[operation2]

New bike owner, just bought a 1800, i cranked the bike up and noticed it was not idling as high as usually and seem to want to cutoff when trying to pull off, i kept adjusting the the manual air throttle no response, i went on to ride and got down the road made a turn in a subdivison and it cutoff on me in the midst of the turn, HEAVY BIKE!!!
One of pipes are cold i was told to check the spark plugs, the knock concern me it maybe more than the spark plug? What suggestions do you all have I cant afford to drop the bike and kill myself because it decides to cutoff while riding or turning. If i can't solve the problem with you alll advice what is the repair cost of something like this?

 

[backjudge1300]

First off, dont try riding it again till you get it fixed!
You say you have a cold pipe?
Check your plugs and plug wires. Make sure they are all firing.
The knock may be caused by a bad wire or plug.
check the battery connections.

Hopefully some 1800 guys will chime in here soon.
Im not sure about the EFI stuff on a bike.

 

[Scotrod]

First off, dont try riding it again till you get it fixed!
You say you have a cold pipe?
Check your plugs and plug wires. Make sure they are all firing.
The knock may be caused by a bad wire or plug.
check the battery connections.

Hopefully some 1800 guys will chime in here soon.
Im not sure about the EFI stuff on a bike.

+1.

Cold pipe = no fire. Runnin on 1 cylinder/low RPM may make a knocking sound.

What lead up to this event?

Just parked it and it started the next day, or slowly getting worse over time till now????

Inspect the plug wires for good connections,,, If all is well, pull (at least)the plugs in the cylinder with the 'cold' pipe,, Fouled? Funky?

New bike? Used? Aftermarket parts? (fuel manager?)

Gotta try and nail down the cause before ya can price the cure!

 

[terryj]

Could be a dead plug if its an older bike with miles. If new take it back to the dealer.

 

[operation2]

Engine cutoff issue

I am new to the cafe and so hopefully i replying in the correct fashion, if not my apology. Question: I have not had the bike long and had not been riding long prior to the bike or when i got it so I really cant measure its performance just yet. But I would like to say it got worst over time because time i did ride it did not do this and one time i took it out it seem to want to buck a little which i thought it was something i did wrong or not enough air flow with manual adjust.
I have to get me a t hanle allen wrench to take the cover off to check the sparks. I bought it from someone and they put brand new plugs on before i left with it. He continue to tell me don't baby the bike.
I have considered because i am new and baby the bike and there are aftermarket vance and hines pipes it may be running rich or lean in fuel and not goosing down on it is not giving enough air to burn the fuel off, which may foul plugs prematurely.
I play with cars but know nothing about bikes, but i'm just throwing something out there.

1: check the spark plugs and wires
2: change any fouled plugs and read them to diagnose why?
3: envitably if it is a plug problem the problem maybe the Cobra fI200, i think that's what its called is not programed to the pipes ( there should be a difference between straight pipes than org and settings. { take it to a shop to get the to set it correctly so it won't happen again}
This may have been why he said run it hard but never thought that it should matter hard or soft the bike should perform. I always believed Honda makes a fine product that is finely tuned and if certain adjust is not right it will throw the vehicle way off and it will not perform correctly.

What do you all think of my assessment after utilization of the info given?
What size T allen wrench do I need and what other tools do I need for this bike?
Like I said I am new to bikes all together and seem that I picked a fine but particular bike:spank:

 

[operation2]

2003 vtx 1800 cobra, vance hines, aftermarker air cleaner

 

[jdt3]

I have a 1300 but this is what I would do, replace plugs,see what fuel manager you have and get info on manufactures website check wires if plug replacement does not correct prob work your way back from plugs ,keep digging you will figure it out ,good luck

 

[Scotrod]

Going by what the previous owner told you, and by the bike having new plugs when you got it, I'm guessing the FI 2000 is set too rich, and you are sooting up the plugs. yes, not running it 'baby' style may help with soot, but you shouldn't have to run something HARD to keep it running!!!! (I ride 'baby' style a lot, nothing wrong with that!!!!)

Let's hope the plugs are fuel fouled (powdery black)



and not oil fouled (shiny black).


