Sunday 20 August 2023
A Perfect August Ride
Tuesday 1 February 2022
Triumph Tiger 955i Fuel Injector Cleaning
We're seeing temperatures in the low -20s these days and waves of snow passing through creating banks that are hard to see over. To quote the Penguins of Madagascar...
The roads themselves are sanded and snow covered too. We've got a major storm rolling in tonight that looks like it'll pitch another 48 hours of the white stuff at us.
At this time of year I tend to be in a mood as it's been far too long since I've leaned into any corners. Compounding the lack of riding is the tricky nature of trying to find parts for the old Triumph Bonneville in order to keep that project purring along. What parts there are pretty damned expensive too. I'll get back into it soon enough, but in the meantime I thought I'd give the new (er) Triumph's fuel injectors a cleaning.
I've been in and out of the Tiger so many times that it's second nature. The tank removal process (which is pretty complicated involving removing 4 panels and many awkward fasteners) can be done (blindfolded!) in about 10 minutes.minutes before cleaning them up with fuel cleaner. The injector nozzles are very fine, so even a small piece of gunk getting past the fuel filter could cause headaches.
Saturday 18 July 2020
Triumph 955i Engine Stalling: next steps
Looking up the issue online, intermittent stalling on a Triumph 955i engine seems to be an issue. I've replaced the idle control system and tested the vacuum tubes again (no leaks), so I don't think that's the issue. It might be a sensor that doesn't return information consistently, but there are a lot of sensors feeding the computer that controls the fuel injection, so unless the bike is showing an error, I don't want to start replacing them willy-nilly.
The bike does occasionally show errors on the Tuneboy Software that came with the bike:
July 1st it showed:
P0113 Intake air temperature sensor
P0230 fuel pump relay fault
P1231 fuel pump relay open
P0463 fuel level sensor input
P0505 Idle control system malfunction... but then they all seemed to go away and the bike was running well when I left for the long ride last weekend (over 800kms over 2 days), at least until I was riding home at the end of it when the intermittent stalling returned. It was showing this again this week:
I'm not sure that the air temperature sensor would be enough to stall out the engine, but this at least gives me a couple of things to look into: that air temp sensor and the fuel level sensor (though again, that shouldn't affect the idle).
Some advice people have given (on the internet, so take this advice with a healthy dose of skepticism) is that out of balance throttle bodies might cause the issue, so I got a Carbmate vacuum balancer from Fortnine who have their shit back together as far as filling orders go and got it to me in less than 2 days (use UPS, not Canada Post, who are still not working properly).
I balanced the throttle bodies with it, but the stalling persists. I'm now looking at the mapping for the bike in addition to keeping an eye on errors that might pop up. This video uses Easy Tune, which I haven't monkeyed with, but gives the impression that early Triumph electronic fuel injection was a bit of a mess and many dealers don't know how to resolve it:
That's a bit worrying because if I'm still stumped I was going to take the Tiger down to Inglis Cycle and have them resolve this with some factory testing, but if I'm going to pay dealer rates and get the bike back still stalling, that's not cool.
TuneECU was a free Windows software download (it's still available but not supported any more), but now it's an Android app you have to pay for (though fifteen bucks isn't unreasonable if it gives you control over your bike's ECU). Unfortunately the Tuneboy cable and software I have isn't directly compatible with it without some dark Windows driver mojo (newer windows auto-install a driver that doesn't work with the old chipset on the Tuneboy cable). Triumph uses the same FTDi FT232RL VAG-COM OBDII/USB cable as VW does, but I think I'm going to try and resolve any mapping issues with the Tuneboy since it came with the bike and works.
I think I'm going to go back and look at the fuel pump relay and the wiring for it as an intermittent fault there would starve the engine and cause stalling. Less likely are the air temperature sensor and fuel level sensor, which have been a bit whacky with the fuel gauge going from full to empty and back to full again, but I don't see how that could cause a stall. If there's gas in the tank, the engine will use it.
My order of operations is:
- fuel pump relay (which might have gotten wet at a recent cleaning, so it's on my mind)
- fuel level sensor
- air temperature sensor
If they aren't crazy expensive, I might just get all 3 new rather than paying shipping x3, which would probably cost more than the parts.
