Sidepanel Foam

[TJ]

Hey hey, this time more a short story than a question, but there is also a tiny question at the end

So, originally the sidepanels of the 3YA fairing came with some foam to reduce engine noise (at least that's what a Yamaha mechanic told me).
After over 20 years however this foam is brittle and starts to desintegrate as soon as you poke it.
Unfortunately the air inlet is located directly besides these sidepanels.
And as the 1200cc engine seems to need lots of air, sometimes little pieces of that foam are sucked in too.
Trying to maintain my FJ regularly, I found these pieces of foam sticking to the airfilter:



Looking a bit closer, I found _lots_ of foam sticking to the airfilter...
To be honest, I recognized this solely due to the K&N filter.
All previous filters were made from white/grayish foam, so it looked kinda normal.
This time however it was clearly visible that there was foam that doesn't belong there 



As a consequence I cleaned the air filter and started removing the foam from the sidepanels.
After trying multiple dedicated glue solvents I have to admit the following:

• that old glue is stubborn as hell
• in the end WD40 was the best working option 

Here is a side by side, before and after removal:



Either way, the sidepanels are both foamless now and the airfilter hopefully stays a bit cleaner

Aaand finally... to the small question:
Do I have to fear any consequences when riding without this foam?
I mean should it be replaced or was it really only there for noise reduction?
Any experience/suggestions?!

[Sparky84]

Been through that, can't say that you'll have any problems without.

http://www.fjowners.com/index.php?topic=16366.0

I used the spray contact and used foam that you'd use in a home aquarium, looked similar.

I think the covers sit better with the foam.

[CutterBill]

Strictly for noise reduction.
Bill

[fj1289]

Loud side panels save lives!

[TJ]

Loud side panels save lives!

I'll go with that one, tanks 

[X-Ray]

A few years ago I replaced the old foam on the sidecovers, after the new foam then broke apart into dust I just removed it all and havent worried about it since.  Oh and a small tip to stop the rear of the sidecover in the mount being loose and flapping around, is to just cut short pieces of fuel hose etc, and just push it over the sidecover post when it is in place. Stops vibrations and keeps it nice and snug