Jim Moore Posted May 6, 2009 Share Posted May 6, 2009 I'm having a little proiblem with my GS losing power in the rain ('02 R1150GS). I was not able to replicate the issue in the garage with a bucket of water, so now I'm a little stuck. I don't want to start shotgunning parts at it, but I am wondering if replacing the plug wires (and coil?) on a bike with 101,000 miles might be a good idea anyway. What do you folks think? Link to comment
T__ Posted May 6, 2009 Share Posted May 6, 2009 Jim, lots of possibilities on this one.. If it only happened once & in a heavy rain & you only lost some power but did not have a specific cylinder misfire then I would suspect a wet air cleaner element as the cause.. Wet paper air filter elements can really restrict the air flow until they dry out.. BMW doesn’t use much for water intrusion baffling in the air cleaner intake.. On the plug wires & coil wearing out due to age.. Not so much the coil but plug wires can break down with age.. Maybe try putting in an old set of spark plugs with the electrode gap set at .045”,, then try the hose spray trick.. That will force the spark requirement to a much higher KV (more in line with riding engine load).. Just running in place requires a low KV to spark the plug as there is no engine load.. Possibly make sure the R/H sparkplug wire isn’t running close to,, or tie strapped near or to the 02 sensor wire harness.. That is a problem area on the older bikes as an errant spark induction into the 02 harness can drive the 02 sensor input crazy.. If you could explain the power loss in a little more detail we might be of more help.. Was it a general power loss,, or a sharper type cylinder misfire,, or a non response to the throttle,, or other? Twisty Link to comment
Jim Moore Posted May 6, 2009 Author Share Posted May 6, 2009 If you could explain the power loss in a little more detail we might be of more help.. Was it a general power loss,, or a sharper type cylinder misfire,, or a non response to the throttle,, or other? Twisty Sorry, here's my other thread. Folks, I have an '02 GS with 101,000 miles on it. Yesterday as I was riding in wet conditions, I noticed a very slight power loss several times. The bike would slow down 2-3 mph for a few seconds, then it would return to normal. It was so slight that at first I thought I had loosened my grip on the throttle. The bike never really hiccupped, and I was always able to power out of it. Strange. Luckily (sorta), the bike ran perfectly today on my return trip. I'm not sure where to start looking for the problem. I'm going to spray some water on it while it is running to see if I can get it to act up. My first thought is the HES, but I'm not sure because all the HES failures I have heard about have been dramatic. This was not. I don't think it was the fuel filter, since it ran great today. Also, I've had a clogged fuel filter before, this was not the same. Could it be plug wires? Could the water cause a temporary short which allowed the bike to run, but at slightly less power? My other thought is a tankful of bad gas. Any ideas? It has recently had a tune up and fuel filter change. Link to comment
Charles Elms Posted May 6, 2009 Share Posted May 6, 2009 Check the bottom of the coil for slight separation of the case from the sealer that might let water in. Link to comment
T__ Posted May 6, 2009 Share Posted May 6, 2009 Jim, thanks for the original complaint.. I was gone a few days & missed your original thread.. That is going to be a difficult thing to track down.. It could have been about anything.. Mighty have even been a little water in the fuel.. Could also be something in the ignition system.. Maybe try removing the plastic spark plug channel covers & spraying a little water in there with it running.. Maybe some carbon tracking down the spark plug porcelains when they get wet (my GoldWing is bad for doing this).. Probably the best way to start is to try riding it in a heavy rain again. If it doesn’t act up you can probably write it off.. If it does then at least you know you have a definite problem to go after.. I guess if you want to guess at it now (& at over a 100,000 miles on it) a new set of spark plugs & new spark plug wires would probably be the place to start.. The 1150’s have few HES problems but it can happen on about any HES equipped bike.. Twisty Link to comment
SKYGZR Posted May 7, 2009 Share Posted May 7, 2009 The 1150’s have few HES problems but it can happen on about any HES equipped bike.. Twisty Yup..dat be write... Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.