[can_of_ham]

New to the forum and have lots of questions/problems to fix but I can only afford to fix one at a time. I just put a marine stereo on my bike and when I finished it the bike was running terrible. At about 14/4 to 1/2 throttle it will spit and sputter and just run like crap, then if you giver her some gas it'll level out and run smooth. At first I thought it was the stereo sucking electricity away from the motor cause it was fine before then and the gauge pod said low batt. so I messed with some stuff, charged it, added another battery, but nothing worked. So finally I just completely disconnected the stereo and it still isint running right. So I took the air box lid and air filter off and i noticed when it started spitting the throttle body made a whistling noise. Almost like it was getting too much fuel and not enough air or too much air and nit enough fuel or something a carbed bike would do/ Only problem is I BOUGHT THIS BIKE TO GET AWAY FROM CARB PROBS:th_smiliepissed:

 

[scottmc]

What circuit did you connect the stereo to?

If it were something like the TPS circuit I could imagine the problems you describe.

 

[can_of_ham]

It just pluged into the cigaretteighter and then there was a pilot wire runnin directly to the battery

 

[can_of_ham]

Well after a little test drive it's gotten worse. I fully charged the battery and of you don't get on the gas right it'llnjust die. Same thing at about 1/4 to 1/2 throttle it'll spit and sputter

 

[styk]

Might be totally coincidental that the problems started right after the stereo installation. I assume you resolved the low battery message. Could be a fuel pressure issue, the normal pressure is 51 PSI. Could be a dirty throttle body, never had an issue with it myself so I can't say how exactly a dirty throttle body acts.

 

[can_of_ham]

well now that you mention it it was pretty dirty in there. Also I have had issues with the fuel pump in the past, prop shaft came unbolted and smacked it and cracked it and I just have it jb welded until my new one come in. Just spit ballin here but could it possibly be a motor issue? It needs an oil change and theres a tick when ever the rpms get above idle that I am yet to fix.

 

[styk]

tick could be the timing chain. You could take the belt off to isolate the engine from the tranny.

 

[can_of_ham]

Ok so I gave the throttle body some lovin and it seemed to rev in neutral just fine. Then I started back up, let it idle while I cleared the door to get out of th shop. Then when I rode it same crap. But my old friend mr. Low batt showed up so its on the charger. I'm wondering if all this cranking, charging, cranking, charging, running speakers, hooking up to lawn mower batteries, charging has just messed up my battery?

 

[styk]

Probably not, if it's the original battery it may just be time to replace it.

Voltmeter check, with engine revs at 4000, voltage should be between 14.2 and 14.8 volts.

Above 14.8, replace regulator/rectifier.

Below, check stator and/or wiring harness.

 

[can_of_ham]

Ok I'll test it once I get a voltage meter. What would I hook it to? I'm not used to working on all this electrical stuff, I'm used to hondas that were made before electricity was invented

 

[can_of_ham]

Ok so I got it fully charged and its ran perfectly the first few feet. But as I ride across the field I noticed it starting to get worse and worse. It Didnt take long for the low batt to come back and by the time I got back it was barely running. Also I got a battery tester would I just put it on the battery terminals?

 

[scottmc]

Before buying a new battery check that your terminals are clean and tight. You might have a pleasant surprise.

 

[8upwithit]

These things don't like dirty or loose connections for sure. Sounds like you need to check the voltage output for sure.

 

[jmason]

Battery tester or voltmeter (not sure which one you bought) gets hooked to the battery. Red to positive and black to negative. It sounds to me like your battery isn't even taking a charge.

 

[can_of_ham]

well the meter I bought wont even turn on and despite what yall said I jumped the gun on a new battery and its gotten a lot better. right upon start up it runs flawlessly then as you get going it starts to spit and back fire just a little. Then my buddy drove it around a little while I was getting tractors unstuck and he said he didn't notice any difference and then I got back on it and it was almost perfectly normal. Main thing I'm noticing now is some back firing. Beginning to think its running rich. Would a programmer solve this? It has a hmf with no spark arrestor and a 2" snorkel intake.

 

[can_of_ham]

Ok well scratch that for now. After some pro longed starting/running. Low batt message came back. Could it be the alternator?

 

[jmason]

I'd check all your fuses. May have blown something hooking up the stereo.

 

[12snipes12]

you havent ruled out it being voltage regulator yet ? check the voltage of your battery while the bike is running in park, get someone to hit the throttle up to 4000 rpms and hold it there while you keep watching the voltage on your volt meter, if its anything over 14.8 volts your regulator is shot

 

[lifebeginsafterdeath]

STYK/12snipes12, tks for that info. Just added a file in my ATV folder with that info for future troubleshooting.

 

[styk]

well the meter I bought wont even turn on and despite what yall said I jumped the gun on a new battery and its gotten a lot better. right upon start up it runs flawlessly then as you get going it starts to spit and back fire just a little. Then my buddy drove it around a little while I was getting tractors unstuck and he said he didn't notice any difference and then I got back on it and it was almost perfectly normal. Main thing I'm noticing now is some back firing. Beginning to think its running rich. Would a programmer solve this? It has a hmf with no spark arrestor and a 2" snorkel intake.

Silly question, did you check if the meter had a battery installed?