How not to stink after riding a VFR

I just bought a VFR 1999 that has only done 30.000km. I’m already in love
But after riding the bike home, 30km. I must say that I stink, like I had been on a racetrack all day or attended a burnout competition. So, I guess the emissions are pretty bad.
I’m putting the bike in the basement for a winter restoration project now.
So what sensors should I check or what can I do to improve on the emissions to a point where I don’t have to take a shower after riding the bike?

 

It does sound like something is up with your bike. I don't notice any fumes when riding mine (85000km). Do you get high fuel consumption? The ECM will keep the fuelling rich when the coolant temperature is low (should be >78C when riding, maybe the thermostat is stuck open making it run cold) or you may have a blocked air filter that is causing reduced airflow (mice like to build nests in cosy VFR airboxes parked over winter, and can fill the filter with bedding and nuts). Another thought is if the fuel pressure regulator has failed you might be getting excess fuel pressure and flow at the injectors; could be caused by a leaking vacuum hose to the regulator.

 

Thanks Terry! I have only ridden it once. The rear brake is not working, so it would not pass a MOT check, therefore I have taken the number plates of and want to restore it over the winter before riding it. So I don’t know about the fuel consumption. But I did notice that the temperature were only about 72C when I was riding it, so the thermostat is definitely something I need to check. Also, the bike has only done 2.000km the last 5years, so checking for a mice nest is also a nice bet.

 

You are welcome Miguel. You may also have a stuck injector if the bike has sat with little use. The condition/colour of the spark plugs might give you some clues.

Stuck thermostats seem to be a typical fault with Hondas from this era but then again our bikes are 24 years old; I had to replace mine when I got my bike a couple of years ago. A quick test can be done at a standstill, start the engine from cold and keep a hand on the radiator. If the thermostat is working, it keeps the heating coolant in the engine block until it gets to about 78C then releases the hot coolant to the radiator, so the radiator should stay cold for a few minutes and then suddenly get too hot to touch. If on the other hand the radiator slowly heats up, then the thermostat is stuck open.

 

Exhaust leak? Neither my '98 nor my '00 smell at all.

 

Ok, I will check the injectors (hope I can find some YouTube content on this. Believe it or not, this my fourth bike, but it is the first with fuel injection. )
The radiators heat up with no sudden shift, so I will get a new thermostat. Thanks for the tip.

 

The exhaust is not leaking, but thanks

 

Raise the fuel tank and see if both the drain and vent hoses are there. I noticed more of a fuel smell while working on mine with those hoses detached, than with them connected to the proper outlets.
So to me, if the tank is venting just under the tank and not downward near the oil drain plug, you could be wearing those fumes / smells.

 

No leaks, only bad exhaust

 

If you do not have an exhaust leak and you are smelling like exhaust after a ride then it sounds like the exhaust is being circulated back into the "riders bubble" behind the faring and windshield. Is the faring and windshield stock or something else? A photo may help us.

 

I have only ridden it once. The previous owner had ridden it less than 2000km for the last 5 years. The rear brake was ruined, so I decided to take the plates off and have put it in the basement for major restoration over the winter. I intend to check spark plugs, fuel pressure, state of the injectors, thermotstat and all see if any fault codes are present. Right now I suspect that the thermostat and the fuel pressure regulator are not working properly. But I will get to that and will post my findings. But right now, I'm focusing on the braking system.

 

I have done a lot to the bike over the winter. For example I delinked the braking system.
Earlier this week I finaly got it assembled and passed the MOT check and now I have plates on my bike.

Wich now gets me back to this problem, because I still stink after riding it

During the Winter renovation I also exchanged the thermostat, which was stuck.
I chekked the spark plugs, they looked healthy but I still replaced them.

I have now chekked the fuel pressure. The Hayness manual states that the fuel pressure should be measured with the the vacum tube off. The pressure was 2.5Bar, which is as it should be. I put the vacuum tube on, then the pressure drops perhaps 0.2Bars. I can't find information on what the pressure should be like with the vacuum tube on, at idle? But, the tube was in quite poor condition, so your suggestion that this might be the problem could be the case. I guess I should try and replace it. Do you know a good place to buy theese vacuum tubes? There are so many and I should probably replace them all....

 

Maybe if you were faster, you would outrun your exhaust...like we do. lol

Seriously though. This is not fuel, not oil, not coolant...but only exhaust smell? That should be a really easy diagnosis. Please verify...

 

Just stopping for red lights is enough to start smelling
It is not fuel, not oil, not coolant...but only exhaust smell: Yes, and it is very bad , but no smoke.

 

If it were me...I'd start at one end or the other (header/engine attachment point or muffler end) and while running use something that you could see air movement with, and work your way to the other end. Could feel it on your hand (careful of the heat!) or something like a very light thin paper/cloth. there should be no air coming from the inside of the exhaust system to the outside, except for the muffler. My '00 has a tiny leak at the entrance of the muffler...but I'm lazy.

 

Not sure on the expected fuel pressure with the vacuum hose connected but the purpose of the FPR is to keep the fuel rail pressure constant with respect to the pressure in the intake tract. So it makes sense to have a lower pressure when the vacuum hose is attached (as there is vacuum in the intake tract).

I'm fairly sure that most of the vacuum hoses are 3.5mm id which should not be hard to locate at an auto parts store.

 

This is not a case of a leaky exhaust. If you are within a few meters of the bike, you know its not a healthy place to stay. This is all about bad combustion/wrong fuel mixture ratio

 

Based on the dimmension given on this page:
https://www.cmsnl.com/honda-vfr800fi-1999-x-european-direct-sales_model5753/partslist/E__1601.html
...if I add them all up I'm going to need 2m of 3.5mm ID vacuum tubing.
Fortunatlely Honda has a 3.5mm bulk package of 1m: 950053500120M
So I have ordered 3m of theese and I'll be exchanging all of them to make sure that there are no isues with leaky vacuum tubes

 

I replaced all vacuum hoses. That solved the problem
I no longer stink after riding