Fuel Problem

[TonezEnt]

Let me give you the background.

I took all the fairings off for a repaint. While I had them all off I figure I would do a oil filter change, coolant flush, stator cover swap and spark plug change. After finishing the coolant ,oil and stator cover, I start up the bike and I notice that my fuel gauge drops to zero. I started all this with a half tank. Turned off the bike, checked for any leaks of oil and coolant. Nothing. I turn on the ignition and watch the fuel gauge go thru it's startup like normal, but sets back to zero. I start the bike and it starts fine. Shut down again, I noticed that left ram duct is missing the foam to cover it. Is that my problem? I would post pics but I keep getting an error.

 

[TonezEnt]

I should say ram air problem

 

[sixpack577]

The missing foam isn't the problem.
Did you disconnect the battery before working on it?
There is a way to reset the gen1 guages, that may or may not fix it.
I'll have to look for it, as it's been years since I worked on a gen1.

 

[TonezEnt]

The missing foam isn't the problem.
Did you disconnect the battery before working on it?
There is a way to reset the gen1 guages, that may or may not fix it.
I'll have to look for it, as it's been years since I worked on a gen1.

No I didn't disconnect the battery. Do you think I may have done this when I took apart the stator cover?

 

[TonezEnt]

As an FYI I do have a power commander 5 with a full yoshimura exhaust.

 

[dadofthree]

What error code ? You could lift the positive battery lead at the battery for a minute and see if it squares it away and you can always drop the PC but that shouldn't have anything to do with the fuel gauge. You could remove and reseat the gauge cluster connector. No way for you to mess up the sending unit. It's part of the fuel pump, and I just don't see how you messed it up.

 

[TonezEnt]

What error code ? You could lift the positive battery lead at the battery for a minute and see if it squares it away and you can always drop the PC but that shouldn't have anything to do with the fuel gauge. You could remove and reseat the gauge cluster connector. No way for you to mess up the sending unit. It's part of the fuel pump, and I just don't see how you messed it up.

I'm still unclear on how to check the error code. I'll lift the positive lead when I get home from work first. If that doesn't do it I'll remove the PC ad follow with the gauge cluster removeal. Again the bike starts and I can rev it fine without and see no issues. I'll keep you posted. But not being able to add pictures is frustrating. Did something change with the site update? I'm trying to load jpg's

 

[c10]

FYI fuel evaporates , and vents through the cap ( doubt your issue ) but if this project you did took weeks / warm n cold changes you could of lost fuel lvl . Was the Tank completely removed from the bike ??

 

[TonezEnt]

FYI fuel evaporates , and vents through the cap ( doubt your issue ) but if this project you did took weeks / warm n cold changes you could of lost fuel lvl . Was the Tank completely removed from the bike ??

No the tank has never been removed. I removed everything so far but the tank and gauge cluster.

 

[sixpack577]

I'm still unclear on how to check the error code. I'll lift the positive lead when I get home from work first. If that doesn't do it I'll remove the PC ad follow with the gauge cluster removeal. Again the bike starts and I can rev it fine without and see no issues. I'll keep you posted. But not being able to add pictures is frustrating. Did something change with the site update? I'm trying to load jpg's

Under the driver seat there is a white diagnostic plug with 4 wires in it. It may or may not have a long white cap on it.
If it has a cap, remove it. Use a wire or paperclip to jump the red/white to black/white wires in the plug.
This is safe, will not harm the bike, and is sometimes reffered to as "Dealer Mode".
You will the see the letter "C" followed by a 2 digit number displayed on the dash.
C00 means no codes are present. Any other numbers can be refferenced here.
You can ride the bike with the jumper in for random problems that come and go. That way the code will at least flash while the problem is present. The ECU does not store codes.
If you do ride with the jumper in, make sure it's in place well, and there is no bare metal from the wire exposed.
You could otherwise cause a short from the wire contacting the frame, and all sorts of other issues.
This will not likely help with your fuel guage problem, but can be very useful for other things.

 

[TonezEnt]

Under the driver seat there is a white diagnostic plug with 4 wires in it. It may or may not have a long white cap on it.
If it has a cap, remove it. Use a wire or paperclip to jump the red/white to black/white wires in the plug.
This is safe, will not harm the bike, and is sometimes reffered to as "Dealer Mode".
You will the see the letter "C" followed by a 2 digit number displayed on the dash.
C00 means no codes are present. Any other numbers can be refferenced here.
You can ride the bike with the jumper in for random problems that come and go. That way the code will at least flash while the problem is present. The ECU does not store codes.
If you do ride with the jumper in, make sure it's in place well, and there is no bare metal from the wire exposed.
You could otherwise cause a short from the wire contacting the frame, and all sorts of other issues.
This will not likely help with your fuel guage problem, but can be very useful for other things.

Is it this one? Just wanna check before I fry my ECU

 

[TonezEnt]

Confirmed that it was it via another source. So I put in a paper clip and get the code -COO.

 

[TonezEnt]

finally got the maintenance/paint done. still having the same issue. I reseated the gauge cluster connector, removed the positive terminal for a few minutes and reconnected it, problem stays. I'm thinking about draining the gas tank and putting in new gas. I'll post any different results I find. Any other ideas?

 

[nosbig]

It sounds to me as your gauge isn't receiving any information from you tank. There should be a wire coming from your fuel tank that has varying voltage depending on how much fuel is in the tank. I do not have a wiring schematic for a gen 1 but it shouldn't be hard for you to find it. I would put a meter on it and see if your getting a reading, then raise or dip the tank to see if it changes.

I would think your gauge is ok sence it is completing the test cycle when you turn on the key.

 

[TonezEnt]

It sounds to me as your gauge isn't receiving any information from you tank. There should be a wire coming from your fuel tank that has varying voltage depending on how much fuel is in the tank. I do not have a wiring schematic for a gen 1 but it shouldn't be hard for you to find it. I would put a meter on it and see if your getting a reading, then raise or dip the tank to see if it changes.

I would think your gauge is ok sence it is completing the test cycle when you turn on the key.

I have the manual, I'll take a look and get a reading.

 

[TonezEnt]

Found the problem. Here is how I figured it out. I noticed when I propped the tank maybe a 1/4 of the way up and turned the ignition, the gauge showed half a tank, which is where I started. Then I prop the tank up 1/2 way, low gas light comes on and the gauge drops to zero. So I check the 4 wire white plastic connector going from the fuel tank to the fuel gauge and notice that it came undone. Bottom line is when I propped the tank up all the way the first time I must have disconnected the plug. I've rerouted the cables so now when I raise the tank I don't lose the connection. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction.

 

[nosbig]

Glad you got it figured out, and cheap too.