'97 acting strange.

I just got my '97 last week and am new at these vfr's. But I know this isn't normal.
I'm going down the highway at about 80 when all of a sudden out of nowhere it seems like the engine just cut out for a split second, came back to life, cut out again, then back to normal. But when it did it I looked down at my gauges and the fuel light came on, just for a moment when the engine cut out. But my fuel gauge is just above a half.
Any ideas? It only did it that one time so far. After it happened it drove just fine.

 

I have had the same problem with my '95 but I haven't noticed my fuel light coming on. I wouldn't hold too much sway by that though as that is just telling you it has stalled, the oil light won't necessarily come on as there is still pressure there. It happens so rarely to me that I haven't spent too much time looking for it it (not good practice, I know) Others will probably chime in with more ideas but I would give the ignition and kill switch a good spray with Q20 or equivalent for starters. Also check out the side stand switch.

 

Did your fuel light come on too? I was thinking fuel pump momentarily sputtered or something.

 

Sorry, edited my post while you must have been replying.
Mine feels as though I have suddenly chopped the throttle, then she carries on her merry way.

 

What is the time duration of the engine cutting off--is it a fraction of a second, a couple of seconds, etc.?

Could be fuel or electrical. Would need to monitor speed, rpm, throttle position when/if it happens again.

Possibly debris in the main jet fuel circuit or an intermittent short/open electrical circuit.

Might want to inspect the connector from the stator to the RR for signs of high temps or arcing.

 

The fuel light on my '96 takes about 2-3 minutes to fully illuminate when the fuel in the tank gets low enough. In full sun, it's nearly impossible to notice until it's fully lit.

I suspect a problem with your fuel sending unit in the tank, and the fuel pump...

 

With any new bike you should follow the regular routine: change all fluids, inspect electrical plugs carefully, maybe replace sparkplugs, air filter, fuel filters, drain and flush fuel tank, etc.

Gen 4 fuel gauges are notoriously and annoyingly non-linear !

 

The cut-out was just a split second, like I suddenly let off the throttle then got back on it. My wife was on it with me and she thought I shifted funny. If it does it again I'll let you know more details.

 

Ok it did it again. This time going slow. Defiantly electrical, cause now its dead. It shut off, then a few seconds later all the lights shut off and now nothing. Turn the key and the clock shuts off and no lights. Turn the key off and the clock comes on. Turn the key on and no clock. And I'm stuck at work now with no way to get it home.

 

That is suck......sorry about your problem. Might want to check the battery, connectors, harness, RR as other suggest. Good luck

 

Well I took a quick look at it and and the starter relay is melted at the 4 wires, but the 30 amp fuse is still good. Where do the 4 wires go that plug into the relay?
And just a quick look at my r/r shows an aftermarket one that is finned, and the connection there looks good.
So could the melted wires at the relay cause my problem? Honestly it looks like its been that way for awhile.

 

i'll bet your battery is low, weak or worn out too--better check it over and replace if bad.

The big red wires--one goes to the battery positive terminal, the other to the starter.

The four wires--red/white comes from the RR, red goes to the fuse box, yellow/red and green/red are the control lines for the starter relay.

Sounds like maybe the battery was low and there was some high-rate charging from the RR to the battery, or a loose connection in the plug causing a high-resistance junction that overheated.

At least you found it before it did too much damage.

 

Ok cool. I haven't had a chance to check the battery yet. But I'm definitely going to buy the VFRness and the starter relay fix, and of course a new relay.
I hope that fixes it, I love this bike and wanna get riding. At least it gives me some hands on with her to get to know her a bit. Gonna take her home and strip her down.

 

Well I got it home yesterday and took it apart this morning. Definitely the starter relay. The r/r looks newer and aftermarket, no burned or discolored wires near there. I took some pics of the relay.

 

Make sure to check your RR and stator..do a search here, it is very easy to do. Post what your voltages are at the battery with the bike at idle and at 5000 rpm. What is your resting battery voltage?

 

I started to take all the connections apart to clean them and when I got to the r/r and found this. So yep bad r/r too.

 

Yep that's what i was thinking you might find. It does not necessarily mean a bad RR, but that charred terminal is one of the three yellow from the stator, so it must be checked also. It looks like you may have caught it in time.

 

Ok, so how do I check the stator, and how do I tell if the rr is still good?
I tried doing a search but all I have is my phone and tapatalk so search results were inconclusive.

 

Good links in this post:

http://vfrworld.com/forums/mechanics-garage/42807-intermittent-charging-issue.html#post405809

 

Well I just got my replacement starter solenoid from caltric, and I checked my r/r using the method Rick from Ricks electric said using a multi meter on the diode setting and it checked out. So I'm gonna put it all back together today and see if she runs.