fluctuating revs

[obalanga]

I have a 2008 abs 650 Strom. We are currently in the middle of winter and with commuting to work every day there is a lot of water and salt on the bike. A couple of weeks ago there was a red light ( FI ) when the ignition is on. But that goes away as soon as I start the bike.  I chalked it down to maybe low oil pressure.

    Shortly after that, every time I pressed the start button it would take 3 seconds to turn the starter. Then that increased to 5 seconds that were worrying me. Someone suggested I may have been over zealous with the Hosepipe washing the road muck off and the kill switch / ignition was dump. I promptly opened it, cleaned it, and sprayed some wd 40/ gt 85. That seemed to cure the problem of starting the bike.

  Now I have another problem. The red light is till in pre-ignition but goes away after starting the bike. I have put it in dealer mode but no error codes are showing. The c00 code has the little line in the middle position. Everytime I pull the clutch in as I approach a junction or up shifting, my revs go below 1000 rpm. Some times it is cutting out. I am able to start it as usual again. 90 percent of the time the revs go sub 1000 rpm. 10 percent of the time they hike up to 2000 rpm.

  My research is pointing me toward the TPS. If I am right, I have some questions for you.  
  How do I test the TPS by attaching a voltmeter?  

  Am I essentially trying to find a spot where the TPS position will result in the recommended 1300 rpm idle speed?

Does doing a TPS sweep mean just turning the said unit till it attains a specific voltage?

As I will have the tank and air box off, can you suggest any other maintenance jobs that are worth while doing while I am down there bearing in mind I do not have much experience in in bike mechanics?

[greywolf]

I have a 2008 abs 650 Strom. We are currently in the middle of winter and with commuting to work every day there is a lot of water and salt on the bike. A couple of weeks ago there was a red light ( FI ) when the ignition is on. But that goes away as soon as I start the bike.  I chalked it down to maybe low oil pressure.

It's normal to get the red light whenever the engine is not running. Until the engine is running, the oil pump is not spinning. It is never normal to see an FI displayed.

Shortly after that, every time I pressed the start button it would take 3 seconds to turn the starter. Then that increased to 5 seconds that were worrying me.

Are you saying nothing happens for a few seconds and then the starter motor starts to turn over the engine or that the starter motor cranks the engine for a few seconds before the engine starts?

 Now I have another problem. The red light is still in pre-ignition but goes away after starting the bike. I have put it in dealer mode but no error codes are showing. The c00 code has the little line in the middle position. Everytime I pull the clutch in as I approach a junction or up shifting, my revs go below 1000 rpm. Some times it is cutting out. I am able to start it as usual again. 90 percent of the time the revs go sub 1000 rpm. 10 percent of the time they hike up to 2000 rpm.

As I said, that is normal red light behaviour. You will only get an FI trouble code when the FI is displayed. Dying at idle is commonly a symptom of a TBS problem, especially with a hot engine.

 My research is pointing me toward the TPS. If I am right, I have some questions for you.   How do I test the TPS by attaching a voltmeter?   Am I essentially trying to find a spot where the TPS position will result in the recommended 1300 rpm idle speed? Does doing a TPS sweep mean just turning the said unit till it attains a specific voltage?

There really is no way to test a TPS other than to replace it and see if that solves the problem. A sweep means turning the throttle fully on to fully off a few times with the engine not running. That is like having an old radio with a fluctuating volume and turning the volume knob fully on and off a few time. Both are simple potentiometers and sweeping the range can temporarily sweep off dirt or oxidation that interferes with smooth transitions in resistance. If your idle is always low on a post K7 650, especially if you adjusted the TPS, the idle speed preset has to be reset.

There are two major reasons for 2007 or later 650 to die at idle. One is the clutch lever switch being bypassed. The other is the TPS needs to be replaced. If the TPS setting was moved though, the ISC valve preset needs to be reset.

1) Turn the ignition switch to the OFF position.
2) Remove the seat.
3) Put the bike in dealer mode. FAQ: Dealer Mode & FI Error Codes
4) Turn the ignition switch to the ON position.
5) Turn the ignition switch to the OFF position.
6) Then, wait more than 5 seconds.
The ISC valve automatically is set at the PRE-SET position.
7) Take the bike out of dealer mode.

[MartinW]

Another great reply Greywolf  

[obalanga]

The nothing happens bit meant that there was no cranking or turning over. Then when it finally turned, the engine started promptly. Thank you. This gives me a direction to follow.

[greywolf]

Is there an FI present during the delay? If so, put the bike in dealer mode before trying to start it to catch a code.

[obalanga]

No end to my woes in sight. I will give a run down of my problem history then where I am now.

The lazy start up issue cleared when I cleaned the switches on the handle bar but others hae progressively worsened. The bike starts OK everytime I use the ignition switch.

At first, occassionally on throttle shutoff when slowing down the engine would cutout. Now I have to keep the revs 3k plus when in traffic. Otherwise it cuts out. Even then,sometimes while stopped in traffic and holding revs high,  the engine wants to stall on pull away as I release the clutch.

When changing gears (pulling the clutch in) it may cut out out of the blue.

This week a new problem started, whilst pulling away, I may suffer a sudden loss of power, spluttering of the exhaust and the it may pick up. Very nerve racking when getting into a round about. If history proves right this is just going to get worse.

What I have had done..

The carbs have been cleaned and synced. Then I had the valve clearances checked as they were due. I changed the spark plugs. I took it to a dealer to check for any problems with the electrical side by 'plugging it in' what ever that is. No problem was found. Another mechanic got a hold of a similar bike and swapped around some of the non testable parts. Still same woes.
There has been talk of keep going till it dies the we will know what is wrong then. I really want to avoid that as there is plenty of overtime coming up soon at work and I can only get it if I am at work.

The bike is a 2008 Suzuki DL650 with 24000 miles on

Any ideas where to go next?

[cpjs]

Have you checked the clutch cutout switch as suggested by GW as a lot of your probs seem to be when you are using the clutch lever.

[tallpaul]

Also has me thinking that it is pulling in air somewhere. Are the throttle bodies properly sealed? Do you have a Scottoiler? Check vacuum hose.

[bosnjo]

Last year my dealer told me a story about bike with same issues as yours. He said he tried really everything but nothing helped. He did check the clutch switch and it was OK. As the last try, and just out of fun, he replaced the clutch switch. The problem was solved !!!!
Then he again tested the switch he removed from the bike, and it was all good. He put it back on the bike and all the problems came back. He said he still doesn't understand what happened.
Other dealer, other brand (BMW), 5 years ago, similar problem with one bike. After a days of looking for the problem, they decided to completely remove the fuel from the tank and fuel lines. Put clean fuel in, all the problems were gone. Then they took 1 Litre sample from the fuel they removed, put it in the freezer over the night, to find one part of it frozen in the morning. It was water in fuel.

[mr_diver]

I was having similar issues when my TPS was out of whack. A TPS adjustment might help.

[obalanga]

thank you bosnjo and muff diver, those seam like really easy things to try. One of the mechanics I took it to has got to that point where he says he has tried everything he can think of and has started scouring the net for ideas.  Fingers crossed and hope for the best.