Throttle hesitation when cold???

[Skrapiron]

Hey all... Noob to the world of the FZ6, but I've been around bikes for quite a long time...

I picked a 2008 with 2600 miles on it yesterday. I'm very impressed. This thing is FAST!!!! I do have a question, though.

When I start off from a dead stop, the bike accelerates ok, so long as I don't open the throttle too far. If I crack it open, it bogs down and hesitates up until about 4k rpm. After that, it takes the fuel just fine.

Any suggestions where I can look or is this normal for this engine? I'm coming from V-twin cruisers so I'm not too sure what to expect from these high revving engines...

Thanks for your help!

 

[Scorphonic]

From my own experience, this is normal. I find that my bike has its good and bad days. If when the bike is switched on for the first time in the day, and i treat it gently and with gradual acceleration the bike performs perfectly. If I start off choppy with sharp throttle movement before it heats up it will perform quite badly for the rest of the day. Its either me or the bike that does this but the FZ6 is a bit of a pain when it comes to the throttle...slipping the clutch helps to smoothen it out if it begins to bother you at slow speed.

 

[Skrapiron]

That is exactly the same problem mine has. If I'm smooth with my throttle delivery (below 4k rpm) it runs just fine. If I romp on it (quick acceleration from a stand still) it wants to bog down. Anything about 4k rpm? It runs like a man on fire... Glad to know it's not just me.... I'll just have to keep it tached up and happy, I guess... :banghead:

I LOVE this bike!!!

 

[urbanj]

It's cold, running rich and warming up. Don't worry it's completely normal. you shouldn't be snapping the throttle like that when cold anyways. just nice gentle acceleration with minimal throttle angle. Once it's warm go nuts.

 

[Chaosratt]

@urbanj
Agreed, mine's always a bit sluggish until gauge hits about 140-150ish F. After that I can usually romp on it without any bogging down. Takes about 5 min or so of gentle driving.

My rule-of-thumb is simple. Start the bike and roll it out of the garage. By the time I get the gear on and the door closed (30s-1 min) the temp is reading a value (the book says it is now OK to ride). Ride down the road and after about 2 stop lights (~1 mile) while keeping her under 4k RMP she's up to temp (140+ on warm days). On cold days like this morning it can talk almost half my ride before it gets to the normal 160-170 it likes to be at, so you have to take that into consideration too.

 

[Skrapiron]

Has anyone experimented with restricting the radiator's air-flow during cold weather riding? My wife and I ride year round (so long as the streets are clear and dry). I'm concerned about the engine not coming up to temperature fast enough during the winter... Any suggestions?

 

[SovietRobot]

The manual actually states that the engine is fully warmed up when throttle response is normal, and 2 bars are lit on the coolant temp gauge.

 

[leetaylor742]

Afternoon - first post for me - been using forum for archives and generally keeping an eye on things but not had need to post until now...

I know this is old post but I was wondering if the bike isnt at operating temp until 2 bars are lit (on S1 FZ6) then is the bike running rich the whole time before this?? Wondered as on my commute into work especially in morning it can take 10 miles or more before it goes to 2 bars and this is only if get stopped at few sets of lights - if get a good run without stopping I can go whole way to work (18 miles) without the 2nd bar appearing - bike does seem to run better when the 2nd bar is lit and mpg seems much worse if dont get bike up to temporature? (like 100 miles to a full tank running into and out of London)
I only bought the bike in winter so dont have any warm weather mileage to compare to!
sorry if this is a bit rambling!
Cheers
Lee

 

[Gilo-FZ6]

basically you are running the bike with full choke on 1 bar..the bike will not run smoothly in its warm up cycle....my car is the same (2.0 turbo)..7 mile drive to work and i cant even rev into the boost zone without it bogging and backfiring unless the temp is up.. its all about the mapping signals the ecu is sending/receiving..wait for the warmer weather ..you will feel a big difference in performance and mpg

 

[leetaylor742]

Thanks I didnt think i was starting to think i was imagining that it ran better when 2 bars showing...

