| Author | Message | ||
     Fl_billy |
Hey all! I've had my 12R for about 2 weeks now and have noticed that lately it has been "catching" or stumbling on the first turn when I hit the starter. Weather here in S FL has been in the 50's in the mornings. Only seems to happen then and not when it's above 70 or when the bike is warmed up. I just had the first service done and had the TPS reset to go along with the race ecu, D&D and race filter. I thought it was the battery starting to go, since bike only had 955 miles put on it in it's first year (previous owner), so I put a brand new battery in it, but it still does the same thing on cold starts. It runs great otherwise, so I want to know if this sounds typical or if I should have it checked out. Thanks in advance! Billy | ||
| Wyckedflesh |
Check your battery voltage, even brand new batteries can be low. You may simply have needed to put the battery on a tender and let it slow charge back up to full. I found that mine would start to run low on voltage on cold mornings, and since my work schedule had me going home at about the same temps, I would put the bike on the charger at work at lunch to "top it up" and the bike wouldn't have that stumble when I went home. Check voltage at home and it would be 13+. Let it sit overnight and in the morning it would be back down to 12.5, which is enough to start the bike, but not enough to keep it from stumbling. That was done after the stator change, I wanted to make sure the new stator was working correctly. Now when the temps get back up to the 60's before I go anywhere I haven't had a problem and voltage has hovered around 13volts +/- .2 I don't have any way at home to measure the actual CCA but at work when I would put it on, it would be down around 300 instead of up around 350cca which is what the battery is rated for. | ||
| Fl_billy |
I will have to get a voltage meter and check everything out. I actually did put the battery on a trickle charger before I put it in the bike and it went green in a matter of minutes. I then put the original battery on the charger in it went green in less than an hour so I don't think it was even as low as I thought. Hmmmmm, will have to see how it pans out when the weather warms up this weekend. | ||
| Stealthxb |
Definitely not typical. I rode all winter long in temps below freezing and never had any problems. | ||
| Whistle |
From what I've seen sportster engines take a little while to warm up and they don't run super smooth at first. Esp. with that D&D you've got. While my bike was still stock a couple weeks ago I started it up in the morning temps were in the high 40's, it ran for about 45 seconds then just cut out. No biggie, thumbed the starter again and fired right up and idled fine for another minute or two before I took off. What kinda gas do ya use? There is a diff between cheap & good gas-sometimes you can get crappy gas even at a good station. Then there's the chance that the tps wasn't reset properly... There's the chance that your tech reved the crap outta the bike while it was cold after doing the TPS... Could be any number of things really. Start narrowing down the list, and go from there... Hope that helps! ride safe & congrats on the new bike... Nick | ||
| Reepicheep |
Mine spins right up, even when I go for a nice 32 degree morning ride. I do use full 15w50 synthetic though, that probably helps. | ||
| Donutclub |
Mine does the same thing. I just purchased it used and similar to you I replaced the battery. It still stumbles on the first attempt to start. I'm guessing that it has something to with the 20w50 oil. I'm wondering if a lower viscosity oil will help in this situation. If you look at the recommended oil grade table in the service manual (page 1-13), 20W50 oil has a lower temperature at 40 degrees. | ||
| Ted |
the Service-what-now ?  | ||
| Fullpower |
your idle may be too low. i live in alaska, have been riding my XB12 most weeks this winter. it starts. it is supposed to start. you are NOT having oil viscosity problems at 40 degrees fahrenheit. | ||
| Fullpower |
by the way your "cool weather" 50 degrees in the morning is what we consider a very warm summer morning around here. the "20W" in 20w-50 is the winter specification for viscosity at 0 degrees fahrenheit. so synthetic or dinosaur, if it is rated 20w-50 it will be just fine in any weather you will see in the state of florida. | ||
| U4euh |
Does it smoke any color upon start up? Black? | ||
| Donutclub |
