New to the forum - Radiator fan replaced with Spal, possible fuel pump issue

[jonnyTHUNDERmaker]

Ok Gents,
I finally had some time to get the bike back on the road. First the good news.
I tracked some fuel line down locally and got the fuel tank all buttoned up.

New rubber fuel pump damper, new fuel pump filter, and new hoses.


Then I unwrapped my new Spal 6.5" fan which was packaged nicely.


The Spal fan lined up perfectly with the two mounting holes on the bottom. On the top the hole is about an inch off so I fashioned a bracket for it. After all that work when trying to install it I realized the fan housing and the bracket would barely hit the frame (2-3mm).  :hmm:

So after some more looking and thinking I removed a small section of the top of the fan housing with a dremel and a part of the top mount. The mount presses up against the frame so there was no need to bolt it on anyways and the fan fit nicely in place.



Sorry for the blurry picture, but if you look closely you will see where the top 1/3 of the outside housing has been trimmed back and the top mounting hole is gone.

Next I clipped of the connection that came with the fan and soldered it to the old plug head. Threw everything back on the bike and finally got to take it for a spin after a couple long weeks of waiting.

See next post for the bad news.

[jonnyTHUNDERmaker]

The fan and tank where put on on friday night. I drove the bike about 5 miles back to my place from where I was working on it.
Saturday I got up and drove the bike with my wife on the back about 3 miles, the bike was fairly low on fuel, maybe 1 gallon left in the tank.


Later that afternoon on the return trip we stopped to do pick up some groceries. While cruising around in the parking lot in 100F weather the fan kicked on.  :2thumbup: Yay! No more overheating. It blew nice and strong and I could feel the extra air coming at my legs. That was reassuring.

After a quick stop, maybe 30 minutes we hoped back on the bike. Drove through the parking lot and as soon as we got onto the road the bike died. I rolled the throttle and nothing. Electrically it was all still on, but no motor action.

I pushed it into the nearest parking lot to take a look. Like I said low gas, but not out. The first couple times I tried to start it it gurgled for about 1 rotation. After that nothing. I pushed it about 1/4 mile to the gas station and put in another gallon and a half just for the heck of it. No change.

Pulled the plugs, they looked fairly lean. Then I noticed I didn't hear anything coming from the fuel pump. No noise, whine, clicking, nothing.

So did my fuel pump just kick the bucket after I did all that work to prevent it? Did it sitting out of the tank for 2 weeks kill it? At this point I am leaning towards a dead fuel pump. Is there any good ways to test it? Thoughts?

Thanks

[Inge K.]

Could also be your connector to the fuel pump, quite common problem.......RHS battery cover.

Also check that you got power at the green/white wire in this connector at harness side, when pushing
the starter button........if not, check fuse #6.

If you got power at the connector, measure if it`s present directly at the fuel pump connector w/o voltage drop.

Inge K.

[jonnyTHUNDERmaker]

Thanks Inge K,

Just did a little testing. I believe I tested the correct locations.

Fuel Pump harness connection. I tested the green/white wire on the bike side of the harness


I got around 11.4v, I cleaned the connectors with contact cleaner again and got the same.

Next I tested the connection at the fuel pump itself. I unclipped the pump from the tank and pulled it our enough to unscrew the connections. I also got 11.4 at these


Next I tested the battery and ground it to the frame it read right around 12.8v

So???? Will the pump not fire at all unless it gets at least 12v? Is a loss of about .6v enough to screw things up? Where should I troubleshoot next? Thanks again

Also I forget to mention, when we stopped to shop the fan was on when I turned off the bike, would this have any affect on draining the electrical system/battery? It doesn't seem likely it did if my battery is now reading 12.8V.

Just trying to think of everything here without giving up and replacing the fuel pump. Is there a safe way to test the pump directly?

[Inge K.]

A voltage drop of 1,4 is a bit much.........but the pump should still run I think.
It seems like your pump is the problem.

What I did have in mind when I said "measure directly at the pump" it was just that.......
The idea was to test out the connector.......with no load in the circuit, you won`t reveal this.

You could also test the pump with a pair of wires with the correct connectors as on the fuel pump
and long enough to reach the battery.
Connect to the fuel pump, and other ends in your hands...and just connect at the battery a couple
of seconds at the time..............try both directions.

Much muck in the tank lately?
Is the the gause present at the bottom of the pump?

Inge K.

[jonnyTHUNDERmaker]

Ok, Tested the pump directly.

Ran wires from the battery directly to the pump. It kind of jolted a bit and everytime I touched the battery, but didn't "stay" on.

No muck in the tank at all, but I did remove the float off of the gauge when I went through the tank to clean it.  The float is filled with gas and no longer floating. Without the float would this "tell" the system there is no gas and cause the pump not to run?

[Inge K.]

The level sensor just signal the warning lamp (and gauge, if fitted) and nothing else.

It seems like something have jammed inside the pump.
Did you try both directions?...........a few did have suucess with this, when the pump been jammed.

Some have opened the fuel pump, and that way prolong the lifetime a bit....
I`ll see if I can find back some links............don`t have to high expectations.........
If I added together all hours I`ve used for searching old posts on the net w/o any success...........
I would be scared to death...........

Inge K.

[jonnyTHUNDERmaker]

Thats what I figured for the gauge.

By both directions, do you mean swapping the connectors on the top? Ill try that. Thanks for helping me out on this

[Inge K.]

With both directions.............it`s enough to reverse the wire ends which you hold in your hands
when connecting to the battery.

Inge K.

[jonnyTHUNDERmaker]

Ok tried that,

Nothing except a little jolt. Is it possible that an air bubble got inside and messed stuff up? I replaced the return line that goes into the fuel pump filter inlet and I am sure there was air in it.

Again not sure about any of this as it ran fine for about 10 miles and the stopped suddenly.

[Inge K.]

Thanks for helping me out on this.

............see that you are located in Austin.....................and I just loves the blues.........
just kiddin..........would have helped anyway.

Inge K.

[Inge K.]

A air bubble would`t make trouble like this, if you got just air inside your pump it would run but not deliver.
The hose attached to the gauze is for ventilation, so it`s quite normal that it got air inside.

That it did stop suddenly don`t seems that strange, since it looks like something been jammed inside.

Inge K.

[Inge K.]

Some have opened the fuel pump, and that way prolong the lifetime a bit....
I`ll see if I can find back some links............don`t have to high expectations.........
If I added together all hours I`ve used for searching old posts on the net w/o any success...........
I would be scared to death...........

Then I have to add another hour to my list...........scaring.

And you would be occupied rest of the evening, after you have checked this.

Or the easy path, put in a aftermarket, look in the "Lieberry".

Inge K.

[jonnyTHUNDERmaker]

Thanks Inge K,
Looks like Ill be digging into the fuel pump tomorrow evening to see what I can find.

[Michael in AZ]

Q: how's that Spal holding up? You are the second person I see on the board doing a Spal mod. What did you do for the top fastening, and if it is still working, what would you do differently? Your mod seems to have the advantage of using the less expensive fan, as well as less extensive fabrication.