(More examples of sparkplugs: http://www.dansmc.com/spark_plugs/spark_plugs_catalog.html)

Pull and inspect the plugs

I use a 5/8 inch (yes inch, not mm) 'spark plug socket' to remove/ install plugs. I believe it is a 5mm allen wrench used to remove the spark plug covers. (Do yourself a favor, and buy a set of allen heads vs just one. The expensive T handle wrenches are nice, but I just use the standard "L" shaped ones)

Tell us what the plugs look like.

Tell us what brand and number of plug you find. Might be the wrong plugs!


Also,,

Locate the Cobra 2000 and see what it is set at. It should have 3 adjustable 'screws' or 'pots' under it's cover that can be adjusted to change how much fuel it adds to the OEM settings.

The pots are shown here where it says "Processor Detail":

MANY X RIDERS ADJUST THESE POTS WAY TOO HIGH!!!!!

This can lead to a too rich condition and can foul the plugs.

See what they are set at (They have numbers on each pot)

Tell us what number each pot is set at.

2-0-0 is a recommended setting from the OA board. Cobra sets them a little higher (something like 3.5-2-1)

Let us know what you find out, and we will go from there!!!!!

 

[Scotrod]

Slightly better pic of the pots:

 

[Drywallman]

Just my experience with these POS Cobra fI2000. I would take that off my bike and bury it somewhere deep in the ground. Several friends of mine have had these and were nothing but trouble.

If you need a fuel manager system buy something that will take out fuel as well as give fuel. The Cobra fi2000 only adds fuel. Our bikes are already rich out of the box. Also something that will help out with fouling plugs is the ground fix's.

 

[Rider7]

I own a 2006 1800 but have had no problems what so ever. Please post a reply with what you find wrong. I'm interested to find out what the problem was!!!

 

[JG18FF3]

All of the above are good suggestions but you being new to Bikes I would start with the spark and plugs.
You check the plug condition to determine where to look next.
Gas Fouled - to rich -possibly no spark. Bad Plug Wire, Bad Coil going to ground, loose ground.
Carbon Fouled - to rich-wrong fuel mixture.
Clean Burn- possibly low or no fuel- normal if (running) close to specs.
Hot Brown Burn(Scortched) - wrong fuel mixture - To Lean
Light Brown Burn - Close to right.
Will the bike crank and idle? Do you have to feather the throttle to get it to run.
When it ran right did you let it warm up and come to normal idle?
Take pics (if you can post) of the plug when you determine which pipe is running cold.
It's gotta be spark or fuel. The plug(s) will tell the story. The burn pattern on all of them will lead you to the next area.
Let us know what you find.

 

[Madness_MC]

operation2 -

I don't recall if you stated which pipe was "cold". You also have a cobra Fi2000 installed.

I can be one of two things:

- either the cylinder is not firing - each cylinder has its own separate coil that fires both plugs at the same time
- or you're not getting fuel to the "cold" cylinder

Adjusting the Manual Air screw didn't change anything... Your EFI uses a throttle body to control the airflow into the intake system. There are separate fuel injector nozzles in front of each intake port . The ECM/ICM takes its primary info from the Throttle Position Sensor (TPS) located on the throttle body and from the Manifold Absolute Pressure (MAP) sensor tapped into the intake manifold, along with other related sensors.

The Cobra Fi2000 has a set of harness connectors that "intercept" the signal sent from the ECM/ICM to the injectors and "modifies" the fuel spray duration allowing the injectors to stay open a bit longer to "richen up" the mixture. The harnesses are plugged into the bike by using the stock injector harness to each cylinder as input to the Fi2000 and there is a small return harness from the Fi2000 that gets plugged back onto the injector.

These harness connector plugs have been known to work their way loose if they have not been fully "locked" to the OEM injector or to the harness. I have had the Fi2000 units burn up (literally melt) one of the wires (the same wire each time - the blue one) going to the rear injector on my H-D Electra Glide and have had Cobra replace the unit under warranty on three (3) separate occasions with 18 months. I finally took the Fi2000 off and replaced it with another brand of fuel controller and all has been well for the past 2+ years.

