FJR not running right

[fjrin]

Hi everyone,

I purchased a second hand 2008 FJR1300A a few months ago. It ran great at first, but that's no longer the case.

It starts up just fine. Battery is in great shape. Idles unevenly sometimes, and other times idles smooth (right on 1100 w/very little deviation). It has never died on me, other than when I stalled it once or twice on accident while taking off from a Stop sign.

For some reason, there is a flat spot between 3K and 3.5K RPM, especially noticeable in 4th and 5th gears. When bumping up the throttle quickly in that range, it either sputters/hesitates OR surges very quickly (almost violently).

When blipping throttle while downshifting, I really have to put some wrist in it, or else there seems to be very little input.

MPG dipped under 38 for a while, but has been improving lately. For the most part, the bike runs fine outside of the 3-3.5K RPM range.

The only things I've done since purchase are oil change, final drive change, and new air filter.

I'm thinking either bad gas (did use some from gas can that I don't remember how old it is) OR needs throttle bodies synchronized. Or maybe throttle itself needs to be adjusted?

Before I go out and buy a throttle body synchronizer, what do you guys think?

(I have put some Berryman B12 in gas tank, and noticed some improvement. But nowhere close to how good it was before)

All help is appreciated. Thank you.

 

[RossKean]

Run a tank or two of good fuel through it along with Seafoam, Ring Free, Techron or other fuel system cleaner. If it doesn't come back, you can start the investigation.

It would be a good idea to make sure connections to the battery are secure and that the plug caps are well pushed down.

 

[radiummadman]

what RossKean says and run at higher rpm for as long as you feel safe & legal?? blast thru that 3-3.5 range and don't run there, FJR unhappy

camper in that range

 

[wheatonFJR]

Yeah....I use 4k when I wanna coast around. 5-8k when I wanna play.

Don't hang down at 3k, certainly don't hang down there if yer heading up hill.

How many miles on it? Are the plugs in good condition? Services been done to it?

 

[Fred W]

Sounds like a possible TPS problem. Does it happen only after the engine is fully warmed up or hot? Definitely run some FI cleaner through it before doing any other troubleshooting first though.

As for needing to stay above 4k rpm all the time, that is total nonsense. This is a big displacement engine and has plenty of torque in the 3-4k rpm range to cruise along. If your bike won't cruise happily between 3k and 4k rpm without hiccups, jerking and sputtering then there is something wrong with it. It is not "lugging" the engine to run it in that rpm range. Besides, it's kind of hard to get the engine up to 5k rpm without going through 3-4.

 

[AlleyCat]

Like Fred W, I think it sounds like a bad TPS (throttle position sensor).... as for the uneven idle, all FJRs do that. My 2009 and 2014 did it. Just curious, how many miles on the bike ? New spark plugs could help and a TBS would not hurt if it hasn't been done in a while.

 

[fjrin]

Thanks for the replies, everybody.

I ran 2 more tankfuls of good fuel and fuel system cleaner through it over the weekend. The first time I used Berryman B12, and second time used Lucas. Lucas made a more noticeable difference. It is running much better, but still not perfect. The fuel economy has really improved, and I didn't really notice the issues in gears 1-4, but still seems to be happening in 5th gear while trying to accelerate from around 3,000 RPM (it seems to lug for a moment, but nothing violent anymore).

However, the bike seems to vibrate a lot more on the right side than the left side. It is hard to see out of the right side mirror going over 60 MPH, and my hands get numb after about 100 miles. That's why I'm thinking maybe needs throttle bodies sync'd?

I went into Diag mode and TPS (throttle position sensor) checks out fine. It's not throwing any engine codes, either. Listened to everything cycle on and off in Diag mode, and it all sounded good. All connections seem to be secure, other than left headlight adjuster knob, but I doubt that could be related to this. Battery is in excellent shape and battery connections are secure.

Should I run more fuel system cleaner through it? I understand it's not good to use too much of that.

Right now I'm thinking one of three things:

1. Possibly I'm just imagining this stuff?
2. Gas from gas can might have permanently damaged the engine (but no smoking, codes, or engine light, however)
3. Throttle bodies need synchronized (I have appointment to bring it to dealer on Saturday so they can remove and clean injectors and throttle bodies, and then sync TB's)

The bike only has 6K miles. PO was an older guy who kept up on maintenance, even though he only rode it around town and didn't accumulate a ton of miles. From what I can tell, he never had TBS done, though.

What do you think?

 

[FJRPittsburgh]

I'd run another tank of gas with Techron or another fuel system cleaner. I have an 08 also and it's obvious that your bike hasn't been run enough with only 6k on the odometer in 8 years. I don't think a throttle body sync is the answer. No damage was done with the old gas other than adding to the original problem of the engine being a little gummed up. Personally, I would stay away from the dealer until you run a few more tanks of gas with some quality fuel system cleaner. (Techron, Seafoam, or Ring Free). Also as stated previously, make sure the battery connections are good and tight. My guess is the bike will be fine. Best of luck to you.

 

[Donal]

All good advice above. If a TBS doesn't solve your vibration problem you might want to check your engine mounting bolts are all correctly torqued up.

See here and here for previous discussions on vibration/mount torque.

 

[08FJR4ME]

Tighten up the mirror bolt a little and the vibration on one side will go away. Next, get a power commander and the rest of the issues will go away. Take this advise from an experienced 08 owner.

Dave

 

[wheatonFJR]

Wow. I didn't know the 08s needed a power commander to run right.

 

[08FJR4ME]

Wow. I didn't know the 08s needed a power commander to run right.

Mine did and if you go back and research it there were a lot of other folks that had the same issues. At least my paint isn't soft.

 

[wheatonFJR]

Wow. I didn't know the 08s needed a power commander to run right.

Mine did and if you go back and research it there were a lot of other folks that had the same issues. At least my paint isn't soft.

I guess that is some small consolation...

 

[fjrin]

Surely a ~1300CC 4 cylinder sport tourer wouldn't require a Power Commander to run correctly. From what I gather, this is somewhat common on 2008 FJR's?

I'll check the engine mount bolts mirror bolt, too.

Thanks.

 

[wheatonFJR]

I think a few more 08 owners need to chime in.

 

[08FJR4ME]

I sent my bike back to the dealer and they couldn't find anything wrong. After almost getting killed a few more times I bought a power commander and never had another problem again. It worked for me. I still think Yamaha had a bad batch of ECU's they wouldn't admit too. Anyway with 85K on the bike the issue hasn't ever returned. Just my experience is all.

https://www.fjrforum.com/forum//index.php/topic/165555-died-coming-off-idle-3-bars-on-temp-guage/?p=1266966

Dave

 

[fjrin]

Based on what I've read about the Power Commander possibly being a solution, it looks like the problems that I'm experiencing are different than the other issues that the Power Commander has resolved in the other threads.

I'm going to run another tank of fresh fuel and Lucas through it tonight and tomorrow. There are no instructions for how much Lucas to add per gallon of gas. I put about 3 ounces in the last tank. Should I add more, or would that be too much?

 

[FJRPittsburgh]

Their Lucas Fuel Treatment website says 2-3 oz per 10 gallons, but a stronger mix won't hurt. I'll bet you will be cancelling the dealer appointment.

 

[08FJR4ME]

Double it with a fresh tank of gas.

Dave