Mine doesn't smoke. The bike cranks over very slowly like the battery is just about dead despite the fact that it's a new fully charged battery. Keep in mind that this is only for the first couple of revolutions of the starter. Once it makes it past the first couple of revolutions it spins enough to start the bike. However, once it's started and warmed up there is no problem with the starts. It's a very odd thing. My temperatures are much lower than FI Billy (originator of this post). I'm talking about temperatures in the teens to the lower thirties, which is why I initially thought oil viscosity might have something to do with it. However, since he is in higher temperatures and is having a similar issue maybe it's electrical in nature. | ||
| Fl_billy |
Well, my idle is set at 1,000 and like I said it does everything fine ALL the time unless it's been sitting for awhile and it's cool. Then when I hit the starter button, it cranks once, hesitates for a second or two, then turns over just fine, starts fine, idles fine (with no smoke at all) and runs fine. If I ride it for a few miles and the bike gets up to temp, then shut it off and start it again within 30 minutes or so (still warm) it fires right up with no hesitation. The weather is warming up this weekend so I will report if it is still happening. I've pretty much ruled out the battery and the starter (if it was the starter, it would happen EVERY time right?), so perhaps it is the oil viscosity??? Any other ideas? Just trying to nip it in the bud before the bike strands me....... | ||
| Cataract2 |
Sounds like cold weather starts to me. Do you keep your bike outside or in a garage? | ||
| Fl_billy |
Ok, methinks it's just the cool weather. I took the bike around noon-thirty today and the temp was probably around 70. Hit the starter and she kicked right over with no problems. Cataract2, the bike is kept in the garage but there is no heating or anything out there so temps are usually about what it is outside on cool mornings (mid-50's this past week when this started). Anyway, I'm pretty sure now what the issue was and I will stop worrying about it. Thanks for all the input everyone! Billy | ||
| Fullpower |
mid fifties is NOT cool weather. if you are having starting or slow cranking issues, have your battery LOAD TESTED. a healthy YTX14 will throw down at least 300 CCA. mine is 2 years old, and stills kicks 350 CCA. CCA is short for Cold Cranking Amps, and can be tested at your local auto electric rebuilder shop. | ||
| Fl_billy |
Fullpower, I hear what you're saying but why would it do this with a brand new, fully charged battery? I understand that 50-degree weather shouldn't be affecting it like this (never had this problem with my Suzukis), but what else could be causing the problem? I'm stumped and I REALLY don't want to get stranded. I guess I will take it in to the dealer tomorrow and have them give it a once-over....... | ||
| Cataract2 |
Could it be your VR maybe. My Yamaha FZR would eat batteries just before the VR went. It would barely charge them and finally, one day it just didn't charge the bat and once I shut the bike off I couldn't start it without a jump. Check the VR and finally the alternator. If you don't have a service manuel get one. Otherwise let me know and I'll give you the step by step on how to check the VR. VR = voltage regulator. | ||
| Bikrgrrl |
I just put my battery back in my XB9S on Sunday, and rode it Sunday and to work today. The temps both days were about 25 degrees F and didn't have any problem starting my bike up. Bike's running great, actually, which was a pleasant surprise since it hasn't moved for more than two months due to wintery weather. All I did to "winterize" my bike was pull the battery out and keep it indoors. Kathy | ||
| Reepicheep |
If you are riding in that kind of temps, you oughta consider retrofitting the 9sx handguards. Dave can put together a kit for you, install is easy, and it makes a huge difference in the ride. A cheap, zero grief, completely passive alternative to electrics. | ||
| Bikrgrrl |
Reepicheep - thanks for the advice. I'm going to be talking to Dave tomorrow about a service manual, and that's a good time to discuss this, too. I've got a kick-••• pair of European riding "mittens", but 25 degrees is still pretty freaking chilly.. Kathy | ||
| Bikrgrrl |
Man, guess you can't say *ss on this board LOL Kathy | ||
| Fullpower |
it is quite possible for your "new" battery to be either old neglected stock, defective due to improper filling and and initial charging, or just plain bad. the best way to find out for sure is a "load test" performed by a technician at your local auto electric shop. takes less than a minute, and most shops perform this test for free. sorry to belabor the point here, but the symptoms you are describing sure do sound an awfull lot like an insuffiency of cold cranking amps, a quantity that is very easy to ascertain with the proper equipment. |
