Rd04 fairing removal + honda workshop manual

[kingdirt]

Hi,

I'm fiddling (or let's say wrestling) with the front fairing of my rd04... I can't seem to find where the fairing is bolted to the headlight setup... I have no manual either so it kind of sucks.

I have the wonderful but yet limited haynes manuel, but no help there. Anyone knows which bolts. Need toremove? It seems honda built it as a tank, but this also means it's not exactly what i call race qualitylol
I already have visions of a mechanic hammering an At in a dakar bivouac lol

Any idea where i might obtain a workshop manual ? (pleasenot the at your local honda dealer answer, i took that road, with no luck)

Cheers,

Dom

[GSPD750]

Hi,

I'm fiddling (or let's say wrestling) with the front fairing of my rd04... I can't seem to find where the fairing is bolted to the headlight setup... I have no manual either so it kind of sucks.

I have the wonderful but yet limited haynes manuel, but no help there. Anyone knows which bolts. Need toremove? It seems honda built it as a tank, but this also means it's not exactly what i call race qualitylol
I already have visions of a mechanic hammering an At in a dakar bivouac lol

Any idea where i might obtain a workshop manual ? (pleasenot the at your local honda dealer answer, i took that road, with no luck)

Cheers,

Dom

Hello...look into Chapter 8 Bodywork of the Haynes manual which you say you have. Study the panel closely on the inside with a flashlite as req'd if your lighting is poor...tug on it gently to reveal which
fasteners are holding it. It's only nuts and bolts .... The bigger your mitts...the tuffer it can be when working inside the nose cowl area.
cheers..

[Chad]

the bolts will be on the headlight frame one eitherside if im reading you correct, they are the ones that catch most peeps out

[Whealie]

There are two possible ways to take the cowl off, one much easier than the other. The best way to remove it is to leave the bracket attached to the cowl. There are eight possible nuts to undo and you only need to undo the right four.

Not at my bike so cannot remember which is which but will look during day light tomorrow and let you know.

[Zenarchy]

It's been a while since I did it, but I think the brackets whealie is talking about are parts 24 and 25 on this diagram:

honda cowl partsmanual fiche xrv750 africa twin 1990 england

Obviously after undoing the more obvious wellnuts that attach the nose to the other bits of fairing.

If you double click that diagram you can zoom in, and click and drag to move around. When standing by the side of the bike and looking down into that area from behind the bars, you'll see those brackets.

Like he says, it's better to leave the brackets attached to the fairing when removing it.

I can't remember for sure either but I think it's the ones with the nuts on the end that you need to undo (number 35 on the diagram - though there are 4 of them not only 2 like shown on the diagram I think - the other ones will probably have bolt heads) and that bracket has welded threaded stalks coming out of it that those nuts fit on. Don't blame me if I've got it the wrong way around though and it's the bolt ends you need to undo

I find it easier to get at some of them by reaching up from the hole in the underside at the front of the forks (particularly for getting them started when you put the fairing back on).

When removing it, I'd be extra careful with the sub-cowls (the bits that attach the nose to the side fairings on the top) as these are easily broken and difficult/surprisingly expensive to replace. That's if you already have them - I've seen a lot of bikes with them missing.

If you think getting it off is a pain in the arse, wait until you try putting it back on again. If you're anything like me you'll end up removing the belly pan too as at least one of the nuts/bolts will end up falling in there during the process (that's the first place to look if you drop a nut/bolt and can't find it in my experience).

[Zenarchy]

P.S. The parts fiches have been removed from this site now I think, but you can access all the diagrams for the RD04 at:

honda partsmanual fiche xrv750 africa twin 1990 england

If you're looking for the original honda workshop manual, they appear on ebay sometimes, and I think someone mentioned here recently that honda will provide a photocopy of one to you for a few quid (if you do a search here you might find it mentioned how to go about it). If you do go for one at ebay, I'd ask how many pages are included if it's looking a bit slim in the photo as I bought one that turned out to be only one small section of the manual. The full manual is quite big, has 20 sections, across over 100 pages (ish).

[Whealie]

Been out to check and took some photos.

This is fromthe left side but it the same on the right.

Top: The top of those two bolts is fixing the bracket to the cowl. Leave that one. Undo the one underneath.


IMG_1584 by whealie, on Flickr

And the bottom one looks like this: The right bolt mounts the cowl to the bracket so leave it. Undo the left nut.


IMG_1583 by whealie, on Flickr

[kingdirt]

Oh my god... Yes you were right, it were those four bolts that screw the cowl to the headlight frame... Not exactly what you'd call easy access lol

Thanks for all those who pointed me in the right direction!

Cheers,

Dom

[Chad]

Oh my god... Yes you were right, it were those four bolts that screw the cowl to the headlight frame... Not exactly what you'd call easy access lol

Thanks for all those who pointed me in the right direction!

Cheers,

Dom

good news