| Author | Message | ||
     Cmm213 |
I'm starting to think my battery is going south. Today I went to start the bike and on the first try it didnt turn over so I let off the button and tried again and it turned and fired. Also my time is way off on the dash clock. Its an 03 so maybe its time for a new one, I dont think I'm going to get one till spring. No sence putting a new battery in now when it will sit for a few months coming very soon. I also plan to check the voltage from the other vital electrical parts, and am getting the diagnostic tool this winter. It also didnt seem to perform as well either, but it was really cold about 46 outside. Also any tips for my first winter with a XB, like winter storage. Should I fog the motor and put fuel stable in the tank and plug the exhaust, and pull the battery? thanks for the help. | ||
| Max |
Battery tender... | ||
| De50man |
I would suggest adding some type of fuel stabilizer, such as Stabil. Hook up the battery to a trickle charger once for a day or so every couple weeks. I don't think the battery is bad. The starting of the bike on the second try may be attributed to the cold weather alone, not the battery. And if you think the clock was off because of the battery, well, as far as I know the battery would have to be totally dead before the clock shut off. So it seems like you battery will be fine. P.S. It couldn't hurt to pull the battery and keep it in a heated environment during the winter. Also, occasionally rotate the tires of the bike so it's not sitting on the same spot for extended periods of time. | ||
| Midknyte |
Battery does not need to go dead to have the clock reset. If bat is low, the clock will reset when you start the bike up... Stabil and a battery tender. Stick a sheet of plywood on the floor and park the bike on it for the winter or other extended periods of time - isolates your tires from lye that seeps out of your cement floor. | ||
| Cmm213 |
Cool , I have never heard of the cement floor thing, but I'm getting new tires in spring so I dont care about the tires. I just want to get to the bottom of my electrical problem. thanks for the info. | ||
| Typeone |
same process for me... clean bike, fill tank with fuel + Stabil, fresh oil, wood block under front wheel w/rotation every few weeks, rear up on stand, plug the exhaust, tender on the battery and throw the cover over. sigh. its coming soon. | ||
| Reepicheep |
Look for loose terminal connections as well. | ||
| Olinxb12r |
My terminal connections were loose and it was acting much like yours is. | ||
| Cmm213 |
Now I am really pissed- my idle and misfire gremlins are back. Started it up earlier and and it started surging and sputtering and stalled out. I give up!!!! I guess my only hope is that I can figure this out with the diagnostic software from american sport bike. Then I can do a tps reset and look at whats going on. The worst part is that I got the bike little over a month ago and I am already dealing with this crap. It only has 4300 miles. I checked the bat it is tight, and it read 12.7 on the voltmeter-and 14 something running. | ||
| Mckennaxb12r |
I will pull the battery out put it inside the house, trickle charge it, fill the gas with stabil and run it through the engine for a while, change oil, place two carpet scraps under each wheel to prevent flat spots on tires, plug exhaust and cover the bike. Did I miss anything? | ||
| Black_sunshine |
Cmm213....My bike did the same thing for weeks. '03 XB9S. Turned out on of the wires going to my ECM had an open ground causing random clock rest, on and off sputtering, hard start (dragging) and starter clicking. Keep in mind these things happened at totally random times. One day it would run fine 1hr later...terrible. Finally the bike wouldn't even do anything when you turned it on. Only headlight and tail light. I thought it was my battery too, but it wasen't. I love Atlanta...no winterizing for me!  (Message edited by black_sunshine on October 28, 2005) | ||
| Gearhead998 |
I have an 03 XB9s, I found that when it gets COLD, below 40 my clock resets. I don't have a garage for daily use, so my bike sits in the parking lot, covered. every morning the clock resets. oh well i don't use it anyway. I ride until ice is a problem, so i see pretty cold temps. SHe does get stored in a garage at my in-laws for the winter tho, before someone calls social services for leaving my baby outside. | ||
| Cmm213 |