NOTES:
https://www.triumphrat.net/threads/955i-engine-stalls-need-help.16567/
"throttle slides were out of balance"
https://fortnine.ca/en/tecmate-carbmate-synchronizer-ts-110
fuel injector/carb syncronizer
https://en.vindecoder.pl/L4PLUMC0662000046
vin looker upper if you're wanting to confirm year and make
https://tuneecu.net/TuneECU_En/install1.html
'free' ECU tuning options for Triumphs - early FI Triumphs seem to have a number of issues
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvHqNeClz2U
video guide to TuneECU (I can't stand online how-to videos, I prefer text. Waiting for 30 second intros each time drives me around the bend, but maybe you like that
https://www.ftdichip.com/Drivers/D2XX.htm
chip drivers for FTDI cables
https://www.r3owners.net/threads/tuneecu-with-tuneboy-cable.7856/
Using a Tuneboy cable with TuneECU
https://www.triumphrat.net/threads/cant-get-tune-ecu-app-to-connect-ugh.962476/
connections issue with TuneECU (I found Tuneboy pretty straight forward, but it's a more expensive option that I'm using only because it came with the bike)
https://www.bikebandit.com/oem-parts/2003-triumph-tiger-955i/o/m121594#sch565841
Parts diagram for a 2003 Triumph Tiger 955i focusing on the EFI relay (it's under the seat) Triumph RELAY, EFI Part # T2502109
Wednesday 27 May 2020
Finding Parts & Service in a Pandemic
They ain't kidding, but setting up online ordering without actually setting up online ordering isn't great business. |
Amazon was also a mess early on in this with orders sometimes taking up to three weeks to arrive. They seemed to improve recently when I actually got an order the same week I made it, but they still aren't anything like as efficient as they once were. I just ordered some spark plugs for the Triumph on Amazon (once you've got the tank off you want to do all the servicing because it's a bit of a faff to get in there). Canadian Tire didn't have them or won't let me in to find them. That Amazon order sat there unresponsive for 3 days before it shifted to 'shipping', but in the 24 hours since there are no shipping updates and the shipment is still untrackable.
Meanwhile, the rear brake pads I thought I'd put in the Fireblade have disappeared into a Francophone ether. Fortnine is usually prompt and transparent with their deliveries, but this time around it took them over a week to get the bits out of their warehouse and the order has been in transit in an apparently very broken Canada Post for over three weeks. I contacted Fortnine to find out if things have improved. Their warehouse is now down to a 3-4 day turnover from the eight days I experienced, and Erin, who promptly replied to my inquiry over the weekend, suggested not selecting Canada Post (they have courier options) since they are still dysfunctional. Unfortunately, Fortnine didn't have any of the tires I was looking for, so they're trying to limp forward with a half empty, slow moving warehouse and a delivery system that doesn't.
So, trying to get parts during this slow-burn pandemic sucks right? Not always! The other day the trusty Triumph Tiger actually stalled on me at a light. I looked over every I've done on it (which is a lot) and realized I've never done the fuel filter, and I've put over 25k on it since I've had it. If the Tiger is idling low and stalling on idle fuel starvation from a way-past-due fuel filter is a likely culprit. But oh no, it's a pandemic, I'll never find parts!
The trickiest part was actually finding the fuel filter. After searching around fuel lines under the tank I ended up looking in the Haynes manual only to discover that the fuel filter on a 955i Tiger is *in* the fuel tank. This fully submerged fuel filter sits behind a panel on the side of the gas tank.
Finding a fuel filter for a 17 year old European motorcycle during a pandemic should have been a nightmare, but it turned out to be the easiest thing I've done parts wise, maybe ever.
Inglis Cycle in London is 140kms away, but they're still my local Triumph dealer, so I fired them an email asking if they had what I was looking for. For over ten years from the late '90s to the mid zeroes Triumph used the 955i engine in the majority of their models, and they all used the submerged fuel filter in the gas tank, so they aren't uncommon.