If you can positively eliminate your Cobra Fi2000 as the culprit (remove it and run the stock injector harness back to their respective injectors is my suggestion), then you need to look at the possibility that you may have a coil (on the cold cylinder) that has possibly come unplugged. The harness to a coil can get knocked off easily if someone was a bit careless removing or reinstalling the fuel tank, or sometimes just wiping up under the tank towards the frame. Other items that may cause a problem is that a coil may loose its ground connection. Honda sometimes forgets to provide a good unpainted section of frame to hook ground circuits onto. Over time moisture (from washings and riding in the rain or fog) will degrade the ground circuit, especially for the coil grounds (Please don't embarrass me by making me admit that I pulled my hair out on my own VTX1300-C for 6 months tracking this down). Check your (ground) circuits and make certain that they are good, clean and coated with dielectric grease.

Both of my above recommendations are relatively simple and are nearly a "no cost" items to help troubleshoot and resolve your problems. Let us know what you find out.

 

[wanderingbear]

That was a good article i saved in case i ever have that problem thanks from a bike that runs with no problems. Thank you very much

 

[operation2]

Update

Thanks for the patience and the continued replies. I have not taken the bike to dealer neither have I finished the project, I have been met with many demands but I have learn a great deal and ready to put it together on a warm day.

This is what has been learned and done:
Frot cyclinder was not firing which is indicated by the low cold pipe, Driverside spark plug issue.

I took the spark plugs out of the bike and examined them Bosch Platinum, they were shining black ( which by thread posts indicate oil stain) I could see a little white but I could tell they needed cleaning.

I was told by a mechanic that the bike can be funny about using plugs that are not recommended. Iridium plugs are supposed to be in the bike such as Denso and NGK, I ordered the NGK normal range driving ones.

I took the Air filter out and smelled of gas, this is probably why the turn screw to adjust idle by air was not working clog airfilter by gas.
The filter thank God was K&N and was black, I know it is supposed to be red.

(this is what I learned about that): Recharge kit for K&N: cleaner and oil spray, Spray cleaner let soak for about ten minutes do not let dry, then rinse with low pressure that of garden hose with no attachement or sink pressure, no need to heat water. Then allow to dry COMPLETELY!!!

Then spray oil that comes in pack lightly with one stroke allow to dry then
( don't try to make it red completely nor do you have to spray it on the side which is not used for filtering, The owner of a bike shop to me this when I was telling him how much i was learning about maintenance of a bike. The instructions will tell u turn it red but the man stated it will soak it and fill up automatically u want it to dry completely or you'll suck that crap up and cause problems, so of course i had to reclean mine and let dry again,better i found out before i put it on the bike.)

Cobra Fi 2000 is on the bike and ... Gotta go I at Fire station got a call
I catch you all up on the rest later ....

 

[kf4ocj]

Just my experience with these POS Cobra fI2000. I would take that off my bike and bury it somewhere deep in the ground. Several friends of mine have had these and were nothing but trouble.

If you need a fuel manager system buy something that will take out fuel as well as give fuel. The Cobra fi2000 only adds fuel. Our bikes are already rich out of the box. Also something that will help out with fouling plugs is the ground fix's.

Hey,I have ridden bikes for years,but i'm a newbie to fuel injection.I have talked to a lot of people who should be in the know about bike engines,and from what i have been told with fuel injected bikes its not what goes out but what goes in,meaning that the only time you need fuel managment is when you change air fuel intake volumes(adding hyperchargers ect.) not when you change exhaust,i think i would go back to stock fuel managment and see what happens

 

[operation2]

yes, there is a hypercharger much like the one in the first post pic.

 

[operation2]

Follow up to Engine cut off

The Cobra Fi is set : 4.9 low green, 3 mid yellow, 6 main red
spark plugs used: ifr6l11

Well, the lower pipe is still blowing cold, this did not correct the problem,
I am research these threads and Joe from Madness, I will be trying to locate harness for cobra and possibly take the tank off the bike.

I'm frustrated and trying to keep a cool head so that i don't tear something up.

 

[kf4ocj]

The Cobra Fi is set : 4.9 low green, 3 mid yellow, 6 main red
spark plugs used: ifr6l11

Well, the lower pipe is still blowing cold, this did not correct the problem,
I am research these threads and Joe from Madness, I will be trying to locate harness for cobra and possibly take the tank off the bike.

I'm frustrated and trying to keep a cool head so that i don't tear something up.

Man I know what you mean,been there myself,sometimes it's better to walk away an think it thru,may even get a spark of insperation that will show you the problem,hey it's happened to me,good luck:icon_peac