fuel problem??

[Goombah]

Well OK all . Thanks for the advice on not using lots of air to blow the gremlin out of my gas cap. I will be a little more gentle on them. Really though, thanks to everyone for the tips. Now got to think of someone I know that smokes a pip !   Goombah.

[CDNRatMan]

  check the forum store for some really cool Gremlin bells....and they do work

[DriftinGirl]

Yep - had a blocked vent. Blew it out with narrow tube and lung power. Running like a charm...hmmm a gremlin charm may be needed. 

[chief]

I'd check and make sure the tank vents are all clear before messing with the cap. Don't take apart the cap unless you know what you are doing. There is some info on the web site. http://www.vulcandrifterriders.com/gascap.htmlhttp://www.vulcandrifterriders.com/gascap.html

Here's some info from the web site:

On the Drifter 800, there has been reported problems of the bike sputtering and behaving as though it were running low on fuel despite having full tanks. The situation could be either overfilling the tank resulting in vent blockage and vapor lock. Or a blockage of the gas cap/tank venting system. You can verify vapor lock by stopping and opening the tank when the bike starts sputtering. If the bike's engine returns to normal, you know you have a blockage. Ensure you don't overfill the bike. Level should be below the neck spout. You can also blow out the gas cap vents, using a straw. Sometimes water, fuel or something solid will obstruct the vent.

[CDNRatMan]

compressed air might just be too strong and hurt something in the  system. I just used a really thin pipe cleaner and ran it  in and out a few times.....

[Troll]

I've had my cap apart, trying to get the lock cylinder out to get it re-keyed, but that didn't happen. There is a thin gasket sealing the cap valve body to the cover, that could be damaged if you put too much pressure on the cap, and then you will have a fuel leak if the tank is full. I know this to be true, you don't have to know how I know...The cap on my "W" was altogether different, having an actual pressure/vacuum valve, which I removed with no ill effects.

[Goombah]

any body see a problem with blowing into the cap vent with my compressor? forced air going to hurt valve or any thing of that nature.Thought I would give it a good blast of air,see if it cleans out the Gremlins and solves the running out of fuel problem.  Goombah.

[Goombah]

That was exactly what I was thinking.  It's the Gremlins again. Bored and looking to totally screw up my entire life as I know it. Doh !

[CDNRatMan]

Maybe mud daubers are setting up shop in the ends of the vent hose.... worth looking into

perhaps you all need gremlin bells to keep things cleaned out......

[49Reo]

Maybe mud daubers are setting up shop in the ends of the vent hose.... worth looking into.

[Goombah]

How crazy !  I just had the same thing happen to me a few days ago. I was not riding very fast though,so I'm not sure there is a connection with speed. I was on 2 lane,running about 60 I guess. I reached down and turned the petcock and started right up again.Only went about a mile,and did it again. Ended up doing it 4 times in the 5 mi. I had left to ride home. I have not riden it since,and wasn't sure where to start looking for the problem.I figured probably the filter or petcock. I don't ride very much any more either,so thought perhaps my gas was getting a bit too old. I will take a look at my cap. I was wondering where the filter was as well,so now I have that info as well,thanks. The idea of breaking down wasn't much fun. Logan has never left me sitting on the shoulder before,and I didn't care for it much.

[chief]

Thank you forum!!! My daughter had my Drifter out for a little trip today and lo and behold it just "died" while she was on the Trans -Canada (read - going fast). Thanks to this thread I told her to try opening the gas tank cover, close it, then try starting up again. She did and it worked perfectly....arrived back at the house an hour later all smiles and impressed with how smart Momma was. Let her brag me up for awhile then confessed I had read it here.

I think we may become a two drifter house....she seems to be leaving her Harley at home if Mom will let her take the Drifter. 

I think that proves you have a vent problem... you need to look into that!

[49Reo]

 

[DriftinGirl]

Thank you forum!!! My daughter had my Drifter out for a little trip today and lo and behold it just "died" while she was on the Trans -Canada (read - going fast). Thanks to this thread I told her to try opening the gas tank cover, close it, then try starting up again. She did and it worked perfectly....arrived back at the house an hour later all smiles and impressed with how smart Momma was. Let her brag me up for awhile then confessed I had read it here.

I think we may become a two drifter house....she seems to be leaving her Harley at home if Mom will let her take the Drifter. 

[chief]

That reminds me, on hot days, I hear a hissing noise @ the cap.  Seems like I'm more likely to hear it with a full tank.  I never thought about it, but perhaps that's another sign the cap isn't venting.

