6th Gen - Throttle Body removal

Discussion in 'Mechanics Garage' started by elwray, Jan 8, 2010.

  1. elwray

    elwray New Member

    Country:
    United States
    Joined:
    Oct 22, 2009
    Messages:
    793
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    16
    Location:
    Central NJ
    Map
    I'm in the process of replacing the thermostat on my 2003 VFR, and am stuck (literally) at getting the throttle bodies off.

    I unscrewed the 8 band clamps (2 clamps x 4) and gave the fuel rails a few tugs. Wasn't even budging.

    Am I missing something, or are they just fused on there from being attached for 7+ years?

    Any tips?

    Does it just need brute force? Any suggestions on where to pry from (if that's even a safe option)?
     
  2. Joey_Dude

    Joey_Dude Member

    Country:
    United States
    Joined:
    Oct 28, 2007
    Messages:
    1,956
    Likes Received:
    13
    Trophy Points:
    53
    Location:
    North Georgia
    Map
    Two things you can do:

    1. Heat up the rubber tubes that hold the throttle bodies with a hair dryer. This will make the rubber more malleable
    2. Get a pry bar (2x4 piece of wood, wrench, or whatever) and what you can do is pry one end of the the throttle body and then pry the other end. The tricky part is to make sure both sides come up about the same otherwise it's a real pain in the ass to get off.
     
  3. elwray

    elwray New Member

    Country:
    United States
    Joined:
    Oct 22, 2009
    Messages:
    793
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    16
    Location:
    Central NJ
    Map
    Any specific areas to pry from (or stay away from)? Thanks for the tip on heating it -- now that I think about it, it's in the garage where it's just barely above freezing. I'm sure that isn't helping the boots give way.
     
  4. NorcalBoy

    NorcalBoy Member

    Joined:
    Aug 29, 2007
    Messages:
    6,120
    Likes Received:
    853
    Trophy Points:
    113
    Location:
    Desert Southwest
    PM sent......
     
  5. Meatloaf

    Meatloaf New Member

    Country:
    United States
    Joined:
    May 19, 2009
    Messages:
    1,091
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    38
    Location:
    Indianapolis, IN
    Map
    It is on there quite tight. I had to use a lot of effort to get mine off when I did it over the summer. Be patient. Once it breaks loose from the rubber it will come off pretty easily. NCB's advice will be spot on just as it was when I replace mine.
     
  6. elwray

    elwray New Member

    Country:
    United States
    Joined:
    Oct 22, 2009
    Messages:
    793
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    16
    Location:
    Central NJ
    Map
    Thanks for the PM. Replied, and off to soak some WD40 into the stubborn boots!
     
  7. CrazyInNYC

    CrazyInNYC New Member

    Joined:
    Apr 12, 2008
    Messages:
    95
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    Location:
    NYC
    Is this advice highly sensitive and classified?
     
  8. elwray

    elwray New Member

    Country:
    United States
    Joined:
    Oct 22, 2009
    Messages:
    793
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    16
    Location:
    Central NJ
    Map
    Sorry kind of forgot about this thread. Still haven't put it back together but I DID get the TB off.

    Using a thin screw driver, wiggled it into the boot a little and sprayed WD40. Did this every time I walked by the bike in the garage and pulled up on the TB edges (NOT the fuel rails!!). Eventually I felt it starting to budge, so kept at it and eventually it let go (AWESOME feeling! :wink:).

    Then it was just a matter of undoing hose clamps and screws to get at the thermostat, which was indeed stuck open.

    I have all the replacement parts, but not the time to reassemble yet. We've got about 2'+ of snow on the ground at the moment (plus down trees, spotty electricity, and chicken coop flight cage collapsed :mad:) that has been demanding quite a bit of attention. I snapped a bunch of pics of the removal and will take more during reassembly and try to put together a little DIY. It's not a hard job, just tedious and frustrating
    (and messy if you're like me and didn't drain the gas tank beforehand -- don't worry, it'll drain itself :laugh:)
     
  9. Spike

    Spike New Member

    Joined:
    Aug 26, 2006
    Messages:
    1,579
    Likes Received:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    0
    Yeah, when I took mine off the first time, I experienced the same thing. They didn't budge, figured I must be missing a screw/bolt somewhere, and spent way too much time looking for it before I very hesitatingly used a piece of wood across the frame rails and a pry bar - I was very afraid. But they did inded eventually come off. I never would have done it on my own, but I was taking a motorcycle repair class at the time, and that is what my professor told me to do. He also gave me some silicone to spread inside the rubber hoses on the install and the next time I needed to remove them, it was much much easier. Went just like I would have expected actually. You gotta think about how many times, my bike had about 45,000 miles on it at the time, those hoses have been heated up to what surely must be a couple hundred degrees temperature, and then in the garage at below zero, and not moving during all this, they pretty much fuse to the metal.
    IMHO - I would be careful about sticking a screwdriver in there, you don't want to puncture or stretch the hose in some way that you don't get a good seal upon reassembly. Or a small scratch on the inside that you can't see, that over time weakes the walls of the tubes. Not any hot fluid flowing thru there or anything, but still...
     
