I have a 2001 GP1200R with a riva ride plate, intake grate, solas impeller, bypass kit, pump sealed,and d-plate installed currently. Anybody got an idea on what the next mod should be. I am thinking going for higher compression with the stock head, but I want to hurry and get it done before summer. Sure could use some advice besides what the dealer says.

i just sent my head to riva on friday...its only $120.00 to have it milled. i have a question for you? what does water bypass do for you....i was told not needed unless you have a a/m stinger or tripples?

It made the ski really loud at low rpm's. It also helped me a bit on the top end I think, but not much. It also helped on the weight I think because the Sound Suppression stays full of water while your running and that adds weight. $120 for the head works not bad. It cost me $400 for the last service and power valve cleaning I just got. The dealer said my power valves were the worst he has ever seen. Thats only after 70HRS.

the waterby-pass kit was compromised basically of some hose and i guess you had to purchase some thru hull fittings for the water to exit near the rear of the ski....right if different explain...i've called riva on two diffrent occasions to order/inquire about this kit and they said both times that it will look good/trick but to save my money......i'm skeptical about their advice !!!

Oh crap, I said bypass kit didn't I! I ment to say free flow kit, as in exhaust. I'm sorry for the misinfo. I don't have a h2o bypass kit.

Swagtime911>>>> about your powervalves.....i posted something earlier about a problem i have with my '02 RIVA StageII GPR and several people told me to check the powervalves......what exactly was wrong with the powervalves....also i was told that the powervalves are known to fail on GPR's by the way...peace
-M3 PILOT-

ok gotcha ..no prob...i have the free flow done too, and i have been running w/o the increased compression.One of the rasons i'm going w/ head next is of this reason....The free flow is only recommended for performance enhancement when used w/ free flow so to reduce detonation... i advice the stock head milled by riva .. i will; post my results by the end of the week

My ski would come off the trailer running at about 73MPH on the speedo. Then my speed would drop to about 64MPH on the speedo for no reason. I got on here and everyone said to look at my power valves. I'm no mechanical wizard, so I took it to the dealer and had it looked at. They said they wer VERY dirty and sticking. Also, my #3 was worn a little and would need to be replaced. I dont know why they got so dirty, but I will have them looked at again at the end of summer.

About that OEM head work at Riva, it sound like a great way to go. How long does it take to have done?

i sent my head out on friday 1/10/03 and the post office said it would get there on monday(today)......They have already milled cylinder heads waiting to be swapped out(they keep your).I will call them later to see if they have recieved mine and to expedite things ......no more than a week there and back

regarding your loss of speed...it does sound like a pv issue or a pv servo issue......the motor will run better just off the trailer because the engine is still cool .....73 on dreemo is good w/ your mods...in stock form(prop too) i could only get 71(dreeeeeeemooooooo) now dreemo says 85......try a different oil or go pre-mix so the pv's don't get gooked up..........many opinions on this though

I think I'll go home and pull that head and get it ready. I'm gonna call them in a few min. I thought about a different oil, but like you said, there alot of opinions on that. Thanks for all your advice.

"Anybody got an idea on what the next mod should be?"

raise compression

for some other ideas see

http://www.rivayamaha.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=1&t=007352

Thanks philip. I want to get the most out of my ski without giving up much reliability. I'm not so worried about the cost as I am having to rebuild everything every season. The head mod sounds good. I still havn't drilled out the tamper seals on the carbs yet. I don't know how to adjust the carbs once I do. When you guys talk about highs and lows I understand that, but as far as the numbers go, I'm lost. Maybe I should just rejet, but I am afraid too. Island racing emailed me and I thought about giving them a call. What do you guys think?

the 3 carbs actually unbolt off the ski in a rack, what I did was I shipped the rack of carbs to Carl, he checked them out, did his mods and changed the jets / pop-off - when he shipped them back all I had to do was bolt them back on - just an idea

If I look in my shop manual, will explain how to adjust the carbs, or is that an item you have to just play with to get it right. The dealer charges $85 a carb to drill and $100 to take it to the river and tune. If I can just pull them off and have them set, thats the way to go! Does Carl do just anyones or do I need to find someone else to get it done? That is the only thing keeping me from installing the Stinger 3 I bought.

Carl can set the carbs up to give you a good starting point (drill tamper proof caps off, jetting, pop-off pressure, T handles, etc)

you will need to fine tune them yourself, Mikuni and GroupK have articles on tuning on their web site