Bike cutting out and won’t start.

Discussion in '6th Generation 2002-2013' started by mofo, Jul 20, 2021.

  1. mofo

    mofo New Member

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    Looking for guidance about my problem. 2004 VFR 800A, 85k miles.
    Some months ago my ride started cutting out. This would happened while I was riding at freeway speeds and low speeds, but it would start right back. Last month it died for good.
    Last year I replaced spark plugs, air filter, clutch springs and friction plates, clutch hose, has a two year old battery, and rebuild the clutch master and slave. However, bike started cutting out BEFORE I did all of this.
    My gut feeling points me to a faulty fuel pump, but I’ve always said, I’m not a mechanic and I’m lost as to where I should start.
    Looking forward to your input and to get my hands dirty and bring it back to life. Thank you all for your time.
    Jerry.
     
  2. mofo

    mofo New Member

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    By the way, when I turn the key, bike won’t even prime now. F light and oil light blink, no sound of any kind are audible.
     
  3. Terry Smith

    Terry Smith Member

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    There's a daisy chain of switches and relays (from memory: key switch/kill switch/tipover sensor/engine stop relay/fuel cut relay/fuel pump) that are needed to get the fuel pump to run, so working backwards should identify the culprit. I'd start at the fuel cut relay, check there is 12v getting to it and if so then jumper it to get the pump to run. Or at 85K miles, you might just have dirty contacts in the kill switch. Given your bike's issues have worsened progressively but stopped and started, it sounds like an electrical fault to me.
     
  4. Grum

    Grum New Member

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    Good the fault has gone hard, makes it easier to fault find!
    Further to Terry's good suggestion, do a simple check of your Main Fuse B 30amp. This fuse is next to NOT in the Starter Relay. Main Fuse B is the power source to ALL your EFI stuff and can suffer badly from overheated connections and wiring. Check the fuse for any burn marks and closely look at its leads especially where it's wiring goes into its inline connector.
    If the fuse and wiring are good, you'll need to follow this voltage and make sure it appears and the base of the Engine Stop Relay and with Ignition to on it should transfer to the Fuel Cut Relay, as well as out to the ECM via the Black/White wire.

    Another simple fault can be a dirty connector at the Fuel Pump. Check this connection and with a multimeter measure the two fuel pump wires. At switch on you should see 12v for about 2 to 3 seconds. If not make sure the Green ground wire measure continuity back to the battery negative terminal. If the ground is ok and you don't measure the 12v follow the Brown wire back to the Fuel Cut relay, and beyond!

    Trust you at least have a wiring diagram of your bike?
     
    Last edited: Jul 21, 2021
  5. raYzerman

    raYzerman Member

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    What Grum says........ Does the 6th Gen have a ground spider (not on the wiring diagram) and main chassis ground like the 5th Gens? If so, refresh them.
     
  6. mofo

    mofo New Member

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    Update.
    Checked visually for loose connections, checked fuses, relays, ignition switch (which replaced around 50k miles) checked wires feeding fuel pump and battery terminals. End up taking the kill switch apart, removed old crusty grease and dust out of it and wouldn’t you know. My bike primes and runs now.
    I have yet to take it for a spin, but I’m pretty sure, and hope, that was the problem.
    Thank you all again.
     

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    Diving Pete and Terry Smith like this.
  7. VeryFuckingRadical

    VeryFuckingRadical New Member

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    Should have recommended him to a mechanic . In my experience the correct answer when a person who adds "I'm not a mechanic" in any question the answer is usually going to be take it to an authorized mechanic and tell him what it's doing. I remember once when I was younger a buddy of mines step-dad had a bronco with a 5.0 in it. He was a smart guy had a good job in the office at diamondstar. Maybe he was a painter I forget. None the less he wasn't a mechanic. He'd probably changed a fair amount of breaks and pinned down a starter a time or 2. Maybe changed the plugs and cleaned the carbs in a lawn mower and replaced a blower motor belt and a flipped a few breakers or so but he hadn't ever did an engine rebuild or head gasket. He had the entire engine laid across his garage floor everything meticulously organized and labeled down to every nut and bolt and was absolutely lost. He had his stepson get ahold of me to get ahold of my father who got ahold of his brother and told him some guy bo knows and is friends with stepdad tor a 5.0 apart can't get it back together and will pay whatever it takes to get it together or buy as much beer as you can drink so my uncle and dad saved probably a weeks wages in beer money that night and the bronco went on to eventually drive through a gals yard after my buddy decided to just take it drunk one night without permission, he hit) eventually hit the garagegot out took about 20 steps passed out. His mom was conveniently a personal cleaning lady for this big shot attorney in the city I live in and his charges got dropped because the police couldn't prove he was actually driving it just because he was passed out drunk 20 feet from it. After he got loose for running back to a few guys house who whooped his ass and blasted off a 12 guage shotgun in their living room and caught by the cops who found the gun in bushes 20 feet from him I knew his mom was more then the attorneys cleaning lady. So anyway... Did this guy ever get his bike sorted out?

    Sent from my SM-A716U using Tapatalk
     
  8. Grum

    Grum New Member

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    Interesting.........To be confident of fixing your fault, if your Kill Switch was causing the Fuel Pump not to Prime, then at the same time your bike shouldn't crank over when Pressing the Starter Switch. Was this the situation? If it was then you have definitely confirmed a dirty/faulty Kill Switch, if not then you still may have an issue!

    The single pole Kill Switch does two things when in the RUN position. 1. Energises the Engine Stop Relay. 2. Sends power to your Starter circuit. A faulty Kill Switch will effect BOTH of these functions.
    Also Ox-Gard is an excellent product to use on the Kill Switch contacts.
     
    Last edited: Jul 30, 2021
  9. mofo

    mofo New Member

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    Yes Grum, that’s exactly what was happening when my bike died for good that had to bring it home on a tow truck.
    Had power at the high and low beams and turn signals and “F” light would blink, but bike wouldn’t crank. Bike primes and cranks over now.
    I’m not riding it yet. There are things I want to do before I ride it again. My turn signals were taking too long to blink, so I cleaned those contacts too. Will check an oil stain, change the clutch hose, bleed it and that’s it.
    Never heard of Ox-Gard before. I used dielectric grease on both controls, kill switch and turn signals. But if I can fund Ox-Gard I’ll definitely will use it.
    Thanks.
     

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  10. mofo

    mofo New Member

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    Before and after.
     

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