Running bad #2

[kman09]

Out on a 300 mile ride yesterday,stop for gas with a little less than 1/2 tank top-off.

Start her up and immediately I feel it's not running right. Pull away from pump and little to no power. Crap!

Felt as if it were running on one cylinder,and wouldn't idle. With it still running and playing throttle I limped though

Solvang out to 154hwy. It did clear up some what,engine feels rough at idle and is now idling at 1k.Seems to lack power?

Any thought or anyone else with Gen 2 have similar problem. My friend who was with of course,said see

I told you to by a BMW.

 

[TomInPA]

It's pretty hard to ignore the coincidence of the new fuel addition to the poor operating condition. It's inexpensive and easy to drain and replace that fuel and see if it solves a problem. As long as you have the tank lifted, you could also check the plugs for any signs of problems. I don't recall if 2009s had the Spider bites, but that is also a symptom.

 

[Fred W]

Have you tried to start it again since it has cooled off completely?

A bad TPS can show up after a short stop (like refueling) as the engine heat soaks into it after a long highway run. It then seems to clear up somewhat as the cooler air gets to it when back on the road. This is exactly how my bad TPS first showed up on my Vstrom, and it's the same TPS as what is used on FJRs.

I doubt it would be bad gas as the fuel in the lines and fuel rail would delay when the bike started acting up for a while before you got to the new gas.

Your symptoms sound eerily similar to what Patriot is/was going through, except that when he tried to restart it cold he said he had loud mechanical clanking noises, so it was off to the shop for his.

 

[escapefjrtist]

Cali spec bike? Similar symptoms to charcoal canister issues but those should clear up once the extra fuel / vapor has been burned off.

Since it started at the fill up, I'd suspect fuel related...

Let us know what you find.

--G

 

[kman09]

Thanks for the tips everyone. And no I have not restarted it since I made it home yesterday,will check that out.

Will post any out of the ordinary if I find something.

Thanks

 

[SkooterG]

Have you tried to start it again since it has cooled off completely?
A bad TPS can show up after a short stop (like refueling) as the engine heat soaks into it after a long highway run. It then seems to clear up somewhat as the cooler air gets to it when back on the road. This is exactly how my bad TPS first showed up on my Vstrom, and it's the same TPS as what is used on FJRs.

I doubt it would be bad gas as the fuel in the lines and fuel rail would delay when the bike started acting up for a while before you got to the new gas.

Your symptoms sound eerily similar to what Patriot is/was going through, except that when he tried to restart it cold he said he had loud mechanical clanking noises, so it was off to the shop for his.

Fred, you just can't let go of that TPS!

As far as I am aware, there have been *ZERO* issues with the TPS on Gen IIs. And with the Yamaha free replacement on the affected Gen Is, even a Gen I problematic TPS is a rare find in this day and age.

You know, there is a 10-step program for TPS-phobes like you...........

As for the OP, since your problems started immediately after a fill-up, bad fuel would be the first thing I would suspect and eliminate before I would go any further. What kind of gas station was it? Old? Middle of nowhere?

 

[kman09]

Chevron station and not in the middle of no where.

When I say immediately after fill-up,it was top of tank and start it up.

I started it in the garage and let it idle down and warm up.

Runs but still sounds like its missing to me,plus idle below 10k between 8-9?

Reset idle to 11k still the same,sound like it's missing?

I'll play around with it some more tomorrow and see if I can come up with anything.

If not I'll take it to my bike mechanic on Tuesday.

Again Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and info.,on this.

 

[SkooterG]

Why not simply drain the tank, replace the fuel and check it? It's an easy way to eliminate a possible root cause.

 

[RaYzerman19]

"Bad Fuel" is mostly water in the gas. Try some Seafoam or a couple of ounces of isopropanol in the fuel, slosh around and attempt to start.

 

[kman09]

SkooterG and RaYzermanMy first thoughts were to drain,clean,inspect and refill with new gas.

Were can I get this Seafoam and isopropanol ?

Thanks you two the info,and reply's.

 

[graler]

SkooterG and RaYzermanMy first thoughts were to drain,clean,inspect and refill with new gas.

Were can I get this Seafoam and isopropanol ?

Thanks you two the info,and reply's.

I have acquired Seafoam at walmart in the past. Most autoparts stores would have it as well.

 

[Bustanut joker]

I purchased seafoam and a penis extender at The big Evil... Though the cok extender was prescription..

 

[SkooterG]

I purchased seafoam and a penis extender at The big Evil... Though the cok extender was prescription..

Really?

Must you poison EVERY thread with your drivel?

Yes, it DOES get tiresome.

 

[C&C]

While it does sound fuel related, in course, i would also check the battery cables (and/or other connections).

 

[PhilJet09]

Honestly, I wouldn't mess around trying to "fix" the fuel. Just dump it out and start over with fresh gas from a different station, then you'll know for sure.

 

[Blind Squirrel]

Get new gas and put seafoam in it. The seafoam will help clean anything left over in the lines out.

 

[Fred W]

Skooter,

I only mentioned the TPS as a possibility, and the cold re-start test is very quick and easy way to rule out any heat related issues. Knowing if the issue was heat related wouldn't prove that it was a bad TPS, but it would lead to wanting to do some additional testing. Since his cold start running is still messed up it tells us this is not heat related and he can look elsewhere.

Making simple tests like this is the very essence of troubleshooting. Just taking a wild guess based entirely on limited experience and what has or hasn't been seen in the past can be expensive and often is counterproductive.

Based on the originally described symptoms I fail to see how this problem could have resulted from "bad gas" being added since the bike began to act up immediately upon restart after having been refueled. It takes some amount of time for the new fuel in the tank to get through the fuel pump, fuel lines and fuel rail to get to the injectors. So you would expect it to take a while (20-30 seconds or more?) before the onset of the symptoms after adding "bad gas".

 

[Fred W]

Chevron station and not in the middle of no where.When I say immediately after fill-up,it was top of tank and start it up.

I started it in the garage and let it idle down and warm up.

Runs but still sounds like its missing to me,plus idle below 10k between 8-9?

Reset idle to 11k still the same,sound like it's missing?

I'll play around with it some more tomorrow and see if I can come up with anything.

If not I'll take it to my bike mechanic on Tuesday.

Again Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and info.,on this.

Upon re-reading your follow up post I have to ask if it is running really rough or does it just sound like it is misfiring every once in a while? Because the latter is pretty much normal for any stock FJR at idle. I guess the better test would have been to actually ride the bike cold and see if it is still running poorly, unless it really is running considerably rougher than normal. I have no idea how much experience that you have with these bikes and their peculiarities.

Here's someones exhaust comparison video on Youtube of a "normal" FJR idling and being revved. Even with the stock exhuast, you can clearly hear the "normal" amount of lean fueling "misfires".




FWIW that aftermarket exhaust sounds really crappy to me.

 

[kman09]

WOW, Thanks for the overwhelming response to this.

I'll take into consideration everyone's idea's on this matter,and get back with my findings.

Well almost everyone - Thanks

SkooterGI couldn't agree more with your comment - Thanks