Within a couple of hours Ken at Inglis had emailed me back. After removing the filter assembly from the tank I discovered a pretty beaten up gasket with multiple rips, so I asked if they could add that in with the filter. Ken had both the filter and gasket in stock and said he could ship it out to me for $15. Considering it's a 280km round trip that would have taken me most of a day, fifteen bucks didn't seem bad. I thought that meant postal service and a week long wait. The box showed up the next morning via a courier. If you're looking for quick, capable service during a pandemic, Inglis Cycle has their act together.
So the fancy gasket and new filter all went in flawlessly within 24 hours of ordering the parts, but I'm still stuck without a bike because I can't seem to find anyone to safety the Honda and the spark-plugs I'd ordered from Amazon two days before I even began emailing Inglis are still in the ether. The moral of this is I should have just ordered the spark plugs from them too and cancelled Amazon and their inconsistent service. The other lesson learned is that once you find dependable service during a social distancing slow down, make sure you reward it with your spending power.
The trusty Tiger is in pieces instead of putting on miles thanks to Amazon's hit and miss service. |
things, so when you find a functional motorcycle parts supplier make a note of it and use them as much as you can. The days of picking the lowest price from a group of competing companies are not these days. As I write this a Roof Helmet is arriving from The Netherlands. I ordered it only 4 days ago from Chromeburner. Like Inglis, Chromeburner seems to have adapted to this crisis well.
UPDATE II: I watched the Chromeburner order leave The Netherlands within a day on FedEx, pass through Memphis over the weekend and arrive in Ontario Sunday night. Monday morning the driver from the Cambridge, ON managed to screw up the delivery (saying it was delivered when it wasn't), and I'm now four phone calls in trying to sort it out. FedEx looks like they're working well everywhere except in Ontario.
UPDATE III: The Fortnine order from May 6th is now almost a month old. My rear brake pads landed in Stony Creek 6 days ago and haven't moved since. Quebec might as well be on the moon.
The moral of all this? Ordering parts seldom works like normal these days. Few places are able to reorganize themselves to provide dependable logistics and most delivery companies seem to be struggling with even simple delivery options.
Unfortunately, I'm working with two old bikes that need parts, so I'll be leaping into this breach once again, or I can't ride. The good news is that if the Triumph needs parts, I've got the most capable parts contact (Inglis Cycle) with the best delivery system (I think they used UPS, but I can't remember clearly).
I'm trying to figure out how to get tires for the 'Blade now. Revco actually replied with an honest and detailed response when I asked about how delayed things would be (instead of 2-3 days expect it to take a week). Two Wheel Motorsport and West End Cycle have both been radio silent for several days. Trying to find parts during this social distancing slow down has two downsides: some companies can't get their acts together and find a way to proceed effectively, and some delivery companies are in the same boat. When you find a dependable one, make a note of them. I think Revco's about to get a three hundred dollar tire order.
Wednesday 19 February 2020
Mid-Winter Motorcycle Maintenance: Triumph Tiger Front Brakes
Monday 2 January 2017
Tiger Winter Maintenance Notes
These are winter maintenance notes for me, but others might find them handy...
Rims: Front: 36 spoke alloy rim 19 x 2.5" Rear: 40 spoke alloy rim 17 x 4.25"
2005 Tiger: 14 spoke cast alloy: same size (is this findable? Yes it is! Not rears though)
Tires: Front: 110/80-19 Rear: 150/70-17
Coolant flush. 2.8l of coolant (50% distilled water 50% corrosion inhibited ethylene glycol)
- cool engine
- remove fuel tank
- remove pressure cap-
- unscrew bleed hole bolt (thermostat housing)
- remove reservoir cap
- container under engine
- unscrew drain plug (left side of engine) & drain (keep the old washer for flushing)
- remove lower coolant hose and drain
- flush with tap water
- reinstall old washer & plug & lower coolant hose and fill with water & aluminum friendly rad flush
- reinstall drain plug (25Nm) rad cap and bleed hole bolt (7Nm)
- put fuel tank back on
- run engine to warm (10 mins) then let cool
- re-drain
- refill with plain water, repeat running, cool and redrain
- use a new drain plug washer and torque to 25Nm
- with everything but the bleed bolt installed slowly fill with coolant
- fill reservoir to MAX and cap everything and install bleed bolt (7Nm)
- run 3-4 mins, rev to 4-6k a few times to open it up, check rad and reservoir levels
Spark Plugs: NGK DPR8EA-9 0.8 to 0.9 gap 20Nm (under gas tank, like everything else)
Fork oil change: Kayaba G10 or equivalent 107 mm from top of tube with fork spring removed and leg fully compressed. Larger riders (like me!) might want 15 weight oil.