So is this normal that it just wont get up to temperature at normal speeds? If i get stuck at lights or slow moving traffic it will get up to 2 bars but as soon as speed increases over 50mph it drops back down to 1 bar - If I was to go out and get on dual carriageway I dont think it would ever get up to temperature... surely this cant be right - could my thermastat be stuck open do you think?? I've changed air filter in case this was causing the bike to run rich and i think this helped a little.

I suppose the only thing i could do is to let the bike warm up for 5 mins before i leave which seems a bit excessive but if it gives me an extra 20-25 miles per tank then i suppose its worth it!

Sorry again if i'm asking obvious questions - I couldnt really find anything similar on archives

Thanks

Lee

 

[RJ2112]

Thanks I didnt think i was starting to think i was imagining that it ran better when 2 bars showing...

So is this normal that it just wont get up to temperature at normal speeds? If i get stuck at lights or slow moving traffic it will get up to 2 bars but as soon as speed increases over 50mph it drops back down to 1 bar - If I was to go out and get on dual carriageway I dont think it would ever get up to temperature... surely this cant be right - could my thermastat be stuck open do you think?? I've changed air filter in case this was causing the bike to run rich and i think this helped a little.

I suppose the only thing i could do is to let the bike warm up for 5 mins before i leave which seems a bit excessive but if it gives me an extra 20-25 miles per tank then i suppose its worth it!

Sorry again if i'm asking obvious questions - I couldnt really find anything similar on archives

Thanks

Lee

Someone else will chime in on range on a tank of fuel.... personally, I was always a bit disappointed if I couldn't get 185 miles out of a full tank of fuel before the 'low' indicator lit. I would easily get 160; if I was gentle with the throttle, the 185 could be done.

If you want good mileage, you have to avoid full throttle. Hard acceleration takes more energy than less forceful acceleration. Occasionally, you have to let the Porsche win the drag race.

 

[Chaosratt]

If you want good mileage, you have to avoid full throttle. Hard acceleration takes more energy than less forceful acceleration. Occasionally, you have to let the Porsche win the drag race.

BLASPHEMY

 

[ADVdrming]

Occasionally, you have to let the Porsche win the drag race.

Repent, Repent :spank::spank::spank:

j/k thanks for the post!

 

[Wolfman]

Hey all... Noob to the world of the FZ6, but I've been around bikes for quite a long time...

I picked a 2008 with 2600 miles on it yesterday. I'm very impressed. This thing is FAST!!!! I do have a question, though.

When I start off from a dead stop, the bike accelerates ok, so long as I don't open the throttle too far. If I crack it open, it bogs down and hesitates up until about 4k rpm. After that, it takes the fuel just fine.

Any suggestions where I can look or is this normal for this engine? I'm coming from V-twin cruisers so I'm not too sure what to expect from these high revving engines...

Thanks for your help!

I own 2 FZ6's, one did this when i bought it, the other has never done it...

Was curious to know what the difference was....turned out to be that the throttle bodies needed to be adjusted on the bike that hesitated when cold...

Once the throttle bodies were adjusted, and a new set of plugs were installed for good measure, the problem dissapeared...fuel economy was also better by about 40km a tank after syncing the throttle bodies..

Bike obviously was running rich prior to syncing of throttle bodies, hence it hesitating, too much petrol, and the bike floods when cold...

:thumbup:

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

I crank mine up and let it warm up as I put on my jacket, helmet, gloves etc. By the time I'm done (2-3 minutes?) the idle has pretty much settled down from fast, cold idle (now I live in SW Florida). I still ride it very easy the first couple of miles. The temp gauge shows its warming up, the oil should also be warmed up too before abusing it.

If yours, with warming up and initial slow speed riding doesn't let the temp come up, I'd be looking at replacing that thermostat..

Unfortunatly, the thermostat is located under the throttle bodies and isn't a quick replacement....