| Author | Message | ||
     Gingahippy |
hI guys, new Uly owner here, I've never ridden a Buell before and have a few questions about how it runs. I know the thing is a paint shaker at idle and smooths out above 2500 rpm but I am also getting a kind of pulsing at 3500 rpm and below, like every few seconds it has a little power spurt and lurches forward a tiny bit. Not a huge issue and it doesn't happen when accelerating but it makes low speeds and around town a bit of a bumpy ride. Is this normal? Is it part of owning a vampire bat beast of a bike that it only smooths out at performance speeds and is not designed for shopping trips? What rpm do you guys generally cruise through town at when for 35/45mph? | ||
| Reepicheep |
When it's cold you might get some hiccups, and the fueling maps are better then others. I thought the 06 map was pretty decent though, so above 2000 RPM with a warm bike, it should be pretty smooth. Reset the TPS and make sure the plugs are clean and put fresh gas in it. The ECM also learns over time, so if it's the first ride in a new altitude or new weather conditions, it might be readjusting for a while. | ||
| Gingahippy |
It's all new to me, is this video showing what I need to be doing? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i33__Qkvhn4 I just bought the cable on Amazon. It has done 18k so not sure if that would contribute or if it should reset itself over time. It may have been standing unused for a few months bit it has only traveled 200 miles north in FL between owners so no great atmospheric changes. | ||
| Blake |
Do you mind if we move this to the troubleshooting subtopis here in the knowledge vault? | ||
| Reepicheep |
I didn't watch the whole video, but it looked right. Make sure you have the idle screw so that the throttle plate is COMPLETELY closed, snap the throttle closed a couple times, punch the button to do a reset, then reset the idle. | ||
| Gingahippy |
Blake, please do, sorry if I posted in the wrong section. Thanks again RC. What is the best resource for finding out how to do such jobs as the spark plugs? I am finding some things on Youtube and have downloaded the manual but it doesn't seem easy to use with no index. I have very little knowledge of bikes and engines but am good with my hands if I have a good set of instructions. | ||
| Reepicheep |
The factory manual is your best bet. It walks you through every possible process soup to nuts. It may take some hopping around, but if you follow it, it will get you there. | ||
| Bluzm2 |
Plugs are pretty straight forward, just need a long socket extension for the rear plug. | ||
| Gingahippy |
So I reset the TPS, but when I tried to reset the idle to 1100 it was running to rough to be able to get a steady idle reading. Even when the engine was warm it would still drop down to 7-800 rpm then jump up to 1600-2000 and cycle up and down between the two. Every 20 seconds or so it would rev all the way up to 3k for a but then come down and cycle again. Adjusting the idle would also change the angle again, up to 7.0, is that a problem? I am guessing that the plugs should be changed and maybe the fuel/air mix is off, although I have no idea how to test for or change that. I also can't find any way to navigate the manual that I downloaded. Is there a version with an index? I am trying to use the search function but it's not helping. Any help would be greatly appreciated. | ||
| Reepicheep |
Hmmm. Is the throttle plate OK? The big plate about the size of a silver dollar that is the valve inside the intake. That shaft can wear then break. | ||
| Gingahippy |
I have spark plugs arriving, I'll check the throttle plate when I go in there to change the plugs tomorrow. I'm also reading about re routing the breather hoses to vent the crank case gases out of the engine instead of back into the air intake, people seem to be clearing up something similar to my problem with this mod. Is this recommended? | ||
| Reepicheep |
I didn't. Here is my reasoning (in order of significance) 90%) I did it on my M2, and the spooge dripping and catch can misting and emptying was a tedious mess. 10%) That spooge is the only lubrication the throttle plate gets. Now I will say that at 30k miles, when I pulled my heads, they were VERY badly carboned up. Spooging into the aribox certianly contributed to that. Did it contribute a little? Did it contribute a lot? Who knows. I also seem to recall Al at American Sportbike (who I trust) says he can see the difference on a dyno as well. You gain power by not pumping that hot oily air back into the airbox. | ||
| Gingahippy |
I'm reading so many reports of people raving about how the low end performance cleared up with this mod, and almost no-one with any bad to offer, several who noticed no change. Since the low end lumpiness is my main problem I'll give it a go and see what happens. I redid the TPS reset yesterday with a fully functioning laptop (finally fixed a Windows Update process that had been hogging all the RAM, took me 2 days to track it down) and took it out for 20 min to allow the ECM to recalibrate. I did notice an improvement on the lurching (it's not that bad but I can't think of a better word). I would be happy with it as it is now, but since I have learnt that things can be better I want them to be better. I can set the idle now too, it only fluctuates about 500rpm. When it said set to 1050-1150 I was assuming I could set it exactly to ONE of those figures, would I be correct in thinking that it meant set the idle to fluctuate BETWEEN 1050 and 1150? I'll report back when the new plugs and breather mod are done. | ||
| Alchemy |
Gingahippy, regarding plugs, try a search on wobble socket and plug. On my 06 Uly I was advised to get a 10" extension and a wobble socket for the plugs. Removing the boots off the plugs can be a deal as well. There are tools to make this easier. I have changed plugs a couple times and it is a bit of a deal but doable. Lube with Antiseize for install. Search the Big, Bad and Dirty forums. | ||
| Gingahippy |
So, new Iridium plugs (NGK DCPR9EIX) gaps checked and corrected to 0.035" Breather hose rerouted Throttle plate was good, cleaned it up to great and took off the carbon fouling around where the plate seats so all is shiny now. New tank of fuel, second since purchase, using Premium. TPS reset, twice. Idle set to 1100 ish when warm. If anything the problem is worse, now it does it at slightly higher revs too, maybe I am just getting more sensitive to the bike. It does not like to run at a steady speed below 3.5-4k. Slower speeds seem slightly worse. Trying to navigate obstacles in first gear would be dangerous but at other speeds it is just annoying. I did notice during the first TPS reset that when it came time to set the idle I ran out of turn. It maxed out before I could get the revs up. I blipped the throttle a bit and then the revs were sitting high for a while, came down slowly and then gave me more room to adjust. I did the TPS reset again and things worked out okay. The engine was already warm for all this. Then I took it out for a 20 minute to let the ECM settle down. Kept it at 3000-3500 for 10 min. Maybe I should have done the TPS reset when cold, heat would affect the size of the throttle plate and maybe the fit? I will order some new cables and try them with standard plugs, I know some of you are not keen on iridium. Is this level of tinkering normal? The Honda Shadow was just sit and go, never a problem. With something as well designed and upmarket as a Buell I'd expect it to be more reliable than this, are they know for being fussy Prima Donnas? I can see how they are worth it, just like a good woman, the really fun ones are more drama and upkeep but you keep paying out as long as you are still in love. So far I've done the rear preload adjustor top up, got a new lower seat that makes absolutely no difference, new plugs, breather reroute, TPS reset many times, replaced a broken horn and found that the ground cable is dead, had to ground to the frame instead. As for getting the plugs out, is the angle on the front plug too much for the universal joint socket? The rear was fine but the front did not want to turn, maybe too much angle? I had to use an open spanner to finish tightening the new plug. Would the wobble socket be better than a normal universal joint? Breather hose re-route run through 5/8" hose, probably overkill but I was concerned about choking the air flow, I used a 5/8" tee and then reduced back down to 3/8" for the breather filter and drain split. The 3/8" hose fits snuggly into the 5/8" hose so no adapters needed. Seeing the smoke that comes out of the breather I am glad I'm not using that crap in the intake now, you can clearly smell it too. | ||
| Gingahippy |
I just noticed that the exhaust actuator has been isolated, the cable os removed from the wheel and is cable tied into a length of plastic sleeve effectively making it useless. Is this another mod already done or is this a problem? There are also some holes cut into the side of the airbox, is this standard or modded? | ||
| Reepicheep |
It works better with the exhaust servo working, but it's not a total disaster to disconnect it. You loose a little at either top or bottom end depending on if it is wired open or closed. And maybe add noise. In 2005, the airboxes were not open. In 2006 (I thought) they had a lot of openings. Somebody may have cut more, so long as a path bypassing the filter hasn't been opened up, that probably makes no difference. I cut the one on my 05 9sx open, and it added some nice intake noise, but didn't noticeably change the way it ran. | ||
| Gingahippy |
I took the servo apart and found the black gear had been rounded off where it should catch the white gear. I pressed it with a hot knife and scraped with a sharp blade until I had a sharp edge again and reassembled. Seems to work okay for now. Low end is now insane, it feels like I imagined a Buell should. So much faster on the take off. When I was trying to get actuator to open by revving in neutral I had to go almost to redline before it started working. I am not sure I will ever open the throttle that far on the road so no loss there. It had been held wide open but I prefer it closed for now. Still didn't fix the lurching at low revs. As for airbox openings, without the ones I see now (rectangles cut vertically on the right side) I can't see how air gets in without those holes. Ordered the leads from Ironmachine, called the guy to ask some questions and he spent a fair time on the phone discussing options with me. I tried rubbing alcohol around the intake manifold as he advised but that didn't change anything. He recommended mineral spirits but I thought it would do. Anyone have an exhaust actuator for sale??? | ||
| Reepicheep |
I think I ended up with a couple extra (long story). They all appear to work right, but I bought them used / salvage in lots of other parts. Post a picture of yours to make sure I have the right model. $30 and I'll pay shipping anywhere in the US? I think that's about what I paid for each. | ||
| Gingahippy |
Awesome. You are a star! For that price I'll happily pay for shipping and a 6 pack. Mine is the older version on the right of the second pic in this thread: http://badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/142838/ 486060.html?1249913983 From what I understand I need the newer version on the left with the metal gears and the removable cable support thingy. | ||
| Reepicheep |
Let me go dig them out and see which one I have... I got them a long time ago, so they may be the old version. | ||
| Gingahippy |
Did you get a chance to dig them out? | ||
| Reepicheep |
Dug them out. I have one of each. For the one with the separate metal clip to hold the cable, I do NOT have the clip. Let me know which one you want. I got them both off of ebay, and believe they both work. If you get them, and they don't, we will work it out. | ||
| Gingahippy |
Nice! I'll take the one with the metal gears and without the clip. I have seen them for sale or could make something up myself. I'll PM you. | ||
| Gingahippy |
So I notice that my bike has the holes in the airbox, K&N filter already installed, plus the breather reroute I put in and the iridium plugs. Would all of that require some change to the fuel maps or fine tuning beyond that of the TPS reset or the ECM learning the new settings? Still waiting on spark plug leads, will test the TPS with a volt meter when I am in there as recommended by the guy at Iron Machine. | ||
| Reepicheep |
I didn't have to do anything (when I did that same stuff to my XB9SX). Never had a problem. You didn't actually change much. |
