trike troubles.

[tom w]

Im riding a motor trike /08 ultra conversion.
took a ride yesterday about 90 miles . Had some intermittent missing in the engine with acceleration. not too bad but noticeable . worse at lower r.p.m.s .
as we do a lot of back road rides I figured maybe I had again got some bad gas.
turned left at a cross rode and started to accelerate and the throttle had no response. motor kept running at about 1100 rpm but would not accelerate. It was about a mile to our next stop so I let the clutch out and idled to the stop. I shut the bike off and waited about 5 min. I started it back up and it was fine. the throttle worked and we drove it home . motor still has the miss and I am going to drain the tank and flush it , but ????? why did the throttle do that and is it something I need to look further into ? I guess I will know more when I get the gas thing figured out.

 

[GARYD]

I was going to say if it was a new Harley, I'd take it to the dealer and let them run the codes, but I don't think you have that ability. I'm not an expert, but I don't think gas has anything to do with what happened because the bike kept running. I could be wrong.

Good luck

 

[Lucky]

Almost sounds like vapor lock. Good luck! RIDE SAFE

 

[Bikerbozo]

Have you checked for any error codes? Does that model have a throttle cable or "fly by wire"? How are the gaskets from carb/fuel injection to cylinders? Try spraying gumout between cylinders (while idling) and see if engine rpm changes/tries to stall out.

 

[Trent]

Interesting that you would write about this issue. Last week I washed my TG ( first time in about 3 months! ) I put a shower cap over my open air filter as I always do. After I gave it a good blow dry, it started right up and did the exact same thing that yours did. Would idle at 1100 rpm's, no throttle response at all and the check engine light was on. So I got it into the garage, let it sit a while and tried it a couple more times,,, no change.

Called my HD tech at home and told him the issue. He told me to unplug the wires going to the breather and blow both connections out with air, let it sit a while unplugged , then plug it in and try again. I did that and then it worked fine. Water had gotten into the connection.

He told me that the computer will sense when something is wrong, and shut it down to that idle speed if it decides the problem will not damage anything, just enough to maybe get you off the road or to an exit. Yours must have done the same thing because of whatever the problem was, or is. Maybe it sensed bad fuel and did it for that reason. Did the check engine light come on?

 

[tom w]

no engine light came on. I had the missing problem once before from putting cheep gas in it. After I drained out the gas and put some 93 octane in it was fine. I don't know if it was that one of the sensors didn't like the gas or what. Just like you said it had no response to the throttle at all, then after shutting the ignition off and turning it back on I guess the computer must have reset. Going to try cleaning the tank first. I know how to do that and it doesn't cost a lot . thanks for the heads up on the connection cleaning. if the gas isn't the problem I will give that a try. Now a stupid question : there is a computer separate from the tuner right? (my last problem child Harley had a carb.)

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Have you checked for any error codes? Does that model have a throttle cable or "fly by wire"? How are the gaskets from carb/fuel injection to cylinders? Try spraying gumout between cylinders (while idling) and see if engine rpm changes/tries to stall out.

I think it wire . don't see any cables . good idea with the carb cleaner. use to check auto engines for leaks that way. didn't think about it. At the time I was a little frustrated and not thinking clear. 90 miles from home . when it started back up I was thanking the biker gods for their mercy but want to figure it out before riding out of town again.

 

[FLTR2008TRIKE]

no engine light came on. I had the missing problem once before from putting cheep gas in it. After I drained out the gas and put some 93 octane in it was fine. I don't know if it was that one of the sensors didn't like the gas or what. Just like you said it had no response to the throttle at all, then after shutting the ignition off and turning it back on I guess the computer must have reset. Going to try cleaning the tank first. I know how to do that and it doesn't cost a lot . thanks for the heads up on the connection cleaning. if the gas isn't the problem I will give that a try. Now a stupid question : there is a computer separate from the tuner right? (my last problem child Harley had a carb.)

- - - Updated - - -


I think it wire . don't see any cables . good idea with the carb cleaner. use to check auto engines for leaks that way. didn't think about it. At the time I was a little frustrated and not thinking clear. 90 miles from home . when it started back up I was thanking the biker gods for their mercy but want to figure it out before riding out of town again.

When was your fuel filter replaced? May want to replace the,pressure regulator as well. @ 25k miles the fuel filter should be replaced.

Vapor lock can occur after filling up while the engine is hot. I had this issue and needed to replace the fuel supply line from the tank to the tee that feeds the injector rail. Havent had any issue since.

 

[tom w]

When was your fuel filter replaced? May want to replace the,pressure regulator as well. @ 25k miles the fuel filter should be replaced.

