• Ciao Guest - You’ve landed at the ultimate Guzzi site. NEW FORUM REGISTRATIONS REQUIRE EMAIL ACTIVATION - CHECK YOUR SPAM FOLDER - Use the CONTACT above if you need help. New to the forum? For all new members, we require ONE post in the Introductions section at the bottom, in order to post in most of the other sections. ALWAYS TRY A SEARCH BEFORE STARTING A NEW TOPIC - Most questions you may have, have likely been already answered. DON'T BE A DRIVE-BY POSTER: As a common courtesy, check back in and reply within 24 hours, or your post will be deleted. Note there's decades of heavily experienced Guzzi professionals on this site, all whom happily give endless amounts of their VALUABLE time for free; BE COURTEOUS AND RESPECTFUL!
  • There is ZERO tolerance on personal attacks and ANY HYPERLINKS to PRODUCT(S) or other competing website(s), including personal pages, social media or other Forums. This ALSO INCLUDES ECU DIAGnostic software, questions and mapping. We work very hard to offer commercially supported products and to keep info relevant here. First offense is a note, second is a warning, third time will get you banned from the site. We don't have the time to chase repeat (and ignorant) offenders. This is NOT a social media platform; It's an ad-free, privately funded website, in small help with user donations. Be sure to see the GTM STORE link above; ALL product purchases help support the site, or you can upgrade your Forum profile or DONATE via the link above.
  • Be sure to see the GTM STORE link also above for our 700+ product inventory, including OEM parts and many of our 100% Made-in-SoCal-USA GTM products and engine kits. In SoCal? Click the SERVICE tab above for the best in service, tires, tuning and installation of our products or custom work, and don't miss our GT MotoCycles® (not) art on the BUILDS tab above. WE'RE HERE ONLINE ONLY - NO PHONE CALLS MADE OR RECEIVED - DO NOT EMAIL AND ASK QUESTIONS OR ASK TO CALL YOU.
  • Like the new V100, GuzziTech is full throttle into the future! We're now running on an all-new server and we've updated our Forum software. The visual differences are obvious, but hopefully you'll notice the super-fast speed. If you notice any glitches or have any issues, please post on the Site Support section at the bottom. If you haven't yet, please upgrade your account which is covered in the Site Support section or via the DONATE tab above, which gives you full site access including the DOWNLOADS section. We really appreciate every $ and your support to keep this site ad-free. Create an account, sign in, upgrade your account, and enjoy. See you on the road in 2024.

Rough Running After Service

T

Tonyblaze

Tuned and Synch'ed
GT Contributor
Joined
Apr 21, 2018
Messages
62
Location
Ohio, U.S.
I took my 2018 Eldorado in for the 6000 mile service. After getting the bike back it runs a lot "rougher" below 4500 RPM. Before anything above 2000 RPM was smooth as butter. At first I thought it was just mental on my part but my wife asked about it the first time I rode her after the service. Below 4000 it runs like a tractor. Any ideas before I go interrogate the dealer?
 
I'm not very technical but let me give it a shot. Prior to service the engine felt very smooth under torgue down to 2000 RPM. You couldn't really feel the individual cylinders firing. Now I can. The first thing that comes to mind is this is what it feels like when people say engine timing is off. Taking the revs above 4500 smoothes it out. Before when coming to a stop the bike would shake subtley side to side characteristic of all Guzzis from what I read. Once underway you could not feel the side to side shake as the engine smoothed out. Now that shake can be felt up to around 4000-45000 RPM before becoming imperceptive. I don't like it. I want my old bike back.
 
Did they update your software? I just had a similar issue when I had my Eldorado serviced. The fix was they updated my software using the California Custom map.
 
Vagrant said:
If it isn't the plugs then call them and describe it. I bet they know what to look for. Be nice to them, they are one of just a few good ones, but they too can screw up from time to time. Either way you have an issue.
Click to expand...
I have similar symptoms on my “17 California 1400. Is there a way to check the spark plug wires to see if they are faulty? Some way to check with a volt/ohm meter? Hate to buy a new set of wires and caps just to see if the current ones are bad.
 
If you can get to each end of the HT cable then set your meter to Ohms, if they're and non resistive lead it should read zero ohms but I think Guzzi use a resistive lead in which case it will read around 5000 Ohms, or they can have a wire HT cable with a resistive plug cap. And to complicate the issue even more, some spark plugs have a resistor built in. My new V100s doesn't have a HT lead as the igniter sits right on top of the plug. Life is complicated eh. The resistive lead is to stop/suppress radio interference.
 
Want to know if it is shorting on valve cover? Take out 4 screws securing the chrome dome on top, it exposes the wires & caps. Start bike up in the dark, you should be able to see arching. Maybe move wires around & look. Sometimes you can see a spot w/mark where it's arched.
 
