[Rafael18]

My '07 M109 had been sitting disassembled since January while doing the undercutting of the transmission gears. The stock mufflers were laying on top of a blanket on a corner of my garage, as did the rest of the parts that I removed from the bike to get to the transmission.

Today, I finally put together the bike and took it for a test drive. There are a few things that do not feel the same, one of them being that it does not have the same ummph that it had on first gear. The other is the muffler getting red hot after about 10 minutes of riding around the block or down the street. I also noticed that the area near the catalitic converter (?) was also red hot. There was a little (less than 1/2 gallon) of fuel left in the tank, but I filled the tank with fresh fuel and put some fuel injector cleaner before starting it up.

Can somebody point me in the right direction on where to look for potential problems?

Thanks in advance.
Rafael

 

[gottattooz]

Sounds to me like something is blocking your exhaust flow. Did you drop something in one of the pipes and forget about it?? A shop rag or something, perhaps to keep debris and little furry creatures from getting in there??

-JOsh

 

[futurR]

Are you sure the cams are timed properly? One tooth off on either cam can cause that. Did you get a FI light? If not, I would be looking at the cam timing.

 

[MarlboroLts]

I'll bet something crawled in the pipe and nested in there....now you have a crispy critter in there. Yank the pipes off and make sure they are clear.

 

[rynosback]

Are you sure the cams are timed properly? One tooth off on either cam can cause that. Did you get a FI light? If not, I would be looking at the cam timing.

:agree: If there was an obstruction in the pipes, there would be a LACK of power all of the time, not just first gear.

 

[Guest]

Did you check the SET valve to make sure it's adjusted right and working?

 

[jrrose69]

Are you sure the cams are timed properly? One tooth off on either cam can cause that. Did you get a FI light? If not, I would be looking at the cam timing.

yep timeing or a very lean condition will cause this better check your timeing and then your A/F mix

 

[topgun]

I'll bet something crawled in the pipe and nested in there....now you have a crispy critter in there. Yank the pipes off and make sure they are clear.

:agree:those dang rodents nest up everywhere i am working on a 81 cb650 and the air box was filled to the top with dog food

 

[Rafael18]

Sorry, I was dead tired last night, so I guess it's time to answer a few questions and add a little more information....

When I assembled the bike, there was a little tapping sound on the rear cylinder but it went away as soon as the bike warmed up.

There was lack of power in all the gears that I used, although it was only 2, I only went down the street. My wife was on her bike behind me, she is the one that noticed the red hot mufflers, after we heard a few loud pops coming from the mufflers. I imagine that it was poorly burned exhaust gasses actually burning in the red hot mufflers.

I have found no evidence about critters in my garage, but I will look anyway to make sure. I did not put a rag in the pipes.

The timing chain is installed exactly as described in the shop manual. The R/T line was lined up in the sight window on the case, and the lines on the cams were dead level with the edge of the cylinder heads, just as described.

Now tell me more about the SET valve and how it's adjusted. Everything seems to be working fine but I did not check the valve in the muffler. That might be the problem that I'm facing all along.

Thanks for all the replies.

Rafael

 

[rockfordrider]

Hey im not the mechanic these other guys are, but I had a toyota carolla some years back the converter went out and lost power down the road after it warmed up. was at night and i noticed a glow from under the car. Pulled over on the hiway and it was bright red glowing away.

 

[Guest]

The procedures are in the service manual. Here's a link.

http://danzbb.com/downloads/M109-Service-Manual.pdf

 

[Rafael18]

The procedures are in the service manual. Here's a link.

http://danzbb.com/downloads/M109-Service-Manual.pdf

I've got the printed version of that manual. Is it on the muffler section of the manual? I saw something there but it talks about a switch "tool" that gets connected to the dealer connector. I don't have that tool, and I do not know which connector i the "dealer connector". I remember seeing some posts here about making "jumpers" to diagnose/reset sensors. Would you please point me in the right direction?

Thanks
Rafael

 

[Guest]

I've got the printed version of that manual. Is it on the muffler section of the manual? I saw something there but it talks about a switch "tool" that gets connected to the dealer connector. I don't have that tool, and I do not know which connector i the "dealer connector". I remember seeing some posts here about making "jumpers" to diagnose/reset sensors. Would you please point me in the right direction?

Thanks
Rafael

It's Chapter 7. EXCVA That is the exhaust valve That opens and closes to control exhaust flow. If you didn't get the cables hooked up right it won't open up and blocks the flow. There's more in chapter 5 pg 83.

 

[Rafael18]

The more I think about this the less it makes sense.

1. Do anyone of you guys disconnect the battery when you interize your bike? If so, do you have to re-set the Exhaust valve when you de-winterize it? If not, why do I have to re-set my Exhaust valve after rebuilding the transmission? The cables to the valve actuator are hooked up, and I saw it moving (although im not sure it was moving correctly when I fired it up last night and revved it up).

