Slynky

I have a bit over 2k miles on mine now and have averaged anywhere between 37mpg and 46mpg depending on how and where I have ridden. The 46mpg was on a two-up trip where I rode pretty conservative. Overall I am probably averaging around 40mpg.

This is my third bike with belt drive and I've never had an issue with them at all. You can usually tell when they need adjustment , it will feel a little "jerky" taking off from a stop. Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Havent gotten that far on my Venture yet, but my Roadliner made it to 16,000 miles before the belt needed to be adjusted. It didnt need it again until the 48,000 mile service. Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Has anyone seen the new Arlen Ness accessories for the Venture/Eluder over on ShopYamaha? https://shopyamaha.com/accessories/Transcontinental-Touring?ls=Tour&nw=yamaha-motor-company&dealernumber=&fitment=2018%7C407 Good to see some new pieces coming out to dress up the bike. Not exactly loving these, but glad to see some new shiny bits coming out!

Here's my whole take on this... which may be a little surprising from a 3rd gen owner, but I will explain... I DO find my new Venture to be a little underpowered... now allow me to explain. I am coming from a 2006 Roadliner (mostly the same motor) which stock put out somewhere between 82 - 91 hp (depending on who's specs you read) and 104 - 117 ft/lbs torque (again depending on who's specs you read). Mine has aftermarket exhaust, intake, and a pc III and was dynoed at 98 hp and 124 ft/lbs torque. The new Venture at 75 hp and110 ft/lbs of torque stock feels a bit lacking in comparison... it just doesn't have the "throw you off the back" acceleration that the roadliner has. Right now... And the "right now" thing is the reason I'm not concerned... I know what this motor is capable of with only minor modifications. It's still new and there aren't any aftermarket performance parts yet, but they will come. It took about a year for a good number of the performance parts for the Roadliner to hit the market. So for those inclined to make their new Venture even faster, there will be lots of opportunity. I still have the Roadliner so I don't have any need to make the Venture faster or accelerate harder. Besides, if I really wanted to go fast, I'd have spent 70% less and bought a 600cc sport bike :-) I wanted to ride long distance in comfort, which my Roadliner can't do and this new Venture fills that role PERFECTLY for me.

I think this is a good, and healthy, discussion for the group to have given there has been an influx of new 3rd gen members like me here. I've never felt unwelcome here, but I have at times felt the need to defend my decision to purchase the 3rd gen... that said, it's completely understandable. There are passionate members here who LOVE their ride and when that ride changes, there will be friction between the old and new. It seems to be handled here in a mature and healthy way, so all good as far as I'm concerned. I've found cowpuc to be exceptionally knowledgeable and he correctly pointed out some inaccurate statements in my discussion on the air-cooled vs water-cooled discussion, which I appreciated. I've been in many owners forums over the years and this one is among the most mature and well behaved that I've ever seen. Glad to be a part of the group.

I only had to go thru the re-pairing process once... it's worked fine ever since. Not sure what's happening with yours, sorry. Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Try completely unpairing your phone from the bike (delete the entry on the bike for your phone and on your phone for the bike) and then rediscover and re-pair it. Mine got flaky after the update to 12.06 and I had to do that to straighten it out.

Yes and Yes.

Check that your iphone isn't going into "Do Not Disturb" mode... that would prevent it from displaying SMS messages. It will go into this mode whenever connected to Bluetooth if you have the feature enabled. I get the bike text messages on the infotainment system itself, not an actual text to my phone... but there aren't many of them. Back to the bluetooth issue... iPhones have a long and storied history of issues connecting to cars via bluetooth, no one seems sure why. Here is a link to a site that details some of these issues and offers some troubleshooting tips to try to get it to work. http://www.autoconnectedcar.com/2017/10/why-bluetooth-is-good-bad-in-ios-11-iphone-6-7-8-plus-x-for-car-owners-fixes-for-honda-bmw-ford-chevy-more/ Good luck! I have an android phone and the SMS feature works on my Venture.

Cowpuc - Thanks for the warm welcome! Below are some of the more popular forums for the Roadliner/Stratoliner... personally I mainly used the Delphi one. Your point about me picking a new Roadliner/Strat if they had placed the V4 in it is very good and well taken... that would have been a new engine for me and I likely would have had reservations. So, that said, I certainly understand the caution by the Gen 1 and 2 Venture owners over this change in engines. I would like to think that having come to a place like this and heard good reviews from current riders that my caution would have been eased... but I know there is no replacement for personal experience and I likely would not have been fully convinced without trying it myself. I would encourage anyone interested in the new Venture or Eluder to go introduce themselves on the Roadliner/Stratoliner forums and ask for opinions on the motor or any other point of concern. It may not sway you one way or another, but at least you will have more knowledge and that's never a bad thing :-) https://forums.delphiforums.com/starroadliner http://www.starbikeforums.com/forums/15-stratoliner-roadliner/ http://www.stratolinerdeluxe.com/

