Engine dieing/stalling at intersections =/

I finally got my gear today and was riding around so I ran into a few problems.

Basically, I noticed that my engine dies or stalls whenever I pull the clutch in and let go of the throttle and go down to first gear or when I'm moving at slow speeds. This happens often when I get to intersections or if I'm in some slow traffic jam like situations.

It tends to stall/die when I need to come to a complete stop. I'm pretty sure I'm pulling the clutch in enough, there is enough free play and I pull it in completely.

At first, I thought it was because my engine was overheating. It was really close to the red bar on the right while I was in slow traffic merging onto a bridge. It would stall/die whenever I had to stop and I ended up just using the choke a bit.

But then, as I was driving at night, I warmed up the bike for a 2-3 minutes and the same thing happens.

I thought maybe it was because the engine wasn't warm enough since it was at night but I think it is the same problem whether my engine is hot or cold.

It stalls or die when I need to come to a complete stop or when I'm downshifting to 1st on my way to a complete stop. I can see the RPMs drop after I release the throttle then it just drops to 0 and my engine is off...=/ I can simply hit the starter button and it breathes back to light but my engine dieing everytime I stop isn't very good.

Has anyone else experienced this before or could point out some things I could check?

Thanks!

 

I have experienced this twice. Like you it was when the engine was really hot. I have countered it by giving a few little blips of the throttle as I come to the stop, then it idles.

What is your idle set at? What are your pilot jets set at? When was you last carb sync? What have you done to ensure that the overheating is kept to a minimum? It turns out that my overheating has been worsened by a blown head gasket.

 

Does it ever idle w/out the choke. Try increasing the idle. If you reach between the heads on the left side of the bike while it is running there is an idle adjuster knob. twist right or left to increase or decrease the throttle. I like mine idling around 900 RPMs.

 

I had the exact same thing happen too. It would stall hot or cold. My guess is the idle nob was set too low. I set it to 1000..still stalled. Set it to 1500..still stalled. Set it to 1900 and it ran great. But....1900 is WAAAAAAAY too high. And I experienced the engine revving while the clutch was in neutral at a stop after setting it that high. I'd come to a stop, pull in the clutch, the engine would rev to 3500 or 5000 if hot! I would goose the throttle and it would drop back down to the set 1900. During this noggin scratcher, I bought a new battery bc the other was reading low, and not holding charge. For shits and giggles I set the idle to 900 after the new battery and all problems were solved. Appearently, the charging system charges at 1300 rpm I think. Dont quote me but I know its over 1000. So if you have a crap battery, with a low idle while riding, the batt isnt getting charged to keep it running at the stop. (Keep in mind that I use my fan 100% of the time, so I'm asking for more juice than one that doesn't use the fan.) It dies, u restart because u have just enough juice in it. My starter clutch was bad during all this. So 2 tries restarting and I was dead. Can we say BUM START!!! lol. hope this helps.

 

On the 500 the idle is at the front of the carb above the front cylinders. Around 1300 +/- 200 is regular idle setting.

Lot's of things to consider: carb sync, pilot screw setting, air leak at the boots...

 

Yeah, I realize it could be tons of things. Especially that carburetor!

Well, I took a cheater method and set the idle a bit higher, I think it is around 1800/1900 now and that seems to have helped. Although, when I am stuck in traffic, it gets really hot and I run into the same problem. I got around it by using my choke a little bit again.

Then today, I ran out of gas but I didn't know I was out of gas so that freaked me out. And when I turned it to RES, it only brought me maybe less than 1km but luckily, I was a block away from a gas station so I filled it up. Waited a few minutes and everything was working fine again. Drove around to see if it would stall and stuff but it seemed to be okay. Everything went smooth from there. So I think I just don't know how to fill up this gas tank to be full with gas...

A very stupid request, but if anyone has a '86 VF500F, next time you go to fill it up, please take a picture so I get a good reference to go by! xD

I think also there was some grease or other crap from soldering and epoxying my gas tank so maybe that first tank was bad fuel. I'm hoping things will go smoother with this new tank. I will find out soon!

 

This has happened to me twice in the past month on an '86 VF1000R. Its been tricky to work out since I've had so much done to the bike lately, and its been very hot here in Phoenix.
How it goes is as follows: long straightaway (5 miles) without a stop; downshifting into first and braking I can tell the bike has stopped even before breaking is complete. The only other additional clue is that the 4-1 Kerker had a slight gurgle sound about a mile before stoppage. I have no idea if that was connected, but my idle had been reset by my mechanic as the pipe was being installed.
However, with the new jet kit, the tank being cleaned out and resealed, valve job and the above state pipe being installed it make s a little tricky to narrow down the culprit. My first impression that it was the idle setting, but when the temps are 105-110 and all the fairing on weird things can happen that may just clear up when it cools down.
Thanks for all the previous input! -- Alexander

 

After some thought, I'm leaning more towards the battery theory. Here's why: Look at the proximity of the rear headers to the battery. I imagine a tremendous amount of heat is being generated back there and its inches away from the battery unit, a relay and other electrical wiring. Yes, the temp. gauge reads in the mid-range, but that is not so that close to the headers. I think there is some validity to the idea that the battery could be malfunctioning under the duress of heat.
In the coming weeks I intend to use a heat shield on the battery cage as well as finish placing titanium exhaust wrap on all the entire 4-1 I have on currently. I honestly have not been able to wrap the the back headers since they are so difficult to get to, but I am aware how much they give every time I ride in the heat of Phoenix!
I'll let ya know how it works out! -- Alex

 

That's a very interesting theory, keep us updated!

 

Battery culprit

Ok, got it figured out. This relates to my VF1000R specifically, so it may not be the answer to the initial questioned posed to open this thread. The battery was rubbish.
I purchased a made-in-China battery from Staab.com in Springfield, IL. First of all, do NOT buy Power Sonic brand batteries. I just put it in last Oct. and its totally crapped out on me. Secondly, Staab will do very little to help you despite the fact they readily admit one of the cels was defective (battery would amp up near 100%, but would not hold charge). 8 months is not a long time for a battery to last and considering I've logged only 2000 miles since then its pathetic.
I purchased a Yausa brand battery ($100!) and its been perfect. The bike fires right up and has never performed better. No more cheap batteries! Mystery solved! (at least for me).

 

Dantyau - How about an update?