I had about 115 miles out of a full tank when it started to buck and die. I had been running it on reserve, but it still acted like "on" as far as mileage goes. I tried switching to "on" to see if the lines were crossed, wouldn't start. I tried prime, wouldn't start. So I called a friend to bring a gas can. I went home drained the tank (to actually see what was wrong) I put in a little over a gallon and still wouldn't start in any setting.
Any ideas as to why it won't run on <2 gallons of gas?
edit: btw I drained from the hose leading to the outer left fitting on the frame petcock, using the search, I found that this should be the "on" fitting. Should gas flow freely from that hose when the bike is off and the hose is disconnected from the frame petcock?
Quote from: TheBandit181I drained from the hose leading to the outer left fitting on the frame petcock, using the search, I found that this should be the "on" fitting. Should gas flow freely from that hose when the bike is off and the hose is disconnected from the frame petcock?
As long as
1) the tank-mounted petcock is turned on (slot is vertical) and
2) the fuel level in the tank is above the drain for the hose you're checking[/list:u]then YES, fuel should drain freely from the hose when it is disconnected from the frame-mounted fuel switch.
Quote from: TheBandit181Any ideas as to why it won't run on <2 gallons of gas?
* Perhaps the carbs need to be PRImed after running out of gas?
* If the ON and RES hoses
are swapped (see the
Fuel Hose Routing page) then turning the switch to PRI may not do the job.
* If the hoses are OK, then the PRI setting really should have let you start the bike. If not, then there may be a vacuum leak between the left carb and the diaphragm in the fuel switch.
I checked the hoses, everything seems to be connected normally. I tried starting again (set to RES) and it fired right up. I'm glad it started normally, but I still don't understand why I ran out of gas on RES at 115 miles out of a full tank. The tank wasn't empty, I could still see some at the bottom, and after searching I'm reasonably sure that the "bump" was still covered as well.
Could it be that your carbs need to be cleaned?
I suppose that could be a possibility, however, it runs perfectly aside from this incident. It accelerates smoothly.
I have a similar problem.
I *always* run out of gas at 115ish miles. I never, ever, ever have to put more than 2.5 gallons of gas in the tank, but I know its a 3.5 gallon (or is it 4?) tank.
Point being... why isnt it using all the gas in the tank? When this happens, I try on, res, prime, etc... nothing works. Bike just dies.
I'm not having the fuel starvation problem anymore... not since the new motor.
I've checked my fuel lines to make sure theyre routed correctly, they are, at least according to the fiche on ronayers.com.
The bike will run in any fuel-petcock mode, so I dont think theres a blockage in the reserve pipe.... but still. I dont get it.
O_o
Sounds like what mine is doing. So, at least, I'm not alone with this problem.
Quote from: EisenfaustI never, ever, ever have to put more than 2.5 gallons of gas in the tank, but I know its a 3.5 gallon (or is it 4?) tank.
'89-'00 CA model: 4 gallons
'89-'00 non-CA model: 4.5 gallons
'01+ model: 5.3 gallons
Time to experiment. Take the tank off and set it up to drain into a 5 Gallon gas container. See what happens. If it retains a large volume in the tank, your Spigot inside the tank is plugged, and needs cleaning.
It's a pain, but if you approach it logically, there's an answer to everything.
(An by all means, no smoking or spark within 15 feet of where you're doing this.) ;)
If the hoses are reversed, AND you were riding with it set to Reserve, then it would draw from the upper hose, and would run-out after only 3.5 gallons. The carb bowls would empty.
To get the bike going, you'd need to set the frame petcock to a setting which uses gravity feed, AND which pulls gas from the bottom of the tank. But "Prime" would be connected to the top of the tank; and while "On" is connected to the bottom of the tank, it would not work with the carb bowls empty.
Which leaves one question: why only 2.5 gallons, instead of 3.5? Maybe you're filling the tank, with the bike on sidestand?
OK, so that's asking a bit much: if you fill on sidestand, AND have the hoses reversed, AND were riding with the frame petcock set to Reserve or Prime, THEN maybe I can see running out after only 2.5 gallons.
But wouldnt switcing the bike onto ON work like reserve, if the fuel hoses were reversed?
I'm almost positive my hoses are properly routed.
Also, my bike doesnt have a centerstand, so I always fill her on the sidestand.
I'm going to take some pics of my hose routing, and post them this weekend.
I'll also do the drain-spiggot thing into an empty bucket. We'll see.
Note that when I'm running out it looks as if theres still a gallon or so of gas in the tank.
My hoses are routed correctly, I triple checked after all this happened. When I drained it into a bucket everything came out, the tank was empty. I did fill on the side stand that time, so I guess that would lower the mileage.
Quote from: EisenfaustBut wouldnt switcing the bike onto ON work like reserve, if the fuel hoses were reversed?
It would work like REserve, yes. But the PRIme setting wouldn't do anything once you got down to the REServe level in the tank.
Quote from: EisenfaustI always fill her on the sidestand.
