RSV just keeps stopping for no apparent reason.

[Bobby G]

I can only figure that it's fuel related, like maybe bad gas or excess moisture in the line. It happened 3 times on Friday in an hour, then OK for a few days and about 90 miles, and then again twice earlier today, and then OK since. After it cuts off, it fires right back up again with no problem. I put about 6 oz of B-12 Chemtool in it on Friday, thinking that would help, and thought it was until it cut out again today. I'll run it again from Wednesday through the weekend pretty heavily when the weather clears (rain tomorrow and Tuesday here in the ATL) and see what happens. Gotta feeling I've got a fuel filter replacement in my future. Maybe some new plugs too.

 

Any other thoughts, or anyone having a similar experience that you have found the solution for, I'd love to hear about it.

[Seaking]

Hi Bobby.. your issue sounds a heck of a lot of what happened to me last year..

 

Fuel Pump on it's way out to the grave..

 

Unfortunately mine finally gave up the ghost when I was a far away distance from home..

 

My bike would ride fine and dandy and poof, the engine suddenly quits.. not sputter, no cough, it just ups and quits.. and depending on unknown variables, it would start up again.. SO odd.. and so scary, imaging trying to pass a semi on an uphill passing lane with a cager on your rear bumper and poof, no engine.. scary.. This is what happened to me.. I ride a lot and it would only happen ever so often.. not often enough or long enough to be able to diagnose or trouble shoot it properly.. ONLY after the dang thing completely died that we figured out what was wrong with the bike and it's been 100% ever since.. From what I understood from the knowledgeable mechanic said is that the contacts on the pump aren't the toughest out there and under a lot of heat with no permit electrical flow.. until the points or contacts wear down or erode away and the pump dies (something like that.. others could explain it better.. )

 

Seeing the age of your bike, it sounds quite likely to be the cause of your shut downs. The pump WILL test properly and work properly, but it's dying..

 

However, before replacing the pump, you can check a few other things.. The kick stand safety switch apparently comes a little loose and if you ride over a bump, the kick stand can droop breaking contact and that can cause a shut down.. its like when you park your bike and shut the bike off with the kick stand, while the bike is in gear.. A cleaning and lube will clear that up..

 

Anyway, that's what happened to me..

[Brake Pad]

Yep fuel pump. Happened twice to me, I was using regular gas. at about 14,000 miles

I now have 46, 000 and I ONLY use Middle grade gas.

its warranty, so go have it fixed

[Sylvester]

Yep fuel pump. Happened twice to me, I was using regular gas. at about 14,000 miles

I now have 46, 000 and I ONLY use Middle grade gas.

its warranty, so go have it fixed

 

 

I don't believe a 99 RSV will still have a warranty. I am curious why you only use mid grade gas now after the fuel pump died. I have 135k miles and always use regular on my 02.

 

[Mel]

Yep fuel pump. Happened twice to me, I was using regular gas. at about 14,000 miles

I now have 46, 000 and I ONLY use Middle grade gas.

its warranty, so go have it fixed

 

 

Warranty on a '99? Wow, these warranties are even better than I thought!

[Mike G in SC]

Fuel pump or filter, if you get stuck on the road, here's how to set it up for

gravity feed in a pinch:

 

You can do a gravity feed to bypass the filter and pump if you want to eliminate them, to find out what's wrong. Takes about 15 minutes. Be careful about spilling fuel,,,.

 

(Remove seat. Turn off fuel petcock. Pull the tank bolt - you don't have to remove the tank, just lift the rear of it an inch or so, maybe put in a block of wood to raise it. Use a long needle nose to pull (unclamp) the feed line from the filter, then pull the line (unclamp) to the carb on the right side. Then connect the tank line direct to the carb feed. Before you try to start it,, remove the left side cover and disconnect the fuel pump connector so it won't spew it's remaining gas. Oh,,, turn back on petcock now. Try to start it. If you have a mostly full tank, it should start up and run fine,,, your problem is the filter or pump. If this works, then you have a bad filter or pump.

 

If it's the pump, you can run on gravity if you keep the tank above 1/4 full, till you get one. If you plan to do more than test,, get a $3 inline filter till you are back to normal.)

 

I ran a week and 1000 miles without a pump.

 

Yes warranty is good. The Yamaha stock part (Mitsibshi) is $300.

If you are out of warranty, someone on this forum has posted a after market $45 replacement.

Mike G in SC

 

 

 

[Brake Pad]

don't believe a 99 RSV will still have a warranty. I am curious why you only use mid grade gas now after the fuel pump died. I have 135k miles and always use regular on my 02.

