Pinging!

[Hermes]

My R1150RT (2003) tends to ping quite loudly when accelerating. Especially when it's hot and when the RPM's are below 4K.

I filled her up with Sunoco 94 today and will see if high octane makes a difference.

Seems to me I read in a related thread some time ago a suggestion to run the bike hot, e.g. high RPM's and brisk driving for a substantial period of time.

 

Any suggestions how to cure this annoying problem are welcome, and also an explanation as to the cause of it would be welcome.

 

The bike otherwise runs fine and just had a BMW dealer service which included valve clearance adjustment/ airfilter etc.

 

Thanks guys

Jurgen

[swilson]

That octane switch will do the trick. They only use 87 (or maybe is 89) at work and when the temps get over 90 the bikes ping like crazy.

 

When we're out of town and fill up at any random gas station we always get the highest octane available... makes a noticable difference with both power and lack of pinging on hot days.

 

My personal bike only gets high octane.

[Bob Palin]

What octane were you using before?

 

The engine heat up procedure is The Italian Tuneup, find a nice steep hill and run it up to the red line in 2nd (say) then let off the throttle completely and let it slow down. Repeat 3-5 times. That gets the cylinders really hot which is supposed to burn off any carbon that is causing pinging. It works for my bike which used to exhibit exactly the symptoms you describe even on 91 octane, since I implemented my policy of almost never running under 4000rpm I don't have the problem at all and don't need the Italian Tuneup any more.

 

(Owners of ZX11s may wish to consult their mechanic before using the Italian Tuneup )

[s3steve]

Sunoco 94 also has 15% ethenol.

 

I recently switched to Shell gas because of that.

 

Give it a try and see if it's any better.

[gdouglas]

Back when I had my 2002 RT, just before every oil change I would run a full bottle of Chevron Techron in with a full tank of fuel and it would clear up any pinging. I would run the bottle with the dosage that treats up to 12 gallons of fuel. An oil change is recommended afterwards due to all the carbon that gets loosened up.

 

I also retarded the timing a couple of degrees at the crank sensor to help reduce any tendency to ping in the first place. This together with the carbon buildup removal by the Techron pretty much kept pinging at bay for me.

[Bob Palin]

Forgot about the Techron, I also do that but when my RT was displaying bad pinging the Techron didn't fix it. It may contribute to it's not pinging any more now that I don't run the engine at lower rpms. When I have been running the RT hard for a few hours it definitely has a different, and better, feel than after a long freeway drone, this engine likes to be worked hard.

[smiller]

(Owners of ZX11s may wish to consult their mechanic before using the Italian Tuneup )

Or perhaps their lawyer.

[OoPEZoO]

Forgot about the Techron, I also do that but when my RT was displaying bad pinging the Techron didn't fix it. It may contribute to it's not pinging any more now that I don't run the engine at lower rpms. When I have been running the RT hard for a few hours it definitely has a different, and better, feel than after a long freeway drone, this engine likes to be worked hard.

 

+1 on both of your posts

 

I did a cross country trip with a group of Harleys and Golwings the first summer I had my bike. Its amazing how much scenery you can see when you're stuck going 72 mph the whole way to CA and back . When I got home I thought something was REALLY wrong with my bike. After some friendly advise here, I took it out one morning for a good 100 mile rip and rarely let the RPMs get below 5K. It cleared everything right up and has been running like a top ever since. Now I drone to work on the highway (still keeping it at or above 4k) and then blast the backroads on the way home. It keeps me and the bike happy

[Hermes]

Thanks guys.

I had the bike out all day with a tankful of 94 instead of the usual 87 (call me cheap), it made quite a diff in power. I haven't done the Italian tune-up yet but will do so shortly. The nice thing is, it's free (did I say I am cheap?)

 

 

Jurgen

[OoPEZoO]

Thanks guys.

I had the bike out all day with a tankful of 94 instead of the usual 87 (call me cheap), it made quite a diff in power. I haven't done the Italian tune-up yet but will do so shortly. The nice thing is, it's free (did I say I am cheap?)

 

 

Jurgen

 

You are preaching to the choir........if I wasn't a cheap bastard, there would be no way in the world I could afford to do all the things I like to do