coil is firing soon as i turn the key on

[BJOHNNY1969]

could someone tell me why as i turn key on. i have a 2009 xb12 ss and im checking it for spark so i got the spark plug hanging on the wire and as soon as i turn key on it arks for a good 3 seconds .

 

[njloco]

Might be your ECM is telling it to fire for what seems to be an extended period of time. Since you didn't give much I do on the bike as to how long you've owned it or what mods have been done to it, it will be more difficult for me of us to help.

 

[BJOHNNY1969]

Might be your ECM is telling it to fire for what seems to be an extended period of time. Since you didn't give much I do on the bike as to how long you've owned it or what mods have been done to it, it will be more difficult for me of us to help.

sorry about that ... i just picked the bike up in a trade its a2009 xb12 ss long it has jardin pipe k&n air cleaner and the ecu says ebr race on it . and the bike has not run right since i got it and now it keeps fouling plugs i got the patch cord and i down loaded ecmspy ..but dont now how to use it and the check engine light is not on

 

[34nineteen]

Are you holding the throttle open (or is it being held open), switching the red switch to run and then turning on the key? That should start the "spark plug cleaning function" of the ECM. I think this only was a feature of 2008-2010.

 

[Cooter]

Are you holding the throttle open (or is it being held open), switching the red switch to run and then turning on the key? That should start the "spark plug cleaning function" of the ECM. I think this only was a feature of 2008-2010.

Good call 34:19, I was going to post that.

OP: I will WARN you about opening pandoras box with tuning software. It is SUPER RARE that an unmodified ECM has any issues at all. If you want to find the problem... digging around aimlessly is not a replacement for diagnosis.

What exactly does it do when ". and the bike has not run right since i got it and now it keeps fouling plugs"
That will help us fix the bike before you open the ECM and modify the bike, creating more issues.

For ease of use and diagnosis, I would suggest using the free program from ECMDroid. It uses a wireless bluetooth connection for much easier datalogging, and I like the bluetooth dongle I got from Buelltooth.com.

 

[BJOHNNY1969]

Good call 34:19, I was going to post that.

OP: I will WARN you about opening pandoras box with tuning software. It is SUPER RARE that an unmodified ECM has any issues at all. If you want to find the problem... digging around aimlessly is not a replacement for diagnosis.

What exactly does it do when ". and the bike has not run right since i got it and now it keeps fouling plugs"
That will help us fix the bike before you open the ECM and modify the bike, creating more issues.

For ease of use and diagnosis, I would suggest using the free program from ECMDroid. It uses a wireless bluetooth connection for much easier datalogging, and I like the bluetooth dongle I got from Buelltooth.com.

thank you for the enfo...and i will get one of those blue tooth things . i have had the bike for a few months and like i said its never ran right all the time ....what spark plug should i be running ...the last few weeks its been fouling them alot and the bike only has 7000 miles so i really dont think its the rings what do you think

 

[34nineteen]

thank you for the enfo...and i will get one of those blue tooth things . i have had the bike for a few months and like i said its never ran right all the time ....what spark plug should i be running ...the last few weeks its been fouling them alot and the bike only has 7000 miles so i really dont think its the rings what do you think

Consider this..

That 2009 bike with 7000 miles probably put the bulk of its miles on the first year or two... 3500 miles a year is not much. Then probably sat for awhile as the fuel got funky. You could have:

-gummed up fuel regulator stuck open
-leaking fuel injectors
-maybe a failing fuel pump
-leaking intake seals. If they are admitting air, the O2 sensor will think the motor is running lean and add more fuel.
-bad fuel in the tank. If its not burning well, it can foul spark plugs

Doubtful that it is rings, due to the low mileage, unless it sat parked and moisture got into a combustion chamber and it sat like that. However, that would be oil fouling, not fuel.

 

[Cooter]

Or an even better question: What makes you think the plugs are fouled? Are they?
Are you assuming that because its running poorly, or are you removing them? Pics would help.

NGK platinum are pretty much the agreed upon go-to for Buells. Heat range 8 or 9 depending on your undisclosed location or preference.

Either ECMSpy or ECMDroid is a really good tool for seeing what the ECM is doing. The simplest test is to check the AFV. AFV is the correction number that the ECM is applying to the whole fuel map. Something like leaking intake seals or clogged injectors will make the computer compensate with more fuel and you can see that if the AFV number is way-out of whack (90-110 is normal IMO).
You can easily check what the engine sensors are doing in the "live data" section where you can diagnose something like a lazy O2 sensor that wouldn't throw a CEL or code, but would make for a poorly running ride.