My F800gs STALLS LIKE ITS RUNNING OUT OF GAS! PLEASE HELP!!

[WoodWorks]

Originally Posted by chunter

I'd be willing to bet money that as the summer warms up, there will be many more F800gs owners suffering from the same problem.

And yet So. Africans have been through two summers since the bikes have been released down there, and Australians, Argentines, and other southern hemisphere dwellers have been through one summer. AFAIK, they got the same fuel pumps we Yanks got, and it gets plenty hot in the summer in those places, but I haven't heard of any problems with heat/stalling from them. So I'll take that bet.

David

[DolphinJohn]

Originally Posted by chunter

Was the bike hot when this happened? Was the tank half or less full?

I'm certain that this is going to be an ongoing problem with the F800gs. I got mine back from the dealer about 5 times for the same stalling issue. I'm in Hawaii, so the weather is generally pretty hot. The bike would run fine when the tank was full, then it would run down, and on hot days it would stall. It wouldn't run properly until it either cooled down totally, or I filled the gas tank.

I'm almost certain that the reason is that the fuel pump sits inside the gas tank, and when the tank is full, the fuel actually cools the pump down. When it is hot outside, and the bike is hot, and the fuel tank is down, the fuel pump is exposed to the heat and this causes some kind of electrical interference. I have now had three different fuel pumps in my bike, and I'm almost certain this is the issue. I'd be willing to bet money that as the summer warms up, there will be many more F800gs owners suffering from the same problem.

Nah, I don't think it's the heat. I've ridden in plenty hot weather, in traffic, with the fan coming on, and never stalled.
Sunday when riding in the rain, the temps dropped down to low 70s with the
severe storms. Rain, heavy rain at speeds above say 45, seems to be the problem. For me anyway.

Does anybody have pics of the canister removal? The link posted earlier in this thread is from December and the pics are gone.

[ROYAL COACHMAN]

Originally Posted by chunter

Was the bike hot when this happened? Was the tank half or less full?

I'm certain that this is going to be an ongoing problem with the F800gs. I got mine back from the dealer about 5 times for the same stalling issue. I'm in Hawaii, so the weather is generally pretty hot. The bike would run fine when the tank was full, then it would run down, and on hot days it would stall. It wouldn't run properly until it either cooled down totally, or I filled the gas tank.

I'm almost certain that the reason is that the fuel pump sits inside the gas tank, and when the tank is full, the fuel actually cools the pump down. When it is hot outside, and the bike is hot, and the fuel tank is down, the fuel pump is exposed to the heat and this causes some kind of electrical interference. I have now had three different fuel pumps in my bike, and I'm almost certain this is the issue. I'd be willing to bet money that as the summer warms up, there will be many more F800gs owners suffering from the same problem.

The first time the bike stalled recently after the block off plates where installed, I was on my way to the swinging bridges ride here in Missouri.

About 60 deg F overcast and running down the hwy for 30 miles with full tank of gas.
Get off at exit, pull in clutch to down shift and bike stalled.
Hit starter button and it fires up and I continue about 1/2 mile to meeting place where it stall's again entering parking lot.

Bike stalls one more time about 20 miles into ride and never stalls again for another 600 to 700 miles.
The last time it stalled I was 30 mile up the river road on the Illinois side of the Mississippi and it stalled pulling into a parking lot. 70 deg with blue skies and 1/2 tank.

I have put on about 200 miles since then with no problems.
Glen

[ROYAL COACHMAN]

FWIW I rode my bike to Jefferson National Barracks Cemetary this past Sunday to visit my father and plant flags with my sons Boy Scout troop.
Being Memorial day weekend it was very crowded.

80 deg plus and very humid. Spent about 45 minutes in first gear with a lot of clutching and the cooling fan ran almost the entire time.

Same scenario leaving to go home and the bike ran perfect the whole day.
I give up trying to figure this out

Glen

[]I)Money]

Originally Posted by ROYAL COACHMAN

FWIW I rode my bike to Jefferson National Barracks Cemetary this past Sunday to visit my father and plant flags with my sons Boy Scout troop.
Being Memorial day weekend it was very crowded.

80 deg plus and very humid. Spent about 45 minutes in first gear with a lot of clutching and the cooling fan ran almost the entire time.

Same scenario leaving to go home and the bike ran perfect the whole day.
I give up trying to figure this out

Glen

Hey, Glen, if it happens again, would you mind opening your gas tank right away, to check if it's got a vacuum on it?

[ROYAL COACHMAN]

Originally Posted by ]I)Money

Hey, Glen, if it happens again, would you mind opening your gas tank right away, to check if it's got a vacuum on it?

I will make a mental note and remember to do that CJ

And by the way, thank you for your service from my family

[outpostbabu]

I'd like to add to the complaints here. I just got back from a 6000 mile trip across the US, having never had this stalling issue. Never, that is, until my return trip when it rained constantly, but not heavily, for two days. The first time it happened I was making a turn at an intersection, in the rain, in traffic. The bike just cut off. Fortunately I was going slow so I didn't fall but I did come to a complete stop right in the middle of the intersection. Not the safest place to be. After that the bike would consistently stall in the rain any time I downshifted. This happened 5 or 6 times over the course of two days, and only in the rain. Some of the time I could restart it by coasting with the clutch in and hitting the electric start but most of the time I had to coast into the emergency lane and try restarting it once or twice. I let it sit at a gas station for awhile and it would be alright for 10 minutes or so back on the highway but after that the problem would return. When the rain went away, the problem went away.