I posted a pic of her, can add more tonight when I get home from work. Coincidentally, she is in the shop today to have the break-in service done and to add the Nav system and foglights... I got the standard version as opposed to the TC. I will be picking her up tonight on my way home. I tend to look at engine reliability in a different way since I've owned so many different types of bikes with different types of engines... I've had a Suzuki Savage thumper, several twins, a V4, an Inline 4, and even a Triumph Speed Triple with 3 cylinders. I've had good and bad experiences with all of them to one degree or another... with the exception of the Roadliner which has just been bulletproof for me. It was that experience with this particular motor that led me to choosing the new Venture (and keeping the Roadliner since it's so damn much fun to ride). I get the point about air-cooled vs water-cooled and there certainly is validity to that, though I'm not sure that validity fully applies in this case... In pure air-cooled vs water-cooled, the water-cooled engine will tend to have a longer life on average. This motor though is not PURE air-cooled... it, and it's predecessor motor, are hybrids and have an oil-cooler that works pretty much exactly like a radiator in a water-cooled engine. Air blows across the oil-cooler and cools the oil which in turn helps cool the engine and also assists the oil with maintaining viscosity. The stock V-twins on older HDs were PURE air-cooled unless you added an aftermarket oil-cooler and only had the jug fins to help dissipate heat. This is one of the things that led to them having a tendency toward a shorter lifespan. So, IMHO, the whole air-cooled twin vs water-cooled V4 in this particular case is based on a partially incorrect premise.

I would consider ANY non-diesel motor as high mileage if it had more than 100k miles and I did not know the maintenance history. It wouldn't matter if it was a twin or a V4... or any other gasoline engine type. I'm certainly no expert, but both motor designs have their pros and cons and I've never seen an article by a true expert saying that lifespan is substantially better for one versus the other, if maintenance, usage type, and design/build quality are equal. I think the fact that probably 80%+ of the V-twins in existence were designed by a single manufacturer with a less than stellar reliability history could have skewed public opinion of V-twins in general to the point that there is a strong public sense that they don't last as long as other motor designs. Not bashing, I've owned two Harley's and loved them both. Check the Motoguzzi forums and you will find quite a lot of posts from riders who LOVE their twins and have substantial mileage on them. Or better yet, check the Star forums for Roadstar/Roadliner/Stratoliner/Raider V-twins and see how those users have experienced the modern V-twin designs of Yamaha.

I think this whole topic could easily become an overgeneralization of the merits of a V-twin vs a V4... there are good V4 motors and there are bad V4 motors... likewise there are good and bad V-twin motors. I know of several Stratoliner owners with 200k or more miles on their bikes without any issue, so the motor is certainly capable of that kind of mileage if properly maintained. Likewise I know of people with bikes with V4's that haven't even hit 100k... perhaps because of poor maintenance or perhaps poor engine design... but probably not just because it was a V4. Back in my early years, the Chevy big-block 396 was notorious for throwing rods... that didn't mean big block V8's were bad... that motor was just poorly designed. I think saying a particular type of motor is good/bad is an overgeneralization. Lifespan of a motor has far more to do with quality of maintenance, design quality, and the type of use... (highway miles are "easier" on a motor than city driving).

As a new 3rd Gen owner, I've been lurking here on the forum for a few weeks... I registered on the forum so I could respond to this question with my perspective... Over the years, I've owned several makes and models of bikes. Prior to the new Venture, my most recent bike, which I still own and love is an '06 Roadliner. I have well over 100k miles on that bike and it has never given me anything but pleasure and rock solid reliability. I was window-shopping new bikes and came across the new Venture and Eluder... I had never considered a true touring bike until I saw these and instantly recognized the motor that had given me so many years and miles of faithful service. My wife was with me, so we hopped on and took a test ride on both the Eluder and the Venture. She was sold on the Venture as it provided so nicely for her comfort. That sealed the deal and I bought the bike that afternoon. I've had it for close to a month now and have zero regrets. It definitely feels a little "neutered" compared to my Roadliner, but I have quite a bit of aftermarket performance pieces added to that, so I can't truly remember how it felt stock. Had I not recognized the 113 CI motor in the Venture and Eluder, I doubt my interest in test-riding a touring bike would ever have been piqued. So from my perspective, the motor is the reason I tried the bike. If it didn't have the motor I already knew so well, it's unlikely I'd have given it a chance. For those of us who came from the Roadliner/Stratoliner family, the new 3rd Gens provide an attractive upgrade into the world of touring bikes. Cheers! -Rob