89 venture problems

[mvb1130]

Hello everyone,

 

This is my first bike and so far I am really enjoying it, I took my 3rd ride today. I am having some problems though with the bike.

 

The first week I owned it I just worked on it. It was put in a garage in 2012 and has set there since 1 week ago.

 

So far I have put in new yamaha lube radiator fluid. Bought a deka battery. Put in new oil and filter. Changed the plugs and drained all the old fuel and had the carb rebuilt at a local bike shop. [i pulled it though to save some funds].

 

Here are my problems.

1. The bike smokes on and off, it is not to bad on idle but when I give it some fuel I get some white smoke.

 

2. I have to keep the battery on a trickle because the bike is hard to start sometimes. It seems like it is struggling to start. It is very slow to kick over.

 

3. If I ride it for awhile it will shut off If I sit in first gear for to long and I have to restart it which it seems like it barely will.

 

4. The battery terminal/screw gets red hot when trying to start the bike.

 

5. I also have the e1 e4 codes so I can't put air in the system.

 

6. It idles at about 1500 after I have had it running for awhile but when i first fire it up it stays at 900.

 

7. I have some trunk cracking and alot of rust on the chrome.

 

The good

I got it for 800 from my uncle.

 

Before him the previous owner was a mechanic and put almost every bell and whistle on it. Chrome out the wazoo.

 

It runs pretty smooth one going and handles pretty well.

 

I am very much a rookie but I am a quick learner and am very diligent. I also am safety conscious. I would appreciate any good tips.

 

I was kind of thinking about replacing the starter with some kind of 4 brush.

 

Checking the air panel for broken solders.

 

Maybe replacing the stator.

 

I am looking for good cheap solutions that I won't have to fix later. Also the fuse box upgrade but what are the benefits?

 

God Bless,

Michael

[BlueSky]

The battery terminal shouldn't be getting hot like that. Check to make sure it is making good contact. It's fairly typical for them to start fine cold and then turn over very slowly after they get hot. Mine has always started while hot but I don't know how since the engine is barely moving when it fires.

 

Have you synced the carbs?

[GolfVenture]

I also have an 89 and had the similar "e1 e4 codes so I can't put air in the system." I had to take the air compressor controler out from the right fairing cover and take it apart to the circuit board. Take jewelers eye glass magnifier and look for hair line cracks in the solider. Took a hot soilder iron and touch each of the questionable solider for a short time until I could see the solider liquify. Put it all back together and bingo that fixed it. This is the solution that many here does to fix that.

 

Also when I have a fix to do I first start off by initiating a new Thread Subject. Like "E1 E4 Air Compressor" hit enter and it will give you a msg that you need more than 3 characters even tho you put more than 3 characters. Just ignore that. What it does return are several other related threads created by other member. I read the initiators post to see if it is similar to my issue. Usually I'm, able to find a related thread. If after investigating the threads and still do not find a solution I then go to the 1st Gen Technical board. When all that fails, I then start a new thread for each of my issues.

 

I went and initiated a new thread for "Error Compressor" It returned several related threads. One is this "E4 error message on compressor", and it got several responses. One response actually give a link to an internal, fix step by step with great pictures. So if the returns does not seem to help, try changing the title of the new threads. Just about anything you will encounter on your 89 VR someone knows how to fix it.

Edited April 15, 2015 by Golf&Venture

[paysaw]

If I were you, I would invest the best 12.00 you will ever spend and join the site.

[Flyinfool]

Hello everyone,

 

This is my first bike and so far I am really enjoying it, I took my 3rd ride today. I am having some problems though with the bike.

 

The first week I owned it I just worked on it. It was put in a garage in 2012 and has set there since 1 week ago.

 

So far I have put in new yamaha lube radiator fluid. Bought a deka battery. Put in new oil and filter. Changed the plugs and drained all the old fuel and had the carb rebuilt at a local bike shop. [i pulled it though to save some funds].

 

Here are my problems.

1. The bike smokes on and off, it is not to bad on idle but when I give it some fuel I get some white smoke.

 

2. I have to keep the battery on a trickle because the bike is hard to start sometimes. It seems like it is struggling to start. It is very slow to kick over.

 

3. If I ride it for awhile it will shut off If I sit in first gear for to long and I have to restart it which it seems like it barely will.

 

4. The battery terminal/screw gets red hot when trying to start the bike.

 

5. I also have the e1 e4 codes so I can't put air in the system.

 

6. It idles at about 1500 after I have had it running for awhile but when i first fire it up it stays at 900.

 

7. I have some trunk cracking and alot of rust on the chrome.

 

The good

I got it for 800 from my uncle.

 

Before him the previous owner was a mechanic and put almost every bell and whistle on it. Chrome out the wazoo.

 

It runs pretty smooth one going and handles pretty well.

 

I am very much a rookie but I am a quick learner and am very diligent. I also am safety conscious. I would appreciate any good tips.

 

I was kind of thinking about replacing the starter with some kind of 4 brush.

 

Checking the air panel for broken solders.

 

Maybe replacing the stator.

 

I am looking for good cheap solutions that I won't have to fix later. Also the fuse box upgrade but what are the benefits?

 

God Bless,

Michael

 

1. White smoke when cold is normal.

 

2. Well known issue, upgrading to a 4 brush starter and 4 AWG starter cables fixes the slow crank.

 

3. Hard to turn over when hot is normal, #2 fixes this.

 

4. NOT good, take the connection apart and clean the contact areas on both the battery and the terminal. Check where the terminal is connected to the wire for corrosion. it should NOT get hot.