Hey blacksunshine how did you cure the problem, I'm up for trying anything. It's like you said sometimes it doesnt sometimes does. Not the type of bike I want to have. I want something I can get on and ride the hell out of. By the way your ride looks sweet, and buy the way your geared up it looks like you also like to ride you bike hard. The season is about over but it would be nice if it ended on a good note considering I have only had it for a month and a half. | ||
| Black_sunshine |
Cmm213...Thanks and I DO ride the Shiznit out of it. Don't get discouraged the XB platform is VERY reliable. I am around 10K miles and this is the first problem I have encountered. Glitch rides with me all the time (3%ers) and he hitting around 35K on his '03 XB9S. Stone Mountain H-d/Buell found the problem after I tried to locate it when I took it in for the 10k. I imagine that they just replaced the grounded out wire that rubbed through going to the ECM. They didn't find it until they took it out. Believe it or not, my bike was yellow when I bought it. I didn't take delivery until they changed it to black. Nothing against yellow but its just not my thing. | ||
| Cmm213 |
Thanks for the info I will look for wires that have rubbed through maybee. My problem is that I dont want to pay out the nose to have someone find the problem. Also the closest buell dealer is almost 2 hours away. I also wish I had other bullers to ride with. I think I'm the only xb around, and I think my bike is going to be black next year too. I bought it because it was the only one around at the time in good condition. | ||
| Xbduck |
Hey Cmm213, you might want to check the wiring harness as it goes around the battery. I had problems with mine right at the top edge of the battery. I used liquid tape for the bare wires and a piece of closed cell foam for a spacer and a buffer. Two years and running, so far so good. Oh, no , now I've jinxed it!!!!!  | ||
| Buellin_ri |
Pull my batt out of the bike. I'll try some of these other methods this year, thanks. | ||
| Rr_eater |
What is winterizing?? Why would you do it?? Just kidding guys!! You have all lended great points on long winter storage. I used stands for the tire issues and added stability during storage. Biggest thing I found is make sure the cover is breathable, dont use a plastic tarp, or condensation does evil things to the surfaces of your bike. Bruce in California | ||
| Kootenay |
What is winterizing?? Why would you do it?? | ||
| Cmm213 |
That is just sick- is that pic around the whistler area? I might be up there this season. I have a friend that works at Mt.Baker in WA and he says its not far at all to BC. | ||
| Vader |
Looks like my driveway about mid January! Man that sucks!! | ||
| Glitch |
Looks like Newfoundland to me. Black_sunshine does indeed ride hard. He knows what he speaks, it was a mystery we're glad has been solved. Before you put up your bike for winter, have it checked for charging problems, stator, regulator, loose wires, ect. I know you'd hate to start next season thinking everything is great, and the bike not start. My stator went out at 20thousand miles, and had the same symptoms as you and Black_sunshine had. So check everything. Best of luck. | ||
| Kootenay |
Cmm, Glitch has it--photo is from Newfoundland (actually, the Trans-Labrador Highway). Whistler ain't quite so bad--in fact, not uncommon for it to rain in the village while it's snowing up on the mountains. There is snow like that in BC, but mostly up on the North Coast. I just inserted the pic as a joke... If you're up at Baker, by all means try to get to Whistler--just be aware that it's a completely different experience, very touristy and expensive, more like Vail or Aspen. Baker is a good hill--I've skied and boarded there a fair bit, years ago--but Whistler/Blackcomb is huge, and has any kind of terrain you want. The easier runs do get crowded, though. For a better ski or snowboard experience, though, I'd suggest my area--check out Red Mountain near Rossland, BC, or Whitewater near Nelson, online. Both are smaller areas, but with a ton of expert terrain, and no crowds (best skied with a local, though, or you may miss stuff which isn't on the maps). | ||
| Kootenay |
Getting back to the motorcycle winterization question, I wonder if there's as much reason to change oil on a dry sump engine like the Buell prior to storage. I understand the potential problems of leaving dirty oil in a wet-sump engine during extended storage, especially a motorcycle wet-sump engine where the transmission and clutch sit in that oil as well--but with the Buell dry sump, isn't the oil pretty much all in the swingarm oil tank? And unless you run it after a change, any oil actually in the engine, pump, cooler, etc. will still be dirty, right? |
