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My GS550E is stalling unpredictably.

  • Thread starter Thread starter Ira
  • Start date Start date
I

Ira

Guest
It seems like 10-15% of the time, when stopping at an intersection, my bike will stall. The revs will just drop to zero, like it's not getting fuel, unless I baby the throttle. Even then, it runs rough. It will usually start right back up and run fine after this happens.

Most of the time the bike runs predictably. The mixture screws[edit] are not dialed in perfect, and the bike idles a little high, but this is consistent. Still, stalling 10% of the times I come to a stop is unacceptable.

I strongly suspect there's something wrong with the vacuum petcock, but I want to confirm or disprove this before I drop $80 on a new one.

Any ideas?
 
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cowboyup3371 said:
Sounds like you are running lean - have you checked the intake boots and were the orings replaced?
Click to expand...

I have not replaced the o-rings, and I need to do this. The plugs do not look lean (a little dark if anything), but I haven't got the mixture screws dialed in either so this could be the case.
 
tkent02 said:
Test the petcock.
Click to expand...

the petcock works, in that fuel comes out when there is vacuum. I have transparent tygon lines, so I can see fuel in the lines when the bike is running. I'm concerned it's not getting enough to keep the bowls full. Is this possible?
 
Test it, see how much flows into a bucket or something when vacuum is aplied to the vacuum line. It doesn't sound likely to be the problem while idling, as before it has to idle you usually slow down, an neither idling or slowing down uses much fuel compared to cruising along or accelerating.

I woud guess cowboyup is on the right page, it's lean from some reason, but I'd also guess you need to do a whole bunch of things, everything from adjusting the valves to synching the carbs, probably most of the routine maintenance has not been routinely done.
 
tkent02 said:
Test it, see how much flows into a bucket or something when vacuum is aplied to the vacuum line. It doesn't sound likely to be the problem while idling, as before it has to idle you usually slow down, an neither idling or slowing down uses much fuel compared to cruising along or accelerating.

I woud guess cowboyup is on the right page, it's lean from some reason, but I'd also guess you need to do a whole bunch of things, everything from adjusting the valves to synching the carbs, probably most of the routine maintenance has not been routinely done.
Click to expand...

i adjusted the valves in the last couple months, so they are definitely in spec. the carbs are bench synced only.

the plugs are new, the coils test ok, and the timing is set, so i'm pretty sure this is a fuel/air problem.

sounds like next steps are;

- replace the o-rings on the intake boots
- do a vacuum sync
- adjust mixture screws
- anything else?
 
Whie you have the carbs off to do the O rings, I would definitely clean the carburetors.
 
Why new jets? Did you buy a "rebuild kit"? If so, put your stock jets back in, unless you have a different pipe or running pods, as those in the rebuild kits are crap based on what most have found out.
 
cowboyup3371 said:
Why new jets? Did you buy a "rebuild kit"? If so, put your stock jets back in, unless you have a different pipe or running pods, as those in the rebuild kits are crap based on what most have found out.
Click to expand...

i have a stage 3 dynojet kit and k&n pods. i understand this changes a lot of things, but i was able to tune the carbs for good response at all throttle positions. my idle was lean with the pods, so it is sized up to 45 with mikuni branded jets.
 
It would have been nice to know that stuff from the beginning so the right people could have maybe spoke up. :-k

I still recommend changing out the orings and getting a synch done but I'm clueless when it comes to jetting and pods. That's only because mine is still stock (airbox, pipes, and jets) so I'll keep watch from the sidelines.
 
sorry for the confusion! like i said, 90% of the time, the bike runs great. good throttle response, predictable idle, etc. then, out of nowhere, i'll come to a stop and it dies.

if i had to correlate it with something, i'd say it does this most right after the bike warms up. like on short, mile or so trips around town. i don't know if that has anything to do with it though, because the bike is new to me and most of my riding is around town.
 
Are you sure the throttle is closing to stop on the idle speed screw and not on throttle cable tension only? Because if the cable is stopping the throttle it won't always close to exactly the same spot, especially if the cable is old.

You have plenty of slack in the throttle cable so the throttle mechanism closes until it hits the screw? You should hear a good solid "Clack" when you close the throttle?
 
I checked the throttle stop yesterday (the cable has slack) and pulled the petcock.

The petcock seems ok, in that the vacuum valve works. I checked all of the passages with carb cleaner.

At this point, I have to imagine there's a significant air leak somewhere. A vacuum sync should confirm this, right?
 
Last night, with the bike running, I sprayed carb cleaner on the outside of each intake boot. As soon as I hit it with a good blast, the bike stalled.

My bike is clearly sucking the liquid through the boots, or through the o-ring, so it looks like I found my answer. This happened on all four boots.

The bike is also starting to stall more and run badly, so I'm leaving it in the garage until I replace everything between the carbs and engine.

I'll report back if this fixes it.
 
Sorry to be late to the party and I'm glad you've found it as that is exactly what I encountered with my 550 last year. Leaking O-rings.

Now you should obviously replace the O-rings and boots if you determine they are bad too but in a pinch, a dab of silicone sealant around the O-rings will tied you over. If the boots are cracked and you can't readily get replacements, you can "paint" the exteriors with liquid electrical tape available from most auto stores.

Now these are just stopgap measures but they can buy you a little time if needed.

Good luck and let us know when its fixed.
 
Thanks, I may try those tricks for the short term. It's looking like around $120 to get all of the stuff (boots, o-rings, and clamps) from Boulevard Suzuki.

Anyone have a better price?
 
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