| Author | Message | ||
     Adrian_8 |
I was riding my ULY in the misty rain and it acted like it was going to run out of gas...luckily the rain quit and the bike has been running fine...BUT..I decided to check the front spark plug wire I have been hearing about...sure enuff..wore thru in two places and there is a lot of possible problems under the air box base plate..There are several wires and cables that are just lying on the head to wear thru..the idle adjusting cable was just laying on the head and was worn real bad.. I put a piece of clear tubing around it...this area definitely needs some urgent PM... the base plate has to be pulled to see the problems.. | ||
| Davo |
ET and O2 are extremely vulnerable and banjo tight on some bikes! Steering head and area behind the wind screen can be alarming as well. | ||
| Krassh |
For as many problems reported since the '03's you would think Buell would be putting more layers of protection or some other fix. | ||
| Adrian_8 |
This is very disturbing as anyone with any common sense would see there is a potential problem here and it is only a matter of time before the motorcycle has a major problem, all preventable..my bike has almost 21,000 miles on it and I can guarantee when more bikes get this many miles they will have the same issues with the wires and cables laying on the "paint shaker." My front spark plug wire needs to be replaced and the idle cable too. Buell needs to use some wire guides and loops to hold the wires up off the motor, I used about 7 cable ties to hold up various wires and clear plastic tubing to slip over the idle adj. cable. This needs to be fixed at the factory. Take a look at this crappy engineering Eric. | ||
| Treadmarks |
Adrian, Magnacor #2557 is a perfect replacement wire. Much more durable as well. I removed my coil, disconnected the throttle cables and relocated my main wiring harness against the tank/frame and reconnected the throttle cables. This will keep the plug wire protected from the chafing. With the new magnacor wires, I have a very solid Idle at 900 rpm, and much smoother acceleration from idle. | ||
| Adrian_8 |
Tread..I did the same...with the coil out I could see the idle adj. cable chafing , it fact it was leaving rust on top of the cylinder. Thanks for the magnacore #, will check it out. really all of this should be covered under warranty..I have a miss at idle now started before I took it apart..probably a plug fouling...thinking about the Denso Iridium plugs..that base plate is like a rug..all kinds of "hidden dirt" lurking under there. | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
The airbox base plate screws are a real whorebag to loosen. Broke off two of mine and one I never could get out after breaking. Factory loctite is permanent on them and I'd recommend using an air impact set at 80 psi. Wish I'd done that to start with. Thanks for nothing Buell. | ||
| Chadhargis |
I second the base plate screw comment. I had to drill one out because it completely stripped. | ||
| Krassh |
If your bike is still under warranty it is, my '03 was and lucky mine happened before 12,000 in the first year. | ||
| Buellinabq |
I decided to take a look at my Uly today. I got the bolts out very easily. I tapped the torx driver with a hammer about 10 times each and they unscrewed very easily. I was expecting a horrible time. I couldn't get the breather hoses out and I thought if I took off the end on the PCV connector that I wouldn't get a zip tie back on the end. So, I only pulled the base up out of the velocity stack a little and gently forced it over as far as I could without trying to pull out wires and hoses. My plug wires looked fine. The other 2 wires, O2 and the white wire were slightly touching the motor at the fat wire connector end, but didn't show any wear. Now, the idle screw wire, well damn, it's worn on the cylinder head bolt and looks like it melted very slightly on the cylinder head. I put a little bit of rubber heater hose around the spot where it touches the bolt and that raised it up slightly. That wire is tight though. I made sure it didn't pull up super tight as then it would touch the front plug wire. Hopefully that will stop the wear and hopefully the rubber heater hose won't melt. And I wiped out just a tiny bit of oil. I'm thinking maybe I should have cut the extra holes in the air filter cover while I had it apart. | ||
| Ftd |
I checked mine out today too. Bolts came out easily but had already been taken out when Appleton installed my Drummer catch can. My idle cable was also worn and I didn't like the rubbing of the throttle cable, wire harness and front spark plug wire. I used pieces of tygon tubing to protect/separate these items. Frank | ||
| Adrian_8 |
Glad you guys are checking this stuff...pull the coil out....it has two bolts no nut on the bottom to loose, there is a VERY good chance your front spark plug wire is worn where you cannnot see it (worn on the bottom side), mine had the inner wires showing thru...get to it early..I ordered the magnecore wires number 2557 (Treads advice) and put in two NGK DCPR8EIX (6545) Iridium plugs from NAPA (4 for $32.00)and she is a happy thumper. I have taped and siliconed the stock wire to get by until the Magnecore wires come...ordered straight from the factory today. Like I said it is a mess under the the baseplate. | ||
| Xbimmer |
Why the H are we talking about this stuff? Why do stainless screws need to be threadlocked into an aluminum frame to hold down a piece of plastic? I dreaded the 10k spark plug change and sure enough when I did it ran into this stuff. I still have an amputated right rear screw in the frame with a shattered drill bit lodged in it... wires under there and idle adjust cable abraded like crazy. Don't worry about the breather hoses running into the baseplate, forget the S/M and just push them down and out as you pull up the plate. Upon reinstall smear a little silicone dielectric grease (you DID have that available for the spark plug cables right?) on them and they push right back up through the plate. I bought new screws and cleaned off the threadlock, then antiseized them back in. SOP for me when I install steel non-critical fasteners into aluminum, haven't failed me yet. | ||
| Stevenknapp |
You *can* change the plugs without the airbox being removed too. The front one is a no-brainer. The rear one was a bit tougher, but after doing it twice, I'm pretty good at it!  | ||
| Adrian_8 |
While we are in this area performing surgery...when the warranty expires I have to get rid of those nasty breather hoses dumping oil in the air box...looks like two longer hoses with a t-fitting to a catch can mounted on the frame somewhere...or buy a real sanitary kit... | ||
