WK400 owners thread.

[Britmech]

Smoking is it on start up or once it was run for a short while ?

[NortonW360]

No ideas on the smoke. I've seen reports that reckon the engine is based on a detuned xbr500 so I wouldn't be confident which spares if any you could use from Honda

[Gazgazzler]

The bike smokes after running a while, the vid shows it after a 30 minute run

[Gazgazzler]

Thanks, I had a look at that engine, although similar overall the oil filter housing etc looks like it is different different, but the WK400 is the same as the XR400

[Bojer]

Does the oil level go down and does it smell of oil ? Just with it being white "smoke" and you mentioned the breather filling up with water could it somehow still be water vapour ? Odd as its after a good run though .
Brit bikes and the like will give white smoke when wet sumped as there is so much oil and at a low temperature but you'd expect it to be blue ....
The motor does seem to be based on the South American NX400 , a XR400 derivative but whether the rings are the same not sure anyone could be certain .

[netsonic]

Hi guys, I bought Graham’s bike above and he didn’t hide the fact, but the bike is very smokey – a lot more than just running in smoke. I have no issue with Graham, I got it at a very good price, but I do need to move forward with the problem. Initially I noticed that the breather system was completely blocked, so I cleaned this out and this was a massive improvement but not quite right. I then removed the tank and noticed a crushed emissions pipe and sorted that out, only a minor improvement. Next the oil level seemed high, so I changed the oil and filter (and also the gauze at the bottom of the frame), took it out for another run (10+ miles), but its just still belching white smoke on tick over (see video below). The breather system vent pipe is also filling with water – which is very, very strange – maybe just condensation?

I tried changing the plug as I wanted to do a compression test to prove the rings, but my 18mm socket spanner didn’t fit, and after reading up, it’s a bugger to change out without a very thin wall socket.
Anyway to cut a long story, slightly shorter. I am going to bite the bullet and change the rings and get the bore polished. Question is, as it’s a copy of XR400 engine, can I buy Honda parts or uprated aftermarket Honda parts and pop them in (hopefully a better quality and readily available).





This is a video of the smoke, just back from a good run, so bike is hot,

Cheers and thanks for any feedback – apart from the above, there have just been minor, easily fixable items, sticking throttle (Graham may want some Moroccan sand back on that one!), I shortened and cranked out the side stand (as it fell over twice in one day!) and a few minor electric issues.
So hopefully, I can use Honda parts and hopefully get out on a properly soon!

Phil

Hi Phil, be good to here if you have found out anything more on route cause of the mystery smoke. .........The spark plug is a real pain to remove, it is possible with the kit that comes with the bike so not sure where that has gone (see pic), you would need to remove the plastic crash pads either side of lower tank and their respective metal frame to get access, even then just getting the HT lead off is a real test of your patience......another thought on the side stand and your bike falling over i assume having read through this thread your aware the side stand was shortened and the bike lowered ? if your anywhere near the south coast happy to lend you the plug spanner

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[netsonic]

ive spent a bit of time fettling my suspension settings and wondered if anyone has done the same. When i got the bike all settings were set all the way to F or S.

adjustment range:-
[ul]
[li]Fork range on rebound 12 clicks[/li]
[li]Rear shock compression 26 clicks[/li]
[li]Rear shock rebound 12 clicks[/li]
[/ul]


To date i am riding with:-
[ul]
[li]Forks mid point 6 clicks[/li]
[li]Rear shock compression mid point 13 clicks[/li]
[li]Rear shock rebound 2 clicks off mid point towards F, which is 4 clicks from F[/li]
[/ul]

made a big difference and its likely will have a winter and summer setting due to how the oil works in the forks depending on temp........

[Andi_Archer]

Have you tried changing the viscosity of the fork oil.20w will give a stiffer rebound than 15w etc ?

[netsonic]

Have you tried changing the viscosity of the fork oil.20w will give a stiffer rebound than 15w etc ?

Hi Andi , not done that yet but may consider when i decide to check the fork oil, not done much work on forks and hoping its a case of removing the top nut and invert the fork to drain the oil, measure amount that comes out and replace with new or different grade. Since adjusting to mid point i get very little topping out knocks and feels more stable...........new oil may be the way to go though

[Andi_Archer]

Do they not have a small drain plug at the bottom outside of the leg on the WK?
As the origional engine oil seems from reading, to be of a low standard it may be worthwhile sorting when you get a chance.