R1150GS starting issue

Bikermike1411 said:
...and my bike backfired without pressing the starter.....
Click to expand...

how can this be? surely to backfire something must have combusted... meaning a spark fired without any engine rotation triggering the hall sensor... dodgy coil, hall or wiring?

I freely admit to not knowing a huge amount about the oilheads (my own included) but as I understand it the hall sensor tells the coil when to fire and also the injectors when to inject. With your fuel pump always on and the lines pulsing suggesting theres fuel being pumped to them, I would have the front cover off and check that your alternator belt hasnt shredded and taken out the hall.

as other have said i wouldnt be happy with that battery connected *at all* until youve found the culprit.
 
Mike, are you sure it's not a relay clicking...they are quite loud...thats normal.

Random thing...but what is your fuel gauge doing as well?
 
gordongraham said:
how can this be? surely to backfire something must have combusted... meaning a spark fired without any engine rotation triggering the hall sensor... dodgy coil, hall or wiring?
Click to expand...

I agree Graham! I have absolutely no idea what's going on. Bloody scared the shit out of me tbh.

The whole thing has got me worried that i'm heading for a very hefty bill, or could do some damage beyond the hall sensor and a new battery.
 
blueranger said:
Mike, are you sure it's not a relay clicking...they are quite loud...thats normal.

Random thing...but what is your fuel gauge doing as well?
Click to expand...

I'd considered it being a relay, but it really does sound like a fizzing sound. It seems to be coming from the battery area - are there any fuel-pump related relays in that area, and if so, what could be triggering them?

The fuel gauge seems to be OK - I had read somewhere else about the Rider Information Display flickering - I haven't noticed the RID doing this. It shows 2 bars of fuel (the five litres I put in). I'll check again when I get home at work (right before I pull the battery off!)
 
It does sound like the hall sensor could be the problem. Unplug it and check if the "shorting" noise stops and fuel pump acts normal with the ignition on and starter pressed.
 
Steptoe said:
It does sound like the hall sensor could be the problem. Unplug it and check if the "shorting" noise stops and fuel pump acts normal with the ignition on and starter pressed.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice Steptoe, i'll look at that as soon as I get home. :thumb2

Is it possible to disconnect the hall sensor with the tank on, or is the connection to the harness buried under the tank? It'll be a late start tonight, so any heads up to make the job more efficient is appreciated!

By the way, do you have any idea what the 'mystery' plug (centre-top one in the block of six just before the headstock) is? It's bugging me now! :)
 
The relays are all in the main fuse box. I was asking about the fuel just in case it was the side stand switch messing about.
Just thinking about that frayed cable issue that rears its head around the head stock...would that cause this?
I'm inclined to think Hall Sensor too as if it is sending rougue signals the ECU will think the engine is spinning but all the usual timing will be out so the engine wont run, it may even be injecting fuel and sending sparks, thats the only way for a backfire to occur with a stationary engine.
 
Bikermike1411 said:
Thanks for the advice Steptoe, i'll look at that as soon as I get home. :thumb2

Is it possible to disconnect the hall sensor with the tank on, or is the connection to the harness buried under the tank? It'll be a late start tonight, so any heads up to make the job more efficient is appreciated!

By the way, do you have any idea what the 'mystery' plug (centre-top one in the block of six just before the headstock) is? It's bugging me now! :)
Click to expand...

You will need to remove tank to get at the hall sensor connecting block. There are new Hall Sensor units for under a £100 on ebay (from Greece) and these have had good reviews if I recall correctly. I built a hall sensor tester that you can borrow if you are not too far away though you can get a fair idea if they have failed by checking fuel pump activation and sparking plugs without one.
 
Thanks pal - you're not a million miles away (I'm only in Haslingden), so i may take you up on the offer! I'll try Steptoe's suggestion of disconnecting it tonight, to see if I can isolate the fault. If this calms things down i'll assume it's the hall sensor and move onto either removing it for testing, or testing in situ, whichever is required. I also read that the wiring harness can fail, but can be repaired fairly easily. I also like the idea of a sub £100 replacement.... i'm financially challenged at the moment, so home-repairs are a winning suggestion!

