1200 Venture dies for no reason, restarts days later

[mcguy303]

I have a 1983 Venture XVZ 1200 with 52,000 miles on it. Last year for no reason it would loose power and die without warning. I took it to two separate mechanics but by the time they were able to look at it the darn thing started and ran fine. They attempted to replicate the problem but without success. I did a little research and figured it was some sort of vapor lock. I checked the roller valve on the right side of the bike and found it was stuck. I replaced it in December 2012 and it ran flawlessly since. Last weekend I was riding in the IBA SS 1K and after 100 milesin the middle of the night it just quit! I had just fueled two miles and 5 minutes earlier when it stopped. Again it sounded like a vapor lock. It simply lost power and died! I opened the fuel cap, no excess pressure. I checked the roller valve and it was functioning like new. I ended up running the battery down trying to restart it. The night was cool and clear. I spent 7 hours on the side of the road waiting for assistance. The following morning after a jump start and a small squirt of starting fluid the bike fired and ran like there was no problem. I can no longer trust the bike on out of town trips which really bums me out! Has anyone ever experienced a similar problem? I'm not a mechanic, more like a parts changer if you know what I mean. Any help would be appreciated.

[Silverado6x6]

I think the diodes are dying in the ignition module, on my 83 I had a similar problem, it would start and run one day then would barely run the next, I pulled the CDI and found every single diode wasted, tried replacing them with Radio Shack diodes to no avail so I bought a cheap used one off Ebay which is a rarity as I paid $80 for it, normally used ones are over $200. The Ignitek is around $270, if I had that money I would upgrade to the Ignitek but the 83 is a secondary Venture as I am riding the 89 Royale for now and now itself is limited here in Alaska.

[Silverado6x6]

BTW when I installed my replacement CDI I located it on top of the airbox, I am using heavy duty velcro to keep it from rattlin around, keep the drain hole on the bottom, tank cover fits just fine if you turn it the right way, beats having to fight everything to get at it where its normally mounted.

[Flyinfool]

When the engine quits while going down the road, does the tach instantly drop to zero even while your momentum is still turning the engine over?

 

If it does then you have an electrical problem and not a fuel problem. Fuel issues usually will spit and sputter while dieing like running out of gas. Electrical issues are usually a hard cutoff with no warning.

[Peder_y2k]

I had a similar experience late at night once. Bike had been parked for couple hours, then started up for trip home, ten minutes into ride, engine stopped. Coasted into a lighted parking lot and while considering my options that took about 15 minutes to process, decided to try restarting, and it started. Got home OK and soon began investigating, finding that summer evening moisture had entered the TCI unit while parked outside, temporarily shorting it out. While stopped, engine heat rose evaporating the moisture. Relocated the TCI unit to the top of the air cleaner box and never a problem again.

-Pete, in Tacoma WA USA