[WV_Grom]

Yes I have been asking a lot of question as of late. I need good information so I can decide what this build is going to turn into. The biggest headache for me, is concerning the FI controller. I will not plan out anything major without deciding on a controller first.

In the mean time I decided to go for a "Stage I" build on my 2018 Grom. Nothing spectacular. Many have gone before me. Oh, my 18 Grom has 2 miles on it...

This week I have added a Chimera intake, EFIE and a Hindle exhaust with the DB killer installed.

Hindle came from Woodcraft at $353.94
Chimera from MotoMummy via Amazon at 132.49
EFIE from Eagle-Research at 35.00

I will also rate as to the difficulty of the install. x/10

Hindle - 2/10
Chimera - 2/10
EFIE - 2.5/10 IF no electrical or soldering skills 6/10

The install was fairly straight forward on the above items. I picked up my switched 12V from the tail light circuit. This EFIE only draws something like 100 milliamps. No problem in using any 12V switched source. Starting at 250ma.

Hindle was a breeze also. I even reused the exhaust gasket. Sounds nice with the DB killer installed. A little louder than my FMF on my 14 Grom, but not by much.

Chimera also an easy install. Used the same crankcase breather tube, just rerouted it.

Hindle says to let idle for 15 minutes to "break in" the packing. Then let cool completely. First I have heard of this. I am at the cool down stage now. Will go for a ride in a bit & see if that darn intake is too loud for my taste.

Parts on order for stage I

Seat Concepts foam & cover $194.94
Koso BA003214 Mini air/fuel ratio meter amazon 91.10
Koso BE030200 Black Top clamp amazon 40.71

The above parts is my stage I build.

I plan on going to the "Crawl" with this configuration. At the crawl I have heard that there will be many vendors for our Grom. At that time I hope to purchase (at a discount?) items for stage II. Stage II is either going to be major motor mods or major suspension mods, or a mixture of both. I have not decided. These forks have to be modded soon. I can even envision a stage III too!

Any whoo, if you have questions or comments feel free to drop them below!

 

[WV_Grom]

First ride. 14 or so miles.

Intake is not to loud. Although I didn't go over 6.5Kish rpm. (47ishmph)
Exhaust is not to loud. Very pleasant sound.

First ride was with stock gearing. Needless to say it struggles in 4th on flat. Just mounted a 14T countershaft sprocket. Lets see how that works.

Checked plug & it looks lean. Will check again after next ride. If it is still lean it gets parked until I get a good controller.

Letting the motor completely cool before I go out again.

 

[CiscoSanJose]

cool upgrades, ride safe

 

[WV_Grom]

cool upgrades, ride safe

Thank you sir.

Although my upgrades should be every ones first steps, especially if they have not fondled a fuel controller. I would expect my next upgrade will be a controller. I can play & maybe learn a thing or two before heading into BBK land. At least that is my opinion.

Bike is much nicer to ride with a 14T sprocket. Went up to 7K my second ride. My plan is to put 50 easy miles on it, change the oil (Rotella 10-40 dino), and give it hell.

One thing I noticed when tightening up the chain after the change of sprockets, is my scribed lines on the adjuster, were off from the factory by at least a half space. I did not sight down the chain before I adjusted. I did after & it looks straight.

I have a trick I use for all my bikes that I will share to insure the rear axle is parallel with the swingarm pivot bolt.

Grom On...

 

[solidjohnny]

The stock chain will need frequent adjustments. I've upgraded to an o-ring chain (forget which name brand...RK I think) and its solid. I've installed the NDC (ND customs) chain adjuster. Its so much nicer, gives you the ability to mount spools for your bike stand, much easier to make chain adjustments, and don't fall out when you take the wheel off.

The ohlins fork kit was one of the first things I did after stage 1. You'll definitely want to either buy or borrow the special fork tools. The stock rear shock is surprisingly good enough match with the ohlins front until you really starting building power and picking up speed.

Another easy and cheap upgrade are clutch springs. Go straight for the 50-60% stiffer springs. I had the Barnett 15% stiffer springs - they were an improvement, but the 60% SMR springs I have on now are awesome. In my opinion, it makes the clutch feel like a real sportbike. Sadly, the Grom is still too underpowered to huck up 2nd gear wheelies easily.

