new 1998 V11 EV owner

[normzone]

" and had I known about the seeds and extent of the intake rubber split, I wouldn't have been riding it.  Even in it's current state, it is a lot of fun. "

It would be even more fun if you had planted those seeds - there could be some forensic clues there -

 

[Chuck in Indiana]

 My left rotor is slightly warped, so using the brake pedal gives an annoying pulsation.  I found a couple good used rotors, so when I have the front apart, I'll replace it.  The right rotor is good, so there is no pulsing with the brake lever.

Our man Norman has the same problem. I told him it was probably pad build up on the left side from too gentle braking. Make a few panic stops with the pedal..

[twowings]

Don't forget to post up some pics! 

[rodekyll]

Chuck -- something to consider --  I have a pulsation in a front floating rotor, too.  The problem is not my rotor.  I freed up the buttons and checked the runout -- after tapping the rotor into index a dial indicator doesn't show any warped spot.  After looking into it further I found that I have a sticky caliper puck and it's making the pads grab the rotor unevenly and cockeyed.  When I lever it loose the pulsation goes away for a few brake cycles.  Then it sticks again and the lever throbs.  For me the fix will be new caliper piston seals.

[Chuck in Indiana]

For me the fix will be new caliper piston seals.

You may be on to something, David.. I proved to myself many years ago with a dial indicator that it *wasn't* a warped rotor, though.

[Rich A]

You might want to check your brake lines if the originals are still on there.  I think you can buy sets of braided lines, and that would be the way to go.

As far as gas leaks, I had a bad banjo bolt on the fuel filter. Drove me nuts trying to figure out what was wrong. I must have taken the tank off half a dozen times.

Rich

[PeteS]

I had a '98 EV. Sold it with 77k on the odometer. Always enjoyed the bike but ran out of room in the garage and somebody had to go.
As for the timing chain, I never even looked at mine. I think they have spring tensioners. Should not be an issue at your low mileage.
Two things that really woke up the motor are Dunstall replica mufflers (cheap) and Todd Egan's modified Power Commander to take full advantage of the intake and exhaust mods.
The PC is NLA but worth jumping on if you ever come across one.

Pete

[Edgo897]

I got around to removing the linked front and rear brakes on my 98 EV. I got a huge master cylinder off a Kawi ZX10 and stainless front lines. A normal stop just needs one finger, two fingers hauls in down really fast. I also replaced all fuel and oil lines. I've pretty much gone through every system. It runs great. I'm really enjoying this machine.

[normzone]

I tried braking mine HARD multiple times at freeway speeds - I had traffic behind me fall back a quarter mile they were so confused - it was a beautiful thing to see in the mirror. I know I heated the discs good. No change ....

I wonder what is less work / cheaper (snaps red suspenders) - a gourmet floating disc or a caliper rebuild.

Also [aaron.hudacky] and I are in comms on the side channel - his fuel economy was solved by a fuel pressure regulator.

[Edgo897]

So let's replace fuel pressure regulators. Who has one for the best price? I replaced my fuel pump and it's much more quiet. And I installed a manual petcock.

[rodekyll]

I tried braking mine HARD multiple times at freeway speeds - I had traffic behind me fall back a quarter mile they were so confused - it was a beautiful thing to see in the mirror. I know I heated the discs good. No change ....

I wonder what is less work / cheaper (snaps red suspenders) - a gourmet floating disc or a caliper rebuild.

Also [aaron.hudacky] and I are in comms on the side channel - his fuel economy was solved by a fuel pressure regulator.

Definitely a caliper rebuild is easier and less expensive, if you can get the kit.  If the pistons are in good shape all you need are the seals.  The hardest part is getting the pistons out.

Also, did Aaron figure out what was bad about his fuel regulator?  Just curious.

[AaronH]

Definitely a caliper rebuild is easier and less expensive, if you can get the kit.  If the pistons are in good shape all you need are the seals.  The hardest part is getting the pistons out.

Also, did Aaron figure out what was bad about his fuel regulator?  Just curious.

I'm not sure what failed inside the old regulator, but the garage smelled like fuel after the motorcycle sat for a night and mileage was in the low 20's.  Now riding the same, I average in the mid 40's and it doesn't smell up the place.  I used a generic PR149 someone else recommended on this site because I couldn't find an original fuel pressure regulator. 

