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Starting the 103ci when hot

DakotaRob said:
Alan - I actually did give the bike a very slight bit of throttle when I was having the starting issues... the engine seemed to catch a little sooner when I did.

Checkers - I wondered about the ethanol blended fuel. It's really popular around these parts, and I know my cage loses around 3mpg's when I use it. The local chain gas station I use here does not have the e-10 sticker on the premium unleaded pump, I thought they were required by law to identify if it was a blend. Their premium is 91 octane. The local Murphy Oil at Walmart has 93 octane, but the pump is clearly marked 10% ethanol.

Was in the dealer today and going to grab some of the octane booster, but they were sold out. :(

The bike for the most part is not giving me any problems. Had one longer crank interval last week after a 10 minute stop. Most of my riding has been too/from work, so the bike sits for several hours between rides. It's supposed to be 96 with nasty humidity here again tomorrow, and I know I'm going to need to make a fuel stop... will be interesting to see if I experience any issues on restart.
Click to expand...

Rob, Yes blended fuel will run in a Harley. If a rider uses pure gas for a tankfull, he will be astounded how much better it runs and starts as ECM recalibrates. Octane booster will not help blended fuel. I only add it when I can only get regular pure gas. Sorry for delayed response, but I am an over the road truck driver and gone 2 weeks at a time.
 
Ok, time for an update... Was going to start a new thread but figured I'd continue here with some additional info and issues.

My original post was centered around the hot restart and what I thought was longer cranking intervals to get the bike started. That issue has remained pretty much the same. On hot days (90+) the bike needs to crank a couple seconds longer before it will restart after a short stop (10 minutes). I've gotten used to it and know not to let off the start button, otherwise, it will need to crank just as long on the second try.

Also, I've been experiencing engine pinging any time the bike is under a slight load, like going up a long hill. The problem was really bad on my recent trip out to Glacier Park. I'd set the cruise at 78mph on the interstate and the slightest incline would result in pinging. Even a strong headwind would make it ping. It was so pronounced that my non-mechanical wife asked what that awful noise was. :small3d031: I started using octane boost and that helped a little but never eliminated the problem. I have always used 91 octane fuel.

Took the bike in on Monday for service (15k) and asked the service tech at the dealer about pinging and he said they all do it when it's really hot. The spark plugs were replaced at the last service (10k) so I was surprised to see new plugs on my bill this time after around 5500 miles. He said the plugs were black and needed replaced. I asked if that was normal and didn't get a straight answer other than they inspect and replace if needed.

Am I wrong to think there is something wrong somewhere to cause the hot start issue/pinging/black plugs? The problem did not become evident until early June, but that is when it started getting warm out. I bought the bike in January with 8700 miles on it. By June, I had put on 3k miles.

The pinging pretty much goes away once I get back to the flatland and lower altitude. There are no long hills around here to try and see if the problem remains. I am headed out to the Black Hills this weekend so I'll be listening closely.
 
Pinging is not good, and I would not accept "they all do it" for an answer.
Pinging under load generally means the mixture is too lean.
Yet for the plugs to be black infers that the mixture is too rich.
So something does not add up.
I would have demanded to see the plugs they removed.
What kind of mileage are you getting on average?

Rod
 
Thanks for the input Rod.

I didn't look at my receipt close enough until I got home last night. That's when I saw that spark plugs were on the parts list. I stopped by the dealer after work today, so who knows what happened to those plugs by then. Pretty dumb of me, but I've used this dealer for a couple years and never had an issue... Maybe I'm too trusting.

As far as mpg's, I have been seeing mid-40s most of the time. I topped 50 once or twice with a strong tail wind, and had one time with mid 30's with very strong head and cross wind on the interstate. I will check again tomorrow since I need to fill up.
 
You may have already mentioned it, but what are you using for fuel enrichment.
(download, TFI, SEST etc)
 
I'm saying the same as Rod Stewart. Somethings not right. You have too many unexplained loose ends. Detonation should only be heard for a "hit or two" before the Ion knock retard kicks in. Ion retard is a software feature that can be turned on or turned off. By default it's "on" from the factory. Yours sounds to be disabled and it should not be. You should never hear pinging last for more than a second or two if the feature is working. Black plugs on these late model bikes? I am not believing it. You would have to show me.

Ask the dealer to check and see if Knock retard is turned ON. Compression release (ACR) is also a feature that can be turned on or off. You better do something about the detonation, or else the engine is going to fix the problem all by itself. And your not going to like the way it does it. Only use octane boost once in a great while to get yourself out of a pinch. Don't use a steady diet of that stuff... trust me if used constantly, it will deep six an engine before it's time..

If your running a bone stock engine as stated in entry point #1, get some form of fuel enrichment on the bike. Fatten up the mixture. It will help on the detonation. If you have Cats and live in a state that does not have inspections....well, fill in the missing blank on that one.
 
Hoople said:
You may have already mentioned it, but what are you using for fuel enrichment.
(download, TFI, SEST etc)
Click to expand...

Don't have a clue... As far as I know it's 100% stock and only has what the factory or any TSB recommendation calls for.
 
I comletely forgot about this... When I was in Wyoming, I pulled off the road and rigged up my iPhone to record what the bike was doing. This was in the mountains, on Bighorn Pass. I pulled off at the bottom of a long stretch that was a hill, although not a huge one, just a decent grade.


HDping - YouTube
 
DakotaRob said:
I comletely forgot about this... When I was in Wyoming, I pulled off the road and rigged up my iPhone to record what the bike was doing. This was in the mountains, on Bighorn Pass. I pulled off at the bottom of a long stretch that was a hill, although not a huge one, just a decent grade.


HDping - YouTube
Click to expand...

Sounds like a big exhaust leak to me OR you have squrrels in the motor.:small3d031:

Could the plug wires be shorting out ?

signed....BUBBIE
 
That's not just the wind hitting the microphone? That was the sound of the engine?

Have you checked for codes using a WOW test? If not, do it.
Also check with dealer to see if 2 features are ON or OFF. Detonation is something you can't put off.
 
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