 

[nd4spdbh]

Plug will always look "lean" it might get a bit more chocolaty colored as it goes, but those two mods even without the EFIE you would never have an issue with. The EFIE will just richen it up the right amount and you will be even better.


Also agreed, if you plan on doing clutch spring upgrades, just go full out the first time, billet plate and much stiffer clutch springs (clutch lever pull wont be bad even with much stiffer springs)

This is the cheapest place i found, make sure to select 6 finbro springs

Honda Grom/MSX125 Billet CNC Clutch Plate Kit [KEVTEK] - $49.99 : The Sic Shop, Stunt Parts Store

 

[WV_Grom]

After my second ride I pulled the plug. I believe I am richer now by the color on the tip of the porcelain.

nd4spdbh: thanks for the link. A clutch upgrade is on my list. I have to pick out other items first. Then funds will trickle down to the bottom end.

SolidJohnny: my 14 grom had a Renthal chain. I did not realize that there was even an o-ringer in 428 size. Learn something new everyday!

Phase I has jumped up a bit:

I hate the stock mirrors, unless you want to keep an eye out on your shoulders. I did order a set of bar end mirrors. Review coming soon.

I am going to a BBK, eventually. I just haven't decided which components yet. There are 10 ways (or more!) to travel. I just haven't decided which road to head for.

Early favorites (no certain order):

Top End:
170-180ish cc
Head
cam

Bottom end:
clutch cover w filter
clutch springs & plate
crank bearing addition to stator area
crank & rod

Suspension:
Fork upgrade
shock upgrade
alum. swingarm

Brakes:
stainless front line
EBC HH pads

Misc.
Fuel controller (aRacer Mini5 +AF1 is in the lead)
Oil cooler

There goes my nonexistent kids inheritance...

 

[WV_Grom]

Parts are rolling in.

I do not want mung & drool on my motor. From eBay:

Cover & foam from Seat Concepts:

The extender is held on by silicone. 1/10

Cover & foam fits very nicely to the stock pan. I used spray adhesive around the edges of base & foam. Included is a piece of thin plastic that goes between the cover & foam. 4/10 if you have a pneumatic stapler.

 

[WV_Grom]

I have not decided on the components on my motor build, but I have decided on a style of power that I would like to achieve.

I particularly do not want to live life at 10K rpm or higher. Would much rather prefer to be able to cruise around at 65mph at 7-8K rpm. I am not hitting the interstates or traveling in high speed traffic patterns. Plus the engine will last much longer without bumping the rev limiter every time I take it out for a spin.

From past experience I will need to bump up CC's & use the torque instead of the top end hp. I was leaning to a Super 125, and without looking at a dyno sheet, I bet that power is way up there in RPM.

140ish to 190ish cc seems like is the order for this build.

I have pretty much settled on a Aracer controller. Mini5 & AF1.

Get your Grom on!

 

[Yfz460]

How secure does that fender extender seem? Have been tempted to pick one of those up. I’m sure silicone has a good grip on the two pieces, but I’ve always been hesitant (I guess I could always opt for double sided 3M stuff?).

Also, I’ve always loved seat concepts products, not sure I’ve ever seen another person in here with their kit. Let us know how you like it! Looks great!




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[WV_Grom]

How secure does that fender extender seem? Have been tempted to pick one of those up. I’m sure silicone has a good grip on the two pieces, but I’ve always been hesitant (I guess I could always opt for double sided 3M stuff?).

Also, I’ve always loved seat concepts products, not sure I’ve ever seen another person in here with their kit. Let us know how you like it! Looks great!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I had a PVC extender on my 14 for a couple years held on with silicone. Not a prob with it.

Before the silicone I tried dbl. tape & it did not hold. Even with cleaning the surfaces with Acetone.

I am expecting no problems with this carbon extender & silicone.

Seat Concepts items are top notch. I will give a ride report when it warms up!

 

[solidjohnny]

I have that exact carbon fender extender. I sanded the mating surfaces and used epoxy to bond the extension to the fender. Don't even bother using double sided tape. The fit is great and it really does keep the engine area cleaner.

Wow your seat looks like a $400 corbin!

