It is unlawful to operate a motorcycle, motor-driven cycle, or motorized bicycle if the driver or any passenger is not wearing a safety helmet as required by subdivision (a). "© It is unlawful to ride as a passenger on a motorcycle, motor-driven cycles, or motorized bicycle if the driver or any passenger is not wearing a safety helmet as required by subdivision (a). "(d) This section applies to persons who are riding on motorcycles, motor-driven cycles, or motorized bicycles operated on the highways. "(e) For the purposes of this section, 'wear a safety helmet' or 'wearing a safety helmet' means having a safety helmet meeting the requirements of Section 27802 (see :Standards" below) on the person's head that is fastened with the helmet straps and that is of a size that fits the wearing person's head securely without excessive lateral or vertical movement. "(f) In enacting this section, it is the intent of the Legislature to ensure that all persons are provided with an additional safety benefit while operating or riding a motorcycle, motor-driven cycle, or motorized bicycle." FINE: In California . . . it depends on who you ask. The LAW says (in pertinent part): Section 40303.5: "Whenever any person is arrested for any of the following offenses, the arresting officer shall permit the arrested person to execute a notice containing a promise to correct the violation in accordance with the provisions of 40610 unless the arresting officer finds that any of the disqualifying conditions specified in the subdivision (b) of Section 40610 exist: . . . (d) Any infraction involving equipment set forth in Division 12 (commencing with Section 240000) . . . (Note: which includes section 27803, the helmet law.)" Section 40610(b) states: "Pursuant to subdivision (a), a notice to correct violation shall be issued as provided in this section . . . unless the officer finds any of the following: "(1) Evidence of fraud or persistent neglect. "(2) The violation presents an immediate safety hazard. "(3) The violator does not agree to, or cannot, promptly correct the violation." Therefore, a violation of California's helmet law is -- as a matter or Law according to the language of the statutes -- an equipment violation, and carries with it only a need to show "proof of correction" and the payment of a $10fine. However, . . . The CHP (California Highway Patrol) says: CHP Enforcement Bulletin #42, issued in May, 1994, states that a violation of CVC 27803 constitutes an "immediate safety hazard" and is therefore not correctable as provided in Section 40303.5 (see above). The California Judicial Council affirmed this edict, and for the most part the California courts pretty much disregard everything but the wishes of the CHP . . . and that includes disregarding the Law.So, the fine for violation of California's helmet law can be anything from $10 and "proof of correction" up to $250.00 and one year's probation. It all depends on who you ask! STANDARDS: California Vehicle Code, Division 12, Chapter 5, Article 7, Section 27802. "(a) The department may adopt reasonable regulations establishing specifications and standards for safety helmets offered for sale, or sold, for use by drivers and passengers of motorcycles and motorized bicycles as it determines are necessary for the safety of those drivers and passengers. The regulations shall include, but are not limited to, the requirements imposed by Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 218 (49 C.F.R. Sec. 571.218) and may include compliance with that federal standard by incorporation of its requirements by reference. Each helmet sold or offered for sale for use by drivers and passengers of motorcycles and motorized bicycles shall be conspicuously labeled in accordance with the federal standard which shall constitute the manufacturer's certification that the helmet conforms to the applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards. "(b) No person shall sell, or offer for sale, for use by a driver or passenger of a motorcycle or motorized bicycle any safety helmet which is not of a type meeting requirements established by the department." COURT DECISIONS: " . . . it is clear the law requires only that the consumer wear a helmet bearing a certification of compliance." Buhl v. Hannigan 16 Cal.App. 4th 1612 (1993)." . . . the statement in Buhl that consumer compliance with the state law only requires the consumer to wear a helmet bearing the DOT self-certification sticker does not apply when a helmet has been shown not to conform with federal standards and the consumer has actual knowledge of this fact." Bianco v. California Highway Patrol, 24 Cal.App. 4th 1113 (1994). "The courts held that citations should only be issued in two situations: (1) when a helmet was not certified by the manufacturer at the time of sale or (2) when a rider wearing a helmet certified by the manufacturer at the time of sale has actual knowledge of a showing of a determination of non-conformity with federal standards. . . . or (3) Other competent objective evidence from independent laboratory testing that the helmet does not meet FMVSS 218." Easyriders v. Hannigan (887 F.SUPP. 240).

Thank you I was looking under headlights.