Kevin.NZ said:
If you can get to each end of the HT cable then set your meter to Ohms, if they're and non resistive lead it should read zero ohms but I think Guzzi use a resistive lead in which case it will read around 5000 Ohms, or they can have a wire HT cable with a resistive plug cap. And to complicate the issue even more, some spark plugs have a resistor built in. My new V100s doesn't have a HT lead as the igniter sits right on top of the plug. Life is complicated eh. The resistive lead is to stop/suppress radio interference.
V700Steve said:
Want to know if it is shorting on valve cover? Take out 4 screws securing the chrome dome on top, it exposes the wires & caps. Start bike up in the dark, you should be able to see arching. Maybe move wires around & look. Sometimes you can see a spot w/mark where it's arched.
Click to expand...
Thanks, I've tried this - Took the valve covers off, ran it in the dark garage, and no sign of arcing anywhere up and down the wires. Didn't get too aggressive with moving the wires at the plugs because that's where they often break.
Click to expand...
 
I decided to go ahead and part with the $$$ and ordered a new set of wires. Of course, not all four wires are the same, and two are in stock and two have to be ordered. I will CAREFULLY replace them all, and will update this thread to report if there is improvement.
 
Just FYI, I rode my California 1400 out to GuzziTech in Orange, CA and Todd installed his full stainless exhaust system, installed a Power Commander and re-mapped the fueling, and modified the air filter housing. The bike ran much better on the way back to Texas, with noticeably more power and even better gas mileage, but still has the "stumble" off idle and below 2,000 rpm. Todd has been very helpful and has even "remote tuned" my bike by linking laptops. I will continue to send map files to him every few months, per his request. The bike runs outstanding if I ride it full throttle off idle like a dragster (LOL) but I live in a retirement community and my neighbors don't appreciate me smoking the rear tire through the neighborhood. ;) I'm really hoping the issue is more "mechanical" than electronic.
 
TravelinPawPaw said:
Just FYI, I rode my California 1400 out to GuzziTech in Orange, CA and Todd installed his full stainless exhaust system, installed a Power Commander and re-mapped the fueling, and modified the air filter housing. The bike ran much better on the way back to Texas, with noticeably more power and even better gas mileage, but still has the "stumble" off idle and below 2,000 rpm. Todd has been very helpful and has even "remote tuned" my bike by linking laptops. I will continue to send map files to him every few months, per his request. The bike runs outstanding if I ride it full throttle off idle like a dragster (LOL) but I live in a retirement community and my neighbors don't appreciate me smoking the rear tire through the neighborhood. ;) I'm really hoping the issue is more "mechanical" than electronic.
Click to expand...
I have the GTM kit also
No stumble ( before of after install ) but if I sit at a red light long enough then idle will drop a little and engine starts loping to which I just crack the throttle a hair and she goes right back to normal idle. The power band thru the gears is amazing!
 
I just did my 6000 mile service my self, and before the service I noticed the mentioned "power" loss/ rougher running on heavier throttle application at lower RPMs. My intake valve gaps where off quite a bit almost 0.35 (spec is .15). It almost sounds like maybe they botched the valve setting or forgot to tighten the set nuts and maybe something loosened off. I personally wouldn't suspect the spark plugs/wires since your saying it works better at higher RPM where the plugs are firing at a much higher frequency. At higher RPM it would much more susceptible to noise etc. Whenever I've had spark issues it was always more prominent at higher RPMS, you'd feel it bog down/loose power and misfire if you are having spark issues. But that's just my two cents.

Since the service she runs so much smoother, and even sounds much better during deccelartion and has this nice growl now.
 
On scale of 1-5 how hard are the intake valve gaps to check and adjust? I called Cadre. Enzo thinks it may be one of the wires like previously suggested but isn't sure. He wants me to bring the bike back to his shop. That's another $300.00 and 9 hour round trip because he doesn't recommend I ride it down if its misfiring like I'm describing. I need to see if I can address this issue here myself and if not it may be time to sell it and move on to something else. I'm not able to trip down to Cincinnati every time something breaks.
 
Tonyblaze said:
On scale of 1-5 how hard are the intake valve gaps to check and adjust? I called Cadre. Enzo thinks it may be one of the wires like previously suggested but isn't sure. He wants me to bring the bike back to his shop. That's another $300.00 and 9 hour round trip because he doesn't recommend I ride it down if its misfiring like I'm describing. I need to see if I can address this issue here myself and if not it may be time to sell it and move on to something else. I'm not able to trip down to Cincinnati every time something breaks.
Click to expand...
Id say like 2-3, its slightly more involved then an oil change, if you have the service manual, and are mechanically inclined. Thankfully since the head is sticking out the side you dont really need to take anything other then the 2 covers off. You do need a really deep 14mm socket to get the spark plugs out though. Ive seen video on you tube the show access to the alternator bolt from the front to make it easy to find TDC, but mine has a bunch of crap infront of it and ended up shifting up 2 6th gear and turning the wheel by hand with a stick sticking out of the cylinder to find TDC. And be carefull not to damage your gaskets taking it off and putting it back together. if you dont have an extra set laying around, also the torques on all the bolts are pretty low so you dont need to muscle things tights when reassmbling. There was another post about leaks where they over tightened it, and squished the gaskets. The manual calls for 9nm

In terms of tools i lf i remember you only need a 5mm,4mm & maybe a 3mm hex, a 10mm or 8mm wrench, and 14mm deep socket with ratchet, and a 8" skewer to find TDC
 
I agree, 2on a scale of 1-5. You can get wooden dowel at a craft store or hardware store. There are some excellent YouTube videos on the procedure. Just take your time.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top