I'll have to check out the vent and lines.   ....or ride under 70MPH....

My 1500 has always "hissed" when the tank is almost full and the weather is hot. That's the pressure relief "valve" in the cap. If you open the cap, it relieves the pressure and the hiss stops for a bit. I've never had a bit of a problem with my fuel system however.

Opening the cap should relieve any venting problem... temporarily as well. That would indicate a problem with venting.

[John Hopkins]

I agree with those who said the tank vent needs looking at.

John.

[greenbarn]

That reminds me, on hot days, I hear a hissing noise @ the cap.  Seems like I'm more likely to hear it with a full tank.  I never thought about it, but perhaps that's another sign the cap isn't venting.

I'll have to check out the vent and lines.   ....or ride under 70MPH....

[CDNRatMan]

 ok makes me remember that I did some riding last summer after I bought the bike and never noticed anything about the tank or fuel cap. However over the winter, I did a lot of cleaning and messing about with the bike and I did clean the vent and around the fuel cap. This year on hot days and such I can hear the tank venting, which I never heard last year. So perhaps the vent is not allowing air in to let the fuel flow.

[Troll]

Check the vent hose and the vent in the cap. I had my W-650 do that to me once. The vent hose was kinked, and the vacuum in the tank was enough to keep the fuel from flowing. The cap has an interesting pressure/vent system in it for emission purposes, and they can cause problems.

[DKtime]

This exact thing happened to my wife on our way to Daytona earlier this year!!!
We normally don't ride the interstates but time constraints forced us to, in order to get where we wanted to be when we wanted to be there.
We were doing high seventies to low eighties for 77 miles, then her bike did just as you described. We stopped an refueled and it held less than 2 gallons. I thought as others posted trash got caught in the fuel line or the petcock screen got clogged ect. ect.
We decided to push on, the bike ran fine in the petcock run position for around 70 miles then it happened again, she switched to 'res' and again we stopped to refuel. When I opened the fuel cap there was a noticeable vac. pulled on the tank.

My theory is that the fuel cap vent cant supply air as fast as the fuel being used at those speeds, and turning the petcock past prime relieves enough vacuum to allow the fuel to flow again.

Just my theory, not a definitive answer....

[waltervl]

Thus the air vent in the fuel cap work? When there is a vacuum in the tank this could happen perhaps?

[49Reo]

  The muffin is in the mail....

[greenbarn]

just curious now, what do you normally ride at speed wise on both main or 4 lane  and 2 lane roads.

I came back from my sister's and it is a 5 hour ride, all 2 lane highway,  and I was pretty steady at 65 to 69 mph till the last 2 hours when the route becomes a major 2 lane highway and there I was running along at 68 to 72 mph. I never had any issues with the problem you are talking about. I have noticed a huge difference between using 90+ octane fuel and the 87 octane fuel, seem to get a lot more miles from the 91+ and so use that.

When I first bought my bike it seemed to run out of fuel faster then I thought it should so like 49 said I took the petcock apart and cleaned it and it was a bit gummed up and so cleaned it and cleaned the screen in there .

if he sends you some Saskatoon Muffins that might help

I usually ride 60 or so if I'm on a leisurely ride, or many times cruise at 65-70.  This is probably the first time I've been cruising at a steady 70-75 for that long of a time.

There is no way I was out of gas - I only put 1.5 gallons in.

And I second the muffin idea.  I think I'd feel a lot better if I could try one of those....

[greenbarn]

No problems once I filled up - put it back on "on" (regular, non-reserve position) no issues.

And I had the tank off and cleaned it to a pristine condition over the winter, and switched the valve with a new one - the screen is on the valve, so it's new too.  No trash in the tank.

[CDNRatMan]

 just curious now, what do you normally ride at speed wise on both main or 4 lane  and 2 lane roads.

I came back from my sister's and it is a 5 hour ride, all 2 lane highway,  and I was pretty steady at 65 to 69 mph till the last 2 hours when the route becomes a major 2 lane highway and there I was running along at 68 to 72 mph. I never had any issues with the problem you are talking about. I have noticed a huge difference between using 90+ octane fuel and the 87 octane fuel, seem to get a lot more miles from the 91+ and so use that.

When I first bought my bike it seemed to run out of fuel faster then I thought it should so like 49 said I took the petcock apart and cleaned it and it was a bit gummed up and so cleaned it and cleaned the screen in there .

if he sends you some Saskatoon Muffins that might help