2. If it is not the exhaust valve, then it all point back to a blockage on the pipes or a mis-adjusted valve timing. I have not checked the pipes yet. I am starting to doubt myself about the timing of the cams. The R/T line on the crankshaft was lined up on the sight window on the clutch side of the engine. I lined up the cams perfectly even with the case edge and the chain on the opposite side to the chain tensioned was tight. So I do not see why I would have a problem with timing.

Please a need some guidance.

Thanks
Rafael

 

[No Mas]

It sounds like it is running lean. If you put the motor together then you probably have a good idea of motors and what not. All we can do is throw out ideas you probably know and can cause a lean condition. Another one I havent heard is fuel filter. The set valve is spring loaded to be open. If you have a smooth Idle then the cams cant be to far off.(either they are right or wrong). I bet you tripple checked that cam timimng before assembly. Word to note (MICE RAISE HELL YOU JUST CANT CATCH THEM DOING IT)

 

[V42A9]

Are you sure the cams are timed properly? One tooth off on either cam can cause that. Did you get a FI light? If not, I would be looking at the cam timing.

:agree: This is very common when having the cam timing off. The lower end suffers and the pipes get HOT!!

 

[futurR]

The more I think about this the less it makes sense.

1. Do anyone of you guys disconnect the battery when you interize your bike? If so, do you have to re-set the Exhaust valve when you de-winterize it? If not, why do I have to re-set my Exhaust valve after rebuilding the transmission? The cables to the valve actuator are hooked up, and I saw it moving (although im not sure it was moving correctly when I fired it up last night and revved it up).

2. If it is not the exhaust valve, then it all point back to a blockage on the pipes or a mis-adjusted valve timing. I have not checked the pipes yet. I am starting to doubt myself about the timing of the cams. The R/T line on the crankshaft was lined up on the sight window on the clutch side of the engine. I lined up the cams perfectly even with the case edge and the chain on the opposite side to the chain tensioned was tight. So I do not see why I would have a problem with timing.

Please a need some guidance.

Thanks
Rafael

One thing you have not said about the timing is if you rotated the engine. One way to know for sure, before closing the engine up to be put in the bike, is to rotate the crank 1-2 full rotations. Checking to make sure the cams a dead on. I have been off before, but caught it due to rotating. One tooth on one cam can cause your symptoms. Just an experienced thought.

 

[Moonbaby]

The more I think about this the less it makes sense.

1. Do anyone of you guys disconnect the battery when you interize your bike? If so, do you have to re-set the Exhaust valve when you de-winterize it? If not, why do I have to re-set my Exhaust valve after rebuilding the transmission? The cables to the valve actuator are hooked up, and I saw it moving (although im not sure it was moving correctly when I fired it up last night and revved it up).

2. If it is not the exhaust valve, then it all point back to a blockage on the pipes or a mis-adjusted valve timing. I have not checked the pipes yet. I am starting to doubt myself about the timing of the cams. The R/T line on the crankshaft was lined up on the sight window on the clutch side of the engine. I lined up the cams perfectly even with the case edge and the chain on the opposite side to the chain tensioned was tight. So I do not see why I would have a problem with timing.

Please a need some guidance.

Thanks
Rafael

The first 109 engine i pulled apart I had the back cylinder out of time... It ran, but ran weak, and had a hard time idling (still idoled barely), with the ocasional pop.
You have to do more than follow the r/t lines when timing... You have to count the 2/3 turn here, the 1 1/3 turn there, 1 2/3 turn this time... It is extremely easy to get one of the heads out of time.
The best thing to do is start with the front cylinder, make sure the lower cam gear is lined up, then follow the service manual EXACTLY.
Most of us gear heads just love to spin the motor round and round to make sure everything is turning, and thats what messes you up....

 

[rynosback]

The more I think about this the less it makes sense.

1. Do anyone of you guys disconnect the battery when you interize your bike? If so, do you have to re-set the Exhaust valve when you de-winterize it? If not, why do I have to re-set my Exhaust valve after rebuilding the transmission? The cables to the valve actuator are hooked up, and I saw it moving (although im not sure it was moving correctly when I fired it up last night and revved it up).

Please a need some guidance.

Thanks
Rafael

If stored for a while the SET can stick. I guess just make sure that it cycles correctly. But I am still thinking it is the timing.

 

[Screamnyellozonker]

I did a quick read on the cam timing in the manual. Dang they complicate things. But if you did not turn the motor the 2/3rd turn and/or went the wrong direction it would still line up but be off time. I know that retarded ignition timing will heat up a cat to glowing in very short order as will a very retarded cam seting. So will a rich mixture. The Cat over loads and does a melt down. It would sure be something I would go look at again. You might as well you cant ride it like it is. As far as a plugged exhaust you could put your gloved hand back there and see if it is evenly coming out of both pipes and does it seem to have pressure behind it. I sure am interested in following this one.
Bob