Stella's 1st problem

Howardr · Post by **Howardr** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 2:50 pm

My Stella was known around here for being the most reliable Stella ever, until 2 days ago. 2 friends and I were making a beautiful ride in the country, when I felt Stella suddenly lose power, thinking I was out of gas, I flipped over to reserve - no help.

The then engine seized, I pulled the clutch and coasted to a stop. Even though we hadn't been riding too long since our lunch break, we thought it may be a "soft seize." Couldn't budge the kick start and couldn't roll the bike with it in gear.

I called back to Tucson to have my son bring my van out to retrieve me.

Long story short, we got back to the club garage, pulled the head and discovered that my crank bearings failed. My piston is shot. Looks like time for a new top end. 12,226 miles on my Stella.

Beautiful scenery to ride through

We had lunch in Patagonia, AZ at theHome Plate cafe'

That's my Stella on the left, after she seized along Scenic Route 83

My buggered piston

BuddyRaton · Post by **BuddyRaton** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 3:48 pm

Bummer At least now you can learn how to do a rebuild.

Was it the big end or the little end that failed?

desmolicious · Post by **desmolicious** » Fri Aug 19, 2011 6:10 pm

Howardr wrote:Long story short, we got back to the club garage, pulled the head and discovered that my crank bearings failed. My piston is shot. Looks like time for a new top end. 12,226 miles on my

And that, unfortunately, is something the 2T Stella is known to do.

When you rebuild, make sure to use upgraded bearings, not the stock stuff.

Keith · Post by **Keith** » Sat Aug 20, 2011 11:25 am

Same thing happened to me early on. Upgraded bearings resolved the problem and I'm now topping 17,000 miles with no issues.

Howardr · Post by **Howardr** » Sat Aug 20, 2011 3:37 pm

I'm definitely upgrading the bearings. Haven't decided, yet, on how we'll do the rebuild. I might doa 177 kit, but I'm still not sure.

Howard

Keith · Post by **Keith** » Sun Aug 21, 2011 10:24 am

Doing the kit is an interesting proposition. There are definite trade offs as you modify the engine. The additional performance you get can come with the possibility of less reliability. I eventually opted to keep my modifications limited to an upgraded crank and Sito Plus exhaust. I'm running a 2-T so I've got no clue what you could expect with the 4-T.

Howardr · Post by **Howardr** » Mon Aug 22, 2011 12:09 am

It looks like I'll be upgrading the crank and bearings. AS it turns out, it was my crank that seized, rather than the usual bearings. I think I'll also be going with a Malossi piston, thus the head will have to be modified as well.

Howard

desmolicious · Post by **desmolicious** » Mon Aug 22, 2011 4:11 am

Keith wrote: I'm running a 2-T so I've got no clue what you could expect with the 4-T.

Howard's is also a 2T

Keith · Post by **Keith** » Mon Aug 22, 2011 11:05 am

Ahhhhh, so that's why Howard's info sounds so familiar! I'll be interested to hear how the upgrade piston works down the line. My confidence waned after I put the crank and Sito Plus on my scoot. I eventually came to the point where I wanted to ride longer distances at greater speeds. Rather than make the Stella into something it wasn't engineered to do, I bought a second scooter for that purpose. The Grand Vista gets me anywhere I want to go but Stella if far more fun to ride.

Bcon · Post by **Bcon** » Mon Aug 22, 2011 1:45 pm

Howardr wrote:It looks like I'll be upgrading the crank and bearings. AS it turns out, it was my crank that seized, rather than the usual bearings. I think I'll also be going with a Malossi piston, thus the head will have to be modified as well.

The previous owner of my Stella decided to pre-empt these failures by installing top quality bearings and a Mazzy race cut crank when the scoot was relatively new. It's at 6K miles now now. It still has the stock top end with a Sito plus, GGR carbon reed, and carb de-blue/re-jet. I'm happy with the performance for the city. This scoot is my daily commuter (25 city miles each way).

I don't do anything outside the city on the Stella (I use the motorcycle for longer stuff), but it's perfect for what I use it for.

desmolicious · Post by **desmolicious** » Mon Aug 22, 2011 6:21 pm

This is slightly off topic, but does anyone know if the bearings used in the new Stella 4T come from the same supplier that provides the often failing crank bearings in the 2T?

Keith · Post by **Keith** » Tue Aug 23, 2011 11:03 am

The previous owner of my Stella decided to pre-empt these failures by installing top quality bearings and a Mazzy race cut crank when the scoot was relatively new. It's at 6K miles now now. It still has the stock top end with a Sito plus, GGR carbon reed, and carb de-blue/re-jet. I'm happy with the performance for the city. This scoot is my daily commuter (25 city miles each way).

Perfect! That's a sweet setup.

Modern Buddy

Stella's 1st problem

Stella's 1st problem

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