If the sensor has failed, will I have to do the timing once I repair or replace it, or if i'm careful on removing it and lock the crank in position at TDC, will the go straight back on without having to do the timing?

I may be getting ahead of myself there though!

In respect of testing the bike with the hall sensor disconnected tonight - what should I expect to happen regarding sparks and fuel pump priming when I press the starter with the unit disconnected? What would be 'right' and 'wrong'? I'm assuming i'll need to pull the plugs to check for sparks (i'm ok doing this).

Can't say enough how much I appreciate the help too. Thanks!:beerjug:
 
Bikermike1411 said:
Thanks pal - you're not a million miles away (I'm only in Haslingden), so i may take you up on the offer! I'll try Steptoe's suggestion of disconnecting it tonight, to see if I can isolate the fault. If this calms things down i'll assume it's the hall sensor and move onto either removing it for testing, or testing in situ, whichever is required. I also read that the wiring harness can fail, but can be repaired fairly easily. I also like the idea of a sub £100 replacement.... i'm financially challenged at the moment, so home-repairs are a winning suggestion!

If the sensor has failed, will I have to do the timing once I repair or replace it, or if i'm careful on removing it and lock the crank in position at TDC, will the go straight back on without having to do the timing?

I may be getting ahead of myself there though!

In respect of testing the bike with the hall sensor disconnected tonight - what should I expect to happen regarding sparks and fuel pump priming when I press the starter with the unit disconnected? What would be 'right' and 'wrong'? I'm assuming i'll need to pull the plugs to check for sparks (i'm ok doing this).

Can't say enough how much I appreciate the help too. Thanks!:beerjug:
Click to expand...

You will need to have the hall sensor in place when doing the various checks with fuel pump etc. Plenty of threads on the forum about this. PM me if you need the tester.
 
Go back to the first post.

Took the tank off, replaced and now it won't start.
 
I've just been out to the garage to get started on the job of diagnosing the issue. Checked the battery was 'good', disconnected the optimate and turned on the ignition.

Pump primed, then stopped. No crackling, fizzing or any other nasties.

Hmmmmm.

I set the choke and tentatively pressed the starter, and she sprang into life on half an engine crank, ticking over sweetly on no choke after a minute.

I have absolutely no idea what was going on - I haven't even touched the bike since the backfire incident yesterday morning (I hadn't taken the battery off either so nothing has been disturbed).

I'm absolutely and utterly stumped. I've read that temperature (hot/cold bike) can show up/hide faulty hall sensor wiring, but there's nothing different today to yesterday!

I'll fill it with fresh fuel and try again later and report back later.


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The report is that the bike performed flawlessly. I still have no idea what caused the problem, but I'm glad it's resolved itself!

Thanks for all the help though!


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Hi
Just found this Thread, I am currently experiencing the same problem with my RL50 GS. The symptoms and diagnostics mentioned by you, are identical to my sistuation. I have joined this blog in hopes that someone can help me get my bike running again.
 
Help KZN!

Hi, thanks for allowing me to join UkGSer.com.

I have a problem with my R1150GS/2003, which relates to bikermike1411's discription (10/03/2017), having identical symtoms to the T. However, when reading his thread, my issue has not mysteriously self corrected. I am still sitting with the same problem i.e. no spark then continuous spark, fuel pump continuously running, crackling sound coming from under the tank etc.

For more detail, refer to Bikermikes thread (10/03/2017).

Would appreciate any input/ideas from you guys.
 
KZN said:
Hi, thanks for allowing me to join UkGSer.com.

I have a problem with my R1150GS/2003, which relates to bikermike1411's discription (10/03/2017), having identical symtoms to the T. However, when reading his thread, my issue has not mysteriously self corrected. I am still sitting with the same problem i.e. no spark then continuous spark, fuel pump continuously running, crackling sound coming from under the tank etc.

For more detail, refer to Bikermikes thread (10/03/2017).

Would appreciate any input/ideas from you guys.
Click to expand...

You have all the hallmarks of a hall sensor problem.
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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