As many of you know my father passed away, one of the items from his estate that I could not bare to sell off was his pride and joy his Goldwing, http://captfiero.com/goldwing

He spent a ton of money keeping it in great shape, aside from a few cosmetic things that he did not get the chance to do it is a great bike. My issue is that I know nothing about motorcycles, I actually had to call back to Canada and ask a buddy how to get it into neutral. I have not ridden a motorcycle in 25 years and that was when I was 10 and it was a dirt bike. I knew I would end up spending a ton to bring it back to Canada with me, but I did it anyway. Its now here in Canada with me and in my name. Insurance on it is 1600 per year, yes Sixteen Hundred a year. Thanks to government insurance. I have a perfect driving record, but don't have a bike lisc yet, I plan to get one of those in the spring. Already took the sample knowledge test and got 100%.

I am looking for info on them, any info to be honest. So far I have found out its a 1200 CC Interstate, Shaft Drive, Carborated, and the entire drive train was redone 12 months before he passed, cost him $3917 at Taylor Honda in Oregon. I have charged up the battery and fired it up, I kinda wrote it down the block and back and went as fast as 2nd gear. It blew me away how quick it was for such a big heavy bike, goggled it and found it runs mid 12's stock and I believe he had some updates done when the motor was rebuilt, but to my knowledge I really don't know what. I have the receipt that says valves and head work and lots of seals, but can't make heads or tails of what everything means.

So who can tell me what about an 85 Goldwing 1200 Interstate?
What kinda information do you need from the bike to tell me about it?

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857GT Part 85GT Part 87GT Part Caddy, 93 Eldorado 4.9, 5spd Dual O2 Custom Chip, Custom Exhaust. MSD Everything Now with Nitrous. Capt Fiero --- My Over View Cadero Pics Yellow 88GT 5spd Full Poly Suspension, Lowered 1/2" in front, Corner Carver.

Scan the engine build sheet and post it up...

I don't know dick about hondas, so I couldn't help. This site might, though.

[This message has been edited by skuzzbomer (edited 10-13-2012).]

Try this Goldwing Forum: http://gl1800riders.com/forums/forums.php

Post in the general section, and I would imagine you will have answers shortly.

One of the big issues with the 1100/1200 Gold Wings was the stator. When they go out (not "if"), they're very expensive to replace as you have to remove the engine from the frame. (Seriously.) One of the more inexpensive fixes is to add a car alternator to the front of the bike. The prices range anywhere from $100 (sits on the side) to $500 (alternator is semi integrated in the front) plus the cost of a new/rebuilt alternator. Perhaps the stator was replaced at the same time the rest of the motor work was done. For the most part, GWs are fairly bulletproof. You really have to work at destroying the motor unless there's some sort of factory defect (rare but it happens). There are 100k+ mile GWs all over. OEM parts are still plentiful but are getting harder to find. If there are parts you think you might need, start looking for them now. A year from now, they might not exist. One of the things I found difficult to source (when I had my 1200 years ago) was the headlight assembly. It's made of pretty sturdy plastic but it'll break as years and rocks take their toll. They also get cloudy (as you can see). Since most of the cloudiness is inside, there's not much you can do to "fix" them.

As a start, I would have the carbs rebuilt, change the oil and flush the brake lines. I'd have the drive shaft serviced by a qualified mechanic. There weren't any issues with the Wing drive shafts but you don't want one locking up at 60/100 on the highway. (New calipers might not be a bad thing to look for. After 25 years, the O rings will be about shot even if they seem to work well now.) You might also consider cleaning up the wiring a bit. I can see an aftermarket CB and what looks like at least one wire hanging down from the bars. Ditch the highway pegs. I see they're getting rusty. Eventually, they'll wear into the chrome engine guards. If you like highway pegs, buy new ones.

Nice looking Wing. I considered buying an older Wing before I got my Vision. The 1100/1200s don't have all the bells and whistles newer bikes have, but they're as sturdy and comfortable as alot of newer bikes. They hold their relative value well, too. I've seen some "decent" (but not great) early '80s Wings going for $2500-$3000 around here. That's pretty good for a 30 year old motorcycle.

As skuzzbomer showed, http://www.goldwingfacts.com/ is a great site with lots of good write-ups like http://www.goldwingfacts.com/1200timingbelts.htm on timing belt replacement.
Another site I used was http://www.randakks.com/ with links to other great sites.

Sorry guys for not getting back here to update this thread, I have been a little tied up. I got my Motorcycle Lisc. Well my learners and then my wife started screaming at my from upstairs. Her Water Broke. That was Wednesday. I have a new Baby Girl.

Now a few people have mentioned Goldwing Facts, and I do have a 4 page thread over there in the introduction section.

Being as the motorcycle was rebuilt a year before he passed one of the things I can see on the build sheet was a new starter and new heads. I am assuming that with the new heads that would have included new timing chain.

When I get a bit of spare time I'll update this thread and try to post a scan of the sheet so people can look over it.

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857GT Part 85GT Part 87GT Part Caddy, 93 Eldorado 4.9, 5spd Dual O2 Custom Chip, Custom Exhaust. MSD Everything Now with Nitrous. Capt Fiero --- My Over View Cadero Pics Yellow 88GT 5spd Full Poly Suspension, Lowered 1/2" in front, Corner Carver.