Hi everyone, im having some real issues with my bike starting after its been raining. I know the simple answer is to get a cover, which is on its way, but in the mean time, how can i get her to fire up? I leave the throttle well alone, and just seem to drain the battery as the starter motor kicks over. There is compression but she just wont fire up. Ive cleaned the battery terminals and made sure they are connected properly. (there was an issue with both terminals getting hot.). The bike is kept outside in Wales (lots of rain). Like ive said there is a cover on its way, but ive heard of using a silicone based spray to coat the electrics? but what electrics? can i tape them up? When i first got the bike i had to replace alot of pipes and parts, she only has 14k on the clock and has been in storage for quite a few years before i bought her (mot history shows it did 8 miles one year!). As you can see by my pictures, the multi colour panels upon paint removal must mean that she has been down the road a couple of times. One odd thing that i cant fathom, is that the spark plugs were 16mm at the bolt, i replaced them with the 18mm as per Haynes bumper bike book of bodgery, i have no idea why this was done??? All the coils are fine and dandy. Any other info im happy to give. Can anyone help???
Baron Yes silicon spray will help even plusgas. And yes start no throttle unless it needs it just choke on and fire it up. Also you need to check the plugs are compatible as someone may have been retuning and jetting. Regards Joe.
How’s it run when you get it started? You definitely need to get it covered up, any bike will deteriorate quickly out in the elements.
No choke on this EFI bike @joe mc donald Are you possibly getting water into the tank @Baron Check the nipples on the left-rear side of the tank right at about the juntion with the tail piece - those should have hoses on them that are directed down to ground just in front of the sprocket cover. But the important part is that they are not occluded (one is the vent for the tank, to backfill air as the fuel depletes; the other is the scupper drain from that well around the filler. Unscrew the nipples and see if those themselves are plugged and if so, clear them - but you also need to be sure the tubes themselves are not plugged - be VERY careful! the tubes go from where the nipples screw in, up through the inside of the tank to the neck - you must be super-careful not to puncture those tubes!! Try a thin wire through and hopefully you will not meet resistance (or at least something you can dislodge). With the nipples back on and a hose attached, check that you can blow up through them. Next -Generally stick coils (particularly those used on your bike, that have seals) do not really suffer from the same 'damp' issues that remote coils with HT leads would suffer - unless water is actually getting down into the well So check the plug wells - is water getting in there? Check that the rubber coil seals just below the cap are in good shape (oddly, it does not appear those seals are available as a replacement). But be sure the coils are actually bolted onto the cover. You mentioned changing hoses - I presume the Idle Control hoses - on that note, how does it idle when it IS running? Is it working correctly? When cold you should get a 'fast' idle (about 16-1800 depending on how cold it is) then it should gradually come down to about 1250 when it's warmed up; if its not doing that , then there may be a fundamental issue with the idle control system. Now - is is definitely a WET start issue? Or more just a 'cold' start issue? They are typically lean anyway and when cold can be difficult to start There is actually a minor table in the ECU mapping (the Warm-Up table) that can make that better - you would need the TuneECU program (and either laptop or Android phone/tablet) and cable to be able to change that. With that tool, you would also be able to check and zero the TPS as that could also be making it a bit lean. And there is one more setting that can be adjusted called the Idle Fuel Trim (aka CO adjust) which can also make it a bit richer in the idle and off-idle - if otherwise running well when warmed up, I prefer the warm-up table adjustment as it ONLY affects the cold-starting air'fuel ratio and not warm running. ^ You increase the values of the cells in the 'cold' region (these are coolant temps, so your 'cold' temp is going to be pretty much what ambient temperature is - I suggest up to 14 deg to 1.25, 24 to 0.75 and 34 to 0.5 for starters and see how that goes (you have to save the changes and re-load the new saved map) Check the CPS (Crankshaft Position Sensor) gap - that is behind the clutch cover (the guitar shaped cover) toward the front - that should be 1.0mm - that can also have a big affect on clean efficient starting. Lastly the battery condition - does it crank strong at a good rate? If it's laboured then it may be past its best. If it has laboured cranking, then the voltage available for spark is likely to to be low. There is a mod you can do to add parallel cables between the battery and the starter (three actually - one battery + to solenoid; one solenoid to starter; and one battery - to engine ground) Adding 8 or even 6 gauge cables in parallel to the OEMs will do it - you can probably get a car stereo installation shop to make those up for you. (I could direct you to mail order here in States but not sure where you would go in UK -maybe check with Kojaycat - see if he will make up cables for you, he sells the wire and terminals .....) That makes a HUGE difference to the cranking speed, which itself makes it easier to light off. (See details plus before/after video demo here - https://www.triumphrat.net/speed-triple-forum/154334-starter-power-mod.html ) Good Luck - hopefully some of that will bear fruit.
So..... ive ripped her appart and got into the spark plugs, they were in good order. As i decided to give the battery a good charge in the house i went to clean the O rings from the Neg/Pos wires. On the Neg i have two wires, one (as i discovered) powers the starter motor and the other does all the other bells and whistles. Well as i was cleaning the muck off it, it fell apart. So after putting it all back together im hoping that just replacing the O ring on the end of the Neg wire will solve the problem. When she runs, she is sweet as a nut, get the whine and whistle at the right revs. Only after rain does she sound like a two cylinder, but after a warm up, which includes the exhaust puffing away with steam (exhaust is getting replaced once i fab a bracket), she returns to good standards. I may omitted in my previous posts that the throttle bodies may need to be done as she sometimes stalls when idling when she is hot.
Sorry for the late reply, ive been on my back for a week due to a Pub related injury! However, SHE LIVES! I changed the fuel pump and filters and all that jazz, upon opening up the tank it was quite obvious that water was present. So after emptying it out, cleaning out years of sludge etc, i cracked the injector rail and flushed some V-power through, then she ran fine but not under her own steam. I binned the gel battery and ordered an nice old Acid battery and now she is as good as new! My fuel cap seal seems to be knackered so thats the next immediate fix to stop it filling up like a thirsty steam train. Still saving the pennies for the throttle body operation. In the mean time, the LED tail light arrived too. Ill post a picture into my gallery once it stops raining. (live in Wales, could be a while!).