Tiger oil change intervals. Tiger fork oil.
Fork oil viscosity - More Tiger fork oil info.
Capacity: 720cc/ml oil level: 107mm (from top of tube with spring removed and compressed leg)
Removal of forks (with body work & front wheel removed)
- one at a time and with all gubbins removed from fork
- loosen fork clamp bolts
- loosen top fork bolt while it's still on the bike (hard to do when it's off)
- note alignment of fork before removing it
- loosen lower clamp bolts, it should slide loose out the bottom
top fork bolt: 30Nm
clamp bolts top yoke: 20Nm
Handlebar holder clamp bolts: 26Nm
Brake fluid flush DOT 4
Chassis lubricant (swing arm, stearing head, levers & pedals): Mobile Grease HP 222 or lithium based multi purpose grease.
Tuesday 20 September 2016
A Quick Motorcycle Chain Switch
The tool I got last time was quick to set up. The blue 500 size chain pin pusher slotted right in out of the handle where it had been sitting since my last chain change on the Ninja over two years ago.
The Tiger chain is a 535 sized chain (wider than the Ninja's, but the same pitch length between the links - the Ninja was a 520 chain). With the pin pusher piece in place I tightened the outer bolt with a 10mm ratchet and it easily pushed the pins out of the old master link with only mild force on a small ratchet.
With the old chain removed I spent some time cleaning up the sprockets, which were in great condition. The front sprocket was packed with years of gum from chain lube and it took a while to get it all out, first with a screwdriver and afterwards wiping it up with some WD40. With it all cleaned off it looked like a bit of rust had found its way onto the front sprocket.
The rear sprocket was only covered in chain oil remnants and cleaning it up was easily done.
If you're not yahooing around and yanking on your chain like a madman all the time sprockets tend to last, especially big, beefy 535 wide ones; this bike has only been owned by gentlemen. I might swap out the rear 46 tooth sprocket for a 47 tooth one to lower the revs slightly on the next chain, but that's years down the road, and with the sprockets in good shape, it seemed silly to do a full switch now.
A master link came with the chain which is a bit off-putting because Fortnine immediately filled the screen with master links after I purchased the chain, which I took to mean I needed one. I guess I'll hang on to it, but if the chain I'm buying comes with it letting me know seems like the polite thing to do rather than encouraging an upsell.
The master link that came with the chain had an interesting process for installation. I'm told this is quite common on bicycles now. The master link pins have a threaded piece on the end of them. You thread the long pins on the chain and then alternate tighten the bolts until they won't go any further.
This snugs the outer piece of the master link onto the pins. When you're done you back off the nuts a few turns and then break them off with a pair of pliers. It worked well.
A chain so new it's still covered in the wax it was packaged in to stop rust. |
This time round I think the actual chain removal and installation took about 40 minutes moving slowly and deliberately. The cleanup of the front sprocket was what took the most time, though it probably did a lot to quiet the new chain (not running through a tunnel of goop on each revolution has to be better).
While I had the tools out I finished the counteract balancing beads install I started earlier in the week by doing the back tire as well. With beads now in the front and rear tires vibrations through the handlebars are gone and the whole bike is rattle free at speed. I never really got to try them out on the Concours, but what little I did seemed to work, and seeing as the beads are cheaper than taking in tires to get balanced anyway, why not? I'm glad I did.
The Tiger is now as arrow straight and smooth as it can be. It was a joy to ride it home as the sun set on Sunday evening.
Saturday 13 August 2016
To One Thousand Islands
This meant, for the first time, I had a support vehicle! The panniers and top-box all went in the back of the car and I got to ride light and solo. It also meant I had a vehicle that could take pictures of me riding.
