98 CBR900RR “running out of gas” problem
#1
98 CBR900RR “running out of gas” problem
Hi there! I am the new proud owner of a 98 CBR900rr. I picked it up about a week ago and it was(and is) in almost show room condition. I checked all the fluids and all, everything looked good with about 15,000 miles on the clock. I have now put on about 800-900 miles in the last week-2 weeks.
I can across the problem when, rather embarrassingly I was going about 130 and then at 150 (I know i shouldn’t be going those speeds anyway but I promise it was in a safe environment on an empty 4 lane highway.) When I was doing that’s runs however both times it cut out as if it had a speed limiter. Would sputter and wouldn’t let me rev until I dropped back down to about 120 both times. Forgave it as a fluke as it happened at 2 different speeds.
However on the way back about 3-4 hours later on the same highway I was cruising around 80-90 when it started cutting out and sputtering as if out of gas. I pulled in the right lane and switch to reserve and it went back to normal. I was about 80 miles into the tank but I assumed with how hard I had been pushing it before I had simply run out of gas. However once I found a gas station and filled up I saw I still had about half a tank.
After filling I up got back on the highway and about 20-30 minutes later it happened again and I pulled over and let it idle. (to note it never fully shut off at any of these encounters) I did a full check of fluids and let it idle for a good while, didn’t see any suspects.
It’s been about 4-5 days since this happened and I haven’t encountered any of these issues again on short rides or long rides. I plan on taking the bike apart and doing an oil change and a once over everything next week. Just asking for any advice or if anyone has encountered this before. The only thing I suspect atm is something with the carbs? Or I noticed the choke likes to back out 1/4 of the way while riding for more than 10-15 minutes however like I said I only experienced this issue that one day but the choke issue happens every day.
I do apologize for the grammar I wrote this is a hurry at work! Thank you for any and all responses, happy riding!
I can across the problem when, rather embarrassingly I was going about 130 and then at 150 (I know i shouldn’t be going those speeds anyway but I promise it was in a safe environment on an empty 4 lane highway.) When I was doing that’s runs however both times it cut out as if it had a speed limiter. Would sputter and wouldn’t let me rev until I dropped back down to about 120 both times. Forgave it as a fluke as it happened at 2 different speeds.
However on the way back about 3-4 hours later on the same highway I was cruising around 80-90 when it started cutting out and sputtering as if out of gas. I pulled in the right lane and switch to reserve and it went back to normal. I was about 80 miles into the tank but I assumed with how hard I had been pushing it before I had simply run out of gas. However once I found a gas station and filled up I saw I still had about half a tank.
After filling I up got back on the highway and about 20-30 minutes later it happened again and I pulled over and let it idle. (to note it never fully shut off at any of these encounters) I did a full check of fluids and let it idle for a good while, didn’t see any suspects.
It’s been about 4-5 days since this happened and I haven’t encountered any of these issues again on short rides or long rides. I plan on taking the bike apart and doing an oil change and a once over everything next week. Just asking for any advice or if anyone has encountered this before. The only thing I suspect atm is something with the carbs? Or I noticed the choke likes to back out 1/4 of the way while riding for more than 10-15 minutes however like I said I only experienced this issue that one day but the choke issue happens every day.
I do apologize for the grammar I wrote this is a hurry at work! Thank you for any and all responses, happy riding!
#2
I would check that the tank breather isn’t blocked, if it’s blocked it can cause a vacuum in the petrol tank and that stops fuel leaving the tank, as you ride the fuel level drops in the tank, if air can’t get in through the breather into the tank that’s when a vacuum forms, I think the Fireblade tank breathes through the petrol cap so give it a good blast through with carb cleaner then WD40 then air.
A good check is to ride the bike until it starts cutting out, then stop as quickly as possible and immediately open the fuel cap, if you hear a rush of air that’s a good sign that it’s a blocked breather, also if you set off again straight away and the bike runs normally it’s also a good sign that you had a vacuum in the tank.
edit, looks like there’s breather tubes, so check the tank breather tube so check the tank breather tube for kinks and blockages.