Previously I had a problem with my fuel indicator not working which was blown off by the dealer as a non-issue. On this trip I had the vacuum sound when opening the gas tank. I'm certain all of these things are related. There's still no bulletins or recalls for any of this?

[The Griz]

This post is from a guy named Fred over at F800riders.org. Seems to have solved his stalling issues. This is what I'm going to do before my upcoming trip.

OK, I have finished my ride which consisted of many miles in Biblical rain storms both on the flat and up and down very steep mountains. No stalling or any other problems to report. Here is an admittedly small pix of one of my cones with the pre-filter installed. This is the best I could do:



Fred
__________________
No such thing as cold weather, just inappropriate clothing

[outpostbabu]

Fred's fix is interesting but sounds like it could be a false positive.

"Hi all, no pix yet because it was pouring down rain all day including 100 miles on the Interstate. No stalling or even close to it. I don't know if I had the problem before so I can't tell if the pre-filter is the reason.

I will say the bike had a few minutes of running roughly but that was indiagnosed, felt like bad gas to me. It never stalled though.

Fred"

If the pre-filter works, why wouldn't you just use an oil foam filter? I'd be willing to give either a shot but it sounds mostly like conjecture so far.

[The Griz]

Originally Posted by outpostbabu

Fred's fix is interesting but sounds like it could be a false positive.

I wouldn't be so quick to lay down judgement. Have you installed this fix and tested it?

According to my research, there are three possible causes. All of which could be happening at the same time or individually.

1) Water entering the air intake snorkel and getting into the air box, in turn getting the mass oxygen sensor wet (which resides right beneath the air filter element itself in the airbox. You'll see a wire and connector for it on top of the air box.)

2) Charcoal canister filling with fuel/water and not letting the tank vent properly.

3) Fuel pump failure.... which is associated with fuel guage error.

[bxr140]

Originally Posted by The Griz

I wouldn't be so quick to lay down judgement.

I thought the same exact thing when I read YOUR post!

I certainly don't think a prefilter will hurt anything, but Fred's solution is based on the premise that water in the airbox is actually the problem. I've seen no conclusive evidence to support that theory either way, especially considering the reports of stalling in fair weather. One might even contest that the sporadic nature of this anomaly would suggest that its likely NOT a ‘mechanical’ issue like water in the airbox, though there's certainly not enough evidence to eliminate it completely from the fishbone.

Originally Posted by The Griz

2) Charcoal canister filling with fuel/water and not letting the tank vent properly.

Originally Posted by The Griz

3) Fuel pump failure.... which is associated with fuel guage error.

I’m leaning towards a carbon canister/vacuum based problem (not necessarily ‘filled with stuff'), though my own experience with a fuel pump replacement doesn’t rule out #3. It hasn’t rained since I had my pump replaced a couple months ago, and while it solved my gauge issue, I can’t tell if it solved the stalling/poor running problem.

[outpostbabu]

Originally Posted by The Griz

This post is from a guy named Fred over at F800riders.org. Seems to have solved his stalling issues. This is what I'm going to do before my upcoming trip.

My point was, Fred has *never had* any stalling issues according to what he said in the prior post that I quoted. Its good information and a possible solution. I'm just saying Fred could have put a sock on his mirror and had the same result, no stalls, because his bike wasn't stalling to begin with.

There is a lot of good information in that thread though and over at f800riders.org in general so thanks for posting it nonetheless.

[DolphinJohn]

Originally Posted by outpostbabu

My point was, Fred has *never had* any stalling issues according to what he said in the prior post that I quoted. Its good information and a possible solution. I'm just saying Fred could have put a sock on his mirror and had the same result, no stalls, because his bike wasn't stalling to begin with.

There is a lot of good information in that thread though and over at f800riders.org in general so thanks for posting it nonetheless.

Should I use a tube sock, or will a short sock do? Does it matter which mirror?







I ordered the Blue Filter made by Green from Wunderlich
(confusing enough?)
http://www.wunderlichamerica.com/mm5..._Code=F800GS-U

I also plan to put the pre-filter material somewhere in the intake tube, and I am going to remove the canister.

Isn't this fun?





.

[outpostbabu]

Originally Posted by DolphinJohn

Should I use a tube sock, or will a short sock do? Does it matter which mirror?







I ordered the Blue Filter made by Green from Wunderlich
(confusing enough?)
http://www.wunderlichamerica.com/mm5..._Code=F800GS-U

I also plan to put the pre-filter material somewhere in the intake tube, and I am going to remove the canister.

Isn't this fun?





.

Not both at the same time I hope or we'll never solve this!

[The Griz]

Originally Posted by bxr140

I thought the same exact thing when I read YOUR post!

Seriously, man.....