About 460kms across Southern Ontario. |
We dodged around the GTA, not trusting the crumbling infrastructure, overcrowded roads and distracted yet aggressive drivers. Traffic was light and moving well north of the city on a summer, Saturday morning. We stopped briefly in Schomberg at Main Street Powersports for a quick stretch and look around what may be one of the most eclectic motorcycle shops in Ontario before pushing on into the heat. Bypassing Newmarket, we found mostly empty roads as we wound our way down to Uxbridge where we stopped for a second breakfast/early lunch at Urban Pantry (having a foodie and professional researcher driving your support vehicle has big benefits!).
Every time I got off the bike it was that much hotter suiting up again. It was just past noon when we finished lunch and the air temperature was in the mid-thirties with humidity pushing it well into the forties. It was just bearable in motion so we quickly got moving. Pushing down to the 401 meant more traffic, but once on the highway we made quick time and the hot wind was better than stagnant air at traffic lights.
My support vehicle pulled off at Port Hope where we discovered a lovely, old downtown during a hydration stop. I thought it would be nice to take the old King's Highway (Lakeshore Road) along to Prince Edward County where we were going to check out some wineries and Sandbanks Provincial Park. At first this seemed like a bad idea as we were constantly stopped at traffic lights through never ending box store/strip malls in Coburg, but soon enough we left the last remnants of the GTA behind and found ourselves on a winding old highway that kept Lake Ontario in sight to our right.
Crossing the Murray Canal Bridge, we entered Prince Edward County, which immediately impresses with a relaxed island vibe. Following wine and arts tour signs we meandered across the island enjoying light traffic and a stop at Sandbanks Winery, which not only had some wines on hand that you can't get through retail, but also appeared to be where all the pretty girls go to drink on a Saturday. The bachelorette party looked to be well along at two in the afternoon. They jumped into a shuttle and were driven to the next winery, which was about five hundred feet down the road. They must have looked like a train wreck the next morning.
We rode into the afternoon, stopping at The Duke of Wellington Pub for a much needed cool down and hydration. The view off the deck into the harbour was lovely, as was being out of the relentless sun for a while.
It was a short ride to Sandbanks Park, but getting in was tricky. After waiting in line for ten minutes I pulled up with the car and said I'd just park in the same spot as the car since were all here as a group, but the kid at the gate didn't know what to do about that and spent ten minutes calling people to ask what he should do... while I stood there on the bike on 50°C tarmac. He finally told us we had to pay two full vehicle admissions. It's things like this that make motorcycling in Ontario that much harder than it needs to be. We're not the same as cars or the massive SUVs most people like to drive around in, we don't require the same space or resources, but rather than honour that Ontario seems to do everything it can to ignore it.
The park itself was nice and the dunes that make it famous looked like something out of the Caribbean. We stuck around for a couple of hours and even went for a swim to cool off. If you walk down the beach a bit the crowds let up and it's possible to find some quiet space to relax.
Back on the road with sand in my everywhere and sweating freely, I was starting to feel this ride. Into the lengthening shadows we went, pushing across the length of Prince Edward County toward Kingston. I felt like I was in a sandwich press, the setting sun and the tarmac both pressing in the heat.
A welcome break came at the Glenora Ferry, which takes you from Prince Edward back to the mainland for free and runs every fifteen minutes in the summer. It's only a ten minute crossing, but it's a pretty one with beautiful views up and down the straights.
The line up was a welcome fifteen minute break from the saddle that gave me time to change into some cooler jeans. Once on the ferry you can wander around and see the sights. Before you know it you're firing up the bike ready to go again. If you have to get to Kingston from Prince Edward County in the summer, go the Glenora way!
The temperature finally began to abate as I rode away from the ferry. Shadows got even longer and the bugs began to thwack off my helmet. We dodged and weaved across southern Lennox County, eventually finding our way onto the 401 just outside of Kingston.
A stop for gas had the Tiger using 19.7 litres to travel 412kms. That's 4.78l/100kms or 49.2 miles per gallon on everything from urban stop and go to fast highway riding. Considering it's expected to get about 40mpg, I'm really happy with those numbers.
It might have been dehydration and heat stroke, but the final ride into the 1000 Islands was pretty magical! |
Tree shade just outside of Newmarket |
Downtown Port Hope, lovely! |
Next to Lake Ontario in Sandbanks Provincial Park, where bikes pay the same parking costs as six thousand pound SUVs. |
Making long shadows as the sun sets in Lennox County. |