 

I didn't know if the Lower grade gas caused the problem, or the 10% mix in the gas. But its happening to alot of 2007's.

when I spoke to a Yamaha rep. he said they are aware of the issue

 

Oh buy the way. I have a yamaha rep, in my neighborhood now. he just moved in, two weeks ago, and were already talking

[etcswjoe]

Are you sure it's fuel related? I had a bike with a faulty kick stand switch that sounds similar to what you are experiencing.

[Bobby G]

Thanks for the suggestions. Going to check the fuel filter first, then check for a fouled plug (a just-in-case measure), then move on to the fuel filter. The kick stand switch is OK - just serviced that a few months ago.

 

I'll give the gravity feed test a try. Sounds pretty easy to do.

[ediddy]

I would check the fuel pump first. My 05 did the same thing and it was the fuel pump.

[Seaking]

Thanks for the suggestions. Going to check the fuel filter first, then check for a fouled plug (a just-in-case measure), then move on to the fuel filter. The kick stand switch is OK - just serviced that a few months ago.

 

I'll give the gravity feed test a try. Sounds pretty easy to do.

 

I had purchased my 06 in 08 as the third owner, and it appeared no one did any proper maintenance on the bike before I bought it. 20,000 miles on it.. Later that year the bike would shut down like it was starving of fuel.. basically just like it ran out of fuel.. This wasn't the sudden loss of power but sputtering and struggling until it died.. If I added more fuel to the tank it would start and run.. but when the fuel would go down to a certain level, just above the Reserve level, it would gag out..

 

What was happening is that the fuel filter was so badly clogged that it required "head pressure" of lot of fuel on top of it to help push fuel through the filter that the pump was sucking through.. After the fuel dropped down to a certain level, the pump couldn't cope and the bike would starve of fuel..

 

Changed the fuel filter and poof, problem solved.. just like that.. and because of that I change my fuel filter once a year or twice depending on how much riding I do.. and I ride a lot.. (33,500 miles last year)

 

Unfortunately, because of all that hard work the pump had to do to suck through that fuel through a clogged fuel filter, I feel that the pump died prematurely from overwork exhaustion.. and started to cause the sudden quick shut downs at the most inopportune times..

 

Fun bikes though!

[V7Goose]

You did not give us enough detailed information about when and exactly how the bike dies.

 

With due respect to those people here who claimed their bikes suddenly died with NO indication whatsoever and was later cured with a new fuel pump, there is a BIG difference between an electrical kill and a fuel kill on a carburetor engine.

 

Frankly, it is totally impossible for this bike to act like an electrical shutdown if the fuel is simply stopped, and it is simple to prove. While it is generally easy to tell fuel starvation when riding at a steady speed on a straight road, it is quite possible to be fooled and not notice it if it happens in town when you are shifting and changing speeds. Here are two simple tests to repeatedly compare how the bike will act with each type of problem. Test them several times and you will become very sensitized to feeling the difference:

 

To simulate an electrical problem, like the side stand, ignition, or roll-over switch, simply hit the kill switch wile you are riding. This will produce an instant total shutdown of the engine, and the results will be dramatic under any conditions, especially if the bike is in gear and being ridden forward.

 

To simulate a dead fuel pump, there are two easy tests. You can start by just turning off the fuel at the tank at various times while riding. While this is not exactly like a dead fuel pump since the actually working pump will be able to pull a little more fuel from the line before the vacuum stops it, the actual results will be virtually the same. The bike will run for several miles on the fuel in the float bowls, then falter a bit before actually dieing. The "faltering" is nothing more than some carbs running dry slightly before the others, and it is represented by a slight change in engine sound and lower power. If the engine is running and in gear, it keeps turning long enough to make it really obvious, but if you have the clutch in the engine can die before you notice it. To experience exactly what happens when the fuel pump really stops pumping, just unplug the fuel pump and go for a ride (the plug is directly below the main fuse box behind the left battery cover). After your bike dies, just plug the pump back in and turn the key on long enough to fill up the carbs (until the clicking stops), then unplug it again and repeat the experiment as many times as you need to have the bike die in different conditions to get used to the sensation.

 

After those tests, you will be absolutely certain if the cause is fuel or electrical the next time the bike stalls on you.

Goose

 

BTW - a fouled plug, or even two of them, is NOT going to cause the symptoms you describe. First, that engine will run like a champ on just htree cylinders, and can even be ridden on just two. Furthermore, plugs do not foul and un-foul under normal riding.

Edited November 15, 2010 by V7Goose

[GeorgeS]

Check the " run- stop " switch also. Might have dirty contacts there.

 

Also consider the On - Off Contacts of the Ignition Switch, they are a known trouble spot.

 

Also check the electrical plug, in the 5 wire cable running from the Ignition System, " Pick Up Coils " up to the Electronic Ignition Unit. Bad contacts in that plug have been know to cause ignition problems. ( maby just dirty pins )

 

Also, pull the plugs from the ignition unit and clean all the contacts.