Out of precaution, I also replaced the fuel pump, and changed the fuel filter because it was due by mileage.  I replaced both coils and the voltage regulator when I started getting random missing that got progressively worse as I continued to ride.  The missing went away after putting on the new parts, and the charge light goes out as skkn as the engine starts; before, it would glow slightly until about 12-1400 rpm indicated.

It took some work, but it seems pretty well sorted now.  My main goal was to address everything that people here have found are common problems so it won't leave me stranded.  Things still go wrong as I would expect with any machine pushing 20 years.  Last week, it suddenly started leaking badly from the left fork,  so I replaced the seals.  This week, the trip odometer stopped working, and I use that for determining range, so I didn't want to let it go.  That meant today was speedo disassembly day; I cleaned and oiled the trip odo with Labelle gear oil, I replaced the gear drive where the cable goes into the speedo, and I repainted the needles in the tach and speedo black since they had faded to white.  I considered doing them in the original orange or a darker red, but black reads really well on white and I like how it looks.  Eventually I am going to install Speedhut gauges, but for now these Veglias are working properly.  I installed the needle to indicate about 4 mph slower than before, and tonight when I passed a radar sign, it said 35 and so did my speedo.  Still need to compare it to GPS to see how accurate it is at higher speeds. 

I bought it thinking it would be fun to ride occasionally and work on.  Instead, I ended up loving it and have ridden over 6,000 miles in the not quite four months I've owned it.  Next will be tires.  Below are a few photos as it is now. 

[Kiwi_Roy]

Aaron,
          Might I suggest new wheel bearings when you do the tires, they are just standard bearings that most multi make shops will have for about $5
I was let down by a front bearing that spit out the balls although I was able to ride home with just one bearing.
Roy

[AaronH]

Aaron,
          Might I suggest new wheel bearings when you do the tires, they are just standard bearings that most multi make shops will have for about $5
I was let down by a front bearing that spit out the balls although I was able to ride home with just one bearing.
Roy

Roy,

Thank you for the recommendation... I will do that.  Just repacking the bearings was my original intent, but might as well replace while it is apart if it is that affordable.

I have a new problem.  Had to cancel a ride to Tucson because the engine keeps stumbling after it has been running for about 5-10 minutes.  It runs fine when cold, and it still has plenty of power, but it is a very slight stumble that is really noticeable when you have about 15-20% throttle applied.  It also does it under heavier throttle, but the engine has no idling issues, and it pulls very nicely up to 7k rpm.  So far I've replaced and set the TPS with a voltmeter, replaced plug wires, boots and plugs (although it is time to do plugs again),  adjusted the valves (also time for those again), synchronized the TBs, replaced the fuel pump, pressure regulator, fuel filter, petcock/strainer assembly, air filter, intake rubber boots on both sides of the throttle body, both coils, voltage regulator, all relays and fuses and used DeOxit when doing those, disconnected the side stand switch, installed a new battery, and cleaned any grounds I could find.

The electric petcock was disconnected when I bought it, but I've read that circuit can cause problems if remaining wires are crimped.  I hooked my heated grips up to the old petcock fuse opening in the fuse block, and the power supply there is constant, so I don't think damaged wires in that circuit are a problem.

The engine burns no oil over 3,000 mile intervals, and I don't think it is anything internal.  I suspect maybe a plug is going bad or corrosion at a connection I haven't cleaned yet is getting worse, but I am not sure where to look at this point; will start at the plugs.  I've dug around this site quite a bit and I have tried to do almost every common recommendation I've seen for a miss/stumble type of problem.  Good thing is the problem started presenting once every few hundred miles or so about 2.5 months ago but has started to get progressively worse rapidly, so once it is fixed, it will be apparent relatively quickly. 

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[Kiwi_Roy]

Were you using the heated grips when you got the stumble? Be prepared to turn them off to see if it improves.
I'm just wondering if the heated grips are pulling down the Voltage making the ECU relay drop out, if there's a high resistance like a dirty ignition switch, fault relay contact or stand switch the Heated grips could be turning on pulling the Voltage down until the ECU resets.
I can see why you thought the petcock fuse is a good supply for the heaters but I would use it to pick up a relay and use the contact to feed the grips from a fuse direct rom the battery.

I was going to post a schematic here but I think its is wrong for the 98 EV

I will send you a PM

[rodekyll]

Clean the flywheel and cam position sensors.

I forget if this one has the temp sensor in the valve cover or in the head.  That could also be a problem.

