I was on my way home from my son's house on Sunday. The weather was perfect with 76 degree temps and sunny weather. Previous rides this spring have only hit the low 50s. At roughly 1/2 a tank, I experienced a complete loss of engine power while buzzing along in 6th gear at around 75MPH on an open two-lane highway. The gages never lost power and as I coasted with the clutch in, I was able to hit the starter to fire her back up in a few tries. This was not isolated as I experienced the same intermittently about a dozen times in the next hour and a half on the way home. This happened at various speeds. I tried to just go with the clutch engaged as the engine was decelerating and noticed that she lurched back to life immediately after a few seconds of waiting. It feels to me as if the fuel injection system is shutting off and coming back to life.
I had a somewhat similar situation last summer, but not exactly the same symptoms as there was also poor running and low power when she started back up. I did not feel a loss of power this time as the engine runs. I replaced the fuel pump, bag filter, and pressure regulator at the time with a kit from The Fuel Pump Shop with no further issues for a couple thousand more miles. The bike is at around 22,500 miles right now and the valves were checked and adjusted at 15,400.
When I have mechanical issues, I always think about "what changed?":
1) On my way over to my son's, I had to stop for a bit of gas after fighting a head wind all the way. I could only find a country gas station that only had regular and put in only a gallon. I always use recreation fuel without any alcohol and with some octane boost. The recreation gas in Michigan only comes at 89 or 90 octane.
2) I filled the tank with 89 octane recreation gas for the trip home. I added roughly 1/4 bottle of Seafoam injector cleaner (first time since the fuel pump replacement) and a bit of STP octane boost.
3) The temperatures were much warmer for my trip home than anything experienced previously this spring. Prior to the issue, she was running great and at roughly the half mark on engine temp.
I have a spare bag filter and my thought is to pull the tank and fuel pump to inspect, clean, and replace the bag filter. I thought of replacing the fuel line anyway since it is OEM and well beyond the 4 year replacement suggested. I wonder if the mix of injector cleaner and octane boost reacted and caused some kind of restriction in the filter or pressure regulator.
My fear is that some sensor is starting to go out. I wonder if the computer can be plugged in for diagnosis by a qualified mechanic. The tough part is to find one that is qualified. I used some 600 sand paper to clean up the battery grounding surfaces when I got her ready to come home a few weeks ago. I know that a bad ground can create all kinds of gremlins. I doubt this to be the issue since the battery readout continues at 14.5 volts the whole time, even when the issue happens. When I got close to home, I revved her out with lots of throttle. A few seconds after going back to stable throttle, the power cut out again for a few seconds, making me confident that it is a fueling issue.
Has anyone experienced this problem and have any hints? It is very much appreciated if you share your expertise.
Rob from Michigan
I had a somewhat similar situation last summer, but not exactly the same symptoms as there was also poor running and low power when she started back up. I did not feel a loss of power this time as the engine runs. I replaced the fuel pump, bag filter, and pressure regulator at the time with a kit from The Fuel Pump Shop with no further issues for a couple thousand more miles. The bike is at around 22,500 miles right now and the valves were checked and adjusted at 15,400.
When I have mechanical issues, I always think about "what changed?":
1) On my way over to my son's, I had to stop for a bit of gas after fighting a head wind all the way. I could only find a country gas station that only had regular and put in only a gallon. I always use recreation fuel without any alcohol and with some octane boost. The recreation gas in Michigan only comes at 89 or 90 octane.
2) I filled the tank with 89 octane recreation gas for the trip home. I added roughly 1/4 bottle of Seafoam injector cleaner (first time since the fuel pump replacement) and a bit of STP octane boost.
3) The temperatures were much warmer for my trip home than anything experienced previously this spring. Prior to the issue, she was running great and at roughly the half mark on engine temp.
I have a spare bag filter and my thought is to pull the tank and fuel pump to inspect, clean, and replace the bag filter. I thought of replacing the fuel line anyway since it is OEM and well beyond the 4 year replacement suggested. I wonder if the mix of injector cleaner and octane boost reacted and caused some kind of restriction in the filter or pressure regulator.
My fear is that some sensor is starting to go out. I wonder if the computer can be plugged in for diagnosis by a qualified mechanic. The tough part is to find one that is qualified. I used some 600 sand paper to clean up the battery grounding surfaces when I got her ready to come home a few weeks ago. I know that a bad ground can create all kinds of gremlins. I doubt this to be the issue since the battery readout continues at 14.5 volts the whole time, even when the issue happens. When I got close to home, I revved her out with lots of throttle. A few seconds after going back to stable throttle, the power cut out again for a few seconds, making me confident that it is a fueling issue.
Has anyone experienced this problem and have any hints? It is very much appreciated if you share your expertise.
Rob from Michigan
