Intermittently Dead

2005 FXSTI
I suspect this might be a EFI problem.
What happens is at times the engine completely cuts out. The starter motor will turn over fine but the engine does not start. The engine is more prone to doing this when cold, when fully warmed up it has cut briefly a couple of times, one second or two, then starts again. When cold it cuts out, refuses to restart. Leave it five minutes and try again and it will probably start. Leave another ten and it starts fine.
I'd be more inclined to suspect fuel lines or an electronic fault if the same things happened when the engine was hot or cold, hence me thinking EFI.
Anyone else come across this problem?
Thanks in advance.
Ashley

Have you tried pulling a spark plug boot to see if you got any spark?

Aloha...Mike

Also check battery cnnections.(loose or dirty) Also could be bad coil

Yeh, worth checking, though if it is no spark it is something cutting power to both plugs. I'll check that next time it stops running, and run a few checks on the electrics.

Bad ground somewhere, I'd bet.

Let's vote.I say coil. Anyone else?

Bad ground.

Yea I don't see it being a coil unless its a loose wire to the coil. Any coil failure I've ever had was either a complete failure or only happened when hot and then would not start again untill it cooled down. Since the problem seems worse while cold...I'm with the bad ground club or possibly a short or loose wire somewhere.

I will give free pineapple to whoever gets it right first.......they have to pick it up locally though.

Aloha....Mike

Didn't he say it would start when cold and that when it failed he would wait a while before it would start,then only run for a short time? I still bet it's the coil. JMO. Who else is willing to take a chance?

What I get out of his words is the problem is worse when its cold. Which is why I still think its not the coil. But if it is....it wouldn't be the first time I have been wrong and it sure won't be the last.

C'mon peoples anybody else wanna cast their vote??? Free pineapple to the winner. :roflmao:

Aloha...Mike

It happens mostly when cold, or within a few minutes of starting. It has happened when fully warmed up, but only momentarily. When it next happens I will check the spark.

My hunch is a fuel or air supply problem.

But I'll check electrics as well.

Oooops, my bad. Now i understand. I got to switch my vote to Bad/loose ground wire some where. Gotta start by wiggling wires while it's running.

If you wanna check for spark,you gotta have a couple of spare plugs with you...the efi bikes won't fire unless compression is detected,no plug in hole= no compression,no spark....
Have you ever cleaned out the IAC pindle(Idle Air Control)...the IAC acts like the enrichener on carb bikes...The IAC motor sits on top of the throttle body and the pindle extends and retracts in a little hole at the 12 O'clock position in the throttle body ...

Can't he just remove a spark plug boot, stick a screwdriver in it and then hold it close to one of the cooling fins while he cranks it over? Of course a real man would just stick his finger in the boot (his tounge if he is really macho) and then crank it over :devil::roflmao:

Aloha....Mike

Well that is true.....but if he uses a screw driver and has no spark at all then its a mute point isn't it?....Respectfully...Mike