[Chet Rugg]

I would stick with 20w50w  oil for a 98 ev

[AaronH]

Were you using the heated grips when you got the stumble? Be prepared to turn them off to see if it improves.
I'm just wondering if the heated grips are pulling down the Voltage making the ECU relay drop out, if there's a high resistance like a dirty ignition switch, fault relay contact or stand switch the Heated grips could be turning on pulling the Voltage down until the ECU resets.
I can see why you thought the petcock fuse is a good supply for the heaters but I would use it to pick up a relay and use the contact to feed the grips from a fuse direct rom the battery.

I was going to post a schematic here but I think its is wrong for the 98 EV

I will send you a PM

Roy,

The problem began about a month ago and didn't seem to worsen since installing the grips.  It gets more pronounced after the engine has been running about 5 minutes.  I suspect the TPS is going bad again, but I haven't checked with my voltmeter yet.  I say that because like when I bought it, it stumbles where I always hold the throttle, but under full throttle it runs really well and revs to 7500 rpm with no miss or power loss.  It also always starts and doesn't have any other symptoms of electrical issues, but where I commonly keep the throttle it starts running rough.  The current TPS is 3 months old and probably has about 6,000 miles, so I didn't initially suspect it could have failed again.  I will reply to you via email and appreciate any input that could help make the electrical system more reliable. 

Clean the flywheel and cam position sensors.

I forget if this one has the temp sensor in the valve cover or in the head.  That could also be a problem.

  Rodekyll,

I checked the cam position sensor on the flywheel yesterday, and it had a little oil on it from a prior breather hose leak, so I wiped it clean.  I have not pulled the forward one, but it has a slight weep from that sensor so I will pull it and check it out.  This year/model does have the temp. sensor in the valve cover, and I replaced it, but I will check the resistance again.  I have a spare if it fails.  One thing that I haven't checked is what appears to be an air temp sensor in the intake tract on the right side of the frame under the tank.  I have looked at several exploded views but haven't seen the sensor illustrated in that location.  It looks just like the valve cover sensor, so I will pull it and check it as well. 

I would stick with 20w50w  oil for a 98 ev

Chet,

I just noticed the shop manual I have that has an 04/2002 print date says to use that weight.  I will look into it and might give it a shot.  It doesn't seem to use any of the 10/60, and I had seen that weight recommended in Guzziology for solid lifter 1100s and it was also recommended by my dealer, but 20/50 is clearly listed in the version of the FSM I have. 

Thanks to all of you for your advice.

[pehayes]

When you pull the two timing sensors, be aware that the airgap space below the sensor is critical.  You will likely find spacing washers and an o-ring seal on the front sensor.  Make sure to set that space dimension correctly.  I doubt your problem is caused by either of these timing sensors since your symptoms seem to be time/temperature related.

Maybe you can find someone with the GuzziDiag software which will read each sensor output in situ.

Oil on the flywheel sensor isn't an issue (at least not for the sensor).  Tiny metal chips or fuzz from the wearing ring gear are the cause for intermittent reporting issue for that sensor.  It doesn't seem that you found any issue under that one.

What spark plugs are you using?

Do you recall what setting you used for the throttle body air bypass screws?

It really seems that you have a proper mixture for cold starting but that it does not lean out with any time/temp change.  The temp sensors and throttle body settings do seem suspect.

Greg Bender has wiring diagrams on his website, but none of them precisely match my two 98 EVs.  It seems that the my bikes have a mixture of 98EV wiring and earlier 1100i wiring.  Just have both available and be aware of the issue.

Patrick Hayes
Fremont CA

[Chuck in Indiana]

It looks as if you are trying your best to rid it of any possible gremlins. Extra points for that.. 
The *first* thing I check with any miss is plugs. I have a spark plug tester, and have seen new out of the box plugs fail under pressure. (they happened to be Champion, in case anyone cares)
After that, I would ohm the caps/wire/coils.
I see you have already taken care of vacuum leaks, which was my original thought.
One thing that I didn't see in your gremlin proofing is to add a dedicated ground wire from the regulator to an engine case bolt. It has nothing to do with your current problem, but will kill one gremlin dead. 

[AaronH]

Patrick and Chuck, thank you for your advice. 

The front timing sensor is weeping, so when I fix that, I will make sure to pay attention to the gap.

Plugs are NGK BPR6ES; I replaced them tonight since I am close to the 6,000 mile interval, along with the plug wire resistor covers (I used NGK LB05F).  The bypass screws are 1 turn out each side. 

