HELP! Bike stuttering, stalling, and now won't start

[Z_Funk]

Alright...I'll do my best to describe what's going on. Please forgive me, as I'm not very mechanical. I bought my xb12r back in April, and have loved every minute of it! Just the other day I washed er, got er all shiny like, and decided to take her out for a spin. I noticed it not accelerating very well, and was kind of stuttering in the neighborhood, and thought it just needed to warm up a little. Then, once I got on the road, I noticed some serious throttle hesitation, to the point where it felt like it was going to stall out. So i pulled over to the side of the road to see if it would get over the hissy fit it was throwing. Then it was really struggling to idle, staying around 500 rpm, and then it died... When I started it up again, it would die if I didn't hold the throttle at around 3000 rpm, I tried putting it in gear, and as soon as I let out the clutch it would die (if it wasn't reved up to 3000, and then it would kind of limp on it's way) and then the check engine light came on.. So I shut the engine off, and took the long walk of shame home... I thought maybe it some water in the air intake (not the case), so then i read about someone explaining something very similar and it was his spark plugs.. So just today I replaced them, and the first 3 times I started it, it fired up but was very weak and went right back to a suffering idle at 500 rpm.. Then IT WOULDN'T START AT ALL!.. It sounds like it wants to turn over, but just doesn't quite make it.. then it will just give me a bunch of clicks.. I am frustrated, and just want to know what is wrong so I can go about fixing it.. Anyone have any idea of what is wrong? Many thanks in advance.

 

[Z_Funk]

2004 btw, in case you need to know that. Only 7000 miles.

 

[Negative]

Alrighty so since all this happened AFTER the wash... I'm willing to bet we have a water related problem... See if letting it dry out let's it run a little better... Also sounds like it could be a coil issue possibly... There are many many things that are water sensitive on these bikes...

But it sounds like a good idea to start from the ignition system out...

Was this a pressure washing per say?...

 

[Z_Funk]

So the wash was Saturday, just your standard sponge bath, nothing crazy. I let it sit most of Sunday, and tried to start it up Sunday night, same issue. So today is when I changed to plugs.

 

[Z_Funk]

Next steps?.. Check the coils? Can you point me in the right direction for instructions on how to go about that?.. Also, just to be sure there I didn't get any water in the gas tank (i don't know how that would have happened, but figured this couldn't hurt) I put some Stabil in the tank.

 

[Negative]

Let me post up a link for you to download a manual for your bike... It literally has everything you'd ever need to know how to do step by step with pictures on Your bike...

The specs for checking the ignition coil is in there... Also have you looked at the connectors to your ecm?... Or the ecm itself?... Is the battery in good shape as far as charge goes?....

You mentioned it not wanting to really turn over but a couple of times before the starter just clicks (that's just what I put together from reading your post... So i you hoping you actually meant the starter)...

EDIT:

Here's the link to the manuals man ...

http://www.buellxb.com/specs.php

 

[Sammyzuko]

I would also check the battery connections/grounds. Clean them even tho they might look "clean". It's something quick and easy you can check and it cleared up the similar issues I was experiencing.

 

[Theycallmecrash]

The way its acting is characteristic of charging system failure, low voltage, then no crank. Get the battery charges up. Start it up. If it runs good at first get a volt meter on your battery, is the voltage dropping? Water in the 77 connector, water damaged the voltage regulator.

 

[Z_Funk]

Alright, the more you guys talk about a battery issue, the more it kinda makes sense. When it wasn't starting, the lights on the console would go out and flicker. Hooked it up to a battery tender last night. Gonna let it charge through the day, and when I get back from work, I'm gonna inspect the coils, and make sure everything has a good connection. Will keep you posted.

 

[Z_Funk]

I also ordered the usb version of this: http://www.xoptiinside.com/buell_cable__bluetooth
anyone ever used one of these to read the CEL error message?

 

[xtremelow]

Check the Timing Sensor it will not throw a code and will cause the same issues you explained if it is damaged.

 

[SEXT9]

The clicking sound is probably from a low battery kicking in the starter solenoid but not having enough juice to turn it over. The battery will be low from not getting to recharge as it normally woul d after it starts.

I have an 04 Lightning as well. I jumped it from my car until I got it started. I literally had the issue you described with the incremental coughing, sputtering, dying, & wont run. Once I got it home I started researching on what to do.

I ran a ground wire from the coil pack mount bolt to the negative position on the battery. I'm not convinced it worked but it did for others I read about.

I also did a TPS reset. While looking at the TPS voltage I noticed it was extremely high. I followed the instructions to get it reset to the letter. And I'm not sure which of those 2 things fixed it. But it ran beautifully after that. And, the bike feels faster than the 2010 bike I have with similar mods. There's still there slight surge between 2-3K rpm. So I think a TPS reset is probably in order at least once per season.

I don't know if it will work for you. But I hope it helps

 

[shaylay]

Check the battery.
check every electrical pin in the charging system (under the pulley cover)
if you have a multimeter check for resistance
then check plugs,