I've
never filled mine on the sidestand, so I don't know how much you're missing out on in terms of gallons. Next time I fill up I will try to remember to:
* Pput the bike on the sidestand,
* Fill to the bottom of the filler neck and note the gallons pumped
* Get back on the bike and straighten it up
* Fill to the bottom of the neck and note the gallons again
* Do the side-to-side sway and fill it up the rest of the way
* Note the final number of gallons[/list:u]
I'll let you know what I find out....
Quote from: TheBandit181When I drained it into a bucket everything came out, the tank was empty.
How exactly did you drain the tank? Did you pull a hose (and which one?) from the tank-mounted petcock ... or from the frame-mounted fuel switch? Or did you drain slowly via the float bowls drain(s)?
Unless you used the last method, the fuel switch was removed from the "drain path". I don't know why the PRIme position wouldn't have worked for you, but a vacuum leak may explain poor performance in the ON or RES positions.
I pulled reserve, drained directly from tank.
Try draining the tank from the carb bowl drain (it will take a while). If the bike is not running, then you'll need the petcock set to PRI.
If the tank hoses were reversed, then ON would behave like RES. But PRI would not work when you need it.
Seem, my PRI function works perfectly. I used it many times to get the bike restarted after draining the float bowls during fuel starvation.
I have clear acrylic fuel hoses, so I can see the hoses from the tank to the frame mounted petcock filling with, well, not air, but probably vacuum... either way, I can literally watch all the gas get sucked out of them, leaving them empty.
Both the ON and RES/PRI hose will do this.... even when there's plenty of gas in the tank.
I mean, generally, I dont mind stopping every 100 miles for gas, but its kind of annoying these days, when I'm regularly making 120 mile round trips on the bike for work.
EisenF, if there's gas in the tank, but REServe won't empty it, and hoses are correct... then I'd wonder if your tank was venting properly through the cap. Try opening the gas tank cap, and see if PRI fills the bowls then.
When I drained the tank, it did make a hissing noise around the filler cap. What noise, if any, should be made by a properly vented cap?
Quote from: KerryQuote from: EisenfaustI always fill her on the sidestand.
I've never filled mine on the sidestand, so I don't know how much you're missing out on in terms of gallons. Next time I fill up I will try to remember to:* Pput the bike on the sidestand,
* Fill to the bottom of the filler neck and note the gallons pumped
* Get back on the bike and straighten it up
* Fill to the bottom of the neck and note the gallons again
* Do the side-to-side sway and fill it up the rest of the way
* Note the final number of gallons[/list:u]
I'll let you know what I find out....
I just got back from a ride and tried Kerry's test. I was able to squeeze about
0.25 Gallons (0.945 Litres) more in between the Sidestand fill and the Straight-Up fill.
Definitely not a lot more. I was surprised that there wasn't a bigger difference. It's possible there was still a bit of an air pocket in there, but not that much more.
Roy...
Quote from: TheBandit181When I drained the tank, it did make a hissing noise around the filler cap. What noise, if any, should be made by a properly vented cap?
I don't hear any sound from mine, when I ride. But the fuel is leaving the tank so slowly, that I wouldn't expect it to make much noise. When you drain right from the bottom of the tank, then it's draining really fast... so I guess that a hissing noise might be normal then.
Quote from: RedShiftI just got back from a ride and tried Kerry's test. I was able to squeeze about 0.25 Gallons (0.945 Litres) more in between the Sidestand fill and the Straight-Up fill.
Thanks for reminding me! I went on a 208-mile ride on Saturday (pictures forthcoming) so I had a chance to fill up near the halfway point.
On the sidestand it took ~2.2 gallons to get to the bottom of the filler neck. in. When I straightened it up I got another .2 gallons in. By swaying, and filling to a little above the bottom of the filler neck I added another .3 gallons for a total difference of .5 gallons. I wonder if the shape of the '01+ fuel tank makes a significant difference?
I plan to run the test again at my local (familiar) gas station, when I'm not loaded with luggage and in a hurry....
So its not a full 1.5 gallon difference.
Hmm.
I was going to drain my tank today, but I'm kind of sick, so it will have to wait.
Oh, if my cap isnt venting properly, how can I fix that? Remove it and clean it somehow?
I've had the same thing happen to my bike since I bought her. Every 100- 150 miles she'll sputter and die, I'll open the tank, see a decent amount of petrol still in the tank(1-2 gals) and be utterly confused. I had a period for about a year where this was no longer the case, I could get 200-220 out of a tank with no problems; then my @$$hole friend decided to drop her while running to the store. The fuel lines got jacked, I replaced them about 3 weeks back and now the sputtering and stalling has begun again. I'm at a total loss on this one, but I must admit I'm relieved to hear about this happeneing to someone else.
sorry to bump from the dead, but upon searching, i found other people are having the same problem. the bike dies like it is out of gas, but when i filled up it only took about 2.7 gallons :dunno:
I get the feeling this other thread might reveal at least part of the problem you're dealing with; read it for some good information...
http://gstwins.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=20114
You can also do a search (as I just did, which is how I found that thread) for the terms CONDENSATION and GAS TANK to see two related threads, which go into more detail. Don't be surprised if you solve at least PART of your problem after reading those other posts...