Sounds like the fuel pump....

Whipping up the road yesterday running in 4th at around 100km when my Venture stalled out, acting like it was out of gas, still had a 1/4 tank, pulled clutch in while coasting dropping thru 80km, released clutch and she fired back up like nothing had happened, ran perfect the next hour home, similar event last week.

Carbs were synced last month with fresh plugs for good measure, bike is just shy of 100,000km, sounds like my pump might be on it’s last legs.

Any thoughts?

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Probably...

If it was the fuel pump, the engine wouldn't have died in an instant. It would sputter a bit first. The ignition switch on these bikes have given problems too. Or it could be anything in the ignition circuit that failed intermittently.

Yes it does my points burn up about every 30000 miles now I bought a facet fuel pump like Bongobobny did I like the facet pump it's solid state. also put in the ignition bypass

If it was the fuel pump, the engine wouldn't have died in an instant. It would sputter a bit first. The ignition switch on these bikes have given problems too. Or it could be anything in the ignition circuit that failed intermittently.

It didn’t die in an instant it sputtered, lost power than stalled, when it started to stumble I gave her some throttle then she stalled, I was moving at highway speeds so pulled in the clutch looking for a safe spot to pull over, let the clutch out for giggles and she started purring like a kitten again.

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Sounds like a fuel filter to me. They can act erratic like that. Pretty cheap and part of maintenance anyway.

Sounds like a fuel filter to me. They can act erratic like that. Pretty cheap and part of maintenance anyway.

Might be, but it was done not too long ago, dropped it off at the shop last night, they are leaning towards a fuel issue as common between both instances was speed and gas level, over 100km/h and about 1/4 tank of gas, or about 20k before having to switch to reserve.

Will see what they have to say later this afternoon.

Well got the bike back, they could not find any issues, filter looked good but they changed it anyway, petcock was fine, screen clear, good pressure from pump and they didn’t seem to find any issues in the ignition side, with a Yamaha pump being in the neighbourhood of $450 not too keen on changing it just to check. Mechanic was unable to recreate the issue but finds it odd that both failures happened at the same fuel tank level, cap is venting properly as well, cleared tank of debris but he said it was a normal amount for a bike of my mileage and age.

Another 300km and no issues, I have CAA so I guess I will just enjoy the ride until it happens again.

I will look into the ignition bypass, the stall felt more fuel related than electrical but can’t hurt, seems like a few have had the ignition issue.

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Dave,

Open the back of the fuel pump yourself. Remove the right side panel under the seat and it will be staring you in the face. Black cover with a screw holding it on.

Remove this black cover and look closely at the points at the back of the pump. If the pump is failing, this is what is usually the problem.

If there is pitting/burned areas on the contacts, you can replace them for about $30ish. Search VR for the source.

There are also pictures on here of what the contacts should look like and how to get to them.

Look at this thread: https://www.venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?87556-fuel-pump&highlight=fuel%20pump

RR

Dave,

 

Open the back of the fuel pump yourself. Remove the right side panel under the seat and it will be staring you in the face. Black cover with a screw holding it on.

 

Remove this black cover and look closely at the points at the back of the pump. If the pump is failing, this is what is usually the problem.

 

If there is pitting/burned areas on the contacts, you can replace them for about $30ish. Search VR for the source.

 

 

RR

I will take a look at them tomorrow, this is the strangest thing, had the third failure yesterday and just like the first 2, at highway speed and about 20km before having to switch to reserve, can't for the life of me figure out why the failure only happens then, and runs like a top after it is restarted, if I keep the tank level higher than that no issue. Does appear to be pump, when it started to sputter I pulled in the clutch and hit the kill switch, coasting to the shoulder, it was safe at the time, highway was almost devoid of all traffic, once safely stopped attempted to start with no sound from the pump at all and no start, after fourth or fifth attempt the pump fired up with a good dozen clicks then started, so the bowls were empty.

I will take a look at them tomorrow, this is the strangest thing, had the third failure yesterday and just like the first 2, at highway speed and about 20km before having to switch to reserve, can't for the life of me figure out why the failure only happens then, and runs like a top after it is restarted, if I keep the tank level higher than that no issue. Does appear to be pump, when it started to sputter I pulled in the clutch and hit the kill switch, coasting to the shoulder, it was safe at the time, highway was almost devoid of all traffic, once safely stopped attempted to start with no sound from the pump at all and no start, after fourth or fifth attempt the pump fired up with a good dozen clicks then started, so the bowls were empty.

Best of luck Dave getting to the issue that is causing this to happen.

Does switching to reserve solve the issue? you say it happens 20Km (12 miles) before switching to reserve. In my experience there are alot of factors that determine the total number of km or miles you get from full until you hit reserve. In my experience on tbe Tour Deluxe +/- 12 miles of total miles from full to reserve is normal.On Edit your latest posts came while typing this one.

Well, points look fine, I am at a loss, Mechanic wants to dive deeper into this issue, only thing he is apt to get deeper into is my wallet.

Everything points to fuel pump except the fact that it fails around the 1/4 tank mark, thinking pressure issue in the tank but mechanic says he verify cap venting.

It was in the shop for carb sync and plugs, and since then it has failed at the 1/4 mark on 3 tanks of gas, never did this before the carb sync, mechanic says coincidence.

