Hey guys-
My F3s sputtering upon revving from idle to about 3k or so. When im on the road, it will sputter pretty bad until I get it past that point. Its not trying to stall, and its idling perfectly with no misfireing. The idle RPMs dont drop after revving and there is no hesitation aside from that sputtering. From what ive read im thinking its probably that low speed air solenoid.

My other question has to do with the neutral light. On occasion it wont switch on when im in neutral. When this happens, if i put the kickstand down the bike will think its in gear and shut off. If im in neutral and hold the rpms above 3k RPMs, the light will flicker and sometimes just shut off like its in gear. I read another thread where someone else was having the same problem, but I wasnt able to find it again.

I just had my timing and clearances checked so I know im ok there. When my bike was in the shop they also replaced a bad coil pack.

 

I removed my air solenoid today because I was having a simar problem. At around 25km/hr the bike would sputter and it would not accelerate past this point.

Here's a quick test you can do. Get the bike up to around 20mph and then pull the clutch in, if the bikes dies then it's probably the air solenoid. It's not opening to allow enough air into the carbs.

It's pretty easy to pull it out and just reroute the inner ram air tube directly into the t-joint going into the carbs.

 

Thanks for the response guitarhawaii! I actually figured out what was wrong today-my k&n filter was to blame . The problem eventually got worse and I realized that I was progrssivly running richer and richer to the point where was stalling out at idle. Pulled my k&n, did a lap around the block with just the airbox, and then dropped in my old OEM filter from last year. Cleared the problem right up. I cleaned and lubricated the k&n at the begining of the year, and im amazed that it somehow got so dirty in the course of a couple months. I never had problems with it last year. Ive decided to just go back to the OEM filters instead of cleaning and lubricating the k&n.

On a second note- the other problem im having is really bugging me. I really dont know where to start looking . Its getting to the point where alot of the time I have to hold the clutch in to keep the neutral light on, which is a pain in the ***. I know its not just the light because if the kickstand is down and the light goes out, the engine will cut off like its in gear

Another thing that ive noticed kind of out of the blue is my tac will sometimes get stuck for a second while reving up. like it will lag behind the engine speed then jump up to where it should be. I also had it cut out on me all of the sudden the other day when I was riding. The engine was still revving and everything, but the tac was just dead for a minute or two. Is my neutral problem related possibly??

 

yeah it's amazing how much airflow can affect these bikes!

So for the neutral light...you're saying the bike is in neutral but the light doesn't come on? OR the bike is in neutral but you still have to hold in the clutch or it will cut off?

My bike does the same thing with the tach. Sometimes it will cutoff completely then pop back on...As far as there's no way to fix it...I've talked to a few mechanics and they said it's a faulty tach and eventually it will just go out.

 

Sorry I didnt have a very good description of whats going on with the neutral light ill break it down lol-

Lets say im in neutral with the clutch disengaged and I rev the engine up- the neutral light will flicker and after a few seconds it will go out completely. Once the light goes out, if I engage the clutch the neutral light will light back up. If I rev up the engine in neutral with the clutch engaged, the light wont flicker, but as soon as I let the clutch out the neutral light turns off. The only time the engine cuts out is when I have the sidestand down, because the bike thinks its in gear and automatically turns off the engine. In reality, its still in neutral. If I engauge the clutch, the neutral light will come back on and I can start the bike back up with the sidestand down. The engine doesnt cut out or anything when im doing this with the sidestand up. Id also like to note that none of my other electronics (headlight, turnsignals, tail lights, gauge lights etc..) are acting up while this is happening, just that damn neutral light. This is really a strange problem and I havent found anyone else thats ran into this before.

Thanks for the feedback on the tac- Ive been wanting to do the F4i gauge swap for a while and this gives me a reason to do it lol. Just gotta figure out whats going on with the neutral light.

 

Try replacing your neutral switch sensor. Not sure how to test if it's out but it's not too expensive to replace.

Here's one on Ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/NEUTR...item53dd1dc180

Yeah, I'm thinking of doing the F4i gauges as well. Gotta find some at a decent price then get one of these guys to make me a bracket XD

 

To test the Neutral Switch, there is a 3P connector under the tank near the Air Vent Solinoid. Disconnect that connector and with a VOM (meter) check for continuity from the Light Green wire and ground. There should be continuity while it's in neutral only.

There is also a Clutch Diode that could be faulty as well, but less likely since it's solid state. It's located right above the right engine hanger bracket wrapped in the wiring harness. If you want to test that, look at page 17-10 in the shop manual for how to hook up your meter for proper testing.