Chuck, I need to add that additional ground.  I bought the strap and will likely go from the regulator to the front of the engine. 

I found that the TPS is likely the problem this evening and replaced it again after about 6,000 miles and 3.5 months.  To check it, I used a voltmeter to pin 17 in the ECU (my motorcycle has a P8).  The first thing that got my attention was that the base setting with the linkage disconnected and left TB screw backed all the way out was 154mv when I last set it.  Tonight, it was 125mv. 

I recently watched Chris Kelly's video showing how he tests the PC3F TPS, and noticed the passing sensors have a smooth voltage increase with the exception of a "knee" about halfway through the sensor's total sweep.  A bad sensor would have excursions that could be a volt or more, but they always started and ended at the specified output.  I figured my TPS would exhibit these excursions, and I was surprised when after the first throttle sweep I saw nothing drastic.  I did about 5 full sweeps, and finally started noticing at around 3400mv there was a slight dip of about 50-60mv even though I was continuously increasing throttle.  This dip repeated itself in the 3550-3600mv range, and could be repeated reliably.  What this showed me is that the degradation doesn't have to be much at all numerically to be perceptible; these drops caused bucking in the 3900-4200 rpm range in 5th at about 80, and they also caused problems when the engine was at lower throttle settings.  There could have been less noticeable dips lower in the sensor sweep, but I did not see them. It should be noted I did these checks on a cold engine; the dips may have been more pronounced as the sensor warmed up and resistance increased in the mv drop areas.   

I replaced the TPS and reset it to 149.9mv, and after a 20 mile ride at different speeds and settings and allowing the engine the chance to get warm by idling in traffic, it runs really well again. 

In this thread: http://wildguzzi.com/forum/index.php?topic=73658.0;nowap , Bill Havens had mentioned the throttle body shaft leaking at the lower pivot and allowing fuel to get into the TPS.  Mine didn't have raw fuel, but a dark oily accumulation that I am pretty sure is the result of a leaking throttle body shaft, and probably contributed to the accelerated TPS wear.  It could have been from before I replaced the fuel pressure regulator and it was dumping a lot more fuel than the engine needed, but that is probably wishful thinking.  I will disassemble the old TPS and post here what I find.  Bill discussed replacing the shaft seals with viton seals on CA Cyclework's site, so I will likely do that soon; otherwise, I think a TPS would need to be part of my 6,000 mile maintenance routine, and I don't want to blow $90 on new sensors  at that interval.   

I'm still going to take everyone's advice and go through the electrical system to make sure I don't allow any easily preventable issues to pop up.  I want to thank everyone, especially Kiwi Roy, for their help with this phase of things I'm learning about the EV.   

[oldbike54]

I would stick with 20w50w  oil for a 98 ev

 This .

 For those of you who don't know , Chet is a pro , and an all around decent bloke 

 Dusty

[rodekyll]

Patrick and Chuck, thank you for your advice. 

[snippity]

Plugs are NGK BPR6ES; I replaced them tonight since I am close to the 6,000 mile interval, along with the plug wire resistor covers (I used NGK LB05F). 
[snip]

That could be your problem right there -- or not.  It throws up a flag for me that both that plug and cap are resistor types.  I'll go out on a limb and guess that you've got resistor wire, too (that will make you check -- it will either be 0-ish ohms or ~5k ohms).

There are three places to add resistance to the circuit -- resistor wire, resistor cap, or resistor plug.  Choose one.

The NGK non-resistor parts are BP6ES for the plug and (if this is the correct box in my hand) LZFH for the cap. 

[pehayes]

Spark Plugs.  Everyone has a favorite.  I've been using these for years in numerous Guzzi.  http://www.guzzipower.com/Sparkplug-pehayes.html

BTW, our two 98 EVs came with solid core  spark secondary wires.  No longer for sale within California!

If you have fuel draining down into the TPS, it evaporates and leaves a residue of various fuel additives.  This could be the source of your low-mileage TPS glitch issues.  It is possible to clean the TPS.  It requires drilling a small hole and injecting electronics tuner cleaner to dissolve and wash away the contaminants.  I've done it to restore several.  Somewhere I have a picture showing the exact spot to drill but I can't find it right now.  I may have an old one with a drilled hole.  I'll try to find that and photo.  I suggest you try this option before disassembling the old one or splurging for a new one.

