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Fuel Filter??? Results....

K

klrstix

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Guest
So I am on a ride with my buddies.  We have been out about 5 hours and are almost back home.  We are on the interstate and I begin to accelerate to pass a truck and suddenly my bike begins to cut out. 

As I accelerate, it runs then cuts out, runs then cuts out, ect....

So, when I stop accelerating, I can hold that speed, however the moment I put a "load" on the motor to accelerate, it begins to cut in and out as I described.

At first I just hold the speed I am at, however, the moment I hit the incline of a hill, I get the cut in cut out action again.  Also, I can disengage the clutch and accelerate to redline without any symptoms.  I get off the interstate and pull of the road and stop the bike.  It cranks back up without a glitch or hick-up.  At first the bike runs fine however after about 2 or 3 minutes of travel time on interstate, the symptoms return.

While it was ridiculously hot, the bike was not running too hot according to the temp gauge.  So has anyone else had this problem?  I am thinking it is probably a fuel filter that needs replacing.  What are your thoughts??
 
if you aren't getting FI error readings, I highly suggest checking the battery connections, remove, clean, and reconnect them tightly.
I have been witness to a few people with this exact same problem, loose cables means no fuel.
as for a "filter", there isn't one. check the battery cables first.
 
for starters, thanks for the reply...


I do not know if the gauges we acting unusual or not.  I was too busy trying not to get run over by 18 wheelers..    :eek: 

I am almost certain there were no error messages.  Soooo.....  I will check the battery cables...
 
It will be tomorrow when I check the cables and such however, the clock has not changed it is still displaying the correct time.  Would that rule out the cables being loose??
 
No, not necessarily. Mine had possibly the same problem when the bike was new. The clock and other settings kept their settings and time. Yet the loose connection on the battery (or the ground block outside the battery compartment) caused the exact symptoms you describe. Except like I mentioned, the gauges did cycle like you were just turning the key on. That's why I asked. I had loose terminals on the battery. But IIRC, it never lost time or settings. But that doesn't mean that is your problem as well. Just something to check. So check all your connections and grease and tighten if you can. Hopefully that's all it is.
 
klrstix said:
It will be tomorrow when I check the cables and such however, the clock has not changed it is still displaying the correct time.  Would that rule out the cables being loose??
Click to expand...

as Bob noted, the clock and other instruments may or may not be affected. the reason is they take milli-volts, and no real current draw to operate. The fuelpump however does take substatial voltage and current, a marginal connection will prevent it from operating correctly, also, it will prevent correct charging of the battery during normal operation.
It's the simplest place to start looking also.
 
OK so here is the follow up...

I access the battery and check all the connections and the ground.  I do not discern any obvious loose connections.  However, I go ahead an re-torque the terminal connections and the ground wire.  Time will tell on this...

Thanks again MOB and Cap'n Bob...
 
So its monday and I decide to go to work on the bike.  Its about a 12 mile ride and an opportunity to test the adjustments I made to the battery cables.  Ride to work went without a hitch.  Starting to feel like I may have resolved the issue. 

At lunch time I decide to get on the bike and go home...  I am about 2 miles into my ride home and suddenly the bike begins to display the same symptoms from Saturday....  :mad:

Is there any additional thoughts on what this could be??  I had a big 10 day trip planned the 1st week of September but this may be throwing a wrench into those plans...
 
Could be bad gas? Fuel pump issue?

Are you still on the same tank of gas when the problem first occurred?
 
I thought it might be bad gas however two other bikes filled up at the same station I did and they have not had any problem.  I also put got about 2/3rds of a tank out of that fill up before problems began to occur.

However, I am beginning to think my Fuel pump may be the issue.  I will probably drop the bike off at the dealership tomorrow to have them look at it.
 
klrstix said:
OK so here is the follow up...

I access the battery and check all the connections and the ground.  I do not discern any obvious loose connections.  However, I go ahead an re-torque the terminal connections and the ground wire.  Time will tell on this...

Thanks again MOB and Cap'n Bob...
Click to expand...

I'm sorry if it sounds like I'm harping on this, but please clarify.
they were not looese at all/ or were they in need of tighteneing?
I asked this and also if you actually pulled them all and cleaned them?
If they were loose, and you were running them like that, they tend to develop and invisible resistive coating, and tightening only can give false and temporary results. Always scrub them if you go that far as to do a tighten, it's only a couple minutes, but you then know they are clean.
 
Hey MOB...

Not harping...  I appreciate the input.

To answer your question, nothing was loose.  I did disconnect the ground because I have some accessories that used the same attachment and I simply relocated the accessory grounds to a different ground.  I checked the battery terminals and they were plenty tight.  However, I did not disconnect the battery terminals and clean them. 

 
Sounds like you might have a load of bad gas or water in your gas. It's becoming more and more commonplace with the advent of E10 ethanol gas.

I'd probably try some Chevron Techron fuel cleaner additive in a tank of fresh gas and then run that all out and see if it fixes it.
 
Hello Fred...

I also thought it might be bad gas/water however the dealer mechanic had an interesting angle...

After talking over the symptoms and such with my dealership, they said that they have seen instances of fuel pumps behaving this way when the temps are very hot.  They emphasized they would have to look at it to diagnose it properly to be certain, and obviously not all fuel pumps have this issue in the heat.  I live in NW Louisiana and we have been brutalized this summer with the +100 temps like most of Texas.  And to further lend credibility to their initial observation, I only seem to have the problem after 12 noon when the temps are at there worst.  I have ridden in the mornings with not the 1st symptom...  (yet...) Basically they said the fix would be to replace the fuel pump. 

We will see....  and of course I will keep everyone posted.

 
That's interesting, I wonder if it would difficult to install a fuel pressure gauge on the bike and monitor it while you ride.
 
Wild Bill that was an interesting thread and makes me wonder if the filter ( or screen...) isn't the issue.  Unfortunately for me, it looks as though it will be tomorrow before the dealer can get to the bike.  They've had it since tuesday and only have on technician...  oh well...
 
Got a call today from the service technician...    It is the fuel pump... 

This is somewhat surprising given the pressure these typically run.  Normally they just stop working.

I will find out tomorrow how quickly they can get the part in.  Anyway, that is the culprit!
 
I guess that's good and bad news. It's good that you know what caused it now. But bad that it happened in the first place.
 
Good news is this should be a warranty item... 

And the other good news it happened now as opposed to when I was on the road (as I plan to be...) somewhere between Louisiana and Colorado...

 
klrstix said:
Good news is this should be a warranty item... 

And the other good news it happened now as opposed to when I was on the road (as I plan to be...) somewhere between Louisiana and Colorado...
Click to expand...


Point taken! 
 
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