so much wrong,yet so much fixed!!!!

[ccdirtrider05]

so i figured id start a new thread for all the fixes ive done to correct my problems. I posted a while ago XB12SS..HOT!!

basically i bought a 2006 XB12Ss. hero blue. 2500$. tested it out and ran great. blasted through the gears, heavy throttle and braking to feel it out. got back and handed cash over!.
after some more lengthy rides the problems started coming out
-overheating... BADLY!!! i know these run hot but i dont like fan running 15 minutes into a ride on a 60 degree day along with BOILING GAS in the tank.
-fuel level sensor not quite right.. gave me excercise pushing bike to a gas station and at under 30mpg for that one i got a little peeved. [confused]
-sputtering.. randomly with no CEL.. just sputtered and bucked like a fouled plug.
-CEL only flashed when overheating.
-stranded GF and i on a back road while we waited for it to cool.
my endless searching through this forum and many others gave me alot of directions to look.

so one night riding home from work (10 minute ride) it overheated....
[mad][mad][mad]
this B!%#* is about ready to visit the for sale section!!
so i tore into her with a mission that i was gonna ride her to the grave. here is all the stuff i found wrong.

 

[wolfo68]

You paid 2500 for an SS, that was a F'in steal even with issues.

That said, yes I'd be glad to help if I can

 

[ccdirtrider05]

main hot from battery.. had to pull tape off of it. suspect since it felt more flexible that it should have

both spots on volt reg wires. to much vibration

 

[ccdirtrider05]

Grease. oil, dirt, grime, SHIT!!!. couldnt see much without digging in. most could not be seen AT ALL until engine was removed. breather re-route from PO had only zip-ties holding on. pissed oil vapor everywhere. all over rear cylinder. looked like an attempted wipe down was performed on easily visable areas prior to sale.

 

[ccdirtrider05]

temperature sensor wire.. could be a problem here ya think? engine overheated still which im THANKFUL for.. means it was protecting itself and turning fan on/limp mode as it is supposed to.

 

[ccdirtrider05]

this didnt look right at all.. it was ziptied to the loom and vanished into the abyss of the wires and went into the ECM on the other.. turned out to be pin 3, fuel pump return i think it was?? had enough strange little splices in it i just went in to grab another beer cause it would only get better.

 

[ccdirtrider05]

used a mirror to see one spot where it was rubbing on the loom prior to removal.

 

[ccdirtrider05]

more oil buildup in the fins! its everywhere!

 

[ccdirtrider05]

rub spot on the throttle cable

rub spot on the front plug wire

rub spot on main loom

rubbed spot on the wire.. INSIDE THE FUEL TANK.. thank you to a member on this forum for pointing out this spot.

 

[ccdirtrider05]

this was the grand daddy of them all and after going back and drinking many beers debating it.. aside from the oil covered fins and limping fan... this im 99% sure was the MAIN culprit and ill explain my reasoning.

where im pointing is bare wire.. after tracing it it appears to be a common hot from the ecm to every damned sensor on the bike!. watching ecmspy while it was idling the bike would run great until it got kinda hot. once it got kinda hot all the sensors would start freaking out.. bike would go in and out of open loop and start leaning itself out more and more, seemed like a TPS reset would never take for long and this spot was on the underside of the loom and was grounding out to the top of the motor.

 

[ccdirtrider05]

separating out the various sensor wires and checking for any other rubbed spots. i pulled off all the tape and everything to check all the way to the connectors. so i did not mix up the injector plugs i used a sharp point and scraped a F and R into the outside of the plug connectors.. wouldnt want a mix up.

 

[ccdirtrider05]

fuel pump level sensor wire was shot.. soldered it back on secured the wires against the pump

 

[ccdirtrider05]

my helpful minion son.. he looks innocent but is very useful.. note the bottle opener collar he is outfitted with!!! very stylish... oh yeah... and the hunk of dismantled thing in the background.

 

[ccdirtrider05]

old filter and strainer were replaced.. im this far into it im gonna replace the cheap hard to reach items.

 

[ccdirtrider05]

new shiny fan.. benched my old one and it was drawing a bit more power than it should have been.
one of the other problems i had was when the fan cam on while running it seemed to suck the life out of the bike. think of turning the AC on in an older car. it still functioned but you could tell there was extra strain on the motor etc. rougher idle when fan was running, slower rpm, slight miss, etc, etc.
felt like the bearing was going out and fan had ever so slight side to side movement. so i picked up a brand new one when i got new plug wires and new fuel pump o-rings from the harley/Buell dealer in Littleton Colorado. honestly the best place iv been able to deal with and super friendly. occasionally see a buell in their service drive too.

 

[thrstrmech]

bummer, but now you know that she's been gone through and issues taken care of. now you can put your mind at ease, +1[up] for jumping in head first, getting your hands dirty and giving her some TLC she needed.

 

[ccdirtrider05]

all in all i think im out under 300 in repairs. new plugs,wires,fan,supplies, o-rings, o2 sensor,beer,beer,whiskey,dog treats, oil change stuff, and fresh tank of gas,, time aint much for me since its mine and im enjoying learning the ins and outs of the bike.. it was alot of SMALL stuff that just took time!! now i get to use my time to enjoy riding and knowing i did something about those little gremlin bastards rather than just dump money at a shop or buy an out the box run of the mill rice grinder or pasta rocket,, i aint old enough to ride a harley like my dad and im not boring enough to ride what everyone else has. i was happy gettin an orphan bike and now ill be happy RIDING my orphan bike!!!

 

[wally]

That's cool! Having the time, energy and patience to pull this off! [up]

Good luck!

 

[ccdirtrider05]

also replaced the o2.. connector looked touchy

and even though i got nothing with the leak test using propane etc, had a missing bolt on the TB
[url]http://www.buellxb.com/buell_images/16637_20130718000614_L.jpg[/url]

 

[Negative]

Wow ... man you've really poured on the elbow grease thick with this bike!! ... I did a good bit of work to mine when I got it but thankfully (so far) hardly any of it was really bad wiring issues like you've seen above ... I hate troubleshooting and trying to diagnose wiring issues ... Every single time I have a wiring issue I just wanna sell the damn bike halfway through looking for the problem ... This thread shows some serious work on your end man ... I wish I could give you all the innernets ...