Vapor lock can occur after filling up while the engine is hot. I had this issue and needed to replace the fuel supply line from the tank to the tee that feeds the injector rail. Havent had any issue since.

going to have to get out the service manual. I have had the tank off before and don't remember seeing a filter.

 

[tom w]

found a good you tube video on changing the fuel filter. think I can do it with out much trouble.

 

[tom w]

drained the gas tank , changed the fuel filter, and refilled with 93 octane. back to normal .thanks for the help guys. ThumbUp

 

[Phu Cat]

Tom W, I can assure you your problem may have corrected itself while you switched to higher octane gasoline, but the octane increase itself did not correct the problem. I spent 15 years making gasoline for Gulf Oil so I'm very sure octane does nothing but raise the ping resistance of your engine. Nothing. It doesn't make your gas burn faster,cleaner, cooler, smoother, etc, etc.

You may have a temperature sensitive sensor, of which there are many, that could be aggravating you. I hope this problem clears up for you.

Phu Cat

 

[Gorilla]

+1 to Phu Cat. The filter change might be more likely what corrected your problem. All the stuff inside the tank can start leaking or get a hole in it and you never know until it starts acting up. The dealers have pressure checks they can do to check all those hoses and connections out. But if its running well now I expect the filter had a lot to do with it.

 

[dporto]

TomW If you have the service manual You should run the test on the MAP Sensor and check its connections. If the ECM thinks it lost signal from the MAP sensor it will do what you described.

 

[tom w]

I don't know a lot about the ECM or computer stuff. I know that all is well now so was it the fuel was contaminated ? was it the filter ?( and it was dirty) .:xzqxz:.
just happy it was that simple to fix. the fuel pump even sounds different now.

 

[tom w]

Ok, now the gremlins have returned ! after about an hour long ride I shut the bike off and took a short break. started it back up and moved about 50 yards and it happened again ! no throttle response. kept running at idle speed only. tried several times to restart the bike and it would not start. after about 20 min. it started and ran fine.

I tried to run the diagnostic codes and can not get the bike to flash the codes.
I am not a tech guy any body got any ideas ? I took all the connections apart and checked them at the e c m and the tuner. found nothing obvious. could it be in the throttle sensor or in the e c m ?

 

[HDB0B]

How does the fuel pump sound? Do you have any friends with a bore scope that you could use to look inside your tank for contamination? Especially look at the lowest portions of the tank .... and the fuel exit area. The fact that you had a dirty filter the first time leads me down the path of a fuel delivery issue. Ethanol fuels can really suck!! I use Berrymans B-12 fuel system treatment in all my vehicles at least twice a year (autos & cycles). My cycle with carbs gets Startron added at every fill up. My new 2014 Tri Glide will get Startron added while she sits over the winter months and gets very limited riding. I always keep my fuel tanks full.

Bob orag:

 

[tom w]

when the motor would not start the fuel pump continued to run. and the engine light came on . after several attempts the pump and engine light went off and it started. what makes me wonder is why I cant get it to read the diagnostics. Cant get the code to know where to start looking.
I replaced the fuel filter and cleaned the tank out last time this happened. not that long ago.. replaced the spark plugs last week. It does run better when it runs but don't want to get stranded out some where. I have been looking and found a service bulletin #tt418a that deals with the throttle sensor and e.c.m... looks like another trip back to Harley heaven (the dealer)and more money.

 

[luzierg]

Hi Tom,
Harley calls this "limp mode". I had the same problem my '11 TG. There is an electrical connection right behind your air intake that gets wet and corroded. Take it apart and blow It out with an air compressor. After it Is dry apply some dielectric grease to the connection. If that doesn't work you may have to replace the connection. I found out the solution on one these forums. I believe it was Mr. Wizzard that had the same problem.

I traded the '11 in on a new '15 about a month ago...... Love all the new gadgets.....

Hope this helps.......
Gary

 

[Trent]

Hi Tom,
Harley calls this "limp mode". I had the same problem my '11 TG. There is an electrical connection right behind your air intake that gets wet and corroded. Take it apart and blow It out with an air compressor. After it Is dry apply some dielectric grease to the connection. If that doesn't work you may have to replace the connection. I found out the solution on one these forums. I believe it was Mr. Wizzard that had the same problem.

I traded the '11 in on a new '15 about a month ago...... Love all the new gadgets.....

Hope this helps.......
Gary

Tom.. This is what I had to do to mine, as I mentioned in an earlier post... The tech told me it only takes a tiny bit of moisture in that connection to send it into limp mode..

 

[tom w]

thanks that will be my next attempt. haven't started pulling my hair out yet but getting a little frustrated. our next sched. ride is the snow balls ride jan 1 . hope to get some sunny days before then to give it a try. I sure don't want to be stranded jan 1 and have to worry about it.