R1100RS Mystery

["Tom Brown" <tbrown@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Rob:

>A few months back, my fuel pump failed on one of my favorite
>California roads, Hwy 25. Pushed it a mile back to Hollister
>then trailered it home eventually. Wanting to try again, I went
>down a few weeks back to try again.'Twas not to be...

Changing a fuel pump means getting into the tank where many little gagets 
also lie.   I'd look there first for this problem.   Did they replace the 
fuel filter?


>There is a straight section, maybe 4-5 miles straight and clear,
>with enough clear visibility to safely (as for JohnQLaw) ratchet
>speeds up. I got up to an indicated 110 mph and the bike suddenly
>started to "backpedal". It would choke up with throttle applied,
>and when I pulled over, it would not idle. No bad noises, no smoke,
>no obvious signs of doom. It seemed that it was running on one cylinder.

A dirty air filter will restrict air at very high loads.  This can make the 
bike run too rich, foul the plugs and cause the bike to idle poorly.   A 
clogged fuel filter will restrict fuel and the bike my "backpedal" as well, 
but when you slow down, it should run normally again unless you've really 
got it clogged.   I always try the easy stuff first.  I'd change the plugs 
and the air filter and see if that helps.   If not, I'd suspect  that the 
fuel filter is clogged...bad gas?  Old filter?

Now, one more thing that will cause an oilhead to run sort of like it's on 
one cylinder is a severely out of synch condition.  This can be caused by a 
pebble or other debris getting between the throttle cable and the little 
pulley on the back side of the throttle body.   Sometimes a high speed run 
can knock little pieces loose from the cooling fins on the cylinders and it 
could be that something got hooked in the V of the pulley.

You can check this yourself easily.  Just follow the cables down to where 
they wrap around the little wheels at the throttle bodies.  Check to see 
that both cables are seated properly in the V and than neither are loose or 
anything.  If you find something, just turn the wheel a little to loosen the 
cable and get the debris out and replace the cable.   Start the bike and it 
might just run right again.

That's all the easy stuff I can think of right now.   Good luck.

- -TB




Rode to Hollister and pulled the plugs; both caps firmly on and
correct in their threads. I rode the 100 miles home, as I had no other
options. Kept the revs up hoping to lessen any load on the motor.

The exhaust seems to have taken on a "golden" hue, which concerns me.
Perhaps gas continued on the non-operative cylinder?

Any and all suggestions as to where to investigate are appreciated,
before I take it to the dealer who'll charge me $85 just to look at it!

Thanks!


Rob

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