you may have seen the rather boring fuelling problem messages I posted recently. To give you some background, I've just bought a 2,500 mile VTR on a W-plate which is causing me headaches. I've given it back to the dealer I bought it from, who have replaced a diaphragm in one of the carbs but the problems haven't gone away.
I'm now beginning to wonder if it really is my riding style that is causing the problem as the workshop manager, when I told him what was wrong, suggested that I might indeed be a cack-handed oaf, but I do more than 10,000 miles a year in London traffic so surely I can't be that bad... can I? I rode a TL1000S a while ago and didn't have any such problems...
Anyway, here are the symptoms:
1) In first you need to give it at least 4,000 revs and tons of clutch slip to get it off the line smoothly - traffic light drag races require much more, and this doesn't guarantee that it won't suddenly cough and bog down (as witnessed by a terrified scooter pilot last night who almost went into the back of me)
2) When riding in traffic (i.e. 90% of my time) I have to keep it in 1st or 2nd, and make sure it is doing more than 3,500 revs at all times. Otherwise, when the throttle is opened, nothing happens except jerking and coughing, hasty pulling in of the clutch, reving it to clear its throat etc etc
3) At around 4,250 revs in, say, third or fourth (on those rare occasions when I'm in those gears) it's usually fine and will pull with gusto, but occasionally it does the old coughing and spluttering thing again - there seems to be no pattern with this
4) After a period of reasonably spirited riding (officer...) when you come to a stop at the lights and put the bike in neutral, the engine often almost cuts out - again no real pattern here
5) When blipping the throttle, the first twist of the grip produces nothing for half an inch or so, then a cough, a backfire and finally some revs - the best way of ensuring this won't stop you dead in your tracks when you try and pull away is to keep the revs up whilst stationary
Now you may all be sitting there saying "Yup, sounds about right. That's what mine does when I ride it cack-handedly" but I really don't think it's right. The dealer reckon they have done a full diagnostic check on it and it was fine apart from the diaphragm, so is it just me????
Any feedback would be appreciated - suggestions so far have been fouled plugs (gonna take 'em out this weekend), dirty/dry air filter (ditto), the bike may have run non-standard cans in the past and is wrongly jetted for the standards (beyond my spanner ability to check in these pre-delivery-of-Haynes-manual times), or the carbs simply aren't balanced properly.
If anyone in London fancies coming to have a listen to it, or even ride the damn thing, to tell me if I am a) a sh*te rider, b) imagining things or c) the owner of an unwell VTR, that would be hugely appreciated. I live in Wimbledon but I'm happy to come and see you if you are elsewhere.
Cheers for reading this interminably long message...
Muffin666
