| Author |
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Dasbuell
| | Posted on Monday, June 27, 2011 - 09:52 pm: | 
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Overfilled the oil... 30 mile ride... started missing and died... no restart... new plugs... no start... reset tps... trouble code rear injector open or short... trouble shoot from ecm forward and back... all checked out... only assumption bad factory race ecm!
Plugged in stock ecm... reset tps... started and ran. Again apparent race ecm failure.
Ordered new race ecm from Erik Buell Racing... install... set tps... started and ran but a little rough... engine light came on during test ride... ECM spy read trouble code 13 O2 sensor always lean... exhaust smells rich... reset trouble code... out for test ride... engine light on again... repeat 4 times (I am either a slow learner or I was giving the ecm time to learn on rides...) Finally give up to eat.
Halfway through supper get great idea to plug in "broken" Buell race ecm to read and save the maps... hit starter and the damn thing started! Reset tps and adjusted idle... idle and ran smoother than Erik Buell Racing ecm... thought maybe fixed. Took for test ride... again engine light on... trouble code 13 O2 sensor always lean... apparently the original buell race ecm was not broken!!!
SO........ O2 sensor screwy and in failure?
Ideas???????? |
Clutchreaper
| | Posted on Sunday, July 10, 2011 - 12:21 am: |
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Did you figure it out yet? Sounds like your O2 sensor is out. It's 8 years old and is throwing the code so that's where I'd look first. |
Dasbuell
| | Posted on Sunday, July 10, 2011 - 12:35 am: |
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No not yet. I just got a new 02 sensor and a coil in the mail today. I will tear into it tomorrow.
The coil may have been the original problem failing when hot. It may be throwing enough spark to do a clean burn at an idle, but at higher RPM and more fuel not getting a complete burn of the fuel and the 02 sensor is sensing unburnt fuel being pushed out the exhaust, actually reading the input and causing the ECM to adjust fuel input, or is being fooled by the condition of the exhaust gases.
The coil will be easier to replace than the 02 sensor, so I am hoping this theory is correct!
(Message edited by dasbuell on July 10, 2011)
(Message edited by dasbuell on July 10, 2011) |
Dasbuell
| | Posted on Sunday, July 10, 2011 - 07:34 pm: |
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PROBLEM SOLVED!!!
Well… the problem was apparently the ignition coil on my 2003 Buell XB9S (with factory race kit)!
I think I gave too much credit to the Electronic Control Module (ECM) to know exactly what it THINKS the problem was, or REPORTS the problem as. Originally over filled with oil and thought I blew oil into the intake fouling spark plugs causing the bike to miss and die. Then not restart.
Back to my shop, fresh plugs, started and ran for one minute and died! Figured out how to CORRECTLY read fault codes and the indication was short or open to rear injector. (Please keep in mind there is one 02 sensor on the headers and it is the one off the rear cylinder, as this is a clue!) Check for broken/shorted wires between ECM and injectors, no problems. Checked injectors, no problem found. Only logical thought, ECM failed! If the wires are good and the injectors are good… that only leaves the ECM.
So bought a new ECM from Erik Buell Racing (Erik Buell Racing), switched out with the “bad” one, reset the Throttle Position Sensor (TPS) and the bike started. BUT smelled to be running rich. Out for test ride, fault light came on, back to shop, read the code, O2 Sensor always lean. I gave up for the day and purchased a new O2 sensor and as a “why the heck not” I also bought an ignition coil.
Curiosity got the best of me… so… I read the Erik Buell Racing Race ECM map and saved it, popped in the “broken” ECM and read the map and saved it. I wanted to compare the maps to see if they were identical (they were). Just to try and make my self more frustrated I hit the starter to listen to it NOT START… and the crazy thing started with no fault light!!!!! Now I was speechless! I took it for a spin and 2 blocks later a fault code. Back to shop and read code… same O2 fault always lean. Back out, idled no fault… 2 blocks later O2 fault code. AND one more time out to see the same fault… I guess because I am a slow learner!!!!! Kick dog… yell at wife… wait for purchased parts to arrive.