A good check is to ride the bike until it starts cutting out, then stop as quickly as possible and immediately open the fuel cap, if you hear a rush of air that’s a good sign that it’s a blocked breather, also if you set off again straight away and the bike runs normally it’s also a good sign that you had a vacuum in the tank.
edit, looks like there’s breather tubes, so check the tank breather tube so check the tank breather tube for kinks and blockages.
Last edited by Mark9; 08-02-2022 at 06:40 AM.
The following 2 users liked this post by Mark9:
CBRnSD7 (01-07-2023),
Gingerrider (08-02-2022)
#3
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Gingerrider (08-02-2022)
#4
As far as I can tell it hasn’t ever whistled or whined, however as stated I’m very new to the bike so all the sounds are very new to me. I will keep and ear out for it and I do plan on rebuilding the carbs soon which would including cleaning the petcock as well. Keep you updated on that.
#5
I would check that the tank breather isn’t blocked, if it’s blocked it can cause a vacuum in the petrol tank and that stops fuel leaving the tank, as you ride the fuel level drops in the tank, if air can’t get in through the breather into the tank that’s when a vacuum forms, I think the Fireblade tank breathes through the petrol cap so give it a good blast through with carb cleaner then WD40 then air.
A good check is to ride the bike until it starts cutting out, then stop as quickly as possible and immediately open the fuel cap, if you hear a rush of air that’s a good sign that it’s a blocked breather, also if you set off again straight away and the bike runs normally it’s also a good sign that you had a vacuum in the tank.
edit, looks like there’s breather tubes, so check the tank breather tube so check the tank breather tube for kinks and blockages.
A good check is to ride the bike until it starts cutting out, then stop as quickly as possible and immediately open the fuel cap, if you hear a rush of air that’s a good sign that it’s a blocked breather, also if you set off again straight away and the bike runs normally it’s also a good sign that you had a vacuum in the tank.
edit, looks like there’s breather tubes, so check the tank breather tube so check the tank breather tube for kinks and blockages.
#6
You don’t necessarily have a complete or constant blockage, also it’s likely that a small amount of air can get in past the Petrol cap, high revs will drain the tank quicker, therefore if you ride slowly it’s possible that enough air leaks into the tank to keep it from forming a vacuum when not riding hard, or that a kink in the breather partially opens allowing the bike to run normally, there are many possible variables, it’s such a simple thing to check out though, all your having to do is confirm the tank is getting air through the breather, so have a go at this before you start pulling parts of the bike off.
#7
I would check that the tank breather isn’t blocked, if it’s blocked it can cause a vacuum in the petrol tank and that stops fuel leaving the tank, as you ride the fuel level drops in the tank, if air can’t get in through the breather into the tank that’s when a vacuum forms, I think the Fireblade tank breathes through the petrol cap so give it a good blast through with carb cleaner then WD40 then air.
A good check is to ride the bike until it starts cutting out, then stop as quickly as possible and immediately open the fuel cap, if you hear a rush of air that’s a good sign that it’s a blocked breather, also if you set off again straight away and the bike runs normally it’s also a good sign that you had a vacuum in the tank.
edit, looks like there’s breather tubes, so check the tank breather tube so check the tank breather tube for kinks and blockages.
A good check is to ride the bike until it starts cutting out, then stop as quickly as possible and immediately open the fuel cap, if you hear a rush of air that’s a good sign that it’s a blocked breather, also if you set off again straight away and the bike runs normally it’s also a good sign that you had a vacuum in the tank.
edit, looks like there’s breather tubes, so check the tank breather tube so check the tank breather tube for kinks and blockages.
I did the viking mod, air box, jets and all changed and an ignition advancer. After all this it now feels like a completely different bike, not gonna lie scared the **** out of me when I felt the real power of a Fireblade!
Goes to show never hurts to clean the carbs!
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