Aug09-Hog Helpline-FOULED, LUBED, TICKED, WIRED & MISFIRED

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Got a problem with your stock H-D that your local dealer can’t fix? Well, put away that hammer, grab a pen, and let our resident pro get you back on the road! That’s right, frustrated ones. You can now get your perplexing problem answered with a simple snail mail or e-mail to AIM.

Summer’s here, and Helpline’s back with a new mailbag filled with questions to answer. Jimmy Wade gets us underway with a plug-fouling inquiry about his 2000 Ultra Classic. We sense a possible sensor problem, Jim. “Tanker” Art is next, asking about the pros and cons of gas lube for his 2007 FLHTC. Save yer money, chief, there’s better things to invest in. Herb chimes in, telling us that his 2009 Road King is really ticking … but not in a good way. Ed Pasco follows, wondering about the wiring on his 2004 Road King Custom, and Eric Kleinberg closes things out with his 2004 Wide Glide’s sad tale of misfiring.

Anyone wishing to submit a question to our H-D expert should send in as much info about the problem and bike as possible, which definitely includes the bike’s year, model, and mileage to:

Hog Helpline, c/o American Iron Magazine
1010 Summer Street - Third Floor
Stamford, CT 06905

or e-mail it to ChrisM@AmericanIronMag.com. Ready for the disclaimer? Unfortunately, we can’t answer all of the questions that we receive or respond directly to the submitter, owing to volume. Select questions will be answered only through this monthly column.

Q:I have a 2000 Ultra Classic FLHTCUI with 42,000 miles. I bought the bike used from the local dealer in 2002. It had a Stage I kit installed when I bought it, but still had the original mufflers. I installed a set of Screamin’ Eagle mufflers last summer, and the bike ran fine until October. Then it started fouling plugs. It is a rich- type fouling, fluffy not oily. I hadn’t changed them since I bought the bike, so I changed the plugs and wires. Within 300 miles I had fouled the plugs again. I tried another set and within 100 miles they were fouled. I called the dealership to have a tech check the problem. He ran it on the hand scanner and found no codes, historic or current. The injectors were checked for leaking, but nothing there. I asked him to check if the temperature sensor was correct; a handheld sensor was aimed at the head; it read 185 degrees Fahrenheit, and the scanner confirmed it. The bike had time to cool off before the tech started to work on it. He checked my air cleaner, found it was a little dirty, so he washed it out, blew it out with air, reoiled it, blasted my plugs, and told me to try it.

By this time, the weather had gotten cooler and was close to Christmas so I was not riding very much. During the holidays, I cranked the bike up, let it get warm, pulled out on the highway, and it started to skip and bust under acceleration. I went back home and decided to see if I could find out the problem for myself. I changed the intake seals, checked the fuel pressure, and all was okay, but the plugs were still getting fouled. I carried it back to the dealer and asked for it to be put on the dyno machine and checked while it was running. The air/fuel mixture was good, 14.5 at about 1500 rpm and everything checked out, with no codes appearing while it was running. The bike ran for about 50 miles, then was taken off the dyno and test-driven for about 50 more miles. When it came back, the plugs were fine. The tech department asked to keep it for another week to see if the problem was intermittent. After some more checking, the plugs were found to be fouled again. So the dealership changed the ECM, but there was no change. It was determined that the plugs were fouling only under acceleration, like in stop-and-go traffic, not while cruising. The dealership called the Motor Company and asked for help. The response was that the problem might be the ECM, might be the temperature sensor, or might be the throttle position sensor. The dealer replied that all these had been checked or changed out. A new set of injectors is now on order, and the dealership is going to try them. If you could please help, the dealer and I would be very thankful.

Jimmy Wade
Via Internet

A:Was the engine temperature sensor changed? You said the temp sensor was accurate at 185 degrees, but at a different engine temperature the sensor might fail and send the ECM the wrong information. If the sensor is telling the ECM that the engine is colder than it actually is, the engine will run rich and foul the plugs. That’s why you can go 100 miles or so before the plugs foul out. If the sensor sends a bad signal, but it’s still within the operating range that the ECM knows, it won’t trigger a code, even though the signal is wrong. This situation is fairly common on the Magnetti-Marelli fuel systems with your kind of mileage. I would change that engine temp sensor and take it for a ride.

