Power loss - Turn Key Off On

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This has been a constant problem with my bike.

When I first get it on the road after a short warmup she runs fine. About a mile away from the house she looses power. Still running, but without much power when I try to accelerate. I simply turn the key off then back on and all is well. I have to turn the key off and on about 5 times on the way to work.

I have cleaned the ignition at least three times. It has new coils/plugs/wires/caps (green monsters). Gas cap hole cleaned-new cap rubber.

Anyone have an idea of where I should start? I'm afraid that the turning key off and on trick will only last so long. The bike runs fine except for this one little problem. I am leaning towards an electrical problem since turning the key off/on fixes it.

[slow mo]

are you sure the problem you have is not with your pick-up coil wires???? they are located under the left hand engine cover,,if you scan the site you will find exact instructions on how to fix this,,its the same symptoms i had with my bike and p/u coil wires cracked or broken was the problem ,,i hope someone smarter than i posts more info for you ,,ride safe ,,slow mo!

[natemoen]

Here is a link to the pickup wire fix http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread.php?t=543

Not sure why turning the key off and on would clear the problem if it is the pickups but o would certainly check the pickups.

[crazy steve]

..Not sure why turning the key off and on would clear the problem if it is the pickups but I would certainly check the pickups.

I suspect you're pulling in the clutch with your left hand, and using your right to turn the key. Closing the throttle will move the pickups (due to the change in engine vacuum) and allow any broken wires to reestablish contact. Definitely check your pickup wires. Make sure you don't have more than bad either; this is probably just the first one to show up...

[DGXSER]

It would seem to be electrical I agree. Does the symptom re-appear within the same 1 mile distance? Does the issue seem to appear when trying to pull out or speed up, or no real noticable cause other than time and running?

Also, check that your fuel lines are not plugged or kinked or any in line filter plugged. If it were my bike, if you have not already, I'd fully disassemble the gas cap and clean out that filter media in the vent.

otherwise, could also be a TCI issue, getting hot and solder letting go, but would not cool off that quick from just a flick of the switch.

[CatatonicBug]

I think it may be a fuel flow restricion issue. Are your fuel lines kinked at all? Do you have inline fuel filters that might be clogged? Have you removed the petcocks from the tank, and checked the in-tank screens for clogging? It just seems like the fuel flow has time to "recover" and fill the float bowls when you turn off the key, but it's not flowing enough to keep things running for long. You might test it by turning off the petcock just before leaving, and compare your "normal" distance to how far you get with no fuel flowing at all. You should get just a little less distance with no fuel at all.

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The problem exists only for about the first 5 miles after a cold start. It does not matter what I'm doing. Usually, I'm just stabilizing the speed around 45mph. At least trying. Loose power..... Right hand stays on throttle... Left hand Turns key OFF/ON... Accelerate... Shifting has been completed before turning key.

After leaving the garage today it happened just down the street, then again just before the stop light. Happened again twice before the next light. 45 mph speed limit. Stop lights every mile or so. Happened again. OFF ON off on........ 5 miles later... she ran amazing! And ran amazing for the next 45 miles.

Every time i start up cold the above happens. Fuel flow is not a problem. I will look into the P/U coil wires. TCI would be the next thing.

Thank you for your quick replies. You guys are awesome!

I will let you know what exactly fixes the problem.

[natemoen]

So once the engine is all warmed up it stops doing it?

[ManagerMike]

I got so sick of mine doing damn near the same thing, even after cleaning the ign switch repeatedly, I bypassed the frigging thing with a toggle hidden behind the right side cover. Now I have a nifty digital clock where the key used to go!
Just my personal experience however.

[Getty]

yes, once engine is warm it stops doing it. Was fine after the first 5 miles.

[DGXSER]

Sounds like your shutting off the enricher/choke a little early. Try this, full choke to start, wait till the engine idles up to about 2500-3000 rpm and push choke half way in wait a few minutes or ride it, your choice. After about a mile or so you will notice the idle is way up when you pull the clutch. This point you can push the choke the rest of the way in.

Try that process and see if it helps.

[Getty]

Got very cold yesterday, but I did have a quick inspection on those P/U coil wires yesterday. Found problems with the wires when checking resistance.

Is it fairly straight forward to taking the plate off and removing the P/U coils? Can I solder the new wire straight to the coil? Or is the repair limited to splicing to existing wires that come out of that magnet coil?

I read something about .7mm coil gap. Anything else I should keep in mind before attempting the repair?

[natemoen]

It is just an allen bolt holding the plate on and then you can access the p/u coils. You cannot get to the actual connection on the coils so you must splice onto existing wire. I would however suggest running the new wire all the way to a factory splice that is inside the.wiring loom about 6-8 inches outside the timing case.

[slow mo]

i replaced my coil wires with multi -meter wires off an inexpensive volt meter i found out that these wires are designed to flex!!and built for the most part to a higher standard than the Yamaha stock wires,,ride safe ,,slow mo!

[cywelchjr]

I'm not sure if their really built to a higher standard, but their certainly not 30 years old for sure. I haven't found a type of wire that's easily available yet that would work better than the meter leads though.