The "Beast" let me down today

[SeaCat]

Grumble, grumble.

Yesterday evening the wife and I rode the bike and everything was perfect. We decided we would use the bike to get to and from work today.

This morning we were up bright and early and out at the bike right on time. We geared up and backed the bike out. After I fired it up my wife climbed aboard and off we went.

Everything was great until we were almost in work. Then the bike coughed a couple of times and the right turn signal stopped blinking. After a minute or so the signal started working again. When we pulled into the parking garage the bike seemed a bit sluggish but that could have been because I was in second gear.

we parked and went in to work.

This evening we went out to the bike and I fired it up as we geared up. I checked it over and listened to the engine and everything seemed good. Off we went.

We made it maybe two miles when we had absolutely no power. Then the engine died completely. WTF? I rolled to a stop on the side of the road and climbed off.

I started looking things over. This was new and fairly sudden so I had an idea it might be electrical. I was checking wiring and connections. Every time I checked something I tried to start the bike again.

Yes I did look in the tank and because it seemed lower than I expected I shifted it to reserve. (I was only reading 59 miles on the trip odometer.)

After a bit it coughed when I kicked it over. I pulled the choke and kicked it over again. This time it caught for a second before backfiring and quiting. Then it caught and started running. Running rough but running.

By this time the wife and I wear sweating our tails off and not just from the heat. We had broken down in one of the worst parts of town. Rarely does a day go by when there isn't a shooting reported from this part of time.

Back in the saddle and off we go. Oh the bike is running like shit. It's sluggish and backfiring but at least it's running. At higher RPM's it suddenly surges forward and runs correctly, but at lower RPM's it's a dog. After a couple of miles it starts running correctly and we can enjoy the rest of the ride home.

When we get home we park it and shut down. Inside we go, change and start cooling off. When I look at the thermometer it's reading 90° with 75% humidity. No wonder we felt a bit uncomfortable.

After about an hour I went back out to the bike. It fired up but ran rough as hell. I let it run for several minutes after switching the fuel supply back to normal just to see what happened. I wanted to see if it ran out of gas or if it smoothed out. Neither happened.

After shutting the bike down I did a basic test. I felt the heat coming off the exhaust pipes where they came off the manifold. Pipes 1,2 and 3 were too hot to touch. Pipe 4 on the other hand was warm but not hot. This tells me that cylinder 4 isn't firing for whatever reason. Now I have to figure out why.

Somehow I have a feeling it's going to be electrical.

Tomorrow I will not be riding to work, I'll be driving the car. Man that sucks.

Cat

 

[Elianna]

Cat-

I just wanted to tell you that I love reading your little snippets of "bike life." I used to have a roommate who owned a Harley and he'd take me out all the time. After getting over the initial terror of it, I had so much fun! Your stories give me a chance to sigh wistfully... even when it's a sad one of being broken down.

 

[SlickTony]

I've only been on a bike about twice in my life, but I enjoyed hell out of it. So i always like your bike stories. Sucks about the engine/electrical trouble. Hope it turns out to be a cheap fix.

My son's car is back from the mechanic. $852.06 it cost us. New seals for the transmission, new flywheel plate, or whatever the hell it was, and a replacement bracket for the right control arm. I hope to God that's the last of the car trouble he has for a while. It's a '90 Nissan 240SX, very snazzy looking, handles well, very safe, he couldn't roll it if he wanted to, but year by year it's more of a bitch to find parts for. And, too, it's getting up in years. One of these days we'll have to cut our losses and replace it, but so far, none of the repairs has, singly, exceeded the value of the car.

 

[TE999]

Cat -

Sounds like the distributor, a plug wire or a plug.

Run a compression test to see if there's a crack in the piston or the cylinder wall (shudder).

 

[DesertPirate]

Cat -

Sounds like the distributor, a plug wire or a plug.

Run a compression test to see if there's a crack in the piston or the cylinder wall (shudder).

also burned valve

see what happens when you threaten to put a Harley tank on it?

 

[SlickTony]

also burned valve

see what happens when you threaten to put a Harley tank on it?

I'd forgotten all about the distributor. I had a Nissan Sentra that had that problem--it ran, but it would hardly move, ran rough and with a loud buzzing noise. Come to find out the distributor wasn't connected all the way, or something like that. Once that was fixed everything was OK.

 

[SeaCat]

Cat -

Sounds like the distributor, a plug wire or a plug.

Run a compression test to see if there's a crack in the piston or the cylinder wall (shudder).

That's what I'm thinking. From the way it was acting I get the feeling it is an electrical problem. Most likely a bad connection but I'll be going through everything connecting to that cylinder system.

Cat

 

[starrkers]

also burned valve

see what happens when you threaten to put a Harley tank on it?

That's what did it, for sure

 

[Weird Harold]

After shutting the bike down I did a basic test. I felt the heat coming off the exhaust pipes where they came off the manifold. Pipes 1,2 and 3 were too hot to touch. Pipe 4 on the other hand was warm but not hot. This tells me that cylinder 4 isn't firing for whatever reason. Now I have to figure out why.

I'd start by pulling the plugs and checking the condition -- before you try to start it again.

From the sequence of events, It sounds to me like "bad gas" (water?) and a fouled spark plug in #4.