Hah!  Couldn't find it in my pictures, but a quick Google search found this:  http://s3.postimg.org/soc076o4/tpshole.jpg  That's my picture.  See the little white dot?  Drill 1/16" hole there and spray liberally with a good electronics cleaner and follow with some gentle compressed air and drying time.

Patrick Hayes
Fremont CA

[Tom H]

I brought up the resistor thing a while back. My '04 has both resistor plugs and plug wires from the factory. It works, so I'm not going to mess with it. On the wires, I didn't check if the cap or the wire had the resistor. I think only the cap??

From the post about this, it does appear that only the plug or the cap should have the resistor.

Tom

[Kiwi_Roy]

I brought up the resistor thing a while back. My '04 has both resistor plugs and plug wires from the factory. It works, so I'm not going to mess with it. On the wires, I didn't check if the cap or the wire had the resistor. I think only the cap??

From the post about this, it does appear that only the plug or the cap should have the resistor.

Tom

When it starts to miss on one cylinder take your ohmmeter and measure the resistance from plug cap to chassis on each side. I found one side open circuit on mine.

[AaronH]

That could be your problem right there -- or not.  It throws up a flag for me that both that plug and cap are resistor types.  I'll go out on a limb and guess that you've got resistor wire, too (that will make you check -- it will either be 0-ish ohms or ~5k ohms).

There are three places to add resistance to the circuit -- resistor wire, resistor cap, or resistor plug.  Choose one.

The NGK non-resistor parts are BP6ES for the plug and (if this is the correct box in my hand) LZFH for the cap.

Thank you for pointing that problem out.  I knew not to get both resistor wire and caps, but I didn't pay attention to the plugs.  I'll fix that tomorrow.  This weekend is a long ride, and knowing that is wrong will bug me constantly.  Thank you for the NGK non-resistor part number. 

Spark Plugs.  Everyone has a favorite.  I've been using these for years in numerous Guzzi.  http://www.guzzipower.com/Sparkplug-pehayes.html

BTW, our two 98 EVs came with solid core  spark secondary wires.  No longer for sale within California!

If you have fuel draining down into the TPS, it evaporates and leaves a residue of various fuel additives.  This could be the source of your low-mileage TPS glitch issues.  It is possible to clean the TPS.  It requires drilling a small hole and injecting electronics tuner cleaner to dissolve and wash away the contaminants.  I've done it to restore several.  Somewhere I have a picture showing the exact spot to drill but I can't find it right now.  I may have an old one with a drilled hole.  I'll try to find that and photo.  I suggest you try this option before disassembling the old one or splurging for a new one.

Hah!  Couldn't find it in my pictures, but a quick Google search found this:  http://s3.postimg.org/soc076o4/tpshole.jpg  That's my picture.  See the little white dot?  Drill 1/16" hole there and spray liberally with a good electronics cleaner and follow with some gentle compressed air and drying time.

Patrick Hayes
Fremont CA

The TPS info is very helpful; I will give that a shot on the TPS I just removed.  I think the fuel residue is definitely what caused the problem.

I'll take a look at the Bosch Platinum plugs.  Do you use a longer (than 6,000 miles) replacement interval with them? 

I see you have a lot of experience with EVs; how many miles do your front wheel bearings last, and do you use OEM replacements or another supplier?

[pehayes]

I'll take a look at the Bosch Platinum plugs.  Do you use a longer (than 6,000 miles) replacement interval with them? 

I see you have a lot of experience with EVs; how many miles do your front wheel bearings last, and do you use OEM replacements or another supplier?

Hah!  I switched to these plugs many years ago.  I had an old beater Convert that was the garage orphan.  Never got any maintenance.  Too busy working on all the other Guzzis.  The Convert was the most reliable starting and running bike I'd ever owned.  Didn't matter what you did with the choke or the throttle.  It just started.  One day I decided to see what the heck plugs were in it from the previous owner.  THESE!  I've converted my other Guzzis to this same plug.  Both of our bikes were purchased new.  Original plugs changed to these as follows:  mine at 8500, 26500, 44000, 62000, 88000, now at 105K and going strong; Regina's 7800, 31500, 55800, now at 95K and going strong.  You want to change at 6K?????  The only ignition problem I've had was my 87 SPII.  Changed plugs there several times before discovering that the problem was a faulty coil.  Now happy on new coils and old plugs.

Both of our EV's are near 100K.  Mine a little over and Regina's a little under.  Both have the stock original wheel bearings.  Probably should start thinking about a pre-emptive change.

Patrick Hayes
Fremont CA