Won't Run After a Wash HELP!!

[reesedp]

Been a long time since I've posted OR had any kind of issue but here I am... Washed her for the first time in a LONG time and now she starts but won't idle and exhaust gets glowing hot and pops excessively.

I've been over every inch of everything I cleaned and just can't find anything that I loosened or broke. I'm at my wits end as this is my favorite time of year.  Suggestions please??

[Tree]

So, something that should not have gotten wet... did.  More than likely a connector.  Since they can behave like a bucket and hold water they need to be disconnected, drained, dried, and cleaned prior to reconnect.

My suggestion is to disconnect the battery and look for a likely suspect connector.  If you are lucky enough to actually find a connector that shows evidence of water intrusion then clean it up and put everything back together and run the bike.  If that makes the issue go away then you're done.  Otherwise...  you know.  Keep going.

I am assuming that you used a water spray or a water bucket pour to wet your bike of course.  Since our bikes don't normally break down when it rains it may pay to look at areas that gravity can't put water.

My 2 cents.  Good luck.

[B.D.F.]

First time I have heard of this problem.

You have to start diagnosis somewhere and to keep this as simple as possible, I would start the bike and run it for just long enough to heat the exhaust headers, then measure the temp. of all four to see if the bike is running on four cylinders or not. My guess is that you lost a cylinder, and this simple test will give you that answer: if one pipe is significantly cooler than the other three, or two pipes are cooler than the other two, you have lost one or two cylinders. The answer to that question will bring us to the next diagnostic step.

Speaking generally, it is very unlikely that anything is significantly out of adjustment or spec. because all tuning parameters of the engine are controlled by the ECU, and it is not likely one was damaged by water but left it in a state that it still gives a valid reading but the incorrect one. Much more likely that you would just have a sensor error. Same thing goes for spark and fuel injection; both are controlled directly by the ECU and would not be expected to be 'out of whack' and cause the bike to run so poorly. More likely you lost one cylinder to something like a shorted fuel injector or shorted stick coil, and the bike is running on three cylinders.

Another thing to try is to try to dry the bike with something like a leaf blower; if there is a puddle of water sitting over / around something, you may be able to dislodge / drain it enough to cure the problem.

After that, I think it is going to take a manual and some active component testing on your part to track the problem down.

The very best of luck going forward. These bikes have proven to be very robust so I think you have a quirk that should be <relatively> easy to find and eliminate.

Brian

Been a long time since I've posted OR had any kind of issue but here I am... Washed her for the first time in a LONG time and now she starts but won't idle and exhaust gets glowing hot and pops excessively.

I've been over every inch of everything I cleaned and just can't find anything that I loosened or broke. I'm at my wits end as this is my favorite time of year.  Suggestions please??

[VirginiaJim]

OP, do you have any electronics not stock on the bike like a PCV?

[reesedp]

One thing I forgot to add in is that if I rev it hard it sounds completely normal then descends back into rough /no idle/ popping.  I do have the PCIII on it as well.  It has power, and the green light travels the scale with throttle revs.

[B.D.F.]

Have you ridden it and if so, does it have normal power?

Brian

One thing I forgot to add in is that if I rev it hard it sounds completely normal then descends back into rough /no idle/ popping.  I do have the PCIII on it as well.  It has power, and the green light travels the scale with throttle revs.

[Tree]

While Reese works this out... What's a PCIII?

[wb57]

While Reese works this out... What's a PCIII?

Power Commander

http://www.powercommander.com/powercommander_ex/

[B.D.F.]

Yep, what the other poster said, a Power Commander. Specifically, a Power Commander 3, which is no longer made. The next device was the PC V (PC5) and now the PC EX. All do the same thing, and all do it in the same way but each generation was expanded, used enlarged maps, and allows external devices to be attached to it such as auto tune modules.

Brian

While Reese works this out... What's a PCIII?

[mikeyw64]

this is why I never wash my bike


(oh ok it sits outside all year round as well)

[maxtog]

this is why I never wash my bike

I wash mine regularly and have never had any problem.  Kinda what Brian said, I have never heard of problems from washing, or riding in the rain.  And if there were issues, I would first look at any non-factory add-ons, especially electrical ones.

[mikeyw64]

I wash mine regularly and have never had any problem.  Kinda what Brian said, I have never heard of problems from washing, or riding in the rain.  And if there were issues, I would first look at any non-factory add-ons, especially electrical ones.

DAMN, KNEW i SHOULD HAVE USED A POKEY OUT TONGUE SMILEY RATHER THAN A WINKY SMILEY :d

grrr damned caps lock, I could go back but I'll just apologise instead

[maxtog]

DAMN, KNEW i SHOULD HAVE USED A POKEY OUT TONGUE SMILEY RATHER THAN A WINKY SMILEY :d

grrr damned caps lock, I could go back but I'll just apologise instead

I knew you were teasing, but I decided to add some extra info anyway

[Tree]

How about eliminating the PC and placing the EVO flash on instead?  Isn't a newly designed flash better anyway?  The problem with the ignition system has to be fixed first of course but what if the PC circuitry is the problem?

Another thought I had about the original problem (must be careful with those thoughts, I know) would be the spark plugs getting crapped up when the bike was wetted...? Maybe?

[Tree]

this is why I never wash my bike


(oh ok it sits outside all year round as well)

Can I get an Amen? I apply a liberal amount of furniture wax to everything and wipe it off once in a while when I get tired of looking at the grime.

Totally got a Déjà vu feeling just now.

[B.D.F.]

On the first part, I would never suggest taking parts out and putting different parts in (removing the PC and installing an ECU flash) to diagnose a problem or in the hope that the problem will go away. That would be a considerable expense and the flash adds absolutely nothing regarding eliminating the problem the bike may have now. If there is a problem with the PC, it would make more sense to me to simply remove it and see if the bike runs correctly without it; that would be the viable test IMO.

As to something like a shorted spark plug, I agree and already mentioned both the possibility was well as the easiest way I know of to find it: run the engine for a short time (less than one minute) and check the temps. of each header; a cold one means one cylinder is not firing. The next step in diagnosing the problem would be to find out why cylinder X is not firing (no spark or no fuel).

At any rate, we are going to need more input from the OP to help him move forward with this problem. He may not have had any time to look further at the bike, or perhaps has even chosen another route (such as a dealer) for a fix; we just cannot add anything useful without more input from him. Sometimes these things just die on the proverbial vine and we never hear from the OP again..... anybody remember that guy who rode his new C-14 home with no oil in it? He posted in a panic, the forum went at it tooth and nail for weeks but we never heard anything from the OP again. It got pretty amusing though 'cuase someone would post to the thread once a month wondering how he was making out, and it kept the thread alive as a running joke. :-)

Brian

How about eliminating the PC and placing the EVO flash on instead?  Isn't a newly designed flash better anyway?  The problem with the ignition system has to be fixed first of course but what if the PC circuitry is the problem?

Another thought I had about the original problem (must be careful with those thoughts, I know) would be the spark plugs getting crapped up when the bike was wetted...? Maybe?

[Conrad]

Been a long time since I've posted OR had any kind of issue but here I am... Washed her for the first time in a LONG time and now she starts but won't idle and exhaust gets glowing hot and pops excessively.

I've been over every inch of everything I cleaned and just can't find anything that I loosened or broke. I'm at my wits end as this is my favorite time of year.  Suggestions please??

I'm curious, how did you wash the bike? Pressure washer perhaps?