| Warbaby |
During my recent exhaust mods, I checked and also had sloppy factory wiring around the valve covers. I fixed my mess by using fuel hose as insulation along with a bunch of tie wraps. If I can correct the problem in 30 minutes, the factory could easily prevent it completely. | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
You sometimes got to wonder how problems of this nature aren't expected and taken care of by the design engineers before they manufacture the bike in the first place. Here they have that desert training ground where the riders are putting zillions of miles on these bikes every month but somehow these ridiculous problems like wire insul chafing and crapped out fans are still regular occurrences on customer bikes. Seems pretty lame to me. These are problems that we shouldn't be dealing with at all. Erik apparently hasn't stressed enough to his engineers that customers have long memories and will think twice about buying another Buell because of all these unnecessary manufacturing and design errors. It is just plain bullshit as far as I'm concerned. Bikes handle great but make sure you take the bike apart after you buy it and re-route and re-wrap all the insulation because that's just part of being a freaking Buell owner. Erik, guess what, I don't want to have to do that after paying 11.5 grand plus tax for a bike you claimed is good for a zillion miles. Oh, by the way, try using an oxygen sensor in both pipes like Harley does and maybe a lot of these fuel injection problems wouldn't be happening. | ||
| Freyke |
anybody got pitcures? | ||
| Adrian_8 |
Warbaby..my thoughts exactly..this is just unnecessary. All this wiring mess could have been fixed correctly from the factory and proper hanging positions threaded into the bike. Spark Plugs: these are easy to change..front just use a 5/8" box end wrench..back..use a 3/8 drive 5/8" socket with a wobble on socket then a 10" extension. When back plug is very loose pull socket off and push a piece of fuel line onto plug tip unscrew, and pull out. Screw new plug into back hole with the fuel line then wrench it tight..all is done thru the long slot below the seat..Now another potential problem...putting the wires back on correctly..When the plug boots are pushed up thaey will slide up the wire as it is not glued tight.THEN when you go to pull the wire back on the plug the boot comes down on the plug but the actual metal cap is not snapped on the plug. It is very hard to get a grasp of the front wire and snap it on tight...notice I said snap. SO..coil came back off and I put a plug onto the wire for proper adjustment of the wire and boot then tie wrapped the boot to the wire then I could get the boot to snap on. Sorry about the long post..had too much coffee this morning.. | ||
| Treadmarks |
anybody got pitcures? I got some nice shots of the before and after, I'm just too freaking stoopid to post them. I downsized them to 29k, but when I try to upload to badweb, it says they are over 71k limit. | ||
| Stevenknapp |
I slid the boots up all the way and used some plug wire pilers to get the metal terminal on/off. Oh, and a U-joint instead of the wobble.  | ||
| Paochow |
Treadmarks, send me the full resolution versions (photos@elp.rr.com) and I'll stick them in photobucket and post them. | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
I use a software called ULEAD Presto! Mr. Photo 3. It allows you to set the resolution to whatever amount you want real fast and simple. | ||
| Buellinabq |
Link to Treadmarks' pictures... http://www.emailmypc.com/~treadmarks/uly_chafing_w ires/index.html | ||
| Treadmarks |
Thanks for the help Buellinabq. Here is a shot of the front coil wire that is corroded because it was not plugged all the way in the coil.  Here is a shot of the idle adjust cable showing the contact between it and the motor mount.   The repairs to the idle adjust cable. Legris .250 high pressure hose split and fitted around the cable, then heat shrink on top of that.  This is what happens when the main wiring harness is on the right hand side of the throttle cables. Remember-in this location the harness is frame mounted (non moving) and the throttle cables and plug wire move with the motor.    Remove throttle cables, pull main wiring slack and secure to the left side of the cables-against the frame. Replace throttle cables and idle adjust cable.  Use a ty-wrap around bottom throttle cable and idle adjust cable to gently pull idle adjust up off the engine.  Wire comparison, factory vs magnecor #2557  One on one wire comparison. Note hole from abrasion in factory wire. These new wires make the factory wires look so puny.  Install complete. Note the harness is on the far left, and the throttle cables and plug wire are on the right. Keep the stuff that moves, away from the stuff that don't.  Thanks again Buellinabq for the hookup. TM | ||
| Etennuly |
Excellent pics and info....Thanks!  | ||
| Adrian_8 |
Pics are great...Buell should be embarrassed with the sloppiness of the wiring..many riders will never change their own airfilter and to go under the baseplate is out of the question..so problems are brewing. I got my new Magecore wires today, they are going on tomorrow. They sure make the stockers look wimpy. The ULY is sure fun to ride, and we Badwebbers will get things straightened out...I hope. I bet Court is lurking...good man. | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
Breather hoses. The manual states that these hoses should not extend above the air intake sensor. Both of mine were way too high and that was from the factory. Manual says that they could ruin the sensor if the oil mist contacts the sensor. Buell, get your manufacturing act together. Very easy to rectify but you'd think that these hoses would come from Troy installed as per their own maintenance manual instructions and warnings. | ||
| Adrian_8 |
Electra...samo-samo.. mine stuck up way too high...anyway we need an sanitary way to eliminate that mess altogether..someone probably makes a real neat little "kit" with a catch can. No more oily/sloppy air box and filter that would be nice. | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
I don't worry about that oil vapor and my filter had no oil saturation at all. I just found it funny that both the breather hoses were installed by Buell contrary to the maintenance manual guidelines. I didn't laugh when I saw it though. Like I said before it is such an easy fix but something that shouldn't of needed fixing. The oil vapor amount is probably dependent on how much oil is in the swingarm tank but that's just a guess. I keep my oil under the top mark and don't seem to have to add between changes. |