Here is a question for people that know more about the fuel pump then I do, the pump will shut off when it reaches the appropriate back pressure, what if it runs dry? will it shut off if there is no incoming gas or does it just keep pumping away?

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You didn't say if you switch to reserve when it happens? I've seen some of these bikes where you actually have to switch to reserve before the light comes on. It happened on my '99 and my '05. I always suspected that it was because I had the leveling kit on it. With the rear raised higher, I suspect that it threw off the level of fuel in the gas tank as related to the reserve tube. If so, it would be the same scenario if you lowered the front.

The other thing is the actual fuel tube. Did your dealer actually pull the petcock? Most bikes either have a single tube that is divided into regular and reserve levels or two tubes with the reserve tube being shorter. If there is some sediment in the bottom of the tank, it could be blocking the reserve tube. I know it starts running again but I've had fuel filters that were plugged and acted the same way. Once it started sucking gas through the filter, it would soften up enough to let gas pass and it would run.

Just thinking out loud. Could be none of those things.

Just to verify the tank venting, when it does it the next time, open the gas cap and see if there is a vacuum on it, if there is a sucking sound.

I am on the same line as Don with the fuel level. I have to switch to reserve at about 1/4 tank and the fuel light never comes on first.

You didn't say if you switch to reserve when it happens? I've seen some of these bikes where you actually have to switch to reserve before the light comes on. It happened on my '99 and my '05. I always suspected that it was because I had the leveling kit on it. With the rear raised higher, I suspect that it threw off the level of fuel in the gas tank as related to the reserve tube. If so, it would be the same scenario if you lowered the front.

 

The other thing is the actual fuel tube. Did your dealer actually pull the petcock? Most bikes either have a single tube that is divided into regular and reserve levels or two tubes with the reserve tube being shorter. If there is some sediment in the bottom of the tank, it could be blocking the reserve tube. I know it starts running again but I've had fuel filters that were plugged and acted the same way. Once it started sucking gas through the filter, it would soften up enough to let gas pass and it would run.

 

Just thinking out loud. Could be none of those things.

Every instance has happened before I switched to reserve and in all 3 cases the bike restarted and ran flawlessly, roughly 20km or so later gas light was on and then switched to reserve.

This tank of gas I am going to pop the cap once or twice and see if I make it past the 1/4 tank issue, if that fails I guess maybe I will try leaving it on reserve for the next tank.

For the past couple of years, well since I bought the bike, switching to reserve and the low gas light have been fairly consistent, once the light comes on and the gauge starts to count up I generally have anywhere between 10km and 15km before I absolutely have to switch to reserve, after switching I can usually get another 50km without issue.

Mechanic also pulled the tank, removed debris, checked or replaced screen and filter.

Well, that description pretty much disqualifies my theory. Sorry.

I always run on reserve

Well, that description pretty much disqualifies my theory. Sorry.

Hehe...no worries, it is a head scratcher, I am still leaning towards some kind of tank pressure / vent issue, hard to explain how the failure is at roughly the same fuel level all 3 times.

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Dave when the bike starts to sputter, do you switch to reserve before the bike stalls? Mine does the same as you are saying but I switch to reserve then head for a gas station.

Dave when the bike starts to sputter, do you switch to reserve before the bike stalls? Mine does the same as you are saying but I switch to reserve then head for a gas station.

No I do not as at the point it sputters I know I still have a good gallon and a half of gas left, once it restarts I can go a good 10 - 20 kms before having to switch to reserve and can easily go another 50km before running her bone dry.

Attempting an experiment with the gas cap on this tank and if that doesn’t work I will just set it to reserve for the entire next tank and see what effect that has.

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Whenever I have quirky issues that drives me nuts, I always disconnect the battery and let sit an hour, reconnect. Won't hurt anything, and you never know what quirky electrical think could possibly be going on. Maybe when gas gauge hits final bar it shorts and kills engine?? I doubt it is a venting issue, but will be interested in the result of running whole tank on reserve.

Whenever I have quirky issues that drives me nuts, I always disconnect the battery and let sit an hour, reconnect. Won't hurt anything, and you never know what quirky electrical think could possibly be going on. Maybe when gas gauge hits final bar it shorts and kills engine?? I doubt it is a venting issue, but will be interested in the result of running whole tank on reserve.

Well I have the tank off anyhow, figure disconnecting the battery at this point couldn't hurt since nothing else seems to be working.

Pulled the tank to check the vent hose of the tank to make sure it is not pinched or plugged, hose is clear I can pass air thru it as well as the actual inlet on the tank, hose attached some kind of check valve, not sure where it goes after that. Since I am still stumped I guess I will put her back together and go out for a decent ride and see if I have the issue again at the 1/4 mark, check tank for vacuum at the point if I do, is there any other way to check the gas cap is venting properly?

Shame I didn't have a cheap spare cap hanging around to try, I imagine these keyed locking caps are a little pricey especially to get it keyed like the bike.

If all else fails will run the next tank full with it set on reserve the whole time and see what happens.

If I scratch my head much longer over this issue I am going to start losing my hair. lol

Dave I think you are beating yourself up over nothing. Like I said before mine does the same thing . I run it till it sputters then turn to reserve and ride another 20-25 miles to get gas.