Parts arrive I look at the parts… look at the bike… look at the parts… look at the bike… see ignition coil is the easiest thing to replace… so since it was over 100 degrees and no air conditioning in the shop… replace coil. Start bike… no fault code… get set to take on test ride expecting 2 blocks later to turn around with fault code, I set out. MUCH TO MY PLEASURE AND SURPRISE… no fault code!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! …of any type!!!!!!!!!!!!! The bike runs like a top (no, it did not spin around and fall over!)
So, here is what I think. ECMs on XB series Buells are STUPID! Yep… they see a problem make changes that cause another problems to be reported (or falsely reported) all the time lying to the tech about what the problem really is!
My logic. (Stay with me here!) The coil got hot and failed (or just failed with heat not being a factor. Texas is hot in the summer!) one cylinder cut out (wild guess rear cylinder) then a bit later the other cylinder cut out. The coil being the problem. Tried to start bike, major smell of fuel, one of both injectors obviously working but no spark to run. For that short time the front cylinder ran (speculation) after the coil failed to fire the rear spark plug… the ECM started trying to make mapping adjustment to make the bike run from the sensor input. The rear cylinder is injecting fuel but not igniting, ONLY the REAR CYLINDER is sampled by the O2 sensor, so the ECM tried to stop the injector from giving too much fuel (running rich) and shut down the rear injector entirely! The front cylinder next failed to have spark from the bad coil… engine died. Between the bad coil and the bad corrective action by the ECM… the fault code sent was rear injector short or open since the ECM shut it totally off (speculation on my part).
So, the coil cooled during the 30 mile trailer ride home, started and got warm and failed again, the ECM still thought it was the injector because I had no way to clear the fault codes. I knew I needed to reset the TPS when I got a replacement ECM. I bought a ECM Spy cable and received the software. Now I had to wait for the replacement ECM. The ignition coil had LOTS of time to cool, so when I plugged in the new ECM, and reset the TPS the bike started and ran. BUT it was throwing a weak spark. At idle it was strong enough to do a complete fuel burn (or enough where the O2 sensor read within “normal” range) so no fault code. HOWEVER… at higher RPM the spark was too weak and there was incomplete fuel burn… the O2 sensor was reading unburned fuel in the REAR exhaust and telling the injectors to run leaner, therefore throwing the “always lean” fault code! As it was telling the injectors to be “always lean” compared to the mapping!
Anyway… speculating the ECM had limited programming to comprehensively read and evaluate the sensor input, it tries to adjust what it controls to make the engine run so the O2 sensor gets the reading it needs to be within “normal”. BUT by doing so reports what it has done giving a stupid human like me the impression the darn thing knows what it is talking about! Therefore taking the fault code literally!!!!
So… there ya go. The ignition coil, replaced the bike runs perfect with no fault codes. I now have a spare (expensive) Erik Buell Racing Race ECM and a spare O2 sensor.
The moral of the story… do not take the fault codes literally! They report only what they are programmed to report AND NOT the reason they are reporting that fault. The ECM constantly works to change output, from the input and may report what it had to do make (or try and make) the engine run. |
Tdman317
| | Posted on Friday, July 15, 2011 - 08:39 am: |
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ok guys here one.i have a 2003 xb9s,weak spark on front cylinder,also the coil gets hot on that side.replace the coil and the pick up.before that my fuel pump had gone bad the day before.i replace the fuel pump.my ecm is stock and not a race one.what the hell is going on. |
Dasbuell
| | Posted on Friday, July 15, 2011 - 04:16 pm: |
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The ignition coil is/was a known issue with the Buell Blast. After all my problems and doing some research I am beginning to believe the ignition coil is a weak link on the XB series also.
As to the fuel pump, my only wild assed guess is that it was coincidental. |
Mesozoic
| | Posted on Saturday, July 16, 2011 - 11:56 pm: |
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This is an interesting thread. My '08 XB12 is throwing codes 13 and 14 (O2 sensor lean and overheating), so I decided to replace the O2. No change in the situation. I datalogged and discovered that when the bike went into closed loop, the EGO voltage leaned out seriously (0.1V) and tried to compensate by adding injector pulsewidth which didn't do anything. Might be some bad injectors... I think the pump's ok for some reason. |
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2003 XB9S mystery problem ? O2 sensor