Upper Air Vents ?

The one's just left of tach & right of gas guage...
What are they for?
Can I replace them with Speakers for a radio?

I don't think they do anything, actually. Does air even come through them?

I think I am going to take my radio out .You can't hear it on the Hwy ,and I never turn it on in town .Its just wasting space. If you want to put speakers there you can just make sure their is enough room behind for them .I don't know if any one has tried that .I know they have been mounted in both glove box lids ,which is a terrible waste . I have mine mounted on the handle bars .

tvpRich wrote:

The one's just left of tach & right of gas guage...
What are they for?

I was curious so I wanted to check the vents during the winter months, which made detecting heat easier. As I recall ... after a long ride (I forget if the fan was on), I was stopped and put my hand up to vent and felt some warmth. So I believe the vents play some indirect part in cooling.

If you wanted more concrete proof, you may have to use a sensitive thermostat and measure.

tvpRich wrote:

Can I replace them with Speakers for a radio?

I would be concerned about negatively effecting the operating temperature of the SWing.

Hi,
With your info, one could deduce that maybe HEAT generated from the fan below might build up in the area just behind the Vents. For that matter, maybe they're there to purposely give a little heat onto the windshield for defrosting?
What Da Ya Think of That?

Those little vents all get their air from in front and above the radiator. The air passed through the radiator exits underneath the scooter. If you look under there you can see the air exhaust louvers. The small vents would help dissipate some heat generated under the fairing when the bike's parked in the hot sun but they really don't serve much purpose. My Goldwing 1500 has similar vents in an analogous location but they aren't very effective either.

tvpRich wrote:

Hi,
With your info, one could deduce that maybe HEAT generated from the fan below might build up in the area just behind the Vents. For that matter, maybe they're there to purposely give a little heat onto the windshield for defrosting?
What Da Ya Think of That?

Possibly, but I don't think enough air comes through them, cool or warm, to make any difference to the bike. I don't even remember seeing hoses hooked up to them. They're just open to the inside of the cowling. I think they're more decorative than anything.

Most of the engine's cooling air supply exits under the bike through the little NACA duct looking things beneath the fuel tank area. The design of those ducts creates a vacuum at speed, thus "sucking" air through the radiator and eliminating the need for the cooling fan to operate at highway speeds.

I don't know if you'd actually HEAR speakers in those locations, but they would make great places for auxiliary light switches, etc. I'm glad I thought of that! Hmmmmm.......

Just to be sure, I'm gonna duct tape them closed an see if anything BLOWS UP!

I have front and rear speakers on my Goldwing fed by it's onboard audio amp which I think is around 50W. The speakers are 4". I don't think you could much behind those vents there's no real space behind them. You could of course mount a pair of speakers in front of them but I think the best bet would be a set of handlebar mounted speakers. They aren't cheap though you can find speakers for motorcycles under $100.

http://www.motorcyclespeakers.net/shop/stereo-speakers-amplifiers-26-ctg.htm

In the interest of science I went zipping down the freeway tonight and checked what comes out of the vents. Answer: Air. A modest amount of cool air.

The vents aren't involved in engine cooling in any meaningful way, nor are the connected directly to any vents in the bodywork. I don't think you'd miss them.

Do they not contribute to the overall venting of the space under the fairing?

Excell wrote:

I think I am going to take my radio out .You can't hear it on the Hwy ,and I never turn it on in town .Its just wasting space. If you want to put speakers there you can just make sure their is enough room behind for them .I don't know if any one has tried that .I know they have been mounted in both glove box lids ,which is a terrible waste . I have mine mounted on the handle bars .

Shark radio (250W) recommended on this and other forums has an option for speakers to be mounted on mirrors mounts so they are just above brake fluid reservuars (sp?).

I have the Shark radio .

Those two outboard dash vents simply evacuate air from under the front piece. The air comes into the area from the openings just outboard of the headlight assembly. The air movement is not pressurized. It has nothing to do with air across the radiator. The volume of air coming in the front of the bike and exiting out of the outboard dash vents is not likely to be 1:1 as some air is probably going to be deflected down and it is not a direct path.

Thanks Dale, now I can install that aircon/heater system off the Range Rover. I've been thinking about mounting another Swing motor to drive it.






Just kidding!!!!!