 

Also, simply check for loose electrical Plugs, and possible Damaged Wireing Cables around the Steering Head. ie: move handle bars full left and full right, check for any cableing that might be wearing against metal, as the bars move side to side.

 

Find your " Ignition Fuse " make sure the fuse is makeing good contact with the fuse holder. That fuse feeds power to the Ignition Unit, and the Fuel Pump. And that power goes thru the " Run Stop Switch "

[Bobby G]

Wow, I gotta lot of stuff to check out! Thanks for the service tips and reminders. I just wasn't thinking "electrical", but I guess anything is possible.

 

On the shutdown's when they occurred, they were at slow speeds - once in 1st gear in "slow procession mode" on a PGR funeral escort, and the other downshifting into 2nd gear approaching a red light. That time, it fired back up, but then died again almost right away even before I moved. After another restart, it stayed running. Then it was fine the rest of the day.

 

I will check all connections per the suggestions, and just for pure good maintenance sake, will replace the fuel filter as well. It's got 20K+ miles on it since the last change out.

 

Thanks again.

[wes0778]

Just my

When it quits, do the speedometer and the headlight go out? If it does, I'm betting on bad ignition switch contacts. I know I'm on borrowed time with mine. So far I've not had it quit while running, but when I 1st turn the key on I have to find the "sweet spot" for it to run.

[Bobby G]

Just my

When it quits, do the speedometer and the headlight go out? If it does, I'm betting on bad ignition switch contacts. I know I'm on borrowed time with mine. So far I've not had it quit while running, but when I 1st turn the key on I have to find the "sweet spot" for it to run.

 

No, everything stays on electrically. That's actually one of the things that I checked when it first happened on Friday morning.

[V7Goose]

Wow, I gotta lot of stuff to check out! Thanks for the service tips and reminders. I just wasn't thinking "electrical", but I guess anything is possible.

 

On the shutdown's when they occurred, they were at slow speeds - once in 1st gear in "slow procession mode" on a PGR funeral escort, and the other downshifting into 2nd gear approaching a red light. That time, it fired back up, but then died again almost right away even before I moved. After another restart, it stayed running. Then it was fine the rest of the day.

 

I will check all connections per the suggestions, and just for pure good maintenance sake, will replace the fuel filter as well. It's got 20K+ miles on it since the last change out.

 

Thanks again.

That sounds much more likely to be electrical issue than fuel. You use a LOT more fuel at normal running speeds, so if something was intermittent (like the fuel pump), you would probably find it much more often at high engine speed. Unfortunately, an intermittent electrical problem like that, one that doesn't seem to stay bad for even a minute, is going to be a real pain to isolate. Let us know if you need some ideas on isolating the particular circuit.

Goose

[ediddy]

Hey VGoose,

You're very knowledeable about mechanical problems and I have learned a lot from you, but when my fuel pump went bad it never was a problem at high speed. When it finally gave out I was riding through town at about 35 mph and the engine died. I called the dealer on my cell and they were coming to get my bike. While waiting I kept trying to start it and it would start and run for about a minute and die again. After doing this several times it started and ran fine. I called the dealership and told them to hold off I was on the way. I drove about 3 miles to the dealership and it never cut off. It ran fine for several weeks. One day I was going to ride it to work and it wouldn't start. I trailered it to the dealer and the fuel pump was completely dead.

[Kirby]

Hi Bobby.. your issue sounds a heck of a lot of what happened to me last year..

 

Fuel Pump on it's way out to the grave..

 

Unfortunately mine finally gave up the ghost when I was a far away distance from home..

 

My bike would ride fine and dandy and poof, the engine suddenly quits.. not sputter, no cough, it just ups and quits.. and depending on unknown variables, it would start up again.. SO odd.. and so scary, imaging trying to pass a semi on an uphill passing lane with a cager on your rear bumper and poof, no engine.. scary.. This is what happened to me.. I ride a lot and it would only happen ever so often.. not often enough or long enough to be able to diagnose or trouble shoot it properly.. ONLY after the dang thing completely died that we figured out what was wrong with the bike and it's been 100% ever since.. From what I understood from the knowledgeable mechanic said is that the contacts on the pump aren't the toughest out there and under a lot of heat with no permit electrical flow.. until the points or contacts wear down or erode away and the pump dies (something like that.. others could explain it better.. )

 

Seeing the age of your bike, it sounds quite likely to be the cause of your shut downs. The pump WILL test properly and work properly, but it's dying..

 

However, before replacing the pump, you can check a few other things.. The kick stand safety switch apparently comes a little loose and if you ride over a bump, the kick stand can droop breaking contact and that can cause a shut down.. its like when you park your bike and shut the bike off with the kick stand, while the bike is in gear.. A cleaning and lube will clear that up..