 

[WV_Grom]

My buddy has a Corbin at his house that he bought when we were at Bike Week Daytona Beach this March. He hasn't come by to put it on (the bike stays at my house) 'cause he has a new girlfriend & he thinks he is in love, so I haven't seen him. I will give a ride report between the two when he brings it out.

The Seat Concepts fills in the dip close to the tank and more or less levels it out. I am going to take a short hop right now to see if my buns are satisfied!

Oh, Johnny is right, the fit of the extender is very sano!



EDIT: The Seat Concepts seat is nice. Stan's buns approve! Only rode 2 miles though. It is chilly out!

 

[WV_Grom]

Put 50 miles in the seat over the weekend. I likee. No complaints.

I do not know about you, but I think the stock mirrors are absolutely worthless. So I went shopping for bar ends. I was trying to find a pair like I had on my RZ350. Spring loaded & foldable. Didn't see anything that flipped my switch. Settled on a pair of Ken Sean 920030. A cheap pair at $27.93 shipped from Summit Racing of all places. Can be foldable if you loosen a allen bolt. Sometimes one has to make compromises.

I am all about function over form. I did have to modify the mounting base but I kept the insert in on the stock bars.

Ride report to come in the future when the rain stops.

 

[WV_Grom]

I was messing around in the garage today & ran across this Innovate A/F Ratio gauge. I had seen where others have mounted it, so I decided to give it a go.

Just a rough install of the gauge at this point. The unit draws 3 amps, so I will run a relay from the battery to power it.

Funny story, kinda....

I ordered a KOSO top clamp (BE030200) and a A/FR gauge (BA003214) from Amazon. When the gauge came in, it was a ambient air temp. gauge. Sent it back & they sent me another A/FR gauge. When the replacement came in it was the same dam air temp. gauge. Called them & not only did they refund my money for the gauge, it they said go ahead & keep the wrong item. So Now I have 2 KOSO items I can't use at this time. Hence the Innovate wide band, which will be a better unit than the narrow band KOSO unit anyway, or so I have read.

Grom On!

 

[solidjohnny]

I think you'll be happier with the wideband o2 sensor. Just remember to keep your eyes on the road while you ride lol. Can't wait to hear if the EFIE does what it is suppose to!

 

[WV_Grom]

I think you'll be happier with the wideband o2 sensor. Just remember to keep your eyes on the road while you ride lol. Can't wait to hear if the EFIE does what it is suppose to!

I think you are correct on both points!

I have ran into a couple snags:

1. The LSU-4.2 O2 sensor requires a one inch tall bung to keep the tip to the side of the exhaust stream. Hindle provides me with one that is slightly shorter than one half inch. The tip would go very far into the stream as it stands.

2. Where Hindle has welded the bung, the sensor will hit the frame cross member where the catalytic converter mounts up to. I can grind a bunch & make it fit, but until I figure out the bung height problem, this is a moot point.

As I see it these are my options:

a. Find a shorter O2 sensor
b. Weld on a extension to the bung
c. Weld on another bung
d. Receive a swift kick in the ass for attempting this

If I add a controller (aRacer or Dynojet) in the future, what height bung do these desire? I have never seen or fondled one.

I think I will take option d. please...

If anyone has done the Innovate MTX-L on a Hindle exhaust, please hit me up!

 

[solidjohnny]

Dang. O2 sensors I used were close to the frame but not touching. Can you post a picture of it?

 

[WV_Grom]

This is a mock up.

Sensor is 2 3/8 "long from the seat to top of sensor where wire is.

Distance between the bung & the frame is 2 1/2".

Stock bung is approx 3/8" deep. I need a 1" deep bung.

5/8" additional bung + 2 3/8" sensor = 3" of space I need and I only have 2 1/2".


I am assuming all O2 sensors are the same height (innovate vs a fuel controllers sensor) so this means if I want to use the stock bung location on this Hindle I am going to have to weld on additional length for the bung AND grind away my cross member.

I wonder if Hindle made a mistake on this bung location?

Edit:

I will replace that bung with the correct length bung & have it welded in. I just need to find someone that can weld stainless. I am bummed that I have to go through this crap. the bung should have been right to start with.

 

[farkas]

I think you'll be happier with the wideband o2 sensor. Just remember to keep your eyes on the road while you ride lol. Can't wait to hear if the EFIE does what it is suppose to!

There are already logs from a Bazzaz unit showing the EFIE works.