  10. elwray

    elwray New Member

    Country:
    United States
    Joined:
    Oct 22, 2009
    Messages:
    793
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    16
    Location:
    Central NJ
    Map
    Yes and this bike only has 19k on the clock so less than half of the freeze-thaw-boil-freeze yours experienced!

    I concentrated my screwdrivering on the insulator, trying not to scratch or gouge the TB itself. I bought replacement insulators. They aren't very expensive.

    In hindsight I should have used hard plastic to minimize the risk of scratch/gouge.
     
  11. Mark 024

    Mark 024 New Member

    Country:
    Australia
    Joined:
    Oct 24, 2009
    Messages:
    413
    Likes Received:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Location:
    Sydney, Aust
    Map
    Elwray,
    How did you go getting the t.bodies back on??
    I am in the process of doing t stat and got to the point of undoing the hose clips. I needed some help and came to your thread.
    Thank Norcalboy for the WD40 idea. Will do that now and try to get them off tomorrow.
    Crappy fiddly job. Hopefully bike will run warmer. Reckon mine is stuck open too
     
  12. elwray

    elwray New Member

    Country:
    United States
    Joined:
    Oct 22, 2009
    Messages:
    793
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    16
    Location:
    Central NJ
    Map
    It was kind of a pain to get it back on.. I'd suggest installing the boots to the throttle body side first (and tighten appropriately - they don't just get tightened up but rather gauge the gap in the band clamp itself. See around step 8 here http://vfrworld.com/forums/mechanic...placement-6th-gen-vfr800-vtec.html#post247064 for pictures and tightening specs).

    Putting the clamps onto the throttle body first lets you tighten them "outside" the bike instead of having to go through that little access hole, which was sort of a pain in the ass. This way, you only have to do the 4 engine-side clamps through the access hole.

    Once you have the boots onto the throttle body, try heating it up slightly with a hair drier. I don't think I'd personally go for a heat gun since that would be too hot, but a hair drier might give you just the play you need.

    Also don't forget to hook up that electrical connector at the bottom of the throttle body! Or you'll be in the same situation as me trying to troubleshoot an FI light and then having to get the TB back off again :frusty:. That connector and the connector for the IAT just happen to be interchangeable... none of the other wiring you're dealing with is, but of course I found that out the hard way.
     
  13. Mark 024

    Mark 024 New Member

    Country:
    Australia
    Joined:
    Oct 24, 2009
    Messages:
    413
    Likes Received:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Location:
    Sydney, Aust
    Map
    Cheers mate,
    Thanks for the tips. Will try tomorrow
     
  14. Mark 024

    Mark 024 New Member

    Country:
    Australia
    Joined:
    Oct 24, 2009
    Messages:
    413
    Likes Received:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Location:
    Sydney, Aust
    Map
    ebay 061.jpg ebay 060.jpg With much thanks to VFRW I managed to get the throttle body off today. I did what everyone said and took my time and stayed calm. Used a very long screwdriver to loosen clamps and a pry bar on each corner to lift it. I also used WD40 down the boots to assist. All in all very smooth. So thanks heaps. If it was just me and the manual - I would have given up. I got the T stat out and I was expecting it to be stuck open as my bike is taking about 10 minutes to get up to 90 degrees C. It wasnt stuck open. But i tested it by slowly boiling it. It started to open at 88c (190F). It only opened about 6mm even up to 100 degrees C. I let it cool down and it remained stuck open about 3mm. This would explain my situation (I think) I have a new T stat to pick up on Tues. Will probably do spark plugs while I am down here. Thanks heaps guys.
     
  15. elwray

    elwray New Member

    Country:
    United States
    Joined:
    Oct 22, 2009
    Messages:
    793
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    16
    Location:
    Central NJ
    Map
    Yep, that thar's your problem. Congrats gettin' it out.
     
Related Topics

Share This Page