1988 Softail Custom

I start the motorcycle up in the morning and let it warm up. When the heads are warm I start on my trip. I get about four miles and the motorcycle stops like it is out of gas. I try to start the bike and it just cranks without firing. I turn the ignition off and wait for about five to six minutes and then I try to start it again. I will start and I can run it for the rest of the day without having any other problems. I can start and stop it as many times as I like without a problem. This same problem happened everyday for a week now. Any hints from anyone will be appreciated.

you might have a vapor lock in your gas tank try to crack the cap or buy a new one

Vapor lock may account for the condition but it would be persistent. A plugged gas cap vent would also be persitent.


You need to start by figuring which of the three needed components for an engine to run are not there.

1. Do you have spark? Good white, blue hot or yellow weak or none?

2. If you have spark, pull the aircleaner cover off and see if you have good accelerator pump squirt.

It takes three things to make an engine run air fuel and spark. Since the air part is pretty much a given, one of the other two are the problem.....

Since you make it four miles you must have fuel flow initially and, since you have spark and it runs four miles, this is why you need to determine which is missing.

A plugged or restricted fuel filter can do this but would be persistent. A hot coil, sensor plate are the same way. I am a bit baffled as to why just once...

Will it die if you just let it idle for a long period with a fan blowing on it?

How long has it been since you cleaned the towers on the coil, connectors, dropped the bowl and cleaned the seat and needle, fuel petcock and filter etc? Plug wires new?

More info and some results will help us narrow it down.

Spark Plugs and Wires are new. Removed the hose from the petcock and the fuel flow is good. Another person said the ignition sensor did the same thing to him.

Also something to note - If I start the bike and let the heads get warm and then pull out I get about three miles and the bike dies. If I let the bike warm up and let it sit there and idle until the oil comes up to about 150 (temp) and then pull out I only get about a mile and it dies.

More information

The bike will startup and run. If I let it idle in the driveway it will run. when the oil gets up to operating temp (about 150) the bike will shut off. I can crank the engine and I have the 12 volts at the coil leads when I turn on the ignition switch but the engine will just crank and will not start. I took off the air cleaner and I have gas going into the carb when I turn the throttle. I had the gas cap loose all this time also. I hooked up a spare spark plug to the spark plug cable and grounded the base to my engine. This way I could see it it had a spark when I cranked the engine. I had no spark!!! After a few minutes I tryed to start the engine again and I had spark. I moved the spark plug cable back the the regular plug and the bike ran. this problem happens every time I start the bike. Replaced items so far is spark plug cables, sprark plugs, ignition sensor.

Help

Sounds to me like an intermittant coil. I know its about the only thing you haven't replaced yet but they can be intermittant. Check the wire nuts all around the coil etc. and make sure there are no loose connections. One other thing I once saw was the ignition switch itself was intermittant. Not until I replaced that switch would it run for more than a few miles.

I took the wires of the coil and did a resistance check and it passed. I then put the coil wires back on. This whole think seems like a temperture thing. I did replace the ignition sensor. The only things that I did not replace are the coil and the ignition module.

I almost fell into replacing the ignition module routine, if that is bad usually it will always have the problem, (no start at all) not to mention it is expensive. Try just replacing the coil itself as it can be intermittant and temperature dependent, and will check good anytime you use an ohmmeter because by then it has changed temp. If still does problem after that, change the ignition switch itself. That's what it was on my sporty although it would just die while driving it after a couple miles as if you turned the key off while in 4th gear.

I can try the ignition coil. I was ruling out the ignition switch because by my book it showed the voltage flowing from the ignition switch thru the ignition circuit breaker and then to the coil. When the bike died it still had 12 volts at the coil when the ignition switch was turned on.

Ah and check that circuit breaker also for loose connections and or replace. These items are alot cheaper than the module which I don't think is your problem. Good luck.