 

[popcorn2721]

I'd start by pulling the plugs and checking the condition -- before you try to start it again.

From the sequence of events, It sounds to me like "bad gas" (water?) and a fouled spark plug in #4.

I am going to have to say that I agree with Harold... "bad gas" would be my first suspect, especial with the humidity being sooo high. Those carbs are ultra fickle.

 

[Svenskaflicka]

Sounds to me like there's a problem with the thingamajig. *nods expertly*

 

[SeaCat]

An update.

Wandered out to the bike with a cup of coffee in hand and a can of WD-40. I sprayed the base of the plug and wandered away for a bit to let that seep in. (An old trick.)

A short while later I came out with another cup of coffee and the tools needed. I pulled the boot off the plug and noticed something odd. The plug seemed to move. I grabbed it with my fingers and the damned thing did move. It was threaded into the well but was loose enough to shift around. I turned it maybe three revolutions before it came out.

I looked at the plug and found it to be black and wet. I stuck it back into the boot and checked for spark, it did produce a spark but I didn't trust it. I replaced it with a new plug and made sure that plug was threaded in tightly.

AFter making sure everything was attached correctly I kicked the bike over and it fired right up. It ran rough as hell and I was seeing a lot of smoke coming out of the exhaust. Heavy gray smoke, the kind I don't like to see. I let the bike run as I gathered my tools together and worked on the coffee a bit. Slowly the engine smoothed out and the smoke vanished. Shutting it down I did the touch test and happily singed my fingers on the pipe from number 4.

A couple of hours later I was back out at the bike. I fired it up again. Again it fired right up only this time it was running smoothly and without smoke. Again I checked the pipes and again number 4 was firing. I'm starting to feel a bit happier here.

Tonight I'll be out there when it's dark out. I'll run it for a short time again to check for arcing from the wires. Tomorrow I'll motor it gently to a local station and fill the tank with nice new gas and let that run through the system for a bit. Tomorrow evening I'll pull number four plug again and check it's condition. Oh tomorrow I'll be getting a compression gauge, mine doesn't work for some reason.

Maybe this was the problem, we'll see.

I'm curious about how that one plug, the only easy one to get to by the way, worked it's way loose like that.

Cat

 

[SeaCat]

Sounds to me like there's a problem with the thingamajig. *nods expertly*

Yep, the thingamajig was loose.

Oh and there's a nut loose in the driver, where ever that is.

Cat

 

[SlickTony]

I'm glad that story seems to have ended happily.

 

[Weird Harold]

A short while later I came out with another cup of coffee and the tools needed. I pulled the boot off the plug and noticed something odd. The plug seemed to move. I grabbed it with my fingers and the damned thing did move. It was threaded into the well but was loose enough to shift around. I turned it maybe three revolutions before it came out.

I looked at the plug and found it to be black and wet. I stuck it back into the boot and checked for spark, it did produce a spark but I didn't trust it. I replaced it with a new plug and made sure that plug was threaded in tightly....

I'm curious about how that one plug, the only easy one to get to by the way, worked it's way loose like that.

If you don't have a torque wrench, I'd look into getting one when you go shopping for a new compression guage. In the meantime, I certainly hope that you checked the other pugs for proper tightness -- it wouldn't surprise me to find they're not properly torqued down either. (It wouldn't hurt to replace them just to make sure they're matched wth #4.)

Check with the shop or look the proper torque value for the plugs up in a manual (before you go shopping for a wrench.)

Any chance one of your weird neighbors might have sabotaged the plug? From your stories about some of them, I'd not suspect them of having the technical ability to be that subtle, but ya never know.

 

[SeaCat]

Harold,

All plugs were checked and retourqued to the recommended 11 ft pounds.

Other bolts were checked as well.

Somehow I don't think this would be a neighbor. It's not quite their forte. (They're more the add sugar to the gas tank types.)

If this was done by someone, and I'm not saying it was, I would have to think it was someone in work. There are more than a couple there who don't like bikers for some reason.

Like I said, tomorrow morning I'll take the bike out and fill the tank with some fresh gas. I'll also add some SeaFoam and then I'll run it around the block a few dozen times. We'll see what happens.

Cat

 

[SeaCat]

I'm glad that story seems to have ended happily.

We shall see.

Cat

 

[Weird Harold]

Harold,

All plugs were checked and retourqued to the recommended 11 ft pounds.

Other bolts were checked as well.

I didn't really think you were a bad enough mechanic to just stop when you found A problem.

However, I have known quite a few good mechanics that didn't think torque wrenches were necessary for anything less than head bolts and main bearings. Better to make the suggestion than a bad assumption.

I have found a spark-plug that would NOT torgue to the required value because of a thread insert that was worn out -- something you might consider if the plug comes loose again.

Somehow I don't think this would be a neighbor. It's not quite their forte. (They're more the add sugar to the gas tank types.)

Yeah, I did get that impression from your vignettes.

If this was done by someone, and I'm not saying it was, I would have to think it was someone in work. There are more than a couple there who don't like bikers for some reason.

It would have to be someone who brings their toolbox to work with them (keeps it in their car all the time) or had enough malice aforethought to actually plan far enough ahead to bring the right spark plug socket and wrench.

I don't really think sabotage is likely either, but it can't be completely discounted either.