Forum

[Thack]

That's interesting, MartinB: I've got an '08 Versys and the EFI system seems almost perfect (although it is definitely tuned differently from the ER6. The only criticism I can make is when it's been coasting for a while on a closed throttle (e.g. down a hill), if I crack the throttle very gently the engine doesn't immediately chime in, but rather there's a minute hesitation (rather like a flat spot) for perhaps a half to one second before it picks up the drive. The effect is extremely minor and I suspect some people wouldn't even notice it (I confess to being seriously OCD when it comes to fuelling).

When it comes to the Bullet, apart from the strange idling behaviour I can sometimes detect a slight flatness (but not severe enough to call a real hesitation) when the throttle is in the first 1/8th (estimate) of a turn. It's as if it's a tad weak right at that bottom end of the throttle opening. I find that odd because I assume it'll be running closed loop at that point (using the lambda sensor to maintain the mixture at the correct level), so I can't explain it.

[Thack]

MartinB: it's good to know that yours, at least, is pretty well perfect, because it gives me some hope that I can improve mine, too.

[Michael]

'Basically, this is terrible! There is no excuse, surely, for having an unreliable and unstable idle these days, especially when you've got an ECU with full control over the spark timing and mixture.'




Hmmm, you seem to be assuming that the ECU has full control over the spark timing and the mixture?? That little mouse running about inside the black box can only do one thing at a time




Thack... you are only 100 miles in. Things will run in a lot, so don't worry too much about the idle just yet. Your headlamp hasn't even fallen off yet




It does fluctuate when idling, in fact all motors do! Keep your plug clean, carry a spare just in case, tweak your idle screw a little, get used to managing your idle speed with your right hand with tiny blaps, allow it to settle slowly back to idle rather than dropping off suddenly, progressivley build up from idle when taking off, learn to listen for the signs of a stall and catch it on the throttle... it will all come second nature to you with this bike. Not perfect, but then this is an RE...




The non-instant throttle response from closed... my bike has done that for 6 years. The flat spot... ditto. Any questions, give me a shout I'll try and help!

[StephenR]

Thack there is a solution but it means spending money. Since you can fit a Power Commander to a Continental GT you can fit one to your bike. If you seriously want to fiddle with it you can then also fit something which Dynojet make called Autotune. And the Autotune will let you get the correct stoichiometric air-fuel ratio = 14.7:1 or thereabouts - you can download the ignition and fuelling curves to your heart's content! I suspect you won't want to do that though. A Power Commander + a trip to a rolling road might help your search for idling perfection. About £295 in £s Sterling. + the rolling road. Just a thought.....

[Thack]

Thanks, StephenR. I've been riding around most of the day, deliberately building up the miles as fast as possible so I can get the running in period out of the way. (I hate running in.)



Whilst riding I've been thinking along the lines you suggest. To avoid spending money up front, I think the first thing to do would be to try to monitor the fuel injection pulses while it's idling. I get the impression that it slows down and stalls because it starts to run weaker, and this should show up as a narrowing of the injection pulses. If I can confirm that, then the next step would be to monitor some of the other sensors to see if one of them is telling the ECU to weaken the mixture further.



For instance, perhaps the engine temperature sensor reports an increasing engine temperature while it idles due to the lack of cooling air, which (and this is pure conjecture) makes the ECU decide to weaken the mixture more. In which case maybe I could frig the sensor so it never exceeds a certain temperature. Or perhaps the lambda sensor is doing something funny?



I'm annoyed that the Power Commander costs such a heck of a lot of money, for something that's probably simpler than an MP3 player inside (yes, I realise the production volumes are a bit different!). But it is something I would consider, provided I could have some control of, and insight into, just what it is correcting. Thanks for the tip about the Autotune; I didn't realise it existed.

[Michael]

A suggestion for you... check for an exhaust gasket whilst its easy to do. Mine never had one... might weaken things a bit

[MartinB]

Forgot to mention mine has a K & N air filter element in the standard air box and our host's exhaust pipe and silencer (the ones which can be fitted without the power commander).

I know it's frustrating running a new bike in but you really need to get some miles on the clock and have the first service carried out before doing anything further.

I'm not very technically minded so can't advise on that front but over the last 40 years I must have had a variety of many bikes of all sorts and while I can understand where you are coming from you could end up spending many £s to resolve a problem that may fix itself if you exercise a bit of patience.Not sure if your warranty may be adversely affected if you don't use the official equipment parts as well.

[Thack]

MartinB, you are absolutely right! Whilst I am ridiculously impatient, the reality is that my dreams and plans always take longer than I would wish to come to fruition. So I'm pretty sure it will be well run in before anything radical gets done to it.



Warranty? Pah! So long as I restore it all back to normal before taking it back, they won't know, will they? After all, it's not like anyone's listening........ :-/

[MartinB]

Thack , I know how it is - I still get impatient and frustrated when at my age I really should know better!

I can't see any of the proposed changes doing anything detrimental - except to your bank balance!

[Frank]

Thack, I'm sure they will be listening, the tea will be brewing waiting for you knowing them!