 

5. As mentioned above 90% of the time resoldering the connector fixes this.

 

6. Thats normal. Are you using the choke? Full choke will have it running around 3,000 when you first start it.

 

7. There are some threads on how to fix the trunk cracking and how to clean the chrome.

 

Don't just slap in a new stator. First fix the bad battery connection in #4 . Then do the charging system check to determine if there even is a problem with what you have.

[Brenner]

Hello everyone,

 

This is my first bike and so far I am really enjoying it, I took my 3rd ride today. I am having some problems though with the bike.

 

The first week I owned it I just worked on it. It was put in a garage in 2012 and has set there since 1 week ago.

 

So far I have put in new yamaha lube radiator fluid. Bought a deka battery. Put in new oil and filter. Changed the plugs and drained all the old fuel and had the carb rebuilt at a local bike shop. [i pulled it though to save some funds].

 

Here are my problems.

1. The bike smokes on and off, it is not to bad on idle but when I give it some fuel I get some white smoke.

 

2. I have to keep the battery on a trickle because the bike is hard to start sometimes. It seems like it is struggling to start. It is very slow to kick over.

 

3. If I ride it for awhile it will shut off If I sit in first gear for to long and I have to restart it which it seems like it barely will.

 

4. The battery terminal/screw gets red hot when trying to start the bike.

 

5. I also have the e1 e4 codes so I can't put air in the system.

 

6. It idles at about 1500 after I have had it running for awhile but when i first fire it up it stays at 900.

 

7. I have some trunk cracking and alot of rust on the chrome.

 

The good

I got it for 800 from my uncle.

 

Before him the previous owner was a mechanic and put almost every bell and whistle on it. Chrome out the wazoo.

 

It runs pretty smooth one going and handles pretty well.

 

I am very much a rookie but I am a quick learner and am very diligent. I also am safety conscious. I would appreciate any good tips.

 

I was kind of thinking about replacing the starter with some kind of 4 brush.

 

Checking the air panel for broken solders.

 

Maybe replacing the stator.

 

I am looking for good cheap solutions that I won't have to fix later. Also the fuse box upgrade but what are the benefits?

 

God Bless,

Michael

 

 

 

Micheal, I am really curious about your description of #3 . Are you stating that you ride it come to stop then sit for awhile and the bike will quit? If so have you noticed if it is quitting when the cooling fan comes on? I ask as many of your items sound power related and quite possibly when you bike is idling maybe you are not charging enough to support the power the fan requires? Just a thought. E1 and E4 have a low voltage possibility also according to my service manual and having to keep a trickle charger on it could also be symptoms of a bad battery and or charging system. I whole heartedly agree with the other possibilities already mentioned to you but I honestly would look a little further and even check the ground cable on you battery going to the frame as your symptoms could point to a problem there. I have used three project bikes to build mine and two of them had the ground cable I mentioned modified by previous owners. Again just a thought that is a little different than those already mentioned.

[mvb1130]

Thank you all for your comments I really appreciate it. So I didn't have any time to work on it today but I did get a chance to buy a solder iron. So hopefully I can try to fix the e1 e4 tomorrow.

 

I also found that my battery was arcing that's why it was getting so hot and starting so slow. It is starting much better now. I took the battery off and on so many times while messing with the carb I forgot to tighten it down good.

 

I am buying some electrical connector cleaner and dielectric grease and am going to go to town on the connections many of them are corroded.

 

I will keep you all posted and hopefully I can get some pictures up soon.

 

Thanks,

Mike

[videoarizona]

E1 and E4 error codes on the air system mean the computer board has some loose solder joints. Super easy to fix. There are step by step directions with pics on this site. I can't find it now...but I know it's there...I fixed mine. Took longer to take the computer apart than to fix. About 20 minutes total. My first time too!

 

It's as simple as taking the screws out of the top right panel. You will see a multipin connector going to the air computer panel...unplug. Take the computer panel off and put it on the workbench. Grab a beer. Relax. Take the little box apart. There is a circuit board where the multipin plugs into. Look on the solder side of those pins. Grab your soldering gun and reheat those connections...maybe adding a little solder if they look dry. That's it. Put it together...walk over to bike carrying beer...plug in the multipin connector...turn bike key to accessory position and watch the panel. If it goes through it's stuff...you've solved the problem. Take a swig while patting yourself on the back(don't spill the beer)...and put bike together. Two additional thoughts. 1: Air system only works in Acc position 2: The little computer is slow...so when you select the "front"....wait until you see the word "front" on the panel, then choose the air pressure....same with rear. Always set the front first. I use the "auto" settings...Low, medium, high.

 

OH....if the above doesn't solve the problem....go through the circuit board resoldering all the connections on the solder side of the board. Take your time and don't get things too hot. Just touch the solder point and once it flows...stop.

 

Majority of the E code problems in the air controller board are broken solder joints from vibration and age.

 

David

[mvb1130]

Hey everyone thanks for the continued interest. So I had a chance to fix the e1 e4 problem tonight. I went and bought some electrical parts cleaner and put my solder iron to work.

 

I had 4 solders broken and as soon as I put it all back together it fired right up. My air ride is working. I never got a chance to ride it though it was raining and I have a total of 4 rides under my belt so I didn't want to risk it. I will keep everyone updated I am going to clean ground contact and other electrical connectors

[BlueSky]

The expertise on this site is amazing!

[dacheedah]

When I had my 89 I changed the starter and it helped a ton. I also had to chase the wires for mice chews from the po that lead to a bunch of electrical gremlins, heat shrink was my friend but after that it all worked great. Good luck and yes, this is the best $12.00 you will spend