Twin plug still surges

[nicksaxby]

Hi,
newby to the GS ,just bought an adventure 2.6 k only
and wonder if I can adjust the mixture or similar to improve
running when using just a whiff of throttle , guess this is what
people refer to as surging .. wheres the colour coded plug ?
or can I just disconnect the Cat ?

Thanks all
Nick

 

[CoolCarbon]

Nick,

Take it back to the dealer and 'KICK OFF' big style!!

It should be spot on!!

CC

 

[thesanguine]

Oh dear!

 

[MikeO]

Nick,

sounds like you have 'the surge' - this is the first time I've heard of surging in a twinsparker. As the owner of a singlespark Adv which surged like a pig from new, I have to tell you that the only way I could cure it was to fit a Techlusion R259......

However, there are several other options to explore before considering this. Your dealer should check the valve clearances and then synch the throttle bodies - this may solve it.

If twinsparkers are going to surge like singlesparkers do, there are going to be a lot of very unhappy people out there.....

Mike

ps Try doing a search for 'surging' and have a read through the threads - might give you some more pointers......

 

[(RIP) Mark Dilloway]

Took a std Adv twin sparker out on Friday - 'hunted' all the way. Wierd experience after my clean, sweet running y-pieced 1150!!

Wasn't expecting it - plus ca change ...

 

[Howard Millichap]

Oh dear!

Ditto.

Another entry in the great BMW book of f#ckups.

Just wait for the dealers quote "they all do that sir" or "you'll need to let it settle in for around 20000 miles sir"

They really haven't got any excuse for getting this wrong all the time. After all, they've had 8 years since the 1100 engine was launched to sort it out.

 

[Howard Millichap]

If twinsparkers are going to surge like singlesparkers do,

And why shouldn't they? The position of the 2nd plug has IMHO no effect of the running of the engine. I think it is there to burn any unburnt fuel as it exits through the exhaust valves. Thus allowing the engine to pass the EU emission targets.

 

[nicksaxby]

Thanks Guys for the replies ,had the bike a week new and am well pleased , just needs a little getting used to and reckon
with a little fine tuning it`ll settle down...famous last words
BTW Howard ,reckon i`m not too far from you ,probably even ridden past your house ....

 

[Howard Millichap]

BTW Howard ,reckon i`m not too far from you ,probably even ridden past your house ....

Doubt it. I'm up a cul de sac.

Where are you?

Here's an idea. Try disconnecting the second spark plug.

 

[BarcodeMan]

Hi Nick,

Just spotted your post.

Just to put your mind at rest my twin-spark also began to surge literally a few hundred miles into it's life. Can only assume a bit of cable stretch or something during the run-in period. The throttle bodies were balanced at the first service & it's been faultless for several thousand miles since.

Like Howard I understand plug #2 to be simply a 'clean-up' exercise for emissions purposes, so can see no reason why a twin-spark should be any more free of this issue than a single, but from what I've experienced, on a twin-spark the problem can certainly be managed with a few tweaks once in a while.

 

[Mick Fagan]

If one is using just a whiff of throttle and it's hard to manage, then I think that all that is required is to balance the throttle body cables.

All of the big twins behave like this if their cables are out by a poofteenth, especially when new as the engine is quite tight.

Surging generally, is when one is sitting on a constant throttle setting at something like 3,000 rpm or similar, and, the bike surges forward and then drops back, then surges forward again, all of this is happening when one doesn't even move the throttle a Bees Dick!

Mick.

 

[MikeO]

Excellent units of measurement Mick!

Mike

 

[The Mechanic]

Second plug.

And why shouldn't they? The position of the 2nd plug has IMHO no effect of the running of the engine. I think it is there to burn any unburnt fuel as it exits through the exhaust valves. Thus allowing the engine to pass the EU emission targets.

Fraid not, the second plug sparks at the same time as the centre plug, it just ensures a better flame front in the combustion chamber. The only way to burn excess emissions off after combustion has taken place is either by air bleed/injection into the exhaust down pipe or to employ a light off device after the cat.

The surging is down to the ECU map, careful set-up of valves and throttle bodies will improve the situation but it is still there no matter what you do, cans amd 'Y' pieces just mask the fault. Reading this are you Mr BWM, its a design fault and it shouldn't be there but for legislation. My 03 surged from day one and playing about with the throttle pot etc just moves it around the rev range (i.e. 3000rpm and down or up depending on pot position) Valve clearances at such low revs for this engine make little difference, provided they are within service limits.

The guys with Techclusions and other chip mods regularly prove it for me that the fault is generic to the model/line.:argue

 

[temoore]

Try changing spark plugs

I never would have thought that just changing spark plugs would have made such a difference. I recently changed to:
Champion RC9YC or RC9YC4 plugs based on the recomendation of a poster on the Adventure site. I had tried Autolite plugs a few years ago, and thought they made it run worse.
The Champion plugs are amazing! The bike has lost 95% of any surging it has, runs smoother and stronger. This is the way the bike should have been running all along. I have done a lot of changes to the bike (K&N, BBP chip, and more), and the $3.50 plug change was probably more noticeable than the others for a lot less money. This change may be more or less noticeble on different GS's, but it has really made my bike more fun to ride. My bike is a '01 1150GS, 26K miles.