Q:I ride a 2007 FLHTC that is pure stock, and I just put 10,500 miles on it. I pulled the stock Harley 6R12 plugs and installed Autolite XS4164 Iridium plugs. Also, I have started putting Lucas Oil upper cylinder lubricant in my gas every fill up (about 2 ounces per 5 gallons of gas). I’ve noticed no change as of now, but long-term is my concern. What do you think?

“Tanker” Art
Via Internet

A:I don’t know what the advantage of the lubricant might be, and I really don’t think you need it. Harley engine oils will do all you need on the cylinders, and the heads are designed to work with unleaded fuels. Regular oil changes are what you need to make the engine last. As for the spark plugs, watch out for aftermarket parts! The ECM will sense any change in the ignition secondary circuit from stock and may think there is something wrong. If the ECM thinks something is wrong, you’ll get intermittent or absent combustion faults triggered. Aftermarket wires or plugs will also trigger these codes. Even Screamin’ Eagle products can cause problems. My suggestion is to leave it “pure” stock!

Q:About three weeks ago I purchased a 2009 Road King. The bike is stock, except for a pair of Rinehart slip-on mufflers. I put about 400 miles on it, and now it seems to have developed a ticking noise. I’m not sure what it is, but it seems to be coming from the top of the engine. I took the bike back to the dealer and was told that there’s nothing to worry about, some engines make more noise than others. Is this true? Can this noise be fixed, or at least made a little quieter? Any help you could give me would be appreciated.

Herb
Via Internet

A:Yes, it’s true: some engines will be noisier than others. These bikes are mass-produced and everything is manufactured within tolerances. Sometimes these tolerances add up to cause a looser fit, or a noisy assembly. If your dealer thinks it’s okay, you shouldn’t have to worry. That said, your dealer shouldn’t just dismiss the noise without a thorough inspection. The oil pressure should be checked, as well as the exhaust system, for leaks and loose hardware and brackets. Keep riding the bike up to 1,000 miles. Pay close attention to the noises the engine makes. If they get louder or change, you can have more information to give the dealer at that first service.

Q:I replaced the handlebars and grips on my 2004 FLHRSI Road King Custom. The following week, I noticed that the headlight switch was on the high beam setting. When I went to push it to the down/low beam position, the horn went off until I put the switch back to high beam. The high beam works, and the horn works when I press the horn button. I thought it might be the security system, but after reading the manual, the system seems to be working fine with no indication of an error code. When I replaced the handlebars, I simply loosened the controls, slid them out (almost), then slid them back in. Any suggestions before I call the Harley dealership?

Ed Pasco
Via Internet

A:Sounds like you may have a pinched wire in the handlebar harness. Remove the clutch lever bracket clamp and inspect the harness where it passes under the clamp. If the wiring gets pinched, it may short the horn wire (yellow/black) and low beam (yellow) wires together. Also look inside the switch housing for any bare or pinched wires. Does the new bar have a groove for the wire harness under the clutch clamp? If the wiring isn’t positioned properly in this groove, it will get pinched. It’s easy to do when you try to slide the controls off and on as you described.

Q:I have a frustrating misfire issue with my 2004 Wide Glide. After warm-up and enrichener procedures are completed, my bike will occasionally misfire at cruising speed. It occurs when I let off the throttle and then accelerate immediately. If I open the enrichener, the problem goes away. I don’t want to ride with my enrichener open. Help!

Eric Kleinberg
Via Internet

A:If you have a slightly lean condition at cruise speed, opening the enrichener gives the engine that extra fuel it needs to keep from popping or misfiring. I think all you need is a larger, low-speed jet in the carburetor. The jet in your model should be marked 45, which is
0.45 mm. The next size up is a 0.50 mm, which, if the bike is all stock, might be a little too rich. I’ve had good luck “cleaning” out the stock jet with a #77 drill. This will put the jet size at about 0.48mm. That should take care of the misfire you’re describing. AIM