 

Anyway, that's what happened to me..

 

 

 

Exact same thing happened to my 09. Would run perfect, then all of a sudden quit! I checked the fuel filter and everything else I could think of but finally bypassed the fuel pump and she ran fine, so I drove it nearly a hundred miles to the dealer in Macon, Ga and it didn't miss a lick. The mechanic told me there was nothing wrong with the fuel pump that he could see but since it was under warranty he went ahead and replaced it anyway. Well, it hasn't shut off again. I think these fuel pumps sometimes die a slow death. What made me finally realize it was probably the pump was before all this happened, I had relocated my fuel filter up under the seat and while was trying to diagnose the problem, I noticed the filter wasn't refilling like it should as the bike was running. Anyway, try bypassing the pump and riding it like that for a few days and then you'll know! Just be sure to keep the fuel level up to maybe a half tank during this time! It will gravity feed fine!!

[V7Goose]

Hey VGoose,

You're very knowledeable about mechanical problems and I have learned a lot from you, but when my fuel pump went bad it never was a problem at high speed. When it finally gave out I was riding through town at about 35 mph and the engine died. I called the dealer on my cell and they were coming to get my bike. While waiting I kept trying to start it and it would start and run for about a minute and die again. After doing this several times it started and ran fine. I called the dealership and told them to hold off I was on the way. I drove about 3 miles to the dealership and it never cut off. It ran fine for several weeks. One day I was going to ride it to work and it wouldn't start. I trailered it to the dealer and the fuel pump was completely dead.

I cannot intelligently comment on your specific situation - not only was I not there, but even if I was, I might not have been able to figure it out. Here is a similar experience that I had:

 

My RSV is six years old and has about 100,000 miles on it. In all that time, I have had just one single starting problem. It happened a couple of years ago when I went to start the bike to get in line for a July 4th parade. I had no problem getting to the parade area that morning, and the bike had been sitting for a couple of hours waiting for the parade to start. When it was time to get in formation it cranked just fine, but only fired once or twice, then not at all. I cranked and fiddled with it for well `over 5 minutes with no change whatsoever, then it just suddenly decided to start and idle perfectly. No hint of what caused the problem, and I never did figure it out. No way it could have even remotely been the fuel pump 'cause the carbs would still have been full from when I shut it off that morning. And no, it could not have been the kill switch either, since that kills even the starter.

 

My only point is that sometimes strange things happen, and if parts are replace without proving that they are bad, it is easy to assume that is what fixed it. Maybe it did, and maybe it did not. In my case, I probably just said a few very ugly and anti-social things to the friggin' bike, and it started fine thereafter. So I'll assume that the words fixed it.

Goose

[Guest]

Fuel pump vs electric problem........isnt the fuel pump an electric fuel pump???

[V7Goose]

Fuel pump vs electric problem........isnt the fuel pump an electric fuel pump???

OK, smart guy - I'll amend it to say fuel system problem vs. ignition system problem. Happy now?

 

[Seaking]

Well I had an unusual and unexpected shut down of my own tonight after a long ride in the freezing cold.. Which is quite ironic considering the conversations we've been having..

 

Arriving home, I clicked my garage door opener as I pull off the street into the driveway and as I round the corner behind the house, the bike shut down.. POOF.. damn.. almost made it to the heated garage.. You can well imagine how mortified I was!! Oh no! Now I have to go through all this trouble shooting myself all over again.. I hung my head down low... and spotted the problem..

 

As flukey as it sounds, the house key attacked to the ring with the bike key wedged itself somehow into the risers and acted like a lever when I turned the bars to the left to around the corner.. and it turned the ignition key off.. How about that.. Unwedged the key, turned the ignition to the right (on) and started the bike again.. PHEW..

 

Had me worried there for a sec.. lol

 

Why me?

 

At least I managed to finish the last 3 weeks without a bird strike =)

[Guest]

OK, smart guy - I'll amend it to say fuel system problem vs. ignition system problem. Happy now?

 

 

I couldnt resist......

[DONATALIE]

Bobby G,

While I am certainly no expert, the conditions you described are remarkably similar to what my 2000 RSV was doing back in 2008. It happened several times over a couple of weeks, but it would always restart without a problem. Then one day, it finally shut down and would not restart. I had to have it towed to the local dealer. It turned out to be the ignition switch, which they replaced. I have since done the ignition switch by-pass mod, and have had no more problems. One thing that seems to be a common indicator of a bad ignition switch (based on postings here) seems to be that when it finally does quit, the only thing still working is the lcd display on the radio face, which is what mine did. Good luck, hope you find the problem without to much time or money involved. Don from PA