| Author | Message | ||
     Dr_greg |
I guess it's finally my turn. My second '06 Uly has just developed a "miss" this morning, which is steadily getting worse. Bike has about 37,000 miles, and has been trouble-free since I bought it (after hitting the deer w/my first '06). I'm sure it's electrical. I'm very familiar with the bike, having had the cylinders off back when the rear spark plug blew out of Uly #1. Where would you suggest I begin my troubleshooting? Thanks in advance. --Doc | ||
| Hughlysses |
Doc- seems like the most common issue to cause this is the front plug wire rubbing through and grounding out on the frame or engine. That'd be a good place to start looking. I had a similar but intermittent miss on my 07 shortly after I installed the 09 engine. That turned out to be a lead to one of the fuel injectors that had rubbed through (on a new wiring harness no less). That'd also be worth checking. | ||
| Firemanjim |
Look at the plug wires to see they are seated at both ends with an audible click and that connectors are not corroded. When was last set of new plugs and intake seals? | ||
| Reepicheep |
Watch the tach when it is happening (and recovering) as well. Do the RPM's indicated on the tach spike up without the actual motor speed going up? That suggests CPS. And while I am not a fan of "throwing parts at it", if you spent $80 for a replacement CPS, put it in and found out you still have a problem, and then put the old good one in your "jump kit" with your spare rear bearings and spare rear axle and spare rear belt for long trips in the future, that's not a bad investment of $80. | ||
| Red450 |
Check the wiring on your TPS. | ||
| Teeps |
I second the plug wire theory. | ||
| Dr_greg |
Thanks very much for the tips. I'll keep you posted. --Doc | ||
| Cyclonedon |
I had the spark plug wire problem also! I almost missed the 2010 Buell Homecoming because of it! I discovered the problem by accident. | ||
| Danair |
+2 on the front plug wire. They sure run like shit on one jug. Had to drive 12 miles to get to towable pavement. | ||
| Arcticktm |
+3. Never got to a miss, but I found my front plug wire almost through the inner insulation when I replaced my stock wires with Magnecor wires this spring. No doubt I was headed for trouble within the next year. | ||
| Dr_greg |
You guys had it exactly! An old wire (I think I had used it to power...I forget what). Anyway, the wire had worked its way over next to the front plug wire, which was arcing across intermittently. Pulled it out, and voila...no more miss! A 5-minute fix. Man, I wish all problems were that easy to solve. And I wish all bikes were as easy to work on. Thanks again, guys. The '06 Uly continues to thrive... --Doc | ||
| Tootal |
Great to hear doc! I hate electrical problems and glad when they are easy to find! | ||
| Dr_greg |
Oops, spoke too soon...riding to work (my 1 day/wk consulting job) this morning revealed a residual sporadic miss. I'll bet the previous arcing had degraded the plug wire insulation. Got a set of Magnecor wires on order; will get this thing fixed once and for all! --Doc | ||
| Reepicheep |
Could be several issues together also... check those wires in the bundle around the steering head. | ||
| Motorbike |
Your front plug may also be slightly fouled because of the bad wire. You may want to throw in a new set. | ||
| Dr_greg |
Just finished installing the Magnecor 2557 plug wires. I found that removing the coil block made the job a lot easier. I seated the plug wires into the coil block, then worked the coil back into place and rebolted it. Then fit the wires over the spark plugs. Didn't bother cleaning the plugs, since it hadn't been missing very badly at all. Only did two laps around my (long) block, but it seems to run properly again. Thanks for the helpful suggestions. --Doc | ||
| Tootal |
Sounds like the plug wire was arcing to the path of least resistance. When you removed the old wire it just found another path! Been using Magnacor's for a long time with no problems. You should be good to go now!  | ||
| Dr_greg |
As usual, I spoke too soon. The MISS is still there---even with the Magnecor wires---and now the tach jumps at each miss. So it's something electronic. I'm afraid Dr. Greg and the Uly(s) have come to a parting of the ways. After nearly 100,000 miles of mostly wonderful riding between my two '06's (except the 4 consecutive breakdowns) I just don't have the motivation for any more troubleshooting...I'm just TIRED of it all. Wrenching is not all that much fun anymore. There are other things I'd rather do with my few years left on this earth. If anybody wants a couple of "basically free" '06 Ulys to tinker with, let me know. My next commute bike will be my faithful 1991 Honda NT650 Hawk. Kinda lookin' forward to resurrecting the Hawk. If nobody wants the Uly(s) I'll donate them to my local radio station. It's been fun, but...time to move on. --Doc | ||
| Buellerxt |
Why, Greg? Another option is to call Thunderbird, or go in to see them, and see if they have a good Buell tech. You're a Uly guy, Man! It's probably something small. Just a thought. Best of luck. | ||
| Steveford |
PM sent, my 06 is getting rather long in the tooth as I use it as my daily transportation. They can be rather aggravating at times! | ||
| Reepicheep |
Probably a cam position sensor. Not a huge deal. Wish I was closer, I'd take one of those Uly's and sort it out as a "hand to anyone and tell them to go for a ride" bike. | ||
| Motorbike |
Same here, if I lived closer, I would take at least one of them. Like someone in another post said, these bikes sure have some strange problems. I know all brands have their issues but these are really weird. Problem is, when they run, they are the most fun bikes to ride, in my opinion. Dr. Greg, do you have the Ducati yet? One of my brothers just picked up a 2010 Multistrada with 6,000 miles on it. It will be interesting to see how he likes that one. Take care. | ||
| Reepicheep |
I'm tempted to do a fly and ride. Fly out, get it going good enough, and ride it back to Ohio. That'd be a great adventure. Wonder how many tools I could put in checked luggage... | ||
| Reepicheep |
$375 flight, 1500 miles. How broken are they besides your current electrical problem? | ||
| Dr_greg |
As some of you know, I've "paid my dues" on the '06 Uly:  I've gotten rather tired of this kind of thing at my age...more gray hairs now. Anyway... I've actually had several inquiries about the Uly(s). I'm going to compose the same reply to all of them and see who gives me the best deal. In a nutshell, you gotta take 'em both (S/N 044 totaled at 55,000 miles, S/N 564 has 37,000 miles and has the miss), and you arrange transportation. Beyond that, the best offer takes 'em. And I've got a box of parts as well...if nobody wants 'em, they go to charity. None of my kids want 'em. --Doc PS. I also have two belts (one NEW and one almost new) if anybody wants to purchase one (or both) for a fair price...not givin' those away. (Message edited by Dr_greg on July 13, 2013) | ||
| Hughlysses |
I'd guess the problem is either the coil, or the cam sensor/ignition trigger. | ||
| Steveford |
My money is on the plastic seat pan creating havoc. I'd have to fly out and rent a U-Haul. | ||
| Dr_greg |
Both my '06 Ulys are on Craigslist Albuquerque if anyone's interested. It's been fun... --Doc | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
It sounds like you need a vacation from overcomplicated modern bikes. KLR650 or something with a carb. Sorry to hear that the bike finally wore you down. | ||
| Uly_man |
Dr Greg. I have been reading your posts on this subject and I DO understand how a problem with a Uly can piss people off. Saying that, and I have no wish to "second guess" your feelings on the subject, are you sure that this is the best course of action? If you should, however, wish to try and sort out the electrical issue I would be more than happy to help. And trust me I have become something of an expert with these problems on this bike. It may take time and it may need to be "wire by wire" but it will get fixed. That is a promise. Why should I bother? It is because you are a fellow mechanical engineer and a motor biker. "God made the World but Man still needs to make an effort". I love my own quotes